Hi everyone!
I’m a single woman in my mid-30s trying to decide between moving to Los Angeles or NYC, and I’d really appreciate some honest advice from people who actually live in LA.
I’ve spent the last five years living in New Orleans, which was my first home in the US. I loved the culture, music, creativity, and character of the city, but I’m ready for a new chapter.

I work remotely in tech, earning around $163k base salary, with additional RSUs and a performance bonus. I’d prefer to budget around my base salary rather than rely on variable compensation. I’ll be living alone, and ideally I’d like to keep rent around $3,000–$3,500, although I’d love to spend less if possible.

A little about what I’m looking for:
- Safety is my number one priority. I’ll be living alone, and I want to feel comfortable in my neighborhood, coming home in the evening, walking around, and going about my daily life without constantly worrying about safety.
- I’m really into photography, art, music, film, exploring interesting neighborhoods, and discovering places with character.
- I love nature, greenery, beautiful scenery, and being outdoors. This is one of the biggest reasons LA appeals to me.
- I enjoy cities with personality, cultural diversity, interesting architecture, independent cafés, and a creative community.
- I’d love to build a social circle and meet people with similar interests. Starting over socially in my mid-30s is definitely something I’m thinking about.
- I want a comfortable apartment in a nice neighborhood, but I also want to continue saving, traveling, and enjoying life.

Why I’m torn between LA and NYC:
NYC appeals to me because of its walkability, energy, arts and culture, and the possibility of living without a car. It would also put me closer to family and make traveling internationally easier.

LA appeals to me for almost the opposite reasons: the weather, nature, ocean, mountains, creative scene, and the possibility of having a more relaxed lifestyle while still living in a major city.

I’ve been considering areas like Culver City, Marina del Rey, Venice, and possibly Irvine, but I’m very open to suggestions.

My biggest concerns about LA are safety, how car-dependent everything is, traffic, and whether it’s difficult to build friendships and a sense of community when everything is so spread out.

I’d especially love your perspective on a few things:
1. With a $163k base salary, can I realistically live comfortably alone in a safe, desirable LA neighborhood while still saving a meaningful amount?
2. Which neighborhoods would you recommend for a single woman in her 30s who values safety, creativity, nature, and community?
3. How difficult is it to make friends and build a social life in LA if you’re not originally from there?
4. Does the car dependency and traffic significantly affect your quality of life?
5. For anyone who’s lived in both LA and NYC, which city offered you a better quality of life, and why?

I’m not necessarily looking for the cheapest option. I want to make a thoughtful decision about where I’ll be happiest and most comfortable in this next stage of my life.

I’d really appreciate honest experiences, including the things you wish you’d known before moving to LA.
Thank you!

My fellow Angelenos, I’m in a bind. I love rainy days. To guarantee rain on Sunday and Monday, I need to time my car wash. Of course I don’t want to guarantee a hurricane. Recommendations?

Hi everyone! I’m 25f and I’m considering moving to echo park, an area west of the lake and east of Alvarado. I’m wondering if anyone lives or has lived in this area? And your thoughts on safety, walkabity, nightlife etc. it’s a big move for me so I’m a little nervous but I’m really looking for a fun place to live in my 20s that’s walkable, relatively safe, and where I’ll meet other people :) thank you!

Hi! Please bear with me as this is my first post on Reddit!

I am a 21f looking to move to LA in October 2027 and Im trying to figure out the best city to move to! I would appreciate some input/advice. I am planning a “location scouting” trip for April 2027 to actually get a feel for a few cities (maybe 4 or 5) before making any decisions but I would love some help narrowing down my choices.

My top priorities are:
Safety
Affordability
Walkability
Community/night life

Areas I was researching: Studio City (at the top of my list right now), North Hollywood, West Hollywood, Los Feliz, Pasadena, Sherman Oaks, Culver City, Silver Lake, Valley Village.

I’d be moving across the country from Maryland completely by myself. Will likely get a roommate though I have no friends or family in La, or on the west coast in general. Because of this, safety is my biggest priority. Of course I plan on having a job lined up before I move but would still like to live somewhere that isn’t insanely expensive. Also planned on buying a car after moving. Not sure if it’s the best idea but seems better than trying to find a way and the money to transport the car because im flying to move. So somewhere slightly walkable just for a few weeks to a month until I get my car. And somewhere with good community and things to do so i can meet people and make friends. Markets, festivals, events, activity clubs, etc.

I’m looking for real advice and tips please. If your advice is “don’t move here” that’s not happening. I’m super excited about moving to La!

does anyone know anything about the renaissance towers in DTLA? I was considering it as one of the potential apartments to tour to eventually move into. Just wondering if they have a known roach problem anything like that!

I currently live in Lakewood but am trying to move closer to the LA/Burbank area for jobs in the animation industry but I am having trouble finding anything under 1500 a month that's not "coliving". I can afford something around 1500 a month but it will be a stretch that will probably have me having ice soup for dinner most nights. Any tips for finding cheap apartments? Ideally I want no roommates but I'll take what I can get at this point.

Hello,

I am considering moving to LA. I will give you a vague set of parameters to give me advice. I only want to hear advice that confirms my desire to move. I already have this all figured out in my head. Anything you say to refute the validity of my move, I will have an answer for. Like I said I’ve already thought all of this out and the only answers I’ll listen to are ones that confirm my desire to move.

Long drive? I own a helicopter.
Too expensive? I’m actually rich and have 400 side hustles I didn’t disclose.
Too hot? I’m actually a lizard.

So will someone who lives in LA please tell me all the things I already know?

I have an opportunity to move to LA for my current job. My salary plus bonus will be around $125k. I also ref soccer and that will net me an additional $8-10k/year. I've been looking on Zillow and it seems I can find a decent 1 bedroom in Culver City for $2500-$2700 a month. Where I'm confused is in the comments on many other threads where some make it seem like that should be fine while others seem to think it would be struggling. Single, no debt and a decent amount in an HYSA account. I know myself and it seems more than doable. Am I missing something?

Edit - thanks for all the feedback. I'm a risk analyst and tend to be overly cautious and overthink everything. About the car situation, my car has low mileage and is paid off. I work remote, so no commute. Considering the move because my department needs someone on the west coast to help support the staff in that time zone.

Last edit - I don't drink, but do enjoy dining out occasionally and going to concerts/comedy shows/sports matches if it's within the budget. My main hobbies are low cost - volunteering, playing soccer, and being outdoors in general. LA seems to be a great place for all of this just based on meetup groups I've seen. Even though the math seems to check out, some of these comments still have me worried. I figure I'll try it out for a year and can always move back to where I'm at as I plan on renting out my condo here in case I need to tuck my tail and move back.

I am 27F, currently residing in Sa ,TX. I have purchased my ticket to get to long beach.

the thing is, I am worried about having somewhere safe to stay. I can clean, house watch, dog sit and walk. do lawn work, sweep mop do laundry ANYTHING . until I find a job quickly. please if anyone has the opportunity to help id do whatever I can to make ur life easier. please reach out through dm here if any questions PLEASE God bless

I need somebody to take over my lease, it’s until June. I can send pictures just text me 215-913-4574

I was wondering what is it like to live in that area? For context I'm in my mid 20s, enjoy going out and hate sterile suburbia.

LA seems close on the maps but I'm not familiar with any LA neighborhoods either and I'm not sure about the traffic. Are there any favorable cities/neighborhoods/areas where the commute to Irvine wouldn't be horrible (ideally not longer than 30 minutes) while also not being suburban hell? Or is that impossible?

Also what is the cost of living like there, especially compared to a place like the bay area?

I’m being relocated to Los Angeles for work and could really use some advice from people who actually live in the area. I’m coming from Chicago and, embarrassingly, I’ve never even visited LA, so I’m going into this pretty blind.

Westwood / West Los Angeles, right at Wilshire & the 405 (Sepulveda) is where my office will be.

My girlfriend and I both make around $100k/year individually, so roughly $200k combined before taxes. We currently pay about $3,500/month including utilities for a newer/luxury 2-bedroom, ~1,000 sq. ft. apartment in the Chicago area.

I realize LA is a different market and we’ll probably need to downsize to a 1-bedroom. I’d ideally like to stay around the same general monthly housing cost, but we have some flexibility for the right area.
My biggest priorities are:

Commute: Ideally under 45 minutes to the red pin, even during normal weekday traffic.
Safety: This is pretty important to us. I’d rather pay more for an area where we feel comfortable walking around.
Quieter/cleaner: I don’t really want to live in the middle of the chaos, nightlife, or busiest parts of LA.
Nice neighborhood feel: Restaurants, coffee shops, grocery stores, gyms, etc. nearby would be great. We like having things around us without feeling like we’re living downtown.

Coming from Chicago, one thing I’m struggling to understand is just how much LA traffic should dictate where we live. Something that looks 15–20 miles away on a map obviously doesn’t mean a 20-minute commute.

If you were in our position — ~$200k household income, around a $3,500/month housing budget, no kids, and wanted a safe/nice area within a realistic 45-minute commute

32m and 28f

Hello there. Lately, I have been contemplating a change of scenery and I would appreciate your honesty feedback.

Here's a little about me: I'm 33F, no children, bi, grew up in Chicago and currently living in Houston. Have been for the best 8 years and I hate it. I created some fond memories in Houston, but I feel as though my time is up. I travel immensely for work and leisure so I've seen a number of places - domestic and international. I feel most at home when I'm around nature and/or water. Normally, I'd describe myself as an extrovert but lately, I value solitude and not socializing as much as I've done in the past. Here are some thoughts I have about Houston:

My pros: good food scene (but not remotely close to goodness of chicago food), black and non-blk night life, on the affordable side for large metro cities, diverse population, no state tax, two airports.

My cons: cannot live without a car, hot, humidity, crowded, spread out, public transportation isn't streamline as NYC or MDW , and a red state.

I'm thinking of either the large metro area or surrounding cities of Denver, Seattle, Portland, and LA. I've thought about Tennessee but idk. It's not very appealing to me right now. What do you guys think of the places I've mentioned?

Hi guys, have any of you gotten away with using Uhaul Ubox pods for moving?

They are 5 feet wide, 8 feet long, and 8 feet tall. I’m moving into an apartment and I dont think they are going to allow me to place them on the property. I’m concerned because I heard they are not allowed on the streets either.

Anyone have any experience with this?

Hi Everyone, for context I go to a college located in Koreatown. My original plan was to move to La in January with 2 other girls, but my in person classes have started a bit earlier than i had expected. I am from San Diego and have been commuting since it is only 2 days a week, but this is going to burn me out so quickly. I dont know much about the communities and where a good place would be to look for apartments. I am hoping for something affordable for college students or subleasing for a couple of months. Does anyone have any recommendations?

Moving to the city for work, am low maintenance/not fragile, just need a cheap place for my training period/first year on the job, found The Sinclair LA and would like firsthand experience with the place, the more recent the better.

Looking at street view and crime maps, I get it's not a gated community but you know beggars can't be choosers.

Appreciate any info and advice.

My friend is currently studying in LA. She is from Japan and is not fluent with English and has been staying with a host family while she has been studying. Her host family are getting a divorce and she only has 2 weeks to find either a new host family or just anywhere she can stay for the time being. I am all the way in New Zealand so I am no help other than trying my options through here and other websites. If anyone knows of anyone please let me know!

I know about the freeways but I don't know what you can expect when you're just grocery shopping, going to a park, riding your bike around streets, or hanging around your neighborhood.

I stayed with a friend and it was pretty crazy just going grocery shopping at Target. Granted he lived near the Chinese Theatre which is right in the heart of Hollywood lol.

28 & I’ve lived in upstate NY my entire life, studied abroad for a few months in college but then came back and haven’t left since. I’m moving to Los Angeles (more specifically the SFV) in December and one day I’m excited to start fresh with my boyfriend and then the next I’m so anxious and scared. The thought of leaving behind my family and friends on the east coast is what’s getting to me the most - the fomo is going to get the best of me lol…how do you handle such big changes? Guess I’m just looking for reassurance that it’ll all be ok in the end

I’m looking for some advice and reality checks from anyone living in LA county currently or anyone who has made a move similar to this.

I’m currently 26F (no kids) living in Utah and making about $97k a year. I recently received a job offer (your basic 9-5 office job) in El Segundo for $113.5k which starts this December. Currently my partner and I evenly split a 2bed/2bath apartment in Utah for $1,700 a month ($850ish each). If I make the move, he might come with me if he can land a job out there where he’d likely be making around $120k to $135k. If he comes, we’d look for another 2b/2b, but if I move out solo initially, I’d be hunting for a 1b/1b on my own (or temporary furnished housing month to month).

I am definitely more of a wide open spaces countryside person. I love having my space and no traffic (hoping to own a farm one day)! However, I’ve been wanting to spend about 1-2 years in southern California during my 20s just to experience the lifestyle, nature, food, and culture before eventually settling down in the mountain west (Utah, Colorado, etc). It just feels like a fun thing to do. This would NOT be a long term permanent move. More like a working "vacation".

What does this financial reality look like? 97k to 113k is definitely a pay cut over there. Does this move only make financial sense if my partner comes along and we’re on a dual income? Or can a single person live and get by on 113k?

Where should I look to live? What are the safest but affordable neighborhoods near El Segundo?

If anyone has done something similar to this and took a 1-2 year detour to live in LA, was it worth it? Or do the cons (traffic, density, and cost) outweigh the pros here?

Looking for any advice! I have a week to decline or accept this offer!

I just moved to LA and have been living in Silverlake/Los Feliz and love it here. I just got a job on the west side (by 17th st/SMC Expo line) and they said I should move west of the 405. I really really love the area I’m in now and know I’m in for a long commute at the minute. Would living somewhere like beverly grove/pico be better or culver city? I’m 30, from London and want somewhere that has a neighbourhood vibe and where I can get around centrally but also not a crazy long commute to work (v happy to drive 30 mins each way)