Does anyone actually enjoy living in Hollywood? (Pasadena, Highland: apartment, lease)

[dylan_505]

I ask this because I have been living in Hollywood for 2 months now and I really don't like it at all.

My wife and I moved here from NYC about 2 1/2 months ago because she got a promotion which moved her out here. Hollywood was one of our last choices as a place to rent, but we only had 10 days to find a place and with a pit bull mix it made things even harder. Also with only one income at the time, a budget of $1600 doesn't get you very far. After looking at a few areas like Sherman Oaks, Pasadena and Eagle Rock, we kept getting denied because of our dog. Then we found this place in Hollywood and with only 2 days left before we needed to leave corporate housing we decided to sign the lease.

The apartment itself is great for us, perfect size and close to my wifes work. I just really hate this area. I thought NYC was dirty but Hollywood is even worse. When we walk our dog we have to step around 3 homeless people sleeping with 2 blocks of us and I still can't believe how much trash is everywhere. It's really putting me down.

Sorry about the rant, but I would like to know if anyone who lives in Hollywood truly loves it?

[adr3naline]

I live in Hollywood and love it, but I can see the experience varying greatly depending on where you are. I'm off Hollywood/McCadden. I find it very walkable, generally up beat, filled with all types of folk, littered with restaurants/bars, has lots of grocery options, centrally located to DTLA, West Side, and the Valley. Being close to the Red Line is also very convenient. On the other hand the homeless are everywhere, the whole area is gritty, and traffic is a nightmare.

Originally Posted by dylan_505

$1600

There's your problem. Where in HW did this budget land you?

[dylan_505]

Originally Posted by adr3naline

I live in Hollywood and love it. Hollywood Blvd / McCadden.



There's your problem. Where in HW did this budget land you?

We are at Franklin/Wilcox. The apartment itself is great, $1600 with all utilities included.

[adr3naline]

Originally Posted by dylan_505

We are at Franklin/Wilcox. The apartment itself is great, $1600 with all utilities included.

Yeah you're in an odd area in the NE corner of the Yucca Corridor, which has yet to see the revitalization that the rest of the Corridor has benefited from. Run down buildings, ugly strip malls, etc--stuff that the Northridge Earthquake didn't destroy and still contains low-rent tenants. I'm just 5 blocks away at the SW corner of the Yucca Corrdior & the vibe/surroundings are very different.

Plus, you're right next to Cahuenga Blvd which I'm sure you've found to be an eyesore of a parking lot.

How long is your lease? If you enjoy the convienence of the area I suggest shopping west of La Brea for a much cleaner, quieter environment.

(I updated my original post by the way)

[ryanms3030]

Originally Posted by dylan_505

We are at Franklin/Wilcox. The apartment itself is great, $1600 with all utilities included.

I lived on Wilcox between Hollywood and Yucca when I first moved to LA. I loved it but that was 10 years ago. I was single, in my late 20's and enjoyed being able to walk to bars and clubs. Where I am in my life now I would never live there. I remember you posting before you moved and everyone told you the pitbull would greatly limit your options. I can understand not getting rid of your dog as an animal lover and pet owner myself. But that's a compromise you have to make. And honestly if you were able to get a nice place for $1600 that's a good deal and that's a relatively nice/safe part of Hollywood and good location, close to freeway etc. Suck it up and start looking a month or two before your lease is up for the next place

[dylan_505]

Originally Posted by adr3naline

Yeah you're in an odd area in the NE corner of the Yucca Corridor, which has yet to see the revitalization that the rest of the Corridor has benefited from. Run down buildings, ugly strip malls, etc--stuff that the Northridge Earthquake didn't destroy and still contains low-rent tenants. I'm just 5 blocks away at the SW corner of the Yucca Corrdior & the vibe/surroundings are very different.

Plus, you're right next to Cahuenga Blvd which I'm sure you've found to be an eyesore of a parking lot.

How long is your lease? If you enjoy the convienence of the area I suggest shopping west of La Brea for a much cleaner, quieter environment.

(I updated my original post by the way)

Yeah it's a very unattractive area, plus when you add all the trash scattered all over the street it doesn't help. It also blows my mind that no body picks up after their dogs around here. I feel like I could spend a whole day picking up dog poop from every street within 5 blocks.

Our lease is a year, I've already started shopping around for our next apartment!

[dylan_505]

Originally Posted by ryanms3030

I lived on Wilcox between Hollywood and Yucca when I first moved to LA. I loved it but that was 10 years ago. I was single, in my late 20's and enjoyed being able to walk to bars and clubs. Where I am in my life now I would never live there. I remember you posting before you moved and everyone told you the pitbull would greatly limit your options. I can understand not getting rid of your dog as an animal lover and pet owner myself. But that's a compromise you have to make. And honestly if you were able to get a nice place for $1600 that's a good deal and that's a relatively nice/safe part of Hollywood and good location, close to freeway etc. Suck it up and start looking a month or two before your lease is up for the next place

I can definitely see it being a fun area when you're young and single and want to party a lot. I'm only 26 but I'm married and not into the whole going out seen anymore so I guess we are living in the wrong area! One huge thing is we found a place we can keep our dog, that was the number one priority. Now that I'm working and with a higher budget, in 10-11 months we can move into a neighborhood more suited to us. I'm going to try look at the glass half full from now on!

[jm1982]

I lived in Hollywood for a year 2009-2010. I was off Sunset and Fuller right across from "Rock N Roll Ralphs"
Overall I liked it and you do feel like you are in the middle of things living in Hollywood in a way.
Definately a lot of interesting people. A lot more walkable than many parts of the city.
Hollywood is still pretty gritty , but most people say it was a lot worse before. I grew up in L.A and Hollywood has definately improved quite a bit with new development, new dining /retail options ,etc.
It still has a way to go.
Homeless issue pretty out of hand and there have been far too many incidents of people being attacked/killed by homeless in the area. Plus that's just the stuff we hear in the news.

It's definitely block by block..but I imagine it's the same in NYC too. Going 5 blocks over and you could be in an entirely different neighborhood right?

Speaking of NYC , I've never lived there only visited..but I feel like Hollywood is one of the only neighborhoods that feels like NYC , the density, the lights on Hollywood/Highland ,etc.

Maybe DTLA , but DTLA doesn't have enough tourists to feel like NYC!

Sounds like you probably don't desire an NYC type of dense area though since you were looking into Sherman Oaks and Eagle Rock,Pasadena before.
I think Sherman Oaks overall is the nicest of those .
Sounds like you were limited do to your pet ,which is too bad.

Maybe you could rent a guest house in Sherman Oaks or one of your other top picks in the house of an animal lover?
There seem to be a lot of animal lovers in L.A

[socal88]

Hollywood is improving with some solid tenants coming in and revitalization in a few spots, but I still find a lot of the area to just be grungy and visually unappealing with a huge homeless population and a lot of congestion. The Hollywood they show on TV and the actual Hollywood are not one and the same.

If you can afford it, I would look into Beachwood Canyon (take Beachwood above Franklin) or Los Feliz.

[dylan_505]

Originally Posted by jm1982

I lived in Hollywood for a year 2009-2010. I was off Sunset and Fuller right across from "Rock N Roll Ralphs"
Overall I liked it and you do feel like you are in the middle of things living in Hollywood in a way.
Definately a lot of interesting people. A lot more walkable than many parts of the city.
Hollywood is still pretty gritty , but most people say it was a lot worse before. I grew up in L.A and Hollywood has definately improved quite a bit with new development, new dining /retail options ,etc.
It still has a way to go.
Homeless issue pretty out of hand and there have been far too many incidents of people being attacked/killed by homeless in the area. Plus that's just the stuff we hear in the news.

It's definitely block by block..but I imagine it's the same in NYC too. Going 5 blocks over and you could be in an entirely different neighborhood right?

Speaking of NYC , I've never lived there only visited..but I feel like Hollywood is one of the only neighborhoods that feels like NYC , the density, the lights on Hollywood/Highland ,etc.

Maybe DTLA , but DTLA doesn't have enough tourists to feel like NYC!

Sounds like you probably don't desire an NYC type of dense area though since you were looking into Sherman Oaks and Eagle Rock,Pasadena before.
I think Sherman Oaks overall is the nicest of those .
Sounds like you were limited do to your pet ,which is too bad.

Maybe you could rent a guest house in Sherman Oaks or one of your other top picks in the house of an animal lover?
There seem to be a lot of animal lovers in L.A

In NYC we lived on the Upper West Side so there weren't many sketchy areas. If you go up to Harlem or into parts of Brooklyn then it gets more like that.

Hollywood does have a similar feel to areas like Times Square. The bright lights, super busy and a lot of tourist traps. I'm guessing most people who live in LA don't go to Hollywood unless they really have to? I feel like NYC does a better job of keeping the streets clean and also free of homeless people. Don't get me wrong, NYC has its fair share of homeless but in LA they seem to be on every corner sleeping on mattresses and going to the bathroom wherever they please. In all my years of living in NYC I don't think I ever saw someone go to the bathroom on the sidewalk. I've seen it happen 3 times already in Hollywood!

We have noticed that if you increase the rent to around $2200 a month a lot more places allow dogs of all sizes and breeds. So we are just going wait until our lease is up and then find a new neighborhood! We love the area around the Grove and also sections of West Hollywood.