opinions from californians (Los Angeles, Long Beach, Torrance: apartments, rent, crime rate)

[Chrystal_H]

Hello
I'm Chrystal I'm Married with 2 kids 9 and 5. We live in a small town in a farm house in Ohio. We had plans of moving to texas but that didn't work out for job reasons. So now the opportunity has came that we can move to Long Beach Cali. Everytime we mention the idea to our family they get pretty rude telling us its stupid and crazy say things like there's going to be a huge earthquake and swallows cali to the crime rate is so bad we r gonna get shot to his job won't last. Ect every negative thing u can think of. So I just wanna here things from people who actually live there. Is cali really that bad, is it good for kids? Do u. Have to be rich to live there? General questions like that. Thanks.

[bouncethelight]

Think about it. If it was that bad, would anyone live here?

Whether or not you want to live here is up to you, but California has a huge population, so clearly lots of people do just fine here!

[BRinSM]

Hi Chrystal. LA is actually safer than most big cities in the US believe it or not, Long Beach included. LB has some rough neighborhoods, but they are easy to avoid assuming you can afford it. also, earthquakes happen of course, but severe (life threatening) damage is rare.

your biggest issue will be the cost of living. sure there are cheaper areas to live and good public schools in socal, but they are usually mutually exclusive. living in an area with good public schools within a decent commute distance of major job centers (including LB) is not cheap. I'm not sure what your expectations are, but a 3br apartment for your family anywhere with good schools and within 30 minutes of LB is going to cost close to $2000 per month at the bottom end of the price spectrum. 2br apartments will be slightly cheaper and detached homes will be much more. you can live further away and get a house that is near good schools for about the same price (maybe less), but you'll be looking at commute times in excess of an hour each way.

good luck!

[nslander]

In addition to what has already been said, I think you need to ask yourself: do you love living in a small house in rural Ohio with 2 kids? Because if you do, I suspect the transition to LA/LB will be tough. But if you are itching for a basic change and prepared to accept the area on it own terms, LA might be for you. I love LB, but as has already been stated, housing and quality schools can be a challenge. If you are locked on LB, you might want to start looking at areas south of Redondo St. Expanding out, Lakewood and Torrance might be viable alternatives. Best of luck.

[Lazer22]

My opinion is that if you want to live in a nice, safe neighborhood you and/or your husband will need a job that pays well. Long Beach is a mix of bad and great neighborhoods, the closer you are to Ocean Blvd, the better.

[yamota]

I don't blame you for wanting to move away from your family, they sound like total a-holes; but with a name like Chrystal, you're perfect for LA!

[jw2]

Chrystal, I don't know the areas south of Los Angeles all that well but I think the biggest adjustment will be coming from 110 acres of horse property to real city living in Long Beach. To get anything close to that, you will probably have to go inland a bit.

[HarryKerry]

It sounds to me you really need to get away from this family of yours. I think you should come out here, make it a success and taunt your family for the rest of their lives that you have a better life than they.

[yamota]

I agree, once you make it big out in LA, go back to your family and then stick it in their faces

[Mike121]

Originally Posted by Chrystal_H

Hello
Is cali really that bad, is it good for kids? Do u. Have to be rich to live there? General questions like that. Thanks.

My two cents is this...

People out here tend to live in small spaces. They have to because of the cost of rent or a mortgage. If you learn to live in a small space, you'll find that California isn't really that much more expensive.

I know some two-parent two-kid families that live in two bedroom places. I know a few two-parent, one-kid families that live in one bedroom places with the kid in the living room or with a toddler sleeping in the same room as the parents. There's nothing wrong with that, but, if you're used to the one-bedroom-per-kid idea, it can be hard to adjust.

Also, I don't think California is bad for kids, but, when you live in the city, you can find trouble if you go looking for it.

So I guess I'm saying that it is just as easy to raise a good kid in California as in Ohio, but, if your kids are difficult or start heading down the wrong path, it might be more risky.