STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

Irene · Dooney & Bourke

Los Angeles ladies...

kenzie · Chanel

Irene wrote:

Gary and are are considering moving to California in a couple of years. We are both tired of NY and have loved visiting LA so much that we would like to buy a house there now to stay in when we go. What neighborhoods are most convenient to downtown? Also, what neighborhoods should we avoid? TIA

Not an LA girl (wish I was!) but I'm just wondering why you are choosing to live close to Downtown LA? There are so many other, better areas of LA, like Santa Monica, Brentwood, ect. Just curious.

crystal · Kate Spade

i agree w/ nylabelle, why downtown? i mean, if u work there then u wanna be close, but other than that... WHY?!?!?! i live in santa monica & LOVE it... it's about 20 min from downtown w/ NO traffic, but can approach an hour in traffic. i also love the south bay (manhattan beach is my fave) but that's even further from downtown. i honestly can't really think of anywhere close to downtown that is "nice," but i'll think about it!

oh & avoid inglewood, compton, east LA, south central, pretty much anything u've heard of in a rap song, avoid it!

Irene · Dooney & Bourke

LOL!

We don't want to live in downtown, just in a neighborhood that's makes it convenient to downtown. We will both have jobs that will most likely have us working downtown, so that is why. We would love to live in a beach neighborhood.

crystal · Kate Spade

oh so you WILL be working downtown, i didn't gather that from your first post... well, i took a look at a map & i would suggest culver city (some parts, it's tricky), west LA, or beverly hills. of course BH is pretty pricey, as are the beach towns, ESPECIALLY if you're buying a house! if you've got the cash though, i'd say the beach is the best, as long as you don't mind the commute & the closest beach town is santa monica cuz then you are right by the 10 & if you leave early enough you won't hit traffic on the way to work or the way home! where are the other LA girls to help me out on this?? i'm so not "downtown knowledgeable"!

Lilykind · Hermes

crystal wrote:

where are the other LA girls to help me out on this?? i'm so not "downtown knowledgeable"!

Housing prices are insane here, but since you're coming from the NYC area, stcker shock should be too bad....or rent prices. But still...

Manhattan Beach might be the place for you if you're looking to get a house or start a family. The schools are really good and there's a lot of amenities right nearby (including a massive Target...hehe). You'd take the 405 to the 10 to get to downtown. I *think* the same goes for Redondo.

You could live in Torrance/Palos Verdes (be careful...some places are a bit dotty) and take the 110 up to downtown. Palos Verdes is really nice too, but it's not a 'beach town'. It's more like cliffs by the ocean rather than sand. Really really pretty though...house are crazy expensive too.

Also, not a beach town, but have you considered Pasadena. It's REALLY nice there too, but the weather is a bit more evil since it's further inland. Getting to downtown would be a quick hop south on the 110.

kenzie · Chanel

Lilykind wrote:

crystal wrote: where are the other LA girls to help me out on this?? i'm so not "downtown knowledgeable"! Housing prices are insane here, but since you're coming from the NYC area, stcker shock should be too bad....or rent prices. But still... Manhattan Beach might be the place for you if you're looking to get a house or start a family. The schools are really good and there's a lot of amenities right nearby (including a massive Target...hehe). You'd take the 405 to the 10 to get to downtown. I *think* the same goes for Redondo. You could live in Torrance/Palos Verdes (be careful...some places are a bit dotty) and take the 110 up to downtown. Palos Verdes is really nice too, but it's not a 'beach town'. It's more like cliffs by the ocean rather than sand. Really really pretty though...house are crazy expensive too. Also, not a beach town, but have you considered Pasadena. It's REALLY nice there too, but the weather is a bit more evil since it's further inland. Getting to downtown would be a quick hop south on the 110.

*Sigh* All this talk of LA really makes me want to move there.

Tara · Dooney & Bourke

I live in Venice and I love it! Of course the commute would potentially suck to downtown...BUT, Venice/Marina Del Rey area is right near the 90, which easily connects to the 405, which in turn easily (yet trafic-ally) connects to the 10 - which brings you to downtown!

Oh, and my b/f and I seriously consider moving downtown. A really arty friend of ours owns a loft downtown, and it is awesome! The space is amazing, and downtown lofts are very "up and coming". Though, nobody would like to visit you as downtown is sort of annoying to get to.

My b/f's boss recently bought a house in a very cute part of culver city nicknamed "The new Beverly Hills". It was > 1 million, but again Culver City is only recently becoming a popular place to buy real estate, so you can find something semi-reasonably priced here.

And, we LOVE the Los Feliz / Silverlake area of LA. It would be closer to downtown than the beaches and much more affordable - and you can actually get a big house in this area. However, it has recently become LA-hipster-ville. So beware.

HTH!

bumblebee · Coach

i was going to suggest venice or los feliz/silverlake, too--both have pretty direct routes into downtown.

in terms of what to avoid, if you start looking in the los feliz area, there are neighboring areas you would prob. want to stay away from (most of koreatown, macarthur park, some parts of echo park, even some parts of silverlake are still kind of sketchy).

is there a reason that you think that you will be working downtown? just wondering whether you have specific info or know that your or gary's company is based there, because there are several areas of town that are now the centers of business (beverly hills/century city, santa monica, valley) and it's not like in other cities where a majority of businesses are localized to the downtown area. just mentioning it because you might not need to be downtown-accessible after all, and then you would have more/better choices in neighborhoods to live in.

LA Gal · Kenneth Cole

I'm not sure I would buy in downtown or near downtown unless you actually have a job there and really don't want a commute. LA is a very spread out city and most businesses are actually NOT based in downtown LA - even financial, law and accounting companies are spread out all over LA, with lots having offices in Century City and Santa Monica. It would really suck to buy something in order to be near downtown and then to find out you're working on the westside (Santa Monica, Century City, etc.) or elsewhere.

Also, LOTS of people (myself included) live outside of downtown and its vicinity and commute to downtown. I live in Brentwood and actually work past downtown. Traffic is actually not that bad if you leave before or after the main rush hour times, and I have no desire to be near downtown on the weekends and after work (there is nothing to do there).

If you're still set on living near downtown, I'd really check out Pasadena. It's the nicest area closest to downtown in my opinion, with great houses, shopping, restaurants, etc., although not very close to the beach.

Good luck!

Lilykind · Hermes

Tara wrote:

Though, nobody would like to visit you as downtown is sort of annoying to get to. My b/f's boss recently bought a house in a very cute part of culver city nicknamed "The new Beverly Hills". It was > 1 million, but again Culver City is only recently becoming a popular place to buy real estate, so you can find something semi-reasonably priced here.

Do you mean Cheviot Hills? My BF's former boss lives there and when we drive up Motor coming up to Westwood from Culver City I seriously goggle at the houses...it's sick how beautiful some of them are and it's like you never knew this part of LA existed. Plus this are is really close to the 10, so you'd only have to deal with one freeway if you were to work downtown.

BF and I hang out a lot in Culver City...it's getting much nicer by the day. The downtown area is really cute and you have everything you need (except for a good mall, but I digress). They just remodeled the Target (it looks the same as the fance-schamnce West Hollywood one they opened a year and a half ago...hehe). So it would be a good idea to look there as well.

Tara · Dooney & Bourke

Lilykind wrote:

Do you mean Cheviot Hills? My BF's former boss lives there and when we drive up Motor coming up to Westwood from Culver City I seriously goggle at the houses...it's sick how beautiful some of them are and it's like you never knew this part of LA existed.

No, they actually live in Culver City - just north of Washington Blvd. Honestly their neighborhood is adorable. And I would not have known it existed if they didn't move there!

But I know the area of Cheviot Hills that you are talking about. I always take Motor north to get to Century City. I love that area! So cute!

Irene · Dooney & Bourke

Wow! Thanks so much for the help ladies.

I figure Gary would probably be working downtown because he works at JPMorganChase. however, he could work at any company that has a conference center. He would like to work at Disney or Universal though too. Hmmm. Me, I am not too sure. I technically could work anywhere. I also work at a bank curretnly but am seriously trying to get out of here in a few weeks.

It's a long time away so who knows. I just figured that it would be easier to assume what neighborhood we'd be working in.

gingembre1 · Kate Spade

I love Cheviot Hills/Westwood. Loooooove that area. My best friend lives there, and I just die whenever I visit him. Also Santa Monica (of course), Marina Del Rey...I like those areas too.

member · Hermes

Irene wrote:

Wow! Thanks so much for the help ladies. I figure Gary would probably be working downtown because he works at JPMorganChase. however, he could work at any company that has a conference center. He would like to work at Disney or Universal though too. Hmmm. Me, I am not too sure. I technically could work anywhere. I also work at a bank curretnly but am seriously trying to get out of here in a few weeks. It's a long time away so who knows. I just figured that it would be easier to assume what neighborhood we'd be working in.

I work for JPMorgan too! I know we have offices in L.A , but does he know that we also have offices in Southern Cali? I am not sure what he does or anything, but I've looked into the offices in Southern Cali because the BF and I are considering moving out there next summer (currently living in Chicago). Just thought I'd let you know that offices for JPMC do exist outside of L.A! HTH!

-- Edited by shopchicago33 at 15:45, 2005-08-16

Lilykind · Hermes

Irene wrote:

He would like to work at Disney or Universal though too.

Most of Disney is located in Burbank (unless he was working freelance on a production for the company...that could be located anywhere). Universal is scattered throughout the city...the music group is in Santa Monica, the film/tv side in Universal City (offices are right by Universal Studios...people go there on their lunch break) and since they merged with NBC, they also have a presence in Burbank.

If you were to work in Burbank you could live there (but only if you're itching to have a family soon...lots of families but it's sooooo suburban and like you're in a bubble) or you could go for Pasadena. If you plan on commuting from the city you'd have to cross the Santa Monica Mountains and there's only so many ways to do that. And all of them are clogged during peak rush...it's something to consider. If you're used to sitting in traffic it might not be so bad...but it's traffic.

I guess my best advice is to stay central to a lot of places, especially since you're planning on buying a house.

bumblebee · Coach

i second all of lilykind's sound advice. traffic is such a major issue and drama here, that i wouldn't make any decisions, esp. one like sinking a lot of money into a house purchase, until i was absolutely sure where at least one person was going to be working. you really cannot overestimate how much a heinous commute will impact your lifestyle and happiness.

Deuce · Dooney & Bourke

I live in the bay area and I think you should move to San Francisco. Sorry so much more of a Nor Cal girl. Those are my two cents. I'm sure my opinion really counts as opposed to a job or your prefrences.