Do most people truly enjoy living in LA? (Anaheim, Orange: rental car, rental)

[Rkstar71]

I'll admit it.
It was a major mistake moving here. The whole area is so saturated with everything. And the COL is RIDICULOUSLY INFLATED. Trying to rent an apartment here is like trying to get 300k down payment to buy a house!
EMPLOYMENT! UGGH! Jobs I was doing back east that paid $20/hr or so only pay close to minimum wage here. Construction, roofing, framing, flooring, plumbing...etc.

Here are my pros and cons of living in L.A.

Pros:

1. The women. The women here are super gorgeous.
2. Entertainment/food
3. Being close to the beach/ocean. Although that could be a con when a tsunami comes in.
4. The weather, meaning no snow and ice or below freezing temps.
5. Different races/nationalities of people. As opposed to seeing just my own race every day back east.

Cons:

1. The employment situation blows chunks.
2. Inflated COL.
3. Traffic. Personally, I wouldn't mind the traffic if only the employment situation wasn't so decayed.

Los Angeles is like a good looking machine that is constantly broken down. That is just my perspective.

[SandyCo]

I used to like living here a lot more than I do now. I went to a funeral service in Orange County last Saturday, and got caught in traffic both ways. It took me an hour and half to get home (60 west, 101 north at 1:30 p.m.). There's a reason I hardly ever go anywhere! I'm tired of ridiculous drivers who do everything but push pedestrians across the street when the drivers want to turn.

I'm tired of the endless amounts of people wherever I go. Going out to eat? It's like planning a military mission. If we want to eat at 7:00, we have to wait. Even if we make a reservation we have to wait for a few minutes, and some restaurants don't take reservations. (I sound like an entitled brat, don't I?)

My commute has gotten a lot worse. If I move again, it'll be west of the 405, because these days the southbound 405 regularly backs up to Sepulveda on the west 101 by 6:00 a.m. It's terrible. Instead of getting on the 101 at Van Nuys, I often backtrack and get on at Woodman because it's easier.

I'm dreading the summer weather out here in the Valley, although it's still better than being in Redding or in Phoenix or Las Vegas!

I want peace and quiet. I can't afford to have either one until I retire, which is at least seventeen years away. I'm clinging to my job with both hands, because there's no way I could live here without it, and I can't retire at 52. I would certainly outlive my savings!

L.A. is probably more palatable when you're younger. I'm too old to want to be here now, that's all.

As for L.A. vs. New York, New York has the same "big city" problems that L.A. does, though with better transportation and worse weather, but the cost of living in both cities is so high that I wouldn't want to live in either one.

[Mr_Geek]

Having lived in many places all over the USA I will say that we have it very good here in LA. Yes, there are negatives, but the negatives in most other places are much worse than what we experience here.

[JustMike77]

For me it's the Weather, the Water and the Work. The weather isn't perfect, but it's close. I have some 5 year old coats that I've worn maybe a dozen times total. And the cars don't rust. I have an 11 year old Porsche that looks like the day it was made. That wouldn't happen back in Ohio where I'm from. I'm a sailor. There are very few places where you can sail in the ocean and not have to deal with floods, hurricanes or bugs the size of dogs. Lastly, I'm a real estate appraiser. L.A.'s obsession with real estate has allowed my business to flourish and provided me with a very nice lifestyle. This would only be possible in a handful of places. I don't commute, I pick the times to hit the freeway. And, I own my home, so the COL doesn't bother me much. For someone who showed up here at 23 with $ 600, L.A. has been very good to me.

[MItoBH]

Originally Posted by nicoj36

This is the place to be re-born!

True that. I'll be reborn in October.

[Astral_Weeks]

Originally Posted by JustMike77

For me it's the Weather, the Water and the Work. The weather isn't perfect, but it's close. I have some 5 year old coats that I've worn maybe a dozen times total. And the cars don't rust. I have an 11 year old Porsche that looks like the day it was made. That wouldn't happen back in Ohio where I'm from. I'm a sailor. There are very few places where you can sail in the ocean and not have to deal with floods, hurricanes or bugs the size of dogs. Lastly, I'm a real estate appraiser. L.A.'s obsession with real estate has allowed my business to flourish and provided me with a very nice lifestyle. This would only be possible in a handful of places. I don't commute, I pick the times to hit the freeway. And, I own my home, so the COL doesn't bother me much. For someone who showed up here at 23 with $ 600, L.A. has been very good to me.

Commercial or residential? And do you mind me asking how long ago you purchased your home?

[Astral_Weeks]

With a good job not too far from where you live...LA is a good place to live. I can see how those who juggle job with a crazy commute would get frustrated.

[JustMike77]

Originally Posted by Astral_Weeks

Commercial or residential? And do you mind me asking how long ago you purchased your home?

Residential appraiser. I bought in 1989 just as prices were rising. Then they crashed in 1992, then the earthquake, then it got up to $ 625,000 in 2007, then crashed again, then rose again. It's been quite a ride, but if you're not selling, who cares what it's worth.

[bobsnow]

I used to LOVE Los Angeles. When I had $$$ & a 90K a year job. Now that Im broke & basically have given up hope of ever finding decent work again, not so much. This is the WRONG city to live in w/out $$$. Still love the weather though.

[V8 Vega]

The gun shows here are too crowded. ! hour or more to get in and 2 hours or more to buy ammo. You get a back ache from all that standing in line.