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May Be Studying in LA, What Kind of Budget?

May Be Studying in LA, What Kind of Budget?

Old May 24th 2010, 7:25 pm
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Default May Be Studying in LA, What Kind of Budget?

Hey guys,

Next year or the year after (depending on when I finish my current course early or not) I am looking to go to LA and study at Le Cordon Bleu (I was originally going to do it in Paris but LA has a Degree which is better than the Paris offering of Diploma).

Basically I have worked out the cost of the course and getting there just not the living costs I see apartments can go from $650 to thousands (Realtor.com) but I have no idea what I should expect for utilities in LA I am hoping that I can live on around $2,000 a month (including everything from apartment to lunches, although that looks like fairy tale land).

If it is cheaper to live outside LA and get a cheap car would that be better? or should I just stick to inside LA?

Thanks for reading and I hope I make enough sense

ML
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Old May 24th 2010, 7:52 pm
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Default Re: May Be Studying in LA, What Kind of Budget?

Los Angeles is huge. Google lists 2 addresses for Le Cordon Bleu....one in Pasadena and one in Hollywood. Both are expensive areas.

Just as an example, my husband works in West Hollywood. He rents a tiny, old, 1-bedroom, 1-bathroom apartment located above an oriental rug shop (that's his line of work...the apartment also functions as his workshop). He pays $1,300 a month, not including utilities. Rent includes satellite TV.

Last year, he paid an average of $26.00 a month for gas (utility, not car). He paid an average of $33 a month for water and electric. He paid a lot for a land line phone, but he used it a lot for business. You might not even want a land line if you have a cell phone.

He does not own a car, so no expense there. He uses public transportation or a taxi if he's going very far from home (like to the airport). Living outside LA and having a cheap car, you'd still pay a lot in gas, parking, plus all the headache of dealing with LA traffic and freeways every day.

Hope that helps....
Rene
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Old May 24th 2010, 8:05 pm
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Default Re: May Be Studying in LA, What Kind of Budget?

$1,300 I am so screwed lol but the utilities sound promising traffic doesn't bother me tbh, I love driving queues or no queues but if it wouldn't be any cheaper then :/

Thanks for the reply
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Old May 24th 2010, 8:24 pm
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Default Re: May Be Studying in LA, What Kind of Budget?

Have you talked to the admin dept at the institute? maybe they have some info on cheaper housing in the areas?
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Old May 24th 2010, 8:59 pm
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Default Re: May Be Studying in LA, What Kind of Budget?

Originally Posted by Englishtart
cheaper housing in the areas?
I hear Compton is nice, this time of year.

Joking apart - there are some terrible areas in LA, so the OP will want to be careful.
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Old May 24th 2010, 9:13 pm
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Default Re: May Be Studying in LA, What Kind of Budget?

Originally Posted by Englishtart
Have you talked to the admin dept at the institute? maybe they have some info on cheaper housing in the areas?
I am going to do that tomorrow, I hope there is some as the way it looks right now I may not be able to afford living expenses for the whole course :s
Originally Posted by chartreuse
I hear Compton is nice, this time of year.

Joking apart - there are some terrible areas in LA, so the OP will want to be careful.
Lol, there are terrible areas in all major cities although I will keep an eye out as LA is a different ball game.
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Old May 24th 2010, 9:16 pm
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Default Re: May Be Studying in LA, What Kind of Budget?

Check Craig's List for roommate opportunities, too.

Rene
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Old May 24th 2010, 9:25 pm
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Default Re: May Be Studying in LA, What Kind of Budget?

Originally Posted by Noorah101
Check Craig's List for roommate opportunities, too.

Rene
Good idea!
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Old May 25th 2010, 10:37 pm
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Default Re: May Be Studying in LA, What Kind of Budget?

Look for a flat share or you'll find it really hard to manage.

Car, well that has other expenses, insurance will be stupidly more expensive, got all the added cost of tax, title fees, registration fees etc on top of the car and the hassle of flogging it after.

No idea what parking is like in LA but if it's anything like Boston, it's around $25-40 a day.
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Old May 25th 2010, 10:47 pm
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Default Re: May Be Studying in LA, What Kind of Budget?

Originally Posted by Bob
No idea what parking is like in LA but if it's anything like Boston, it's around $25-40 a day.
Hubby's apartment doesn't even come with a parking space. When I visit there, I park the rental car in the narrow alley way between two shops, where it can be seen from his side window upstairs. We keep an eye on it all weekend. If I stay over to Monday after 8 am, we move it to the curb metered parking, and pay every hour until I have to leave for my flight. It's extremely cumbersome and annoying. Another reason he doesn't drive over there...he has no place to keep the car.

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Old Jun 7th 2010, 12:29 pm
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Default Re: May Be Studying in LA, What Kind of Budget?

Could someone advise me on what sort of expenses should i expect to have living in Hollywood? (one couple and a cat )
My husband and i will be relocating soon, we already set aside a budget for an flat, which includes Parking and gym so we wont have to pay extra for them which is already something. But what else? in the UK, you should expect to pay council tax, car tax, insurance, utilities, phone, internet etc

Would you guys be kind enough to tell me what else i should put aside for and roughly how much?

We will be getting a car too.

thanks !!!!
Sabri
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Old Jun 7th 2010, 2:51 pm
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Default Re: May Be Studying in LA, What Kind of Budget?

Originally Posted by Sabrococo
Could someone advise me on what sort of expenses should i expect to have living in Hollywood? (one couple and a cat )
My husband and i will be relocating soon, we already set aside a budget for an flat, which includes Parking and gym so we wont have to pay extra for them which is already something. But what else? in the UK, you should expect to pay council tax, car tax, insurance, utilities, phone, internet etc

Would you guys be kind enough to tell me what else i should put aside for and roughly how much?

We will be getting a car too.

thanks !!!!
Sabri
I actually don't think the Hollywood area itself is a good place to live in. On the other hand, West Hollywood (Which is separate from Hollywood) is pretty vibrant with lots of clubs and restaurants and supposedly has a good LGBT scene as well. Personally I prefer West LA/Santa Monica/Westwood instead.

Unless included in your rent, you usually pay for Water, Sewage, Trash, as well as Electricity (Under $100 I believe), Internet ($20-40 for DSL), Cable TV ($50-100 or so). Phone line is $20-30 for the basic, but I suggest you to just skip that and use cell phone instead!

With a car, you'll pay for car insurance and annual car registration fee as well. Car insurance depends mostly on your personal info (Age, Gender, marriage status), the ZIP code you'll park your car, and the exact car make/model.
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Old Jun 7th 2010, 3:02 pm
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Default Re: May Be Studying in LA, What Kind of Budget?

Awesome thank you!
we Stayed in Hollywood (90028) and we both loved it, i know a few friends who live in west hollywood, it is nice too, but either way, where we will be staying will be around 90028 or 90046.

How about council tax or the equivalent of it in Hollywood? do we have to pay that too?
As for cars do they need an annual chekc up?

I wont go studying i just posted on here because i didn't know how to start my own thread and this one seems to be on the same topic as what i was after! sorry if i confused anyone
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Old Jun 7th 2010, 3:06 pm
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Default Re: May Be Studying in LA, What Kind of Budget?

Originally Posted by Bob
Look for a flat share or you'll find it really hard to manage.

Car, well that has other expenses, insurance will be stupidly more expensive, got all the added cost of tax, title fees, registration fees etc on top of the car and the hassle of flogging it after.

No idea what parking is like in LA but if it's anything like Boston, it's around $25-40 a day.
If you can find somewhere with parking, it should be easy and free (wel included in your rent).

Most new built housing has parking thesedays, i stayed in Hollywood with my husband for a few weeks and we found most flats come with underground parking and gym facilities, not sure how close it is to wher eyou want to be, but parking ispossible! i think there is off street parking too.
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Old Jun 7th 2010, 3:31 pm
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Default Re: May Be Studying in LA, What Kind of Budget?

Originally Posted by Sabrococo
How about council tax or the equivalent of it in Hollywood? do we have to pay that too?
As for cars do they need an annual chekc up?
When I was in L.A. I didn't need annual car emission test, probably because it was a new car. You would want to check the California DMV office website though, to be sure.
I haven't heard of Council tax before.
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