Cons of living in Southern California (Los Angeles, Santa Ana: apartments, rent, car insurance)

[rocker10805]

Hello. I want to move to Southern California. I live on the east coast, and the dark and cloudy days in the winter are just depressing. I have heard though that the LA sunshine could get tiring after a while. I've been to the LA area a few times for vacation, but I'm sure vacationing and living there are very different. I did notice the gap between the rich and the poor is huge there!

[JohnG72]

Cons:

Rent
State income tax(if you make enough to afford the rents, expect to pay several thousand a year in state income tax)
Traffic
Potentially higher income, sales, and gas tax
High gas prices

Essentially the negative issues are higher costs of living and traffic.

There is potential of the homeless and low level crime spreading to broader areas, but currently it’s concentrated in certain areas, particularly City of Los Angeles.

There’s also potential for worse stuff like criminalization of certain speech. The incredibly stupid state assemblyman Richard Pan proposed a law that would require items posted on the internet to go through a government fact checking office and incredibly it passed through the assembly and senate. Fortunately Governor Brown vetoed it but I’m not sure Governor Newsome would do the same( the Supreme Court would overturn it, but it’s still incredibly evil to even propose it). https://www.google.com/amp/s/sacrame...bill-veto/amp/

[CALGUY]

A few years ago, I wrote a thread titled "reality check for Los Angeles"
Do a search for it.
The one big difference from when I wrote that thread is everything has doubled in a worse way from how I described it.
Well worth the read if any one is contemplating a move to SoCal.

Bob.

[sidneyinmyeyes34]

Traffic is horrible in Los Angeles... Its unbearable.... The rent is astronomically high. At least 1,200 and up... You need to have a good job to pay for it.. There are homeless people everywhere in LA camped out and in their rvs and cars.. A lot of places in LA are not livable because of crime. I guess there are there are lot of clubs and bars if your into that... Otherwise I would not move here. But don't take my word. I have lived here all my life (30 Years) and I am tired of it.

[BGS91762]

Originally Posted by JohnG72

Cons:

Rent
State income tax(if you make enough to afford the rents, expect to pay several thousand a year in state income tax)
Traffic
Potentially higher income, sales, and gas tax
High gas prices

Essentially the negative issues are higher costs of living and traffic.

There is potential of the homeless and low level crime spreading to broader areas, but currently it’s concentrated in certain areas, particularly City of Los Angeles.

There’s also potential for worse stuff like criminalization of certain speech. The incredibly stupid state assemblyman Richard Pan proposed a law that would require items posted on the internet to go through a government fact checking office and incredibly it passed through the assembly and senate. Fortunately Governor Brown vetoed it but I’m not sure Governor Newsome would do the same( the Supreme Court would overturn it, but it’s still incredibly evil to even propose it). https://www.google.com/amp/s/sacrame...bill-veto/amp/

Pros are not paying huge amounts for heating in the winter like you do in the Midwest or East. Also the summers are not as miserable as most parts of the country so lower cooling bills. Cons are higher rents.

[timtemtym]

The sunshine doesn't get tiring, but you do need to invest in sunblock and use it daily, especially a face moisturizer with spf! If you see old time Californians, you can tell the ones who spent their years basking in the sun, they look raisiny.

High costs of living and traffic are the assumed things about SoCal, the other thing is just how run down a lot of LA is. It's old and not old as in East Coast old with charming, sturdy buildings. We have a lot of really crappy apartments and houses that were thrown up quickly in the 50's and 60's. This is slowly changing with all the new housing and towers going up, but there is still a lot of this old faded blah.

Aside from the blah that stretches from the North San Fernando Valley down to Santa Ana, you have nice suburban areas with endless faux mediterranean architecture and then the new thing is the five story apartment box built over a parking garage (sometimes with retail). That standard box is taking over, at least it adds housing units.

The sunshine is a serious topic though! You get used to it and dependent on it. If you go elsewhere to visit for winter then you get sad and depressed with gray cold. We do get May Gray and June Gloom, but you can drive inland to get away from it.

[quixotic59]

Originally Posted by rocker10805

Hello. I want to move to Southern California. I live on the east coast, and the dark and cloudy days in the winter are just depressing. I have heard though that the LA sunshine could get tiring after a while. I've been to the LA area a few times for vacation, but I'm sure vacationing and living there are very different. I did notice the gap between the rich and the poor is huge there!

We moved here about 18 months ago from NYC. Lived in NYC over 50 years. Before we moved out here we visited a number of times that totaled about a year.

There is no comparison when it comes to the weather. We are nowhere near tired of the sunshine after all those winters in NY with ice, snow, freezing rain and all the cloudy days and humid summer days. All that goes away. So do the mosquitoes! No matter what kind of day you are having, seeing a blue sky always makes you feel better. We do have a day of rain here or there (today!) but that's about it. No parkas, heavy coats, heavy boots, gloves, etc.

As far as living costs: The rents are slightly higher (maybe 10%) compared to the boroughs of NYC. They are way below Manhattan rents. Also, apartments seem to be newer and more spacious. All depends on how fancy you want to go and where you end up. Gas is more expensive, about 50-60 cents a gallon.

As far as traffic, depends on where you are comparing to. Better that the GW bridge, Cross Bronx, LIE, Manhattan, similar to the busier urban/suburban areas of the tri state. Fewer bridges and rivers so there are more side street options.

We find that groceries are slightly cheaper and better quality. Fruits and vegetables are phenomenal compared to the tri-state average super market. Tons of farmer's markets here.

Thanks to the weather you have year round access to all activities, indoor and outdoor. Parking is cheaper in general. Our car insurance dropped about $300 a year when we moved (North Hollywood area).

The income inequality is better than Manhattan, about the same in the suburbs. Good and bad areas. Do your research before you move, try and live close to your job.

Don't know your family status (wife, kids, etc.) or your age so that will affect you also.

Make sure you have a job lined up.

Bottom line: We feel we made a good decision switching coasts and are happy with the choices we made here.

[cornblitz]

If you can afford to live well and don't have a bad commute, you can have a great life in Southern California. I'm also originally from the East Coast, and I love it here.

[RockyRoadg]

Cons are:
Trash everywhere, people driving without insurance especially Illegals, of course traffic but I hear NYs is worse. I pros defiantly out weigh the cons.

[Veritas Vincit]

The main and perhaps only reason I am not in Southern California right now is that I just don't trust the political environment. I wouldn't want to own property in a state that is tending toward political radicalism, where the electorate seems prone to whims and politicians are unable to tackle serious issues. It just doesn't feel like a future-proof situation.



It feels like a lovely mansion built overlooking the coastline that is going to be toast in case of a landslide and surrounded by forests that are long overdue for a burn. It's a shame because it's one of the most beautiful places in the world.