SioPao

I'm transferring projects within my company to Los Angeles next month and was looking for some suggestions on areas to check out. I will unfortunately be looking for a 1 bedroom place. I have friends in Los Feliz, West Hollywood and a friend's little sister goes to USC. I want to stay in relatively close proximity to those areas, but I will be working on client site in Alhambra, east of downtown. What would be some good areas to check out that would help me keep a somewhat reasonable commute and not have to drive too far to meet up with people?

Just by looking at the map of the area, Mt. Washington seems to be in good proximity to all those places, but I don't know if that's a decent area or not. I don't need to be in the coolest areas or anything, somewhere where I'd feel comfortable with my car parked outside. I will be traveling to LA mid-October for two weeks for work, that's when I plan to check out specific apartments and find a place for a November 1 move-in.

Also, I can't get a good estimate on insurance yet since I don't have a CA address, but I'm paying just over 100$ a month to insure my 2005 S with Erie Auto Insurance. Unfortunately, they don't do business that far west, anyone else with a 2005, clean record, around 25 years old that has a similar rate?

Thanks for any advice and tips. I'll be making the drive cross-country from VA in a Uhaul, towing the S the last week of October.

-Kelley

jdmgpw04

im not quite sure which area is best but i would suggest to find somewhere close to your work location just because of LOS ANGELES traffic.

please post pics of the friends little sister that goes to usc

oh and for sure you wont miss any of that siopao.

f23power

SioPAO! deeee-licious! haha

-a

MYap1

just get a place in the alhambra, mpk, san gabriel, rosemead area.
no real commute needed.
pretty good/ safe neighborhoods with lots of cheap food around...esp if you love asian food..and by your name siopao...im assuming you LOVE asian food..hahah...very convenient and still not too far frm the locations of all your friends

as far as insurance...
just shell out for state farm or a overall great company that will work with you to the max.....cause theres alot of old asian ladies in that area...that cant drive if their lives depended on it..hahah

my aunt is one of them

but seriously..theres so many cars and people in la...
might as well pay a lil if any ...more than to deal with a crappy insurance ...cause with this many cars in la...theres bound to be something thatll happen

*KNOCK ON WOOD*

SioPao

Haha, thanks for the advice. Definitely looking forward to the area and the prospect of good food is always encouraging.

Does traffic get pretty bad on weekends like if I lived close to Alhambra and wanted to head towards west hollywood on a Friday night or something?

I'll take your advice on the insurance. I caught another thread here where folks were talking about it and someone said they had a relative who worked at State Farm or something, so I'll drop them a note and see what they say.

Are there any areas in particular I want to be sure I avoid around downtown?

It seems like there are lots of regular meets going on in SoCal, so I'll be sure to take advantage of that to meet some new people.

sandiegan

Driving to your friends on the weekend > commuting on a weekday.

psychophd

Falls Church - nice area.


And VERY different than LA. As noted, you want your commute short. If you lived west of downtown and drove to alhambra everyday, be ready for at least an hour in the car each way. Every day. Until you die of a heart attack, get shot by an angry commuter or swallowed whole in an earthquake.

I actually used to live very near Alhambra (Arcadia) - I would rec living there and driving out to see friends. Traffic will still suck, but I agree with everyone else that the daily commute is what you have to look at. If you're really set on living westsideish, you can also check into the Metrolink (light rail sys), which is pretty good.

Arcadia has got some great siu pao, xiao lum bao, and other wonderful foods...

Ro_Ja Boy

From everything I've read on here, people love Wawanesa insurance and rant about how inexpensive it is.

gregshin

why not downtown la? little tokyo is cool right now

sandiegan

If you have a good driving record, they are the cheapest, hands down. They don't have the fanciest online interface, but at the end of the day, this is the United States of Wal Mart, and the lowest bidder wins my insurance vote