Did you leave L.A. for a better life? Is it? Did you come back? (Malibu: apartment, to rent)

[highlanderfil]

I grew up (well, from age 13, anyways) as a LAUSD kid in the Valley. Went to college first in Riverside then Claremont, lived in the Valley and Pasadena thereafter. Quickly became disenchanted with L.A. when I graduated and spent about six years between various jobs that paid OK but not spectacularly (and that weren't very stimulating) while living in the heat of SFV. Spent a lot of effort on leaving - went to grad school in VA, now working for a Big-3 auto OEM in MI. But now I'm working slowly towards coming back, now that my career is in some semblance of order and I am married. As I've said before - a lack of meaningful relationships or success on the job front will drive you out of L.A. faster than you can order a venti nonfat half-soy, half-coconut cinnamon-dusted-but-not-too-much latte. However, now that I visit, certain things do still bug me and I know I am going to have to contend with them if and when I come back:

- The traffic has gone from bad to worse; with my penchant for manual transmissions this will be a major point of annoyance.
- Real estate prices have gone completely off the boil - I have always said that if I come back, I'll only do so if I can live west of the 405 and south of the 101, but even if I come to L.A. making more money than I currently do (comfortably in six figures, although paying off substantial student loan debt), I may not be able to afford a neighborhood in which I would want to live and might be forced to settle on a place like Sherman Oaks. Not awful in its own right, but not something I'd ideally want.
- The service sector is, as a general rule, more unprofessional and generally careless than in other major cities.
- I have not managed to get used to Michigan's winter gloom, but L.A.'s summer heat can still be overbearing. If I don't end up in the Valley, though, it may not be as bad.
- The general lack of walkability and public transit is still there, but does largely depend on your neighborhood. I do like the fact that the Metro is getting expanded.
- Flight times to Europe are going to increase dramatically, but c'est la vie.
- Finding a job in L.A. may prove challenging. Although my resume is now substantially more attractive than it was six years ago, so are resumes of a bunch of other MBA grads.

All in all, on the balance, I do want to come back. Maybe it won't happen until I've paid off my student loans (which is probably around three years from being accomplished), but at some point in the next five years or so I'd like to figure out a way to make it happen. I just need to figure out the budget we will need to comfortably afford:

- 2/2 apartment that allows pets (realistically $2,500/month)
- Car payment on a ~$40K car (ideally: Focus RS) + insurance + gas and scheduled maintenance (I'm guessing this will be $1,000/month or so)
- Insurance + gas + maintenance for my wife's car (plus the cost of actually buying one, but that's a one-time sunk cost, so not really part of budget) (figure $300/month)
- Cable/internet (which I suspect will be similar to MI but I still need to figure it out) + mobile phone for four people (I am still paying for my parents) (probably another $300/month)
- The usual living stuff (groceries, household goods, etc., around $1,500/month, give or take)
- Random non-essential spending (going out, buying clothes and gadgets, etc) (net - around another $500, since I generally tend to sell for decent money whatever toys for which I buy replacements)
- Helping out the parents (around $500/month in the worst case scenario)
- Gym membership if there isn't one in my residence (around $50/month)

This is before figuring in putting money away, traveling, medical emergencies, etc. Basically, to maintain our MI standard of living, my wife and I will have to bring home around $7K/month after taxes unless I've vastly underestimated. Definitely doable, but not without dropping the $1.5K/month student loan bill.

Sorry to hijack the thread, I'll see myself out now.

[Astral_Weeks]

Originally Posted by highlanderfil

- Real estate prices have gone completely off the boil - I have always said that if I come back, I'll only do so if I can live west of the 405 and south of the 101, but even if I come to L.A. making more money than I currently do (comfortably in six figures, although paying off substantial student loan debt), I may not be able to afford a neighborhood in which I would want to live and might be forced to settle on a place like Sherman Oaks. Not awful in its own right, but not something I'd ideally want.

Yes, the cost of LA's real estate/housing is pretty crazy but so are your restrictions on where you'll live.

Are you really saying you'll only live west of the 405 (West LA) and south of the 101 in the San Fernando Valley. In other words, you are ruling out large swaths of the LA basin...unless I am reading that incorrectly?

Originally Posted by highlanderfil

- I have not managed to get used to Michigan's winter gloom, but L.A.'s summer heat can still be overbearing. If I don't end up in the Valley, though, it may not be as bad.

.

From one valley kid to another: I'll take the climate of the San Fernando Valley over anywhere else in the continental United States. To each their own but my younger sister went to grad school in Michigan. She has nightmare stories about the winters there. I only visited there in summer and the weather still sucked!

[caragitana]

We left LA with our hearts in our hands over a decade ago. I had no complaints at the time and never thought of leaving but a great promotion took us to Atlanta. I was home sick for a while but it was mainly for two reasons; weather (the outdoor life) and family. Shortly after all my friends and family left LA, mostly following careers, and today I have only 3 sets of families/friends back west. They left to TX, FL, NC, OR, MO, OH even Grand Rapids, MI.
The weather here does not compare to LA but I do not let it change my life. It's fine most of the year except for late July/Aug.
Since we left LA it has gotten even more expensive and I could never afford my old home as it has increased 4 fold.
Do I miss it? Yes.
Would I go back? If I could afford it, YES. Financially it was a plus to move here.
Do I regret the move? No.

I say if you are living pay check to pay check with no end in sight then it is not worth it.
Go make some money elsewhere and maybe save enough to come back one day.

[highlanderfil]

Originally Posted by Astral_Weeks

Yes, the cost of LA's real estate/housing is pretty crazy but so are your restrictions on where you'll live.

Of course. Unfortunately, they are crazy outside of my restrictions as well.

Are you really saying you'll only live west of the 405 (West LA) and south of the 101 in the San Fernando Valley. In other words, you are ruling out large swaths of the LA basin...unless I am reading that incorrectly?

No, you're pretty spot on. I'd like to be within easy biking distance from the water, so I'd like to live on the Westside (with the only possible exception being Pasadena). I'd probably have to say that my "South of the 101" is probably better written as "South of Skirball", actually. So, yes, I am effectively ruling out much of L.A. in what is my ideal-case scenario. Of course, ideal scenarios so very rarely pan out.

From one valley kid to another: I'll take the climate of the San Fernando Valley over anywhere else in the continental United States. To each their own but my younger sister went to grad school in Michigan. She has nightmare stories about the winters there. I only visited there in summer and the weather still sucked!

Sure - but it's all relative, of course. If picking between locations within the L.A. County, the Valley would probably be the last place I'd identify as one I'd like to move to, but come February in Detroit, even Pacoima is going to start looking good.

[Lorielicious]

Originally Posted by Nerdlord

I went to the Midwest for 8 years. It sucks.

I came back as soon as I could.

Are you me? I went Midwestward for 9 years. First Mpls for a few years, then that sucked, so I tried out Chicago. It sucked significantly less, but it ain't LA. One day my landlord asked if I was renewing my rent, and I decided nope and came home.

People always b*itch about the cost of living, but I'm used to it. Also, I'm not some wannabe actress who thinks she has to live in the ballerest neighborhoods and spend all my money trying to imitate the high life. I just do regular people stuff.

[annonymous0381]

In july 2015 i moved to Seattle from LA and dont regret it one bit.

[southerngirl17]

I moved to and from LA a few times between 2005-2015 and am now settled in New Orleans for good. The final straw was the last time I lived in LA and missed everything about New Orleans - I left and haven't regretted it for a minute in 1.5 years. We took a big pay cut when we moved to New Orleans and I still think it was totally worth it. LA was amazing when I first lived there, but it somehow lost its magic and I was never able to quite get it back. You'll know when its time to cut ties with LA and keep it as a fond memory.

ETA: I grew up in Illinois and Wisconsin - if you move to either of those places, you'll probably end up missing LA! LOL The key is finding a place that feels like home to you.

[afropack-man]

Be happy where you are. Nobody cares. City data personal diary.

[BayAreaHillbilly]

Originally Posted by 69Charger

This seems to be the hottest topic in this city. Admittedly, I've considered it, but you have to weigh a lot of options.

Myself, it all boils down to income. I think income flat-out defines and dictates the lifestyle you will have living here. It's the difference between enjoying yourself and being a slave. It is perhaps the difference between a long commute and a short commute.

That may not be the end-all-be-all, but I just can't see why it would be worth living here to drive from Torrance to Riverside daily. Yes there are a ton of great amenities here, but if you can't enjoy them for one reason or another, why be here?

I've personally had Phoenix on my list, but I've been blessed with good employment so far. If that were to change, then I dunno.

For those of you that left, was it worth it? Where did you go? Are you still there? Has anyone left and came back?

I left because I got impatient about my job situation at the time. That was over 25 years ago. Then life happened. Almost every day I think of returning. My wife is actually starting to consider it. For sure, it's on our short list of places to move to for retirement / pre-retirement. If the numbers could be made to work.

[whoisjongalt]

I moved to Colorado almost 14 years ago and I would NEVER move back. The only things I miss are some friends and hanging out in Malibu...and martinis at Musso and Frank!