How do people with no diploma survive here? (section 8, sales)

[Ruth4Truth]

Some people live with their parents while going to school and doing some kind of free-lance web-based work. Renting your own place for many people without degrees is a luxury.

[SlowMotionApocalypse]

No car

No friends

$500 a month room

However the bleak outlooks probably means I won't be making it to 76.4 or whatever.

[mark_rivers19]

this whole thread is flawed.. sorry to the OP.
ONE is to AGREE to an assumption that a diploma EQUALS a job.
which we all know isn't the case in the REAL world.

Whether it's here in LA or back in the East Coast you will see a lot of unemployed college grads.
Heck, the waiter/waitress serving you is probably in that population.

AND i do agree with the Wants vs Needs thing.
Not everyone in LA lives like a housewife from Beverly Hills.

[smdensbcs]

Originally Posted by 1200RT

That is not an example of old money vs. new money.

No, but it IS a pitch-perfect example of "the rest-of-the-story" underlying nearly everybody who owns a house in SoCal who was born between roughly 1960 and 1980. Of the dozens of people I knew well growing up in Westside LA in the 1970's and 1980's, only five currently own a home in the Los Angeles area. Of those five, three inherited the home (no mortgage) from parents who bought in the late 1950's to early 1960's. The other two are unimaginably house poor and, as I understand it, also several hundred thousand dollars underwater.

The three who inherited think LA is great - love it.

The two who didn't inherit are pretty bummed/irritated but generally resigned to their fate.

The 12-15 who are apartment dwellers in LA (most of whom are unmarried, no kids, with roommates) into their 40's aren't quite sure what hit them and why their life turned out so different from their parents.

The 12-15 who got themselves out of LA all seem to be leading "normal" lives - house with reasonable mortgage on one professional income, married, kids, etc. These people seem to generally reflect the lives their parent's led, with roughly 70-80% lower divorce rate compared to their parents.

Almost all of the persons above have college and/or professional degrees of some sort. The only defining difference between them I can discern is (i) who inherited a house and (ii) whether those who did not inherit stayed in LA or moved out (generally out of CA). Moving to SF or SD would not change the fundamental dynamic, as far as I can tell.
Just my personal observation.

[Tex?Il?]

Originally Posted by JohnG72

People consistently confuse needs and wants.

LA is not nearly as expensive as its made out to be.

The biggest expense for almost everyone is housing. But its not expensive as its made out to be.

Contrary to the standard opinions expressed on city data, you can find an apartment in a nice safe area for $900-1000/mo.

I will also add that some people without degrees, through sheer hard work, have made a very good income.

That said, you can also find a smallish 2 bedroom SFR in a safe blue collar area of Los Angeles with poor performing schools for around $1400/mo. My former neighbor was renting a small 2bd/1ba home in a nice enough neighborhood in Arleta for $1400/mo in 2002. I assume rent is the same or has declined. I looked at a home on the border of Lake Balboa/Van Nuys a few years ago that was $1350/mo. No one WANTS to live in those areas, but if you are a family of 4 with an income under 60K a year, something like that might be the best you can do.

You can also find living arrangements for much cheaper so long as you are willing to live in areas where everyone speaks spanish or you are willing to have roommates.

Basically:

Owning a home is NOT a need.
Renting a SFR is NOT a need.
Driving a car is NOT a need.
Good performing schools are NOT a need.

Rather all of the above are wants.

So thats how lower income people get by...they live in areas that are less expensive. They have old cars or do without cars. They rent, not own

Hmm . . . maybe, if you are really willing to look. I rent a studio for 1200. But when I moved here, I didn't exactly have all the time in the world to look. When my lease is up at the end of the year, I will definitely be looking for a better deal.

As much as it is possible to live in LA without a car, it is still a city that would be difficult to get around without one. I LOVE LA, but I can't say its one of the top cities for going carless. But yes, you can just have an old car, like me

Other than that, I definitely agree with you. LA is not the type of city that people come to, to own a home.

In fact, being able to own a single family home, is really just about the only main reason why people do leave the LA area.

But, yeah, I do agree with you, LA doesn't have to be anymore expensive than living in any other major city.

For the record, I actually have a Masters, but that as we know is still no guarantee of financial security.

[BayAreaHillbilly]

Originally Posted by CollegeMoms

According to this site, only about a quarter of adults 25 and older have a bachelors degree in the city of Los Angeles and a whopping 33.4% never got a high school diploma How does a third of the city even find a job let alone afford living out here?

They live in the hood / barrio and they live poor.

[PureHapa]

Sales.
Service.
Lower-level Administration.
Industrial/Manufacturing/Supply Chain.
Drivers.
City workers.
Police.
Fire Department.
Post Office.
Franchise owners.
Construction/Plumbing/Electric/Roofing/Handyman etc.
Retail.
Real Estate - agents, brokers, clerical, appraisers, inspectors etc.
Medical - Aides, assistants, specialties requiring training but no degree.
Music Industry.
Film Industry.
Restaurant/Food/Tourist/Hospitality.

Need I go on?

[TexasGuy22]

CA is a welfare state, enough said.

[West of Encino]

They either inherited money from family or they gain from being self employed.

[HunterK]

I work in the film industry and haven't completed college yet make more than anyone I know this side of 30..

On the other hand I have MANY relatives and friends getting out of great colleges with bachelors & masters degrees and struggling to find a job that doesn't pay minimum wage..


A degree definitely doesn't hurt. But I feel too many people believe a job will be handed to them after acquiring one.