Help needed for Brits relocating to LA
Dec 1st 2010, 7:15 am
#31
Looking for tax advice!
Thread Starter
Joined: Nov 2010
Location: Portsmouth, UK
Posts: 35
Re: Help needed for Brits relocating to LA
My morning commute in LA is 50 miles, takes about 45 minutes. Apparently I live in the right part, up the hill 
As for the OP's asking about Santa Monica:
There are approx 300,000 Brit ex pats living in California, with the exception of maybe 6 of us, all the others seem to live in Santa Monica. As you're from Pompey you'l understand this: It's like Southampton, but with scouse accents...
As for the OP's asking about Santa Monica:
There are approx 300,000 Brit ex pats living in California, with the exception of maybe 6 of us, all the others seem to live in Santa Monica. As you're from Pompey you'l understand this: It's like Southampton, but with scouse accents...
Dec 1st 2010, 12:15 pm
#32
BE Site Lead
Joined: Aug 2004
Location: MA, USA
Posts: 92,170
Re: Help needed for Brits relocating to LA
Don't be so sure. It isn't that easy. Spend a few mins reading the visa forum, it might save yourself a lot of time and hassle.
Dec 1st 2010, 12:21 pm
#33
Septic Sprout
Joined: Aug 2004
Location: Shanghai
Posts: 7,993
Re: Help needed for Brits relocating to LA
I appreciate this probably doesn’t work without the Visa but I am sure well find a way around this if LA is the place we finally want to move to. Plus it would be like saving for a car we’ve never driven..... I would rather get to know the areas first, see what they are like then once we have definitely decided that LA is for us then we can exhaust the Visa situation. But I am aware and take on board your advice that it is not as straight forward as the UK. All you have to do here is seek asylum and not only are you fine, they give you all the benefits you could ever dream of....
Dec 1st 2010, 3:41 pm
#34
Looking for tax advice!
Thread Starter
Joined: Nov 2010
Location: Portsmouth, UK
Posts: 35
Re: Help needed for Brits relocating to LA
Dec 1st 2010, 3:42 pm
#35
Looking for tax advice!
Thread Starter
Joined: Nov 2010
Location: Portsmouth, UK
Posts: 35
Re: Help needed for Brits relocating to LA
Do you mind if I ask how you guys qualified??
Dec 1st 2010, 3:47 pm
#36
Democracy advocate
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 12,460
Re: Help needed for Brits relocating to LA
I appreciate this probably doesn’t work without the Visa but I am sure well find a way around this if LA is the place we finally want to move to. Plus it would be like saving for a car we’ve never driven..... I would rather get to know the areas first, see what they are like then once we have definitely decided that LA is for us then we can exhaust the Visa situation. But I am aware and take on board your advice that it is not as straight forward as the UK. All you have to do here is seek asylum and not only are you fine, they give you all the benefits you could ever dream of....
Many have married a USC, some are company transfers within large international companies (L visas), a few are highly skilled workers with various degrees and experience (H Visas).
Dec 1st 2010, 3:54 pm
#37
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Jul 2008
Location: East Bay Area
Posts: 2,192
Re: Help needed for Brits relocating to LA
[QUOTE=Cape Blue;9014986]Are you sure you don't fancy Australia?
[QUOTE]
Funking hard to get there by boat!
[QUOTE]
Funking hard to get there by boat!
Dec 1st 2010, 4:20 pm
#39
BE Commentator
Joined: Feb 2010
Location: Los Angeles, California
Posts: 8,427
Re: Help needed for Brits relocating to LA
Hi guys, me and my young family (wife to be, two daughters, 5 years and 7 months) are seriously considering relocating to LA over the next year or two and would love to hear from other Brits and US residents as to the locations we should consider. We have in mind Santa Monica, Pacific Palisades, Venice & Malibu. Schools are very important for us as is the out door way of life and the sea as well as the safety aspect. Love eating out in great places and like to be very near the areas where everything happens.
We are also out in LA as of the 10th Decemeber for two and a bit weeks and would love to get to see as much of these areas a possible. Anyone suggest a great hotel/area?
Hope you can help guys.
Best wishes
Alvin
We are also out in LA as of the 10th Decemeber for two and a bit weeks and would love to get to see as much of these areas a possible. Anyone suggest a great hotel/area?
Hope you can help guys.
Best wishes
Alvin
I live in "Los Feliz" -- 90027 adjacent to Griffith Park. On the other side of I-5 is the "Atwater" [90039] neighborhood between the I-5 and Glendale. I find them to be quite "walkable."
I used to live in Hermosa Beach in the "South Bay" and I stayed there only a year. I moved to Echo Park [90026] and have been in 90027 since 1984.
Also, look at the Pasadena area [San Gabriel valley].
On schools, you have to live here for a while to rationally discuss it. There are a plethora of programs. And, if you end up in "Los Angeles Unified School District," it bears in mind that LAUSD is huge and varied. [The "unified" refers to the fact it is "K-12" rather than separate elementary & secondary districts]. LAUSD has "open enrollment" and has "Charter Schools" etc etc.
I saw a mention of zillow.com -- it is an interesting site.
If you have not noticed, it is not uncommon to use postal ZIP codes to locate areas. As a general rule, 900xx is for "Los Angeles" -- but the numbers are not necessarily adjacent -- 90024 & 90025 is the "Westwood" and UCLA area while 90026 is Echo Park and 90027, 90028 are the "Hollywood" codes -- but 90038 is "Silver Lake" between 90026 and 90027. IOW, enter the ZIP code into a map program to find things.
Good luck.
Last edited by S Folinsky; Dec 1st 2010 at 4:27 pm. Reason: ZIP code discussion
Dec 1st 2010, 4:37 pm
#40
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Jul 2008
Location: East Bay Area
Posts: 2,192
Re: Help needed for Brits relocating to LA
Learning US immigration is a rude shock though and the OP needs to consider the visa situation first. I mean good for the forum everyone sharing information but honestly little waste of time, with due respect, without the VISA situation first looked into.
“we will figure it out, we will work around it” – not US immigration for sure. It usually is, do you qualify for a visa or not. No "working around" US visas.
Last edited by E3only; Dec 1st 2010 at 5:42 pm.
Dec 1st 2010, 4:56 pm
#41
Septicity
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 23,762
Re: Help needed for Brits relocating to LA
Sure, but it won't do you any good: UK citizen, drawn in DV2000, consular processed in Prague, entered on immigrant visa and became permanent resident, naturalized as US citizen 2006.
Do the visa first. Everything else is just dreamin'.
Do the visa first. Everything else is just dreamin'.
Dec 1st 2010, 5:19 pm
#42
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 35,082
Re: Help needed for Brits relocating to LA
Now I've got a picture of someone with their fingers in their ears giving it "la la la la" and all those good thoughts just getting scrolled back into the ether....
Dec 1st 2010, 7:44 pm
#44
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 41,518
Re: Help needed for Brits relocating to LA
[QUOTE=E3only;9015080]Are you sure you don't fancy Australia?
Funking hard to get there by boat!
I think he's referring to the guy slotting straight into the Barbie mindset.
Aargh I can't fix your quote
Funking hard to get there by boat!
Aargh I can't fix your quote
Last edited by Sally Redux; Dec 1st 2010 at 7:47 pm.