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Interesting replies. It seems like one of the keys to enjoying LA life is not having a long driving commute then? Living in a walkable LA neighborhood sounds great.
Quote:
Originally Posted by seain dublin
Well there you go, congrats on getting your degree but don't blame LA because you moved to one of the more expensive cities with no skill set and no formal education.
Than had a tough time.
Kind of like buying house by JFK airport and than complaining about plane noise.
You went back to college, which resulted in a better job, great, but if you had come to LA with that degree your experience would be completely different.
The same thing could have happened in Chicago or Seattle.
Not really. I don't know why you felt the need to blame the person for what happened to them either. LA is significantly worse for college graduates than many other large US metro areas, especially compared to Seattle. A lot of STEM graduates have to move away to find work.
I lived in Los Angeles for 5 years, and loved every minute of it! I grew up on the east coast, so I never took the weather for granted. I loved hiking in the Santa Monica mountains, and being close to the ocean.
I know everyone says how congested and how much a nightmare the traffic is, but I lucked out and it never really bothered me. I lived in Brentwood and commuted to Century City.
Unfortunately, it was time for me leave my job, and in my area (finance) there aren't a ton of jobs in LA. So I started the job search and ended up finding a new job and made the move to NYC.
I went from living in one the nicest areas of Los Angeles to an average apartment in NYC. I spend considerably more on rent now. It feels like it rains every other day here, and winter is right around the corner !
Hate it. I was born here and don't want to leave my elderly family while they're still here. Once they're gone, I'll either move back to Britain (I'm a citizen by descent) or move to a part of the country that is affordable. I've never understood the hype of Southern California. It is boring, overpopulated, uncomfortable, takes an hour to drive a few miles. It's the most expensive undesirable place on earth.
Hate it. I was born here and don't want to leave my elderly family while they're still here. Once they're gone, I'll either move back to Britain (I'm a citizen by descent) or move to a part of the country that is affordable. I've never understood the hype of Southern California. It is boring, overpopulated, uncomfortable, takes an hour to drive a few miles. It's the most expensive undesirable place on earth.
I'm in the same boat as you. I'm also a native and hate so cal. This place is killing me slowly. Everybody's so stressed. I've done everything 5 times over. The beach is packed and 15 bucks to park and the waters polluted and cold. As soon as my dad ( also European who won't leave) dies I'm out of here.
With regards to the greater LA area, it depends on where you live and what you value as well as socioeconomic level and family situation.
If you're someone who has no kids, lives close to work, and is content to live in a small place with enough money to enjoy outdoor activities, nightlife, restaurants, etc., LA might be an awesome place. Similarly, if you're wealthy living in a beautiful home in a prime area with a short commute where you can afford the best that the town has to offer, life may also be great.
However, most of LA city proper is overpriced and/or overrated with tons of congestion/traffic. Not to mention that many areas are run down and/or lack character.
Especially if you're raising a family, I don't see the appeal unless you're living in a prime area and can pay to send your kids to great private schools. Frankly, for much of the city, I just don't see the value proposition. There are certainly some nice suburbs outside the city proper with better schools and often more family-friendly, but commutes to major job centers may be hellish and those suburbs can also be very expensive.
And if you don't like the outdoors or don't place as much importance on weather, you're essentially paying a sunshine premium where you don't reap any benefit. Assuming you can find a similar job elsewhere, it makes more sense to live in another part of the country where you can live a similar life and get more bang for your buck.
I feel much the same as the OP regarding Los Angeles now. When I moved here in 1997, I didn't. I really enjoyed it. I was in my late 20s, moving from a smaller, sleepier town with not very much to do and no job market for a recent college graduate. I moved to L.A. for the better job market (at least it was in '97/'98), the wonderful arts/culture/music scenes, and the great variety of food.
The first 3 years I lived in L.A., I commuted over an hour from the SFValley to my job in West L.A., and another hour commute back. In truth, I hated the commute, but I tolerated it at the time because I was still young and energetic enough to put up with it, and I enjoyed L.A. There was so much to see, do, eat, discover, it was great. I went out a lot during my first few years in L.A., driving from the Valley to downtown, Hollywood, West L.A., even OC and Pomona a few times to see bands, go to music and club events, cultural events, art museums, bookstores, etc. I put up with heavy traffic, parking fees and overpriced drinks just to go out and have a good time, but I didn't mind at all.
The longer I stayed in L.A., the more it began to lose it's charm for me. It also didn't help when the economy started really tanking in 2004, cost of living got more expensive, and L.A. seemed to get more crowded. I was no longer commuting for work, but also living paycheck-to-paycheck with a job in public education. I suppose I could have had a better living situation, a nicer place to live in a nicer neighborhood if I'd been willing to live with roommates, but I've always been a more introverted person, a solitary soul, and I'd worked too long and hard to want to share my living space with anyone else. I prefer to live on my own and you definitely pay for that in L.A. I've done my best to manage costs by living in "less desirable" neighborhoods - no westside, Venice, Santa Monica, 'hip' eastside, Silverlake, Los Feliz, etc, for me. I lived in lower socio-economic neighborhoods in the Valley, and now a very low socio-economic neighborhood in the South Bay.
From 2005 to 2007, I was back to commuting over an hour & a half to and from the Valley to downtown L.A. where I had a new job after I'd gotten an MA and changed my career path. I hated the commute, but tolerated it yet again because I was in a new career field and understood that, if you live in a bigger city and you're gaining experience in a new career, you're most likely going to have to commute to your job until you've gotten more experience and are able to find work closer to home.
That happened in 2007, although I needed to move to make it a reality. I found a job in my career field in the South Bay and decided to move rather than continue the ridiculous commute from the Valley, which would have been over 2 hours each way. I was renting one of the tiniest apartments I've ever lived in with absolutely HORRIBLE property managers and neighbors (during all my years as a renter in L.A., I've never encountered such awful neighbors; I could fill a book with horror stories of the ridiculous crap that was allowed to go on at that apartment). The neighborhood wasn't awful, although not one of L.A.'s better neighborhoods; it was simply the people immediately around me that made life so horrible. I eventually moved to a scarier, lower socio-economic neighborhood with more affordable rent and no immediate horrible neighbors. (Trade offs.)
Of course, I've also been aging. I no longer have the youth and energy I had when I moved to L.A. in '98. I no longer want to spend over an hour in the car commuting to work or going out on the weekends to see a band, go to a reading, check out a museum. I don't have the tolerance for it. L.A.'s also gotten more overcrowded since '98, more traffic on the freeways, more people taking up parking spaces. The cost of doing things has gone up. Parking in Hollywood or downtown is even more expensive. Drinks are more overpriced and watered down. Museum entrance fees have gone up. Aside from going to the movies or periodic restaurants or food truck events in or near my neighborhood, I don't go out nearly as much as I used to. Too much time and money, too many people crowding everywhere for me.
I no longer enjoy L.A. I've wanted to leave for years. I'm a single-income renter, so without a substantial savings, I can't move to another city or state without a job in place, or a sizeable savings to live off while I look for a job. I don't have a partner's income to rely on while I do that. I've spent the past 3 years looking for work in other cities and states, but it's tough to find a job in public education (and I'd assume in most other industries, too) if you don't live in the area. Schools don't seem to have any interest in hiring someone coming from another city or state, even with my masters degree and nearly 20 years of experience with the second largest public school district in the country. I was hoping that might count for something, but so far, not yet.
In my opinion, most of L.A. is for younger people with more energy who can deal with the commutes, the hustle in order to live here. And it's for wealthier people (wealthier than me, at any rate), particularly those with double incomes, who can afford to live in L.A.'s more comfortable neighborhoods and still maintain a decent quality of life. There are plenty of L.A. natives, families who live here and somehow manage to make it work, although many of them are just getting by. ...Personally, I don't want to "just get by" any more. I want a quieter space with fewer people, less traffic; where I can find affordable, comfortable housing on a single income. When and if I find it, I know I'll definitely miss all the things there are to do in L.A. I don't think I'll ever find another city with as much going on, except maybe SF, and that's WAY out of my price range, too. I'll miss the diversity and the food. But I won't miss everything else that goes along with it.
I no longer enjoy L.A. I've wanted to leave for years. I'm a single-income renter, so without a substantial savings, I can't move to another city or state without a job in place, or a sizeable savings to live off while I look for a job. I don't have a partner's income to rely on while I do that. I've spent the past 3 years looking for work in other cities and states, but it's tough to find a job in public education (and I'd assume in most other industries, too) if you don't live in the area. Schools don't seem to have any interest in hiring someone coming from another city or state, even with my masters degree and nearly 20 years of experience with the second largest public school district in the country. I was hoping that might count for something, but so far, not yet.
In my opinion, most of L.A. is for younger people with more energy who can deal with the commutes, the hustle in order to live here. And it's for wealthier people (wealthier than me, at any rate), particularly those with double incomes, who can afford to live in L.A.'s more comfortable neighborhoods and still maintain a decent quality of life. There are plenty of L.A. natives, families who live here and somehow manage to make it work, although many of them are just getting by. ...Personally, I don't want to "just get by" any more. I want a quieter space with fewer people, less traffic; where I can find affordable, comfortable housing on a single income. When and if I find it, I know I'll definitely miss all the things there are to do in L.A. I don't think I'll ever find another city with as much going on, except maybe SF, and that's WAY out of my price range, too. I'll miss the diversity and the food. But I won't miss everything else that goes along with it.
Your entire post was great. I'm just gonna respond to these two paragraphs.
What states/metros have you looked for jobs in? I'm surprised at the lack of job options for someone that's worked that long in LAUSD.
As for finding another city with as much going on, it's partially true. At some point, a city is just too small to have the vibrancy, worldliness, and constantly-changing dynamics of a larger city like LA. But let's be real. When you live in LA, you don't actually ever get to do everything LA offers because it's either too far, too much traffic, no parking, etc. So moving to a city that's smaller or at least more compact can make a big difference. For example, even in NYC, I don't do everything, but I'm always doing something because it's easy to get there by subway, a short lyft ride, or walking. You can't do any of that in LA. It's just as expensive here, but I don't have to deal with the traffic and stuff of LA. But besides NYC, you can only go smaller. In a smaller major city, you could likely be able to afford a more comfortable lifestyle near all the fun stuff.
Definitely the main hinderance of leaving LA is finding a job elsewhere. But I think a lot of people are just never willing to leave because they refuse to think anywhere on earth can be better, and refuse to deal with any rain/snow and temperatures above 85/below 55. Every single one of my friends that left LA have never regretted it. Most have stayed where they moved. That includes NYC, DC, Pittsburgh, Chicago, Denver, Austin, Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, Atlanta, Miami, Seattle, and Portland. Obviously plenty have moved to Vegas and Phoenix too, but when you come from LA, I feel like it's harder to adjust to Vegas and Phoenix if you enjoy the diversity and dynamic nature of LA. Vegas and Phoenix are more slow-paced and lack the history and culture that a lot of other major cities have. The only friends that moved back to LA did so years after leaving, gaining work experience elsewhere, and being able to find a high paying job thanks to those many years of experience. The ones that stayed basically all live at home still.
But overall, yeah, I was born and raised there and I'll never see the appeal. Everyone in the northeast constantly asks why I'd ever leave. It's so glorified here that nobody knows the real story of living in LA. I will say that those in Boston and NYC/Jersey City aren't as attracted because they enjoy city living. But those living in more suburban places like outer Jersey, CT, Long Island Staten Island, etc. constantly question why I'd ever leave.
I feel much the same as the OP regarding Los Angeles now. When I moved here in 1997, I didn't. I really enjoyed it. I was in my late 20s, moving from a smaller, sleepier town with not very much to do and no job market for a recent college graduate. I moved to L.A. for the better job market (at least it was in '97/'98), the wonderful arts/culture/music scenes, and the great variety of food.
The first 3 years I lived in L.A., I commuted over an hour from the SFValley to my job in West L.A., and another hour commute back. In truth, I hated the commute, but I tolerated it at the time because I was still young and energetic enough to put up with it, and I enjoyed L.A. There was so much to see, do, eat, discover, it was great. I went out a lot during my first few years in L.A., driving from the Valley to downtown, Hollywood, West L.A., even OC and Pomona a few times to see bands, go to music and club events, cultural events, art museums, bookstores, etc. I put up with heavy traffic, parking fees and overpriced drinks just to go out and have a good time, but I didn't mind at all.
The longer I stayed in L.A., the more it began to lose it's charm for me. It also didn't help when the economy started really tanking in 2004, cost of living got more expensive, and L.A. seemed to get more crowded. I was no longer commuting for work, but also living paycheck-to-paycheck with a job in public education. I suppose I could have had a better living situation, a nicer place to live in a nicer neighborhood if I'd been willing to live with roommates, but I've always been a more introverted person, a solitary soul, and I'd worked too long and hard to want to share my living space with anyone else. I prefer to live on my own and you definitely pay for that in L.A. I've done my best to manage costs by living in "less desirable" neighborhoods - no westside, Venice, Santa Monica, 'hip' eastside, Silverlake, Los Feliz, etc, for me. I lived in lower socio-economic neighborhoods in the Valley, and now a very low socio-economic neighborhood in the South Bay.
From 2005 to 2007, I was back to commuting over an hour & a half to and from the Valley to downtown L.A. where I had a new job after I'd gotten an MA and changed my career path. I hated the commute, but tolerated it yet again because I was in a new career field and understood that, if you live in a bigger city and you're gaining experience in a new career, you're most likely going to have to commute to your job until you've gotten more experience and are able to find work closer to home.
That happened in 2007, although I needed to move to make it a reality. I found a job in my career field in the South Bay and decided to move rather than continue the ridiculous commute from the Valley, which would have been over 2 hours each way. I was renting one of the tiniest apartments I've ever lived in with absolutely HORRIBLE property managers and neighbors (during all my years as a renter in L.A., I've never encountered such awful neighbors; I could fill a book with horror stories of the ridiculous crap that was allowed to go on at that apartment). The neighborhood wasn't awful, although not one of L.A.'s better neighborhoods; it was simply the people immediately around me that made life so horrible. I eventually moved to a scarier, lower socio-economic neighborhood with more affordable rent and no immediate horrible neighbors. (Trade offs.)
Of course, I've also been aging. I no longer have the youth and energy I had when I moved to L.A. in '98. I no longer want to spend over an hour in the car commuting to work or going out on the weekends to see a band, go to a reading, check out a museum. I don't have the tolerance for it. L.A.'s also gotten more overcrowded since '98, more traffic on the freeways, more people taking up parking spaces. The cost of doing things has gone up. Parking in Hollywood or downtown is even more expensive. Drinks are more overpriced and watered down. Museum entrance fees have gone up. Aside from going to the movies or periodic restaurants or food truck events in or near my neighborhood, I don't go out nearly as much as I used to. Too much time and money, too many people crowding everywhere for me.
I no longer enjoy L.A. I've wanted to leave for years. I'm a single-income renter, so without a substantial savings, I can't move to another city or state without a job in place, or a sizeable savings to live off while I look for a job. I don't have a partner's income to rely on while I do that. I've spent the past 3 years looking for work in other cities and states, but it's tough to find a job in public education (and I'd assume in most other industries, too) if you don't live in the area. Schools don't seem to have any interest in hiring someone coming from another city or state, even with my masters degree and nearly 20 years of experience with the second largest public school district in the country. I was hoping that might count for something, but so far, not yet.
In my opinion, most of L.A. is for younger people with more energy who can deal with the commutes, the hustle in order to live here. And it's for wealthier people (wealthier than me, at any rate), particularly those with double incomes, who can afford to live in L.A.'s more comfortable neighborhoods and still maintain a decent quality of life. There are plenty of L.A. natives, families who live here and somehow manage to make it work, although many of them are just getting by. ...Personally, I don't want to "just get by" any more. I want a quieter space with fewer people, less traffic; where I can find affordable, comfortable housing on a single income. When and if I find it, I know I'll definitely miss all the things there are to do in L.A. I don't think I'll ever find another city with as much going on, except maybe SF, and that's WAY out of my price range, too. I'll miss the diversity and the food. But I won't miss everything else that goes along with it.
Hi Brittle Star. Sounds like we are both teachers. I have been teaching a little over 20 years and have a masters as well. Also an LA native. If you come up to the districts around Seattle (Bellevue, Lake WA, etc) you'll be making over 100,000 with great benefits with your experience and education. I'm not sure what Seattle School District proper pays, but sounds like you don't want to be in the city anyways. You'll be able to get a nice one bedroom apartment for around $1300-$1600 depending on where you live and could probably find something close to where you teach. I live about 7 minutes by bus or about a 30 minute walk along Lake Washington to my job. It's great. Don't have to deal with traffic. Lots of places further out from Seattle if you need it quieter. Anyways, I'd check out WA state. I think you'd easily find a job up here with your experience. Districts are hiring all the time. Good luck.
Hi Brittle Star. Sounds like we are both teachers. I have been teaching a little over 20 years and have a masters as well. Also an LA native. If you come up to the districts around Seattle (Bellevue, Lake WA, etc) you'll be making over 100,000 with great benefits with your experience and education. I'm not sure what Seattle School District proper pays, but sounds like you don't want to be in the city anyways. You'll be able to get a nice one bedroom apartment for around $1300-$1600 depending on where you live and could probably find something close to where you teach. I live about 7 minutes by bus or about a 30 minute walk along Lake Washington to my job. It's great. Don't have to deal with traffic. Lots of places further out from Seattle if you need it quieter. Anyways, I'd check out WA state. I think you'd easily find a job up here with your experience. Districts are hiring all the time. Good luck.
Thanks, but I can't afford anything over $1000 a month and pay less than that now in L.A. As I wrote above, I live in a very low socio-economic neighborhood to afford it, but it's my trade-off for rent I can afford. I'm single income, completely self-supported, and owe over $63K in student loan debts for my grad degree. I never expected to owe that much and was duped by my very manipulative mom back in 2003 when I was looking at grad schools. She offered to help me pay back my loan when I finished grad school, but when I completed my program in 2005, she'd changed her mind and claimed she'd never agreed to help me pay off my loans. So I've been stuck paying off my loans myself. I was hoping there'd be some money left after she passed in April this year (she was 94, had lived a good life, but age and illness got to her), but all money had gone to pay for her care and there was none left to help me pay off my loans. So thanks again for the suggestion, but Seattle and Bellevue are too expensive for me, which is why they've never made my list of cities to consider making my new home, as much as I enjoy the PNW. I have coupled friends barely making it on 2 incomes in Seattle. An elementary school friend of mine moved to Bellevue with her family in the '80s, so I heard all about Bellevue from her when she came back to visit. It sounded like a nice, but expensive community, not suitable for people with more limited incomes like me.
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