Moving to Los Angeles from Iowa?

Question

I currently live in Iowa (where I'm totally unhappy), and I'm planning to move to Los Angeles in less than a month. By the way, I have no friends or family down there...I'm taking a chance for my happiness. What am I to expect once I get there? What about the job market and the safe and affordable places to live? Am I making the right desicion?

Answer 1

I did the same thing - I lived in Oregon and just wanted a change of scenery. I moved to LA with no job or place to stay, no friends or family. I stayed in a youth hostel (cheaper than a hotel) until I could find an apartment.

L.A. is much more crowded and expensive than you would guess. You don't say your age, but I'm guessing you're fairly young. I would recommend looking on craigslist.org and in the Recycler, you can pick one up at any convenience store or gas station for free. Look for people looking for roommates. Its much easier to find a place to live in an apartment or house where someone (or some people) already live and are looking for a roommate, your rent and deposit will be lower that way too. Just be sure to talk to them extensively and make sure your living styles match. You should be able to find a room in a house or an apartment to share in a decent neighborhood for $500 to $800 a month depending on how big the apartment and how many room mates you have, and the neighborhood and amenities.

There are many communities in different areas that are safe and not as expensive. What I would do is find a job first then find an apartment based on where your job is. You don't want to get a great apartment in Glendale and then end up wanting a great job in Manhattan Beach (VERY long commute, there). I would highly recommend making your commute as short as possible, that will give you more time to spare and cost you a lot less money in gas. Gas is expensive in LA.

The job market here is tight, so it depends on your skills, training and experience. If you are a professional it won't be a big deal. If you have experience with something like as a filing clerk or legal assistant you should do fine. You might also be able to find a job as a receptionist or administrative assistant if you have experience and great computer skills. If you are looking for a more entry level job expect to work 2 jobs just to get by - LA is very expensive for someone making minimum wage.

The nightlife in LA is great, and you can meet a lot of people just going out. There are a lot of other things to do. Check out shopping at the 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica, the Beverly Center in Beverly Hills, and The Grove also in Beverly Hills. The Getty Center is a great museum and its completely free, so check that out one day when you are bored.

Some things to consider are where you want to work/live. You might not have much of a choice if you have a hard time finding a job. But you might want to look for jobs in specific areas based on your lifestyle and what you are interested in. LA is pretty spread out. There's Long Beach and Manhattan Beach in the south, I haven't spent much time there but I have a friend who lives down there and loves it. Downtown LA is, well, downtown. Its a good place to work if you don't mind the traffic but I dont know if I would live there. Santa Monica and Venice are to the west of downtown. They are great little beach cities, but a little on the expensive side. Hollywood is to the north, its a lot less expensive but its, well, Hollywood. You'll have to just see when you get here. Beverly Hills is expensive but really nice, I lived one block from the city limits and my TINY one bedroom apt with no AC or dishwasher was $900 a month. Then you have the San Fernando Valley to the north. Its a lot cheaper in most areas, but they have a lot of crappy neighborhoods so be careful. There are also a lot of nice places there. I also lived in Van Nuys where a much larger 1 bedroom apartment with AC and a dishwasher cost me $875 a month - it wasn't in the nicest neighborhood, but I didn't mind. Pasadena and Glendale are wonderful and very nice, you might be able to find a deal on a large apartment with several roommates, but otherwise its expensive. You can always branch out into places like Encino or Northridge, where its a further drive to downtown LA or the beaches but the cost of living is less- its more suburban. You can also most likely find a job in those areas.

Make sure you have a LOT of money saved before you come. I had plently of good work experience and it still took me 2 months to find a decent job. I had $3500 with me when I came and by the time I got my job I barely had enough left for rent. Good luck!

Answer 2

Hi, Hawkeye!
You should have a job before you move here.
Count on everything being 40% more expensive (or more) than Iowa. The average rent for a 1 bedroom apartment is $1200 per month with an additional $1200 needed as a deposit.
It was easy for me to make friends here. Try Long Beach, CA, it used to be called Iowa by the Sea. That's where I live and I like it quite a bit. I'm within walking distance of bars, restaurants, the beach and shopping. I just walked down the street to the bars and met people because they recognized I was new. Nobody ever tried to take advantage of me and sell me for black market body parts, lol! Just be sure to look at places close to the beach like Bluff Park or Belmont Shore and Belmont Heights. LB can be really bad in parts as can all of LA and Orange County.
I'm from another large city so there wasn't a culture shock for me.
The job market is very tight here.
Just remember that even though you are moving to get out of IA because of your unhappiness, your problems will follow you here. Especially when you find out how expensive everything is.
Do Not Believe Everything You See On TV About LA.

I'm not sure where Sherryn got her information, that's some of the most bizarre stuff I've ever heard.

Answer 3

First, figure out exactly what it is that makes you unhappy now. Don't expect that a change of scenery will magically make you happy. Running away from your problems does not necessarily solve them.
If you're determined to make the move, get a job first that pays well enough to live in a region with a higher cost of living. It also helps if you have friends or family in a new area. Since you know no one in LA, it might be pretty lonely there until you manage to make new friends.
Every region has its advantages and drawbacks.
No matter where you go, there you are.

Answer 4

Are you making the right decision? I would say NO! If you are unhappy in IOWA, I guarantee that you will be unhappy anywhere else & everywhere else that you decide to go in the world. I have live in Los Angeles MOST of my life & I have lived in California ALL of the life. I have seen so many people from small "farm towns" end up in the streets of L.A. & living in shelters after they sustained bodily harm from being beaten & mugged by the seasoned PRO's who come to Los Angeles to prey on young men & women who are from other states. If you don't know much about how the world works, then Los Angeles isn't for you. You could end up another statistic & be added to the long list of Jane Doe's who are still waiting for their body parts to be claimed & identified by someone from somewhere! You have NO IDEA what you are about to do. It is NEVER a safe place for anyone who is alone. Your body parts alone are worth over $250,000 as a donor (card id or not) to the medical people. This town is FULL of sicko's. I urge you to seek some therapy & get your life on a better track before you unknowingly & unwittingly commit suicide. If you enjoy the flesh trade, then you will fit right in. Don't go to the clubs, because that is where they put GHB in your drink & take you out to their car to transport you for photo sessions & sexual exploitation. You think I am kidding? These people are also running legitimate & successful businesses that will hire you, help you, then help themselves to what they think is their "property"...you! It happens to men & women. Consider yourself warned. The Salvation Army has a program that will pay your bus fare back to your hometown when you have had enough of Los Angeles. All you need is a friend or relative with a valid telephone number in the town where you want to go back to & they make the call & arrange your transportation.

Answer 5

Los Angeles is a HUGE, crowded, and VERY expensive place to live in. Please do yourself a favor, and come out here for a week or so to look around and see for yourself what the housing costs are, what the job market is like, what the different areas are like, what the general everyday expenses will be, etc. before you commit yourself to moving here.

Many people who move here sight unseen are pleased and decide to stay, but there are also some who are disappointed and now must spend even more money (if they have any left) to go somewhere else.

Are you making the right decision? Please take my suggestion so you can be better informed to decide for yourself.

Answer 6

Happiness comes from within. You won't find it by moving.

But if you're young and have no obligations, then go for it. Just don't burn your bridges. Keep enough money to get back if you need to.

Be aware, with out a college degree or job skills, it's unlikely you will find a job that pays well. Everything is really expensive here, and chances are you will struggle financially.

Making friends may be difficult,too.

Good luck.

Answer 7

Compared to Iowa prices of housing, you will probably experience sticker shock. Go to ForRent.com and try searching there for something in your price range. As for the people, you're going to find that, just like you, alot of people are from somewhere else. You'll get the people who try to fit into what they think is the LA scene, and you'll get the LA bashers who regret moving here. But mostly everyone is doing like people do elsewhere - get up, work and plan your weekends.

Answer 8

Its expensive. Get a job before you moved.
Okay here goes The cheapest city in LACITY is Watts, They are more afforable cities like Compton is next to Los Angeles.
The cheapest city is Compton.
Here you could fing a new Town house for around 300,000
or a new house for around 470k yes 470k5bed4bathroom

so i suggest you to rent if you could afford go ahead lol buy your house.
Welcome to Los Angeles County

Answer 9

if this is going to be a right decision you should make sure you have a job lined up and stake out nieghborhoods before you move down there. oh and one more tip get a makeover. the people that live in lowa and Los Angeles appear differently.

Answer 10

when u come here u should go to downtown LA and you'll b happy like me!!!
yay
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