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Old 01-16-2012, 12:36 PM
 
10 posts, read 11,499 times
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I'm planning on working in post-production and my boyfriend is a musician. Unfortunately neither of us have jobs yet, and I know that's important in planning where to live. If either of us get jobs before we move, then that might change things, but as of now, I'm really just looking to find out which areas are suitable for us so we know what to look for when we go look for a place in person.

I'm 22 and my boyfriend is 24. We're planning on moving to LA by the end of summer. Our budget for rent is $1000 tops and we figure that we'll probably end up living in a studio, which we're ok with. We're looking for a safe neighborhood that's still fun with a decent night life - we'll take a nice little restaurant and dive bar over fancy restaurants and clubs. Walkability would be a major plus as well.

So far my search has led me to Studio City, Culver City, Silver Lake and Echo Park. The first two are my favorites. Again, we do plan on visiting for a week or so in the future to actually find an apartment. I'm just looking to narrow the search down right now. Any advice or thoughts are much appreciated!
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Old 01-16-2012, 03:58 PM
 
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all 4 areas fine by your budget. echo park is a little on the dangerous side though so i might limit it to the first 3. culver city is more quiet and sleepy than silver lake, which is a very happening hipster/artsy area. plenty of bars and walking distance stuff in culver still though. studio city is somewhere in the middle in terms of how busy it gets
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Old 01-16-2012, 06:29 PM
 
Location: St. Paul, MN
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I wouldn't recommend Echo Park or Silver Lake since both of them are near dangerous neighbourhoods. I would recommend Beverly Hills, Culver City, Bel Air, or Pacific Palisades. Try to stay on the west side of LA because on the east side there's many criminals and gangs. And if you're going to live somewhere around Beverly Hills, Hollywood, or West Hollywood, bring a lot of money because things over there are very expensive. Moderator cut: rude

Last edited by Count David; 01-17-2012 at 06:03 PM.. Reason: rude comment
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Old 01-16-2012, 06:48 PM
 
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I grew up a few blocks from the Vista Theater in the Silver Lake area.

If you ever plan to have kids, you really don't want to live in Silver Lake and Echo Park.

Ghetto schools with bad teachers and bad students--this is coming from someone who grew up and had friends/family in the area.
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Old 01-16-2012, 07:09 PM
 
Location: Earth
17,440 posts, read 28,506,852 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by genjy View Post
Ghetto schools with bad teachers and bad students--this is coming from someone who grew up and had friends/family in the area.
That's what it's like in LAUSD areas as a whole.
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Old 01-17-2012, 12:03 PM
 
68 posts, read 165,457 times
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Silverlake is not dangerous at all...Give me a break.
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Old 01-17-2012, 05:49 PM
 
4,213 posts, read 8,277,097 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by otaman1 View Post
I wouldn't recommend Echo Park or Silver Lake since both of them are near dangerous neighbourhoods. I would recommend Beverly Hills, Culver City, Bel Air, or Pacific Palisades. Try to stay on the west side of LA because on the east side there's many criminals and gangs. And if you're going to live somewhere around Beverly Hills, Hollywood, or West Hollywood, bring a lot of money because things over there are very expensive. Moderator cut: rude.
beverly hills, bel air, and hte palisades don't have decent nightlife or anythng going on. bel air and palisades especially are pretty much strictly residential wtih just a few shops and eateries

Last edited by Count David; 01-17-2012 at 06:03 PM.. Reason: quote
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Old 01-17-2012, 07:42 PM
 
164 posts, read 605,473 times
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You guys are funny, giving advice as if they are in their 30s or 40s.

The OP is in her early 20s. They are recent grads.

Silverlake and Echo Park are EXACTLY where they should be looking at. Tons of 20-something musicians and filmmakers living there.

Of course these are all stereotypes, but to give you a crude overview of what the neighborhoods in LA are generally like:

Westside (Santa Monica, Brentwood, Westwood, Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Malibu, Pacific Palisades, etc): accountants, lawyers, bankers, MBAs, agents, producers, wealthy people, UCLA students (study study study all the time), etc. Also skews Persian and Jewish. Not really where most of the 20-something creative folks live.

Culver/Palms: pockets of creative folks as it's more affordable.

West Hollywood: gays, Russians, actors, models, seniors

Hollywood, Studio City, Toluca Lake North Hollywood: actors, screenwriters, editors, directors, etc.

Sherman Oaks, Burbank, and other parts of the San Fernando valley: film crew with families tend to live here (camera ops, editors, grips, gaffers, Teamsters, etc). Also porn out towards Van Nuys, Encino.

Downtown LA: very mixed; there's the yuppie lofts on the west part of downtown (just east of the 110 - Staples Center and up towards Pershing Square); on the east side, lots of filmmakers, musicians, photographers, etc. live in the grungy "real" artist lofts (i.e. literally converted warehouses), basically close to the American Apparel building along Alameda.

Echo Park / Silverlake / Los Feliz: from cheapest (Echo Park) to most expensive (Los Feliz). Runs the gamut. But Echo Park and Silverlake are lighter on film people, and heavier on music folks. Los Feliz is more upscale, a mix of yuppies and a few celebrity actors/musicians living there in the hills.

In your situation, look at Echo Park, Silverlake, and Downtown LA (east side - yes, it looks very grungy and urban, but a LOT of young musicians and filmmakers live there. It's safer than it looks, and reason why they love living there is the space to rehearse and relatively cheap rent if you are willing to do a bit of DIY on the place along with say 2-3 other people living in a collective. These three areas are where a lot of your fellow young musicians and filmmakers are going to be. Don't be scared by it.
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Old 01-17-2012, 07:48 PM
 
Location: California
37,074 posts, read 42,038,193 times
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My D moved to LA after college and has lived in Weho, Santa Monica and now Silver Lake. She likes Silver Lake the best. She works in post production and her bf is a musician..lol
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Old 01-17-2012, 09:20 PM
 
10 posts, read 11,499 times
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Thank you for the input everyone! Especially redturtle. I'm definitely leaning toward Silverlake now, but I have a god idea of which areas to check out in general when I visit. Studio City sounds perfect for me personally, but I want to make sure I'm in an area where my boyfriend and I can both benefit.
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