It's just getting too expensive in Los Angeles (Oakland: 2013, for rent)

[Mr_Geek]

Originally Posted by 909er

I'm born and bred 100% white real American male, no holds barred, Dukes of Hazzard and A-Team and MacGyver watching while growing up kinda man. The kind of man who eats Midwest steak and potatoes for dinner. The kind of man who drives a Chevy built in Kansas. I am absolutely not the kind of man that will learn Chi-nee and broker it to people from there that want to live here, that kind of stuff going on is half the problem with our economy to begin with.

Sounds about what I expected, based on all your threads.

[mysticaltyger]

Originally Posted by sdlife619

It's basically going to come to a point where we will eventually have a massive exodus of poor people to middle class fleeing the state once they finally wake up and realize that things aren't going to become more affordable here in the future. Gas prices are a joke, taxes are high, utilities are getting more expensive, water is scarce, as nice as it is to live here, sometimes you have to make sacrifices in order to afford things, like paying your bills without going broke, to better yourself, and your family with common sense thinking.

So with that in mind, if you can no longer afford the rent, or the bills, and are fed up with CA's low wages, rules, laws and taxes, you should consider leaving.

Yes, I agree.

Originally Posted by sdlife619

As a born n bread Californian, I'm finally ready to leave. I'm done. A lightbulb finally went off. Like, "Why didn't I do this years ago!"

And the frustrating thing is most poor and middle class are just like you. They beat their heads against a wall for years before admitting what they've been doing isn't working. They live in denial and/or don't react fast enough to changing conditions, which is why they're so easily taken advantage of.

I think it's because moving is a total b*tch and everyone knows it has a big up front cost (psychological, emotional, and financial, plus the hassle factor). The rising cost of living is kind of like a slowly sinking ship. You don't pay the full cost up front, so it enables people to live in denial...hoping things will change or get better....but they usually don't unless the people involved make radically different choices in life (i.e. are uber frugal and/or find ways to earn a lot more--or both).

[mysticaltyger]

Originally Posted by 909er

I'm born and bred 100% white real American male, no holds barred, Dukes of Hazzard and A-Team and MacGyver watching while growing up kinda man. The kind of man who eats Midwest steak and potatoes for dinner. The kind of man who drives a Chevy built in Kansas. I am absolutely not the kind of man that will learn Chi-nee and broker it to people from there that want to live here, that kind of stuff going on is half the problem with our economy to begin with.

Ok, then your lack of flexibility is part of your problem. And that steak & potatoes diet isn't helping you, either. Obesity in the Midwest is off the charts.

[jm1982]

If someone knows Spanish, I'd recommend brokering deals with rich South Americans looking to invest in Miami.
Lot's of the real estate and businesses being sold there are being bought by them.

If you are going to limit your money making opportunities , then you'll have less money.

Even people in the Midwest are dealing with Chinese. Chinese are also buying property in the Midwest too.
The chinese are buying our scrap metal and sending it over to their China to build up their cities.
I watched this , it was pretty interesting about this.
https://www.vice.com/read/tonight-on...ith-david-choe

There was a chinese guy that would drive the entire country going to scrap yards and making deals to buy huge amounts of scrap.

Not sure why someone would want to limit their income and say "I'm only going to sell to 100% born and bred white Americans" for example .

In the episode I watched , the white American scrap dealers had a bunch of other Chinese show up right after their deal with the first Chinese guy. They actually ran into each other.

[BayAreaHillbilly]

Originally Posted by mysticaltyger

You can thank L.A.'s (and most other Coastal CA metro areas) NIMBY attitude and overly strict regulations toward building more housing for this. Even Democrats and some liberal journalists are admitting it:

Fixing California: The Green Gentry

Why Middle-Class Americans Can't Afford to Live in Liberal Cities - The Atlantic

Housing Woes Worse in L.A. Than New York, San Francisco - Bloomberg Business

Homebuilders have delayed, downsized or dropped plans for projects as residents thwart development using regulations such as the California Environmental Quality Act, established in 1970 to require environmental-impact reports, said Chris Thornberg, principal at Beacon Economics LLC, a Los Angeles-based research company.

“When you open it up like this, you just give people the chance to argue every stupid little point until you finally acquiesce and come up with some compromise that’s not even close to meeting the level of demand,” Thornberg said in a telephone interview.

Unfortunately, the only solution for you, personally, is to leave the area if the housing costs are too high for you. It's not fair, I know. But if the low and middle income earners left, en masse, wages would have to go up or home prices would have to go down. And/or government officials might notice their metro area is in decline and they'd have to do something. As long as people are willing to be taken advantage of, this will continue. I agree, it shouldn't have to come to this....but there you have it. It's better than feeling frustrated all the time, isn't it?

What is getting built in the core and inner ring areas is mostly densepack. Some folks can hang with that, some can't. Even the densepack is pricey.

[BayAreaHillbilly]

Originally Posted by 909er

I'm born and bred 100% white real American male, no holds barred, Dukes of Hazzard and A-Team and MacGyver watching while growing up kinda man. The kind of man who eats Midwest steak and potatoes for dinner. The kind of man who drives a Chevy built in Kansas. I am absolutely not the kind of man that will learn Chi-nee and broker it to people from there that want to live here, that kind of stuff going on is half the problem with our economy to begin with.

I have one foot in the US and one foot in China (both in career and personal) and yet, I bemoan what has become of our salt-of-the-Earth manufacturing oriented economy in CA. I used to hire skilled labor (not just whites, also many other people) who made up the dynamo of the middle class economy. With the destruction of most of this (and it wasn't really all that creative), we are now reaping the bitter harvest

[genjy]

Originally Posted by sdlife619

You'll be surprised on how fast homes sell around here once they're advertised to market. Buyers will have bidding wars and the home will be sold in a day or 2. It's crazy fast. You wonder who are the people buying these houses especially when there $500,000.

Your average plumber, auto mechanic, even construction worker probably would have to pass up on it.

The market needs to correct itself for being so unrealistic and unobtainable when it comes to reality. Things aren't right nor are they fair in this time.

There is this popular notion that housing in LA must be attainable for everyone... a nanny, a plumber, a trucker should all be able to buy their very own home or the market is all sorts of wrong.

This kind of expectation only really applies to small towns. Major metropolitan areas around the world all have the rich and fortunate buying properties with the majority of working-class renting from them. It's pretty normal.

No matter how you "correct" the market, there is simply not enough housing in the LA area (or any world-class metro) for everyone to own. Rich people will always invest in real estate, and poor people will always compete for what's left.

There's even competition in RENTING... why would you think a $35k per year office secretary should be entitled to own in LA?

[jm1982]

Good example of rent competition

Rental Bidding Wars Are Now Breaking Out in Atwater Village - Rentally Deranged - Curbed LA

Not too long ago Atwater Village wasn't viewed as a good area and people actually looked down on it or thought of it as a gang area.

[jm1982]

City politicians including the Mayor is always chanting about "the importance of affordable housing" but it's just that ...Talk.

Garcetti announces goals - but no details - on ending LA's housing crisis | 89.3 KPCC
Funny he has a GOAL but no DETAILS!
Sure the city can force developers to sell units below market or force apartment owners to rent below market but that's just going to be a tiny tiny drop in the bucket.

They are at least smart enough to realize people are frustrated housing is so expensive, but what are they going to tell them?
They obviously won't recommend moving to a cheaper city..

They are going to promise they are "going to do all they can to make housing affordable for working Angelenos" blah blah blah

At the Presidential level...I read that Hillary Clinton is going to focus her campaign on raising Middle Class wages
Not sure how shes' going to do that..and didn't Obama and maybe even Bush say their priority was the same thing too?

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/12/us...nday.html?_r=0

Looks like she's also planning to go after Uber and other companies in the sharing economy..

Hillary Clinton Plans To Cite Uber’s Contractor Economy For Dampening Wages | TechCrunch

To me this is kind of crazy..Many people are driving for Uber because they can't find another job somewhere else that pays as much...Many people also work regular full time jobs and do Uber part time on the side..

I think this attack on the sharing economy is misguided personally.

Without Uber or similar services where would these people be making $20 an hour+ or whatever they end up making?

[909er]

why would you think a $35k per year office secretary should be entitled to own in LA?

Because....it's America and that's supposed to be the whole point? Kind of like the 64 1/2 Mustang she could own at one time...

Good example of rent competition

Rental Bidding Wars Are Now Breaking Out in Atwater Village - Rentally Deranged - Curbed LA

Not too long ago Atwater Village wasn't viewed as a good area and people actually looked down on it or thought of it as a gang area.

Holy cow, I used to live 3 blocks from there in Glendale! From 07 to 10...I was paying $995 all utilities included for a 1 bedroom, nicely maintained property, right by the Vons and Albertsons. I became familiar with the Atwater, Adams Hill, Highland Park, Glassell Park, Cypress Park, South Pass, Eagle Rock, and Tujunga. And Echo Park.

Glendale was hit hard by the 08 recession. The 3rd story of the Galleria was half empty, Mervyn's closing was bad. And Broadway had a lot of empty stores...I guess the Americana gave a jump start to that area. I see it's pretty booming now. At the time, you could see the transition of the other areas listed above, streets like York were transforming. I'm sure it's even more different today, I haven't been back there since. The speed at the transformation is stunning as well. From 05 to 2015, totally different place.

But never did I think in a million years the area would get expensive. There are a lot of working class and immigrant families in those areas, no way can they afford $3k rent. I can't afford $3k rent. I personally don't think it's worth it but whateve's