We are moving to Los Angeles (Torrance) this summer! I got an internship doing corporate strategy for Toyota. I know a lot of people would die to live in LA, but the location may be one of the harder things for us. I'm actually ok with it, but my wife, who grew up on a ranch in Wyoming, is less than excited. There's a lot to do, though, and I have a brother about an hour away in Riverside, so it will be fun.
Looking for housing is not too fun, however. Especially in an expensive place like LA. Back to combing through Craigslist, rent.com, padmapper.com, etc to find a place. We've reached out to people we know, as well as BYU alumni through the BYU management society, and heard back from some people, but are still looking. When searching Craigslist, I was reminded of how annoying it is when someone posts misleading information, and posts it almost every day. I called an extended stay hotel near Toyota in Torrance (a Travelodge at 2448 Sepulveda Blvd. in Torrance) that was advertising $1395/month. However, when I called (they posted that same day, and continue to post every day), they said the minimum was $1500/month. And that's for 1 single person. So my wife + 2 kids is another $150/each. Now we're up near $2k. I didn't stay on the phone much longer to find out what other hidden charges there would be.
As I think about looking for a place, I'm reminded of our experience moving here to Provo. Hopefully we can avoid getting a place in the condition our house was in! I had to start my MBA program with our house in this condition, and Kinsey had to be there all day. It was like this for about the first month of school, while we worked with the landlord to put a kitchen floor in and make other modifications. Oh, and there was no air conditioning, so it was over 90 degrees every day inside the house. Here are some pictures:
House when we moved in:
This is the kitchen
Laundry room
Since the house was such a mess, we piled everything into the front room. This is pretty much all the stuff we brought from Chicago
Another view of the front room
House now:
Kitchen
Front room
We worked hard to leave our house in Chicago in the best condition, so it was a little frustrating to come to this mess in Provo. But it's better now. Hopefully we can find a great place in LA!
I would have to agree with you Brett. Housing in Provo is a disaster waiting to happen. My wife found us a nice little place, and it turned out to be infested with rats and mold. We backed out of that one in a hurry. We now have a great basement with a big screen, outdoor bbq, and we get to walk the landlord's dog whenever we want. All thanks to my wife's piano teaching connections.
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