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LA Weekly: You Officially Have to Be Rich to Rent in L.A.
- Thread starter Tripon
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CountAntonius
Member
Yeah..about that.
Avocado toast
Alcoremortis
Member
Retirement savings.
ghostofsparta
Member
Get used to it, urban renewal isn't stopping any time soon
Pupperbabysassy
Member
Damn. My rent for a one-bedroom is higher than that. By a lot.
God Dayumm
Banned
Not just downtown... Santa Monica (anywhere near the beach, really). WeHo is expensive these days, too. Not to mention Beverly Hills, Westwood and Brentwood...
Edit: Over half of my income goes right to rent. That's probably where the discrepancy is.
Yup.
Unless we build more bedrooms. See bullshit excuse about having no more room or infrastructure cannot handle more.
Sorry, wasn't familiar with the prices to other areas, just know that DTLA is really expensive.
Over half? I don't mean to sound rude but, is that a necessity? That's a lot of your income. Like, couldn't you find other viable, cheaper options?
Skellig Gra
Member
Most people in big cities don't live in "average 2 bedroom apartments".They live in shitty closets and spend as little time at home as possible.
Little Green Yoda
Member
$109k household income, right? Or do people who live alone routinely rent places with 2 bedrooms?
I make more than that and take home nowhere close to $9128/month. Not remotely close
The 2 bedroom stat is derived from families with kids.
fluffydelusions
Member
Hm there was just an article not to long ago that said Seattle surpassed Boston...
I'm single and prefer to rent 2 bedroom apartments. I WFH a lot so I need enough space for a home office. I'd be OK with a 1 bedroom if it has enough sq ft and enough space for an office setup, but for the most part 1br apartments are too small for me. Anything under 1200 sq ft feels like a jail cell to me.
richardhawk
Member
1025 for a 1br/1b 2 blocks from the beach in Long Beach. I'm never moving.
I got to live in a 2 bedroom for a while because my 1 bedroom had mold issues. And then they moved me back into it after a full cleaning. It was a sad day.
Marty Chinn
Member
Roommate(s).
brianjones
Member
Yeah, I'm certain the overwhelming majority are also not abiding by the "28%" rule when it comes to income vs rent. Its likely much closer to 50% or more.
After taxes, that's probably more like $6K/month. If you're putting 6-7% in an IRA and pay for health insurance for a family, maybe between $5500 and $6K
You add some car loans, student loans, and credit card payments, all of a sudden it doesn't seem like that much with a $2500 rent bill.
It's still good money after all that, but you're not going to feel rich.
Nobody is forcing a new graduate to live in fancy apartments in the heart of the city. There are plenty of areas within LA that are nowhere near that much. They aren't far at all. Also, roommates or get a 1 bedroom.
I wonder, for comparison, how much the average house payment is around the LA area. All the homeowners I know pay at least $2,000.
Stupid assumptions to begin with:
That people in modern urban centers are only spending 30% of their income on rent.
That people living alone opt for 2 bedroom apartments.
No doubt it's an expensive city, but you can make all kinds of claims when you start off assuming the wrong things.
That people in modern urban centers are only spending 30% of their income on rent.
That people living alone opt for 2 bedroom apartments.
No doubt it's an expensive city, but you can make all kinds of claims when you start off assuming the wrong things.
Once again the assumption is family with kids.
Atlanta builds up, out and in-between. No real government limit on density.
People group up. Aside from a single year of living alone, I had roommates until I was 26 (at which point, my now-fiancée moved in) - it's just a fact of life if you're living in a bigger city - in my case, Chicago. So while most people I know don't make $96K+ a year here, they're able to get by with 1-2 roommates.
Also, I'm assuming this article is only looking at expensive, trendy areas. Most people in Chicago don't make anywhere near $96K and lots of people get by just fine - they just do it in a neighborhood that isn't as glitzy (or as close to a train line). That's the case in most large cities.
crooked spin
Member
Ha I was just browsing LA Craigslist for apartments today. Still looks like a deal coming from NYC.
I'm living in Reseda, I have a roommate, and the real issue is the value of what you're renting. My rent just increased so I'm looking to move. That's the issue, like I can afford a 1BR, or an increase in rent, but there's a lot of people who can't afford it, especially when the apartment is rundown, and hasn't been fixed forever because they're living under a scumlord as an apartment owner. Nobody is saying we're living in the heart of Downtown L.A, but even the fringes like the San Fernando Valley are getting expensive.
Dark Ninja
Member
There is still good deals out there. But am I willing to live somewhere that forces me to take the 405 freeway as my primary route. FUCK NO.
therealist
Member
I am surprised that NYC is more expensive than LA. There are tons of highrise apartment buildings in NYC.
Vast swaths of NYC and the surrounding suburbs are drastically under developed (look at those racist assholes preserving the village). LA metro is actually denser than NYC metro. The denser the metro, the cheaper housing typically is. Tokyo is pretty cheap for example.
disappeared
Banned
This saddens me as I've wanted to try living in LA for a few years now.
Maybe I'll just save up for a two or three week vacation there instead.
Maybe I'll just save up for a two or three week vacation there instead.
You're welcome to move to cities near the Great Lakes - they're not that bad if you make average income. Unless you're in one of the high paying sectors, most people would have a better quality of life in cities like Cincinnati, Buffalo, Detroit, Pittsburgh if you can find income out there.
I think using the 30% rule for housing is outdated - especially for cities. It's not just housing obviously, transportation plays a huge factor into the minimum cost to function. You could theoretically pay less out of pocket if you could ditch your car and live close to work as an example. Although I'm not suggesting LA housing costs aren't ridiculous.
I don't think the list is comprehensive. San Jose metro should be up there.
That's my dream 😎
It's just the top 15 MSAs in the US.
As they say in the article, 15 places take more than $100K in household income to meet their affordability criteria, 10 of which are in coastal California.
Los Angeles Resident here. I pay $1687 for a large 1.5 bedroom and consider it a steal. It's a beautiful building with great features in a great area. I live alone and should be considered lucky.
Unless there are some unforeseen career thingscoming, I will be making slightly above the income mentioned in the OP. I'm also considering moving in with my GF this fall so that may change things though I don't think we could afford a house here yet ($750k range). Highland Park/Eagle Rock area.
Unless there are some unforeseen career thingscoming, I will be making slightly above the income mentioned in the OP. I'm also considering moving in with my GF this fall so that may change things though I don't think we could afford a house here yet ($750k range). Highland Park/Eagle Rock area.
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