Where to live if working in Studio City area? (Glendale: apartment, for rent)

[pjnugget]

I may have a potential job to relocate to California and I would be working on Ventura Blvd near Studio City. What area should I concentrate looking at to live within reasonable commute (45 mins or so).

I have 2 young kids under 4yo so would like to live in a safe, family friendly neighborhood that is within reasonable commute of the beaches.

I was thinking Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks, etc but are there any other cities closer that meet the safe, family friendly criteria?

We would be renting and would like it to be under $3k.

[jm1982]

Studio City is safe and id say pretty family friendly . But the rents are pretty crazy these days

I'd say Woodland Hills/Warner Center area or Burbank . Woodland Hills you'd be closer to the beach . But most likely you'll be going to the beach a lot less than you expect.

Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks are both very safe and family friendly but your commute from Studio city would likely be longer than 45 mins .

Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks are a lot more suburban than the valley also

Have you been to these areas before ?

[pjnugget]

Yes, I've visited there a few years ago and more recently Orange County area.

[nightlysparrow]

Originally Posted by pjnugget

...Studio City. What area should I concentrate looking at to live within reasonable commute (45 mins or so)...I was thinking Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks...

The commute from TO or Simi to SC is 50 minutes just in regular midday traffic. In rush hour or high traffic times, 1-1.25 hours in freeway time alone, not door-to-door. Try for Sherman Oaks.

[quixotic59]

Valley Village. Next neighborhood north of Studio City. All of the convenience, none of the traffic/noise/crowding/inflated costs.

[pjnugget]

alternatively, if we decide to go more inland, does Glendale/Pasadena fit my criteria?

Also, want to add we'd like to be close to some parks, some shopping/dining, etc.

[ryanms3030]

Originally Posted by pjnugget

alternatively, if we decide to go more inland, does Glendale/Pasadena fit my criteria?

Also, want to add we'd like to be close to some parks, some shopping/dining, etc.

Maybe. You won't be close beach. Both will probably be 45 minute commute most days. Both have plenty of parks, shopping and dining. You might want to consider schools if you have kids unless you are planning on private school or home schooling. Pasadena schools are not great, South Pasadena are. Glendale schools are decent but neighboring Burbank has excellent schools so you might want to consider there. If you live within LAUSD school district you will have to get lucky to get good schools and generally all of the middle and high schools will be terrible. But if you are renting at first that might not be a huge deal since you can always move to an area with better schools when the time comes.

[BRinSM]

Since public schools aren't an issue (yet), that opens up a lot more options for you. Getting into Studio City can be very difficult in the mornings and the evening commute is no better. My first recommendation is to live close to the office. Having said that, $3k will only get you an apartment in/near Studio City. If you prefer a detached home, you'll probably have a bit of a drive. Either way, the valley is surprisingly family friendly when you have little ones, even in LA proper neighborhoods.

[latino_esq]

Originally Posted by pjnugget

alternatively, if we decide to go more inland, does Glendale/Pasadena fit my criteria?

Also, want to add we'd like to be close to some parks, some shopping/dining, etc.

You really have a lot of flexibility of where you can live if you work in Studio City. You could live as far east as Pasadena and still fit within your 45 minute ideal commute. Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks may be a bit far. I wouldn't recommend anywhere further west than Tarzana. You can even live in the LA area (by that I mean Los Feliz, Hollywood areas) and still be within your commute time frame.

As for dining/shopping, parks, I think you're going to have to chose what you'd prefer to be closer to: parks or dining/shopping. Not that either of those things are going to be very far from each other, but I don't believe there are many options within reasonable walking distance. Dining/Shopping is plentiful along Ventura Blvd from Studio City to Sherman Oaks and Encino and San Fernando Road in Burbank. You may want to Google map those areas and see what parks you can locate in the general areas.

[LoveMeSomeSFVHouses]

You can definitely find a house for rent with 3 bedrooms for under 3K in the valley that's closer to Studio City than Simi Valley. Simi your money goes farther, but you pay for it with commute. A friend just rented her 3 bed house in Encino Park (Burbank Blvd/White Oak respectively) for $2500. It was older and had only 1 bath, but my point is you can still do it in a great neighborhood.

Check into Valley Village, Valley Glen, North Hollywood (which is gentrifing rapidly) which would all put your commute under 20 mins. Also Lake Balboa, Encino, and parts of Reseda (which have come up tremendously. I'm thinking like pockets in Stagg, Lorne, and Newcastle Elementary schools) which all have a commute of under 30 mins. You should have great options in any of those neighborhoods.