Never been to CA/No car- Job in Moreno Valley...where to live? (Los Angeles: sublet, apartment)

[Glitterific]

Thanks all for reading- my best friend recently got a job in Moreno Valley. Neither of us have ever been to California, much less the Inland Empire. She has this very lofty dream to live in Los Angeles, and to commute to her work.

I don't know much about transportation out there, but I assume it will be misery for her to even attempt to bring that dream to reality. She does not have a car yet- but will be getting one in a few months.

Prior to this she's lived in Miami so in her mind using Uber will take care of that in the mean time. Is Uber even well utilized in those areas?

I plan on suggesting to her that she rent a car for a month instead of using the bus/train if these areas are as unsafe as what I am reading in other threads. She is a young woman living in a place with no friends or family.

I will be traveling with her next week to find a place for her to stay. This is all very last minute because the company did not tell her where she would be relocated to until a few days ago, and she starts work in less than a month.

Please suggest areas that she can live in safely and commute to Moreno Valley, since her career and a place to live is what is important, and less so living in LA. We have told her perhaps she should find a month-to-month or short term sublet over the next few months, then IF she wants to deal with LA traffic, then she can move out there.

I only have a week to spend with her out there, driving around, etc so any help or tips will be greatly appreciated.

[KimVanderwood]

I would say she should live closer to work. If she lived in Los Angeles and commuted to Moreno Valley it would be about a 70-80 mile commute depending on where in Los Angeles she wanted to live. You might think your going the opposite way of traffic because you're going away from the city, but really there's traffic going in each direction at all times from sunrise to sunset.

If she wants a "bigger city" feel she should consider living in Riverside because it's the larger bustling city near by. You can use uber in the inland empire, but if she was going to commute from LA with uber that would cost her a hefty penny back and forth.

[foyposn]

If L.A.'s in her realm of possibilities, then she should go check out a place like Huntington Beach in Orange County. The morning commute from Huntington Beach to Moreno Valley goes against traffic making it an easy drive of about 30-35 minutes. Same thing with the evening commute back to HB. If she wants to live somewhere in Riverside County, the only recommendable place is maybe Temecula (it has a real nice Casino). Moreno Valley and Riverside are not exactly fun places to live, whatsoever, and Corona is an uninteresting, human storage facility masquerading as city (suburban dystopia).

[Danalysd]

Originally Posted by foyposn

If L.A.'s in her realm of possibilities, then she should go check out a place like Huntington Beach in Orange County. The morning commute from Huntington Beach to Moreno Valley goes against traffic making it an easy drive of about 30-35 minutes. Same thing with the evening commute back to HB. If she wants to live somewhere in Riverside County, the only recommendable place is maybe Temecula (it has a real nice Casino). Moreno Valley and Riverside are not exactly fun places to live, whatsoever, and Corona is an uninteresting, human storage facility masquerading as city (suburban dystopia).

You must drive really fast, this is a 60-70 mile drive

[RosieSD]

Originally Posted by Danalysd

You must drive really fast, this is a 60-70 mile drive

Google estimates between 1 hour 10 minutes and 1 hour 20 minutes "in regular traffic." Maybe the person who suggested Huntington Beach has a helicopter?

Glitterific, has your friend actually used the Uber estimator (https://www.uber.com/fare-estimate) to get a sense of how much her plan will cost?

I ran a quick estimate and found cheapest rate right now (during rush hour) between LA and Moreno Valley is running $68-91. That's one way.

So, round trip she'll be paying between 150 and 200 per day.

Five days a week, that's $750 to $1000 per week.

That's $3000 to $4000 per month in uber expenses (and that assumes she can walk to get her groceries.

Yearly, that's $30,000 to $48,000 in uber fees.

Unless she is getting paid some fantastic amount, that probably isn't going to work for her, especially when she adds on LA rents. If she wants to go via car, she'd be better off buying a car right away than paying uber.

However, if she'll be working near March Airforce base, she could look into public transportation via metrolink and buses, and then plan her apartment search around that: http://www.metrolinktrains.com/stati...on_id/143.html

As her friend, the best way to help her during your trip is to drive from LA to Moreno Valley and back during rush hour a few times during your stay. Then, also use public transportation a few times (see above link for info).

While I personally wouldn't want to hassle with this commute, I am sure there are people that do it (California is crazy that way). Your job is not to make the decision for her, but to make sure she has the information she needs to make an informed decision.

All that said, she'll probably need a car sooner, rather than later, if only to get her groceries and get around on weekends.

Enjoy your trip --- you sound like a good friend.

[sacreole]

As others may have mentioned, it would be wise for your friend to find a place as close to work as possible. Metrolink, the regional commuter rail network, has a route between Moreno Valley and Los Angeles (91/Perris Valley Line):

Welcome to Metrolink

Metrolink has three morning trips from Moreno Valley to Los Angeles and three return trips in the afternoon.

[Glitterific]

Originally Posted by sacreole

As others may have mentioned, it would be wise for your friend to find a place as close to work as possible. Metrolink, the regional commuter rail network, has a route between Moreno Valley and Los Angeles (91/Perris Valley Line):

Welcome to Metrolink

Metrolink has three morning trips from Moreno Valley to Los Angeles and three return trips in the afternoon.

Thank you. She has listened and will stay closer first before moving further out. At least not before she has her own wheels. I will look over the train schedule. Maybe we'll have a chance to ride to see what it is like while I am there.

[Glitterific]

Originally Posted by foyposn

If L.A.'s in her realm of possibilities, then she should go check out a place like Huntington Beach in Orange County. The morning commute from Huntington Beach to Moreno Valley goes against traffic making it an easy drive of about 30-35 minutes. Same thing with the evening commute back to HB. If she wants to live somewhere in Riverside County, the only recommendable place is maybe Temecula (it has a real nice Casino). Moreno Valley and Riverside are not exactly fun places to live, whatsoever, and Corona is an uninteresting, human storage facility masquerading as city (suburban dystopia).

Thank you, I will pass the word. Is Riverside just boring? Our main concern in SAFETY.

She will get acclimated to her work (first job post college) while scouting places to live in LA after a while. If it is just boring, we will still leave it as a possible.

Knowing her, she won't even drive around her area much looking for fun, she'll just be going out to LA as much as possible. Living out there has always been her dream.

[Glitterific]

Originally Posted by KimVanderwood

I would say she should live closer to work. If she lived in Los Angeles and commuted to Moreno Valley it would be about a 70-80 mile commute depending on where in Los Angeles she wanted to live. You might think your going the opposite way of traffic because you're going away from the city, but really there's traffic going in each direction at all times from sunrise to sunset.

If she wants a "bigger city" feel she should consider living in Riverside because it's the larger bustling city near by. You can use uber in the inland empire, but if she was going to commute from LA with uber that would cost her a hefty penny back and forth.

Thank you. We will look into Riverside also. She is a newbie driver, so I know LA traffic isn't for her yet.

[Glitterific]

Originally Posted by RosieSD

Google estimates between 1 hour 10 minutes and 1 hour 20 minutes "in regular traffic." Maybe the person who suggested Huntington Beach has a helicopter?

Glitterific, has your friend actually used the Uber estimator (https://www.uber.com/fare-estimate) to get a sense of how much her plan will cost?

I ran a quick estimate and found cheapest rate right now (during rush hour) between LA and Moreno Valley is running $68-91. That's one way.

So, round trip she'll be paying between 150 and 200 per day.

Five days a week, that's $750 to $1000 per week.

That's $3000 to $4000 per month in uber expenses (and that assumes she can walk to get her groceries.

Yearly, that's $30,000 to $48,000 in uber fees.

Unless she is getting paid some fantastic amount, that probably isn't going to work for her, especially when she adds on LA rents. If she wants to go via car, she'd be better off buying a car right away than paying uber.

However, if she'll be working near March Airforce base, she could look into public transportation via metrolink and buses, and then plan her apartment search around that: Moreno Valley / March Field Station | Metrolink

As her friend, the best way to help her during your trip is to drive from LA to Moreno Valley and back during rush hour a few times during your stay. Then, also use public transportation a few times (see above link for info).

While I personally wouldn't want to hassle with this commute, I am sure there are people that do it (California is crazy that way). Your job is not to make the decision for her, but to make sure she has the information she needs to make an informed decision.

All that said, she'll probably need a car sooner, rather than later, if only to get her groceries and get around on weekends.

Enjoy your trip --- you sound like a good friend.

Thank you- she is like a sister to me. Having her safe and at ease will mean more years on my life (sanity) and less wails coming through my cell phone. And you are correct about it being her decision. Her only experience other than home was a college campus, so she's a little naive.

She'll be making a good salary, but that cost is just too much. I will try to convince her to rent a car for a few weeks until she is ready to finance something. When she calculated the Uber cost from the Air Bnb we'll be staying at to her work, it was just under $30. And I'll be sure to put her behind the wheel during rush hour on the way to LA.

Is the traffic a slow crawl? Or steady speed just lots of cars bumper to bumper?