Safe Stay at Los Angeles (Pasadena, Orange: hardwood floor, apartment, rentals)

[ks12]

Hi , I will be moving to Los Angeles in Oct , 2008 and my place of work will be Downtown.Would request suggestion for a safe and family concentrated place to stay which will be convenient enough for daily travel to down town. Would also like to know on the ease of availing of Public Transport.

[BRinSM]

check the communities near the Gold Line to Pasadena. Those are the only family friendly neighborhoods with direct public transportation to downtown.

[timelesschild]

What is your housing budget? Are you buying or renting? If buying, how much do you want to spend on a house? If renting, how much a month?

There is a wide variety of housing options along the Gold Line. I've been researching it pretty closely for most of this year and can share my findings with you if you like.

[ks12]

Hi thanks for your response , I will be renting and ideally my rent budget is in the range of 1100 usd to 1400 usd per month. Would look forward to know more from you specially on the safety and also on options of public transport available to downtown.

[bhcompy]

the blue line goes from long beach into LA. you can find rent in your range in coastal/east long beach or east/northeast of long beach(los alamitos, cypress, lakewood,etc) in family neighborhoods. there are long beach transit bus lines all around the area and im sure you can find one that will take you to the blue line terminal, or you can park at the nearby parking lots as well

also, metro.net(la county bus/light train) and metrolinktrains.com(socal light train) are both good places to start looking if you're looking for neighborhoods with access to public transport

[missionhome]

I'm not that familiar with this specific location, but I think the units looking really charming. It was listed on craigslist and it is called Reinway Court located on Parke St. near the intersection of Orange Grove and Los Robles. The charming craftsman units fit your budget too: Welcome to Historic Reinway Court

To get to downtown using public transportation you can either walk 1.5 miles to the Lake Avenue Station for the Gold Line into Downtown or you can walk a block south from the units to Villa Street and hop on Pasadena ARTS bus Route #40 west and get off at Memorial Park Station where you can transfer to the Gold Line to downtown.

They look cute to me, and maybe a Pasadena resident can comment more on that specific street and location in Pasadena. Pasadena is a great city though and the units aren't far from its great little downtown, plus you can ride public transportation to work!

[timelesschild]

How many bedrooms do you need for that $1400/month?

The Gold Line is excellent, very safe, clean and cheap.

Here is one that's an easy drive to downtown, not walking distance to Gold Line though.

Large 2 Bdrm/1Bath Apartment with Hardwood Floor & Pool, Great Schools (http://losangeles.craigslist.org/sgv/apa/800837828.html - broken link)

Here is one near the Gold Line, and I am not sure about the exact location safety-wise, but several people on this board are - it's Ave 50 and Figueroa:

Mid Century Modern lrg. 1100 sq ft. 2 story townhouse, air con., patio (http://losangeles.craigslist.org/lac/apa/801894433.html - broken link)

Do you have children? Are they school-age? Do you NEED the train or is it just something you would prefer? I ask because your budget is low for housing near the gold line WITH good schools. If the schools can come out of the equation, the highland park areas are more doable. Or if you need schools and safety, but not the train, then Temple City might be your best bet. Or if your budget can double for housing, you might be able to find something in South Pasadena, for great schools, great train accessibility, and close to downtown.

Keep talking and keep looking - it can be done.

[ks12]

Thanks for some wonderful insight about the location , to reply to timelesschild , I have a small kid ( 3 years) so would rather require play group /nursey sort of schooling.Regarding transportation it would be definitely good if I have access to train or any other public transport to downtown .However my primary preference is safety and good locality for which I may consider staying a little far from Public Transport . Regarding housing I need either one Bedroom /spacious studio

[timelesschild]

Here you go.... this one looks GREAT:

Large 1 Br near Gold Line and 110 Fwy in South Pasadena (http://losangeles.craigslist.org/sgv/apa/804663596.html - broken link)

There are plenty more where that came from. I went to craigslist, clicked on rentals, San Gabriel Valley, put in your 1100 and 1400, and put in the search parameters Pasadena Gold Line. I got 11 listings that way. Hope this helps!

[ks12]

Yes , thanks a lot .......it was a treasure of information