Really want to move to Los Angeles, but worried about bringing my car (Irvine: rent, insurance)

[NashvilleBoy]

I just want to know if this is possible. There are people my age that pay $1500 a month in rent to live live in the trendy parts of Nashville. I understand that I won't be able to live in the trendy parts of La and I will most likely have a small studio or roommates. I have a 4 year degree with job experience at a fortune 10 company, so it's not like I"m some nobody. My car payment is 600 and insurance is 100, is it possible to survive in LA without having to **** up my credit or live in an area where I will get robbed.

[Finper]

Originally Posted by NashvilleBoy

I just want to know if this is possible. There are people my age that pay $1500 a month in rent to live live in the trendy parts of Nashville. I understand that I won't be able to live in the trendy parts of La and I will most likely have a small studio or roommates. I have a 4 year degree with job experience at a fortune 10 company, so it's not like I"m some nobody. My car payment is 600 and insurance is 100, is it possible to survive in LA without having to **** up my credit or live in an area where I will get robbed.

No

[Redford30]

Alot of times this threads focus on 1 small aspect of the OP and drill on that instead of what you are really trying to ask. So I will try to not do that. I am new to the LA area (about 4 months now) so I am able to give good advice on perception vs reality in terms of moving here from a midwestern life.
Car: although I agree with most things people have said, I also know that I am not a car guy. To each their own. If your car is a priority, then you do you. Something I noticed from moving from a mid-city to the LA area, you MPG will drop more than you think. I have a crappy chevy cruze, and was used to 28-30 mpg. I knew it would drop going to a major city, but I was wrong about how much. I'd be lucky to get 18 mgp on average with the traffic and idling. Insurance will go up quite a bit and the whole registering the car will be a nightmare and expensive. Delay that as much as possible. Also, make a gated and/or underground garage a high priority in your rental search and you should do just fine. Get a car cover for a little extra security if you want, so people cant see your car and what inside it.
Place: Roommates sound like the best option for you. You might be able to even find some short term options while you search for work, and then you can move again closer to where you find work. I was just doing a search in a nice area of Culver City and saw an amazing 3BR/3Bath for $4200. thats 1400 per person in a really nice home in a central area. and keep in mind Culver city is crazy expensive for rentals close to downtown. I might suggest Palms area also. Its really close to the train lines that run through and generally less expensive that culver city. I am not an expert in locations other than my own, so take my advice for what you will.
Work: I agree with the $80k assessment. that should be your goal, but its not your make or break number.
Expenses: The biggest changes you will see is rental costs. expect to pay 3X more than what you are paying now for a similar place. All other expenses may go up by 10-20%, but its really not as bad as what people say.

[adr3naline]

Let's put aside the BS and get down to it...

• The COL increase is real. To maintain your $65k life in Nashville you're going to want $85-95k in LA (I'm familiar with your COL. A close friend has an $2200/mo apartment in Nash and lives like a king)
• $80k for a single means you'll be living with roommates, or in a small studio. Especially with that car payment.
• Car insurance in LA is insane. Clean record or not, it hurts. I have a clean record, 12yrs+ in driving history, and my premiums STILL doubled from Milwaukee.
• Where you live is dictated by where you can find a job. This cannot be stressed enough.
• Comparing yourself to others who are doing just fine is a recipe for disaster. You don't know their full story. Especially in LA. Lots of closet millionaires driving Corollas living in run-down $2M houses.
• People **** on Mustangs here. Rouch or not, be ready to be called a redneck tourist. Justified or not, it doesn't matter. It will happen.
• The only way for us to tell you if you can afford LA is to be completely transparent about your finances. This means sharing your exact income, debt including student/car/personal loans, cell bills, food, subscriptions, heigene...the full nine yards.

Despite the back and forth, there are incredibly helpful people on this board. We have just seen uneducated folk get eaten up by the city, so we ask the tough questions upfront so you don't experience this for yourself.

[Beaconowner]

Originally Posted by seain dublin

,

Yeah right, lots of jealous folks in Los Feliz where a modest home is going for a million or more.

Sounds like there is something else going on if this is even true.

If her car is parked near a school, then the constant keying of her car could simply have been vandalism by kids on their way to school.

[ryanms3030]

Originally Posted by NashvilleBoy

I just want to know if this is possible. There are people my age that pay $1500 a month in rent to live live in the trendy parts of Nashville. I understand that I won't be able to live in the trendy parts of La and I will most likely have a small studio or roommates. I have a 4 year degree with job experience at a fortune 10 company, so it's not like I"m some nobody. My car payment is 600 and insurance is 100, is it possible to survive in LA without having to **** up my credit or live in an area where I will get robbed.

Your insurance isn't going to be $100 in LA. Los Angeles is one of the highest insurance rates in the country. Depending on what data you look at, Nashville rates are 10% lower then average and LA rates are 25% higher then average. And if you live in Glendale for example it would be even higher. So expect to pay another $30/mo in insurance. Maybe not a huge deal but it's one of many little expenses that will add up. Gas in Nashville looks like it's about $2.30 on avg right now and it's about $3.15 here right now which is actually low because where I work and where I live it's closer to $3.40/gallon right now. So depending on your commute you may also be paying a couple hundred a month more on gas then you do now. And yes you are nobody in LA. There are 10 million people here and a good portion are college educated and higher. And the job market is not great:

https://wallethub.com/edu/best-cities-for-jobs/2173/


60th overall isn't terrible but they aren't just handing out jobs here and many big companies are leaving the city and the state for places like Nashville where it's cheaper to operate. If you can find a job for around $80k and you are willing to live with roommates than I think you can make it work and have a decent lifestyle but I would work on finding a job before you commit to moving.

[TacoSoup]

Originally Posted by adr3naline

[*]People **** on Mustangs here. Rouch or not, be ready to be called a redneck tourist. Justified or not, it doesn't matter. It will happen.

I was waiting for somebody to say this. It’ll help you zero with the ladies, unless it’s from the 1960’s and cherry, and you will be made fun of like adr3naline says. Sorry but that’s the reality.

[Commonproject]

Ignore all these comments about your car or being fiscally responsible

Simple answer: You probably have a pretty good life right now in Nashville. Coming to LA will lead to vastly lower quality of life unless you can near double your salary. Is LA really that much better than Nashville? That's something only you can answer for yourself by spending some time here.

[ryanms3030]

Originally Posted by TacoSoup

I was waiting for somebody to say this. It’ll help you zero with the ladies, unless it’s from the 1960’s and cherry, and you will be made fun of like adr3naline says. Sorry but that’s the reality.

I see Lambos and Ferraris every day in my neighborhood and I live in Santa Clarita so not exactly high rent district for LA. Yes nobody cares about a new Mustang even if it's Roush. And actually for cheap muscle cars I'd say the new Chargers are what everyone wants to drive around here or they take a AMG Mercedes or BMW M

[Finper]

Originally Posted by ryanms3030

I see Lambos and Ferraris every day in my neighborhood and I live in Santa Clarita so not exactly high rent district for LA. Yes nobody cares about a new Mustang even if it's Roush. And actually for cheap muscle cars I'd say the new Chargers are what everyone wants to drive around here or they take a AMG Mercedes or BMW M

In OC it's Tesla. Especially with the Asians in Irvine