What do you spend your money on? (Los Angeles, Burbank: hair salon, car insurance)

[firetraq]

i was just maxing out those expenses so they weren't too low....

i think i'll find it very interesting when i get to LA, to see exactly how much it will cost, i'll have about $30k in savings in the first few month, so if things are so tight i cant survive on my budget i do have that. we'll see i guess, i'm out on the 1st of jan.

personally i could do without TV myself anyway. its just that spongebob is my daughters fsv cartoon, well what you gonna do.

all in all, i'll probably gross about $110,000 this yr, but there is a possibility i may not and only bring home $75,000 which is unlikely but possible.

keep the suggestions coming, they are very useful.

as for life insurance, i really may look into that, a few yrs ago i sa some policies for $1mil that only cost like $30 a month, is that normal, guess i should look.

also my car insurance costs about $180 for two cars right now, and both are full coverage, how much is that likely to be in LA.

Thanks

[KnoxTown]

Originally Posted by firetraq

i was just maxing out those expenses so they weren't too low....

i think i'll find it very interesting when i get to LA, to see exactly how much it will cost, i'll have about $30k in savings in the first few month, so if things are so tight i cant survive on my budget i do have that. we'll see i guess, i'm out on the 1st of jan.

personally i could do without TV myself anyway. its just that spongebob is my daughters fsv cartoon, well what you gonna do.

all in all, i'll probably gross about $110,000 this yr, but there is a possibility i may not and only bring home $75,000 which is unlikely but possible.

keep the suggestions coming, they are very useful.

as for life insurance, i really may look into that, a few yrs ago i sa some policies for $1mil that only cost like $30 a month, is that normal, guess i should look.

also my car insurance costs about $180 for two cars right now, and both are full coverage, how much is that likely to be in LA.

Thanks

My insurance almost tripled, and I have never had a ticket or accident.

[vegaspilgrim]

Originally Posted by JonathanLB

When he says $75,000, that's before taxes right? So what is that after taxes? Let's just say that goes down to $60,000, he finds enough deductions, etc. You can't live that well on $60,000. I live in a 960 sq. foot condo, I eat Subway and cereal every day, I don't eat out at expensive restaurants, I drive a $9,000 used car that's fully paid off, nothing fancy just gets the job done. I don't go out to bars more than once a month, often less. When I do I might spend $20 to $30, not $75 or something. I don't drink Starbucks daily or anything along those lines. I have the basic cable package and nothing more. No house cleaning, I do that myself. I rarely get anything dry cleaned, about once every 9 months (I have 10 dress shirts, wear 'em twice each, don't have to dress up that much, so voila). I don't even drive much, I work from home, so I only have to gas up every 3-4 weeks.

I read this, and I read your other posts where you're talking about how great downtown LA is and how many attractions and shows and events there are there, and I just don't get it. Why? By your own words, your lifestyle is pretty mediocre and you can't even afford to take advantage of the best that downtown LA has to offer, so why do you live there?

[BRinSM]

Originally Posted by KnoxTown

My insurance almost tripled, and I have never had a ticket or accident.

this is no joke!!! car insurance is VERY expensive here.

[firetraq]

Originally Posted by BRinSM

this is no joke!!! car insurance is VERY expensive here.

i guess i should look around for quotes, i guess its these little hidden expenses that really add up.

ok so i did a quote on progressive and my quote was $865 for 6 months does that sound normal? that was their recommended amount.

[ZenMaster2008]

Keep in mind in LA your insurance can vary greatly depending on your exact location. I'm 29 havent had a ticket in 10 years. I lived in a shady city last year and my insurance on ONE car was 175/month. Now in a nicer area for the same full coverage I pay 110/month.

And for the record my gf and I get by fine on making 70k/year. We live within our means, know where we can save and have little debt.

[ConsideringLA]

//www.city-data.com/forum/los-a...zip-codes.html

[firetraq]

Originally Posted by ZenMaster2008

Keep in mind in LA your insurance can vary greatly depending on your exact location. I'm 29 havent had a ticket in 10 years. I lived in a shady city last year and my insurance on ONE car was 175/month. Now in a nicer area for the same full coverage I pay 110/month.

And for the record my gf and I get by fine on making 70k/year. We live within our means, know where we can save and have little debt.

finally a voice of reason, thanks zen.

my other friend in la who only makes about $60k with his gf, who are also buying their own condo, makes do fine as well.

[JonathanLB]

Originally Posted by vegaspilgrim

I read this, and I read your other posts where you're talking about how great downtown LA is and how many attractions and shows and events there are there, and I just don't get it. Why? By your own words, your lifestyle is pretty mediocre and you can't even afford to take advantage of the best that downtown LA has to offer, so why do you live there?

Because I can take advantage of any of this any time I want. I just choose to live well below my means. It's really not a money issue for now, it's a time issue. I'd rather spend my time working on my career and establishing myself than screwing around with bars and going out, etc. But it's great to know the options are there when I do feel like doing that.

And why do I live here? I don't want to get into my financial situation but trust me it's anything but "mediocre" My dad was a major investor in 3 downtown condo buildings, this being the first, and I was also an investor in all 3. That means I got a great deal on this condo, couldn't have gotten a cheaper place anywhere else, so it was ideal for me. I didn't want to rent, because there's no use for someone with money to flush cash down the toilet on rent, and I didn't want a house because I first of all think houses are very undesirable (I don't want a yard, I don't want neighbors and their dogs barking where I can hear them, houses are made poorly compared to condos in all cases, much worse sound proofing, bug proofing, etc., no front door person waiting to sign for my packages, etc.), but second they are too expensive. I couldn't have justified getting a $650,000 to $750,000 house when moving down to Los Angeles. No way. So a condo was a much better option.

This is where i would like to live well into the future. Hopefully not in this exact condo for TOO long, but in the future it'd be a dream of mine to have a penthouse downtown, so I like living here and seeing it grow. I do take advantage when I can, going to a Blazers-Clippers game tomorrow (I'm a Blazers fan, not a Clippers fan, haha), and I love the convenience of having a hair salon at the bottom of my building, getting a haircut is a huge pain in the butt usually, but not for me. This is completely ideal, why wouldn't I live here?! The only other place I would love to live, and would even consider buying a small condo one day if I had the spare cash, is downtown Burbank (specifically The Burbank Collection). There are all kinds of restaurants there, movie theaters, no homeless people, and lots of Tae-Kwon-Do studios everywhere, which rocks. Plus it's a great area for filmmakers. I didn't have that option when I moved down, though, those are brand new condos.

I know it's very American to live well above your means, or right at the cusp of them, but that behavior makes me nervous. I'd rather save every dollar possible and pretend I can't afford to eat a $50 meal every week, even though I certainly could, because frankly it's a waste of money unless you are rolling in cash. For me right now, any dollar wasted on something silly like food or more expensive entertainment is a dollar I can put into another personal project to advance my film career. That's a lot more useful. Or a dollar saved for my feature film. I'd prefer to be frugal, honestly.

[motoman]

Originally Posted by firetraq

i guess i should look around for quotes, i guess its these little hidden expenses that really add up.

ok so i did a quote on progressive and my quote was $865 for 6 months does that sound normal? that was their recommended amount.

That's in the ballpark. I have a 9 year old car, live in West LA, full coverage, and I pay about $650 every 6 months. I have Ameriprise Insurance. You might check them out.

I've tried every other company out here and they consistently quote me close to what Progressive quoted you.

By the way, when I first moved out here from Dallas I moved to Redondo Beach with a friend of mine. My insurance went up very little compared to Dallas. When I moved just 14 miles north to West LA it went up over $400 per year. Same insurance company. And they are the cheapest I have found for me.