Please tell me about Highland Park (Santa Clarita, Burbank: real estate, rental, violent crime)

[Lapushka27]

Hello,
My family is considering a move to the LA area from across the country (Maryland) for a job transfer. We plan to visit at the end of the month and explore various areas, but in the meantime are looking at rental properties online and via real estate apps. We found a house for rent in Highland Park that is affordable and seems really great from the photos, and are wondering what the area is like. We have a 2-year-old, so we want to live somewhere that is family friendly and most importantly, SAFE. The house is 2 blocks north of York and appears to be about 4 blocks east of Occidental college. It's also walking distance to the gastro pub The York.
Thanks for any insight!

[heetseeker]

Highland park looks okay to me lots of nice property and it's away from the city. How far would the commute be?

[Lapushka27]

Commute would be to downtown LA.

[Social Democrat]

The area of Highland Park you are looking at is pretty nice and you will be close to Eagle Rock as well, another nice area. I've lived in HP for almost 15 years and I really like it. Some areas are pretty sketchy but where you are looking isn't really near them. The area is predomiantly Hispanic but is very diverse. Not having children I don't know much about the schools but I hear they are good. There is a developing "scene" on York starting at Avenue 51 continuing east for several blocks. Figueroa Street is the other main venue and is more the commercial center of HP. You'll find a lot of variety shopping for groceries in the area providing some very good buys.
There is a theater on Figueroa that offers $4.00 matinees but is a bit like watching a movie in someones living room as there usually is a fair amount of chatter. Once you're settled you may want to head over to The Vista Theater in the Los Feliz/Silverlake area just east of Hollywood. Only takes about 15 minutes driving and IMHO is one of the best (if not the bast) movie going experiences in LA. The address is: 4473 Sunset Drive.
They don't advertise in the LA Times print media but you can look them up on the LA Times website. Matinees are $6.50 and $9.50 for PM shows. Beware there is only street parking and you need to be careful as some of the streets are restricted so read the signs! Anyway, enough theater promoting. BTW - the commute to downtown from HP is about 15 to 20 minutes except during high volume traffice times. There is also the Gold Line light rail that will take you to downtown as well. Welcome to HP and enjoy!

[JohnG72]

I agree with what Social Democrat states except that the school issue is sorta blurred with the Eagle Rock schools being passable and the HP schools being mostly horrible(with the exception of some elementary schools).

I'll note though, that Highland Park, even the nicer areas, is no typical suburb....not exactly family friendly in the same way that a place like Burbank is. And not at all a suburb in the manner that someplace like Santa Clarita/Valencia is.

[Parker501]

I like Highland Park, alot. But I don't think its for everyone. It does not have the pretty manicured lawns, or white picket fences of the westside. There is a very large hispanic population and most of the white people that I have interacted with are more of the eccentric type (tatted up musicians and artists). However, I went out for dinner at the York one night and count not believe all the tottlers I saw. If safety is one of your top concerns you may want to look elsewhere. I think property crime is on the higher side and there is occasional violent crime. Depending on your background and where you have lived I could see alot of people not feeling all that comfortable walking around (even during the day).
The major downside to HP for me is it feels a little out of the way from the rest of the city.

[behindthescreen]

Isn't Highland Park where the Avenues gang is located and they were assaulting all blacks who were trying to move in the neighborhood?

[behindthescreen]

Gangland - Highway to Hell ( History Channel ) - YouTube

[A1Lexo]

It's a block by block thing in Highland Park. Mostly working class Mexican families. The gangs there have been there for generations and make up part of the culture. Some blocks are great, some are pretty dangerous. I love Highland Park, but it does get crazy there sometimes. It all depends onw aht you are used to.

[nickdahammer]

I live adjacent to HP, go through the neighborhoods often. The homes up the hills are amazing and there are lots of families there. In fact, I was driving up Aldama from El Paso just a couple of nights ago, marveling at the Halloween decorations and early Xmas lights on the 100-year old bungalows. The ethnic mix is more pronounced down York, on Fig, etc. Lotsa ethnicities mix there- HP is much more diverse that you'd think. I've been living in the area for about 15 years- never any trouble, though there are some small pockets of ugly places. The gangs should have little or no effect on you unless you go out of your way to find them (I never have, but it doesn't stop me from going anywhere I please).

OH yeah, and having a couple of trains stations in HP doesn't hurt either. The Gold Line is very popular.