Rental requirements issue - please help/advice needed
#31
Re: Rental requirements issue - please help/advice needed
I REALLY hope they're going to align his salary to the average a technical support engineer should earn (I have seen 70k). We'll see. Thanks for your input though, it made us realize what the different was between US and UK!
I know about the 90 days, I am giving myself 3 months to find a job, hopefully that will be enough! As you know about that, do you know if they can refuse the EAD? Or as long as you have the L2 they will give you a EAD?
Thanks!
I know about the 90 days, I am giving myself 3 months to find a job, hopefully that will be enough! As you know about that, do you know if they can refuse the EAD? Or as long as you have the L2 they will give you a EAD?
Thanks!
It costs a few hundred bucks though and though it should be valid for 2 years these days, it is still often only given for a year.
The maker or breaker could well be how much the medical insurance will cost you per month.
A lot of folks in the industry are contractors, they get more money but then have to stump the employer share of taxes on top. You won't have that option and won't be able to moonlight on other contracts on the side either.
#32
Re: Rental requirements issue - please help/advice needed
I would caution against taking an apartment that you have only seen online. If the photography is good it can make a dump look like a palace and you'll have no idea about the neighbourhood.
Have your husband's company pay for a hotel or short-term rental until you take a drive around and see what you like.
Have your husband's company pay for a hotel or short-term rental until you take a drive around and see what you like.
#33
Just Joined
Thread Starter
Joined: Jan 2014
Posts: 17
Re: Rental requirements issue - please help/advice needed
I would caution against taking an apartment that you have only seen online. If the photography is good it can make a dump look like a palace and you'll have no idea about the neighbourhood.
Have your husband's company pay for a hotel or short-term rental until you take a drive around and see what you like.
Have your husband's company pay for a hotel or short-term rental until you take a drive around and see what you like.
Thanks for the advice. Are you also talking about those residences which offer kind of standard apartments? I would never rent an apartment from Craigslist or something like that without having seen it but these residences seem to have a standard. Is that something you can confirm?
Concerning the neighborhood, I have been to LA before and hopefully know what is ok and what is not. We'll kind of focus on the universally acknowledged nice areas lol
#34
Re: Rental requirements issue - please help/advice needed
The EAD is a formality if you have an L2, it just takes a little time.
#35
Re: Rental requirements issue - please help/advice needed
Hi there,
Thanks for the advice. Are you also talking about those residences which offer kind of standard apartments? I would never rent an apartment from Craigslist or something like that without having seen it but these residences seem to have a standard. Is that something you can confirm?
Concerning the neighborhood, I have been to LA before and hopefully know what is ok and what is not. We'll kind of focus on the universally acknowledged nice areas lol
Thanks for the advice. Are you also talking about those residences which offer kind of standard apartments? I would never rent an apartment from Craigslist or something like that without having seen it but these residences seem to have a standard. Is that something you can confirm?
Concerning the neighborhood, I have been to LA before and hopefully know what is ok and what is not. We'll kind of focus on the universally acknowledged nice areas lol
Just one caveat... find out what properties they are familiar with and talk to more than one locator if possible to cover all the areas you want to cover. I rented a place once that my locator wasn't familiar with. Big mistake. Though it was clean and neat and reasonable and the leasing manager was friendly and helpful and the maintenance staff prompt and competent, the neighbors... well, what's a few gunshots if they're not aimed at you, eh? lol...
#36
Just Joined
Thread Starter
Joined: Jan 2014
Posts: 17
Re: Rental requirements issue - please help/advice needed
Apartment locators can help with this too, taking your financial and other requirements into mind and making a good short list of properties that are safe, decent, and reasonable.
Just one caveat... find out what properties they are familiar with and talk to more than one locator if possible to cover all the areas you want to cover. I rented a place once that my locator wasn't familiar with. Big mistake. Though it was clean and neat and reasonable and the leasing manager was friendly and helpful and the maintenance staff prompt and competent, the neighbors... well, what's a few gunshots if they're not aimed at you, eh? lol...
Just one caveat... find out what properties they are familiar with and talk to more than one locator if possible to cover all the areas you want to cover. I rented a place once that my locator wasn't familiar with. Big mistake. Though it was clean and neat and reasonable and the leasing manager was friendly and helpful and the maintenance staff prompt and competent, the neighbors... well, what's a few gunshots if they're not aimed at you, eh? lol...
#37
Re: Rental requirements issue - please help/advice needed
It also could back up to a busy street, be right next to a school playground, be across form a church or mosque that rings the bells or has calls to prayer all hours of the day or night. There are so many variables that I know personally I would like to see before making a decision.
One more point - the corporate apartment buildings will use management companies that will be quite strict about their criteria for renting, as you have found out. The Craigslist renter, who maybe only has one property (his own) to rent, may have more flexibility. Although they all will probably want to run a credit report, which offer up a whole new challenge for a new immigrant.
#38
Re: Rental requirements issue - please help/advice needed
Hey! thanks for your reply. I didn't know that 50k was bad lol he will get more information in the next few weeks so hopefully we'll get better news!
Well I didn't say I would get a well paid job but I should at least get the same amount of money and with a joint income of 100 000$ we'd be able to rent easily. That's what I meant. I work in television and I've been looking around and there seems to be a lot of jobs. I am currently working for FOX in the UK so I am not coming over with 0 experience. Do you think it will be hard?
Well I didn't say I would get a well paid job but I should at least get the same amount of money and with a joint income of 100 000$ we'd be able to rent easily. That's what I meant. I work in television and I've been looking around and there seems to be a lot of jobs. I am currently working for FOX in the UK so I am not coming over with 0 experience. Do you think it will be hard?
If you currently work for FOX have you talked to your HR department to see if they have a HR contact in LA you could get in touch with. I'd say that is your best bet of landing a job quickly.
#39
Misses Los Angeles
Joined: Dec 2010
Location: London
Posts: 436
Re: Rental requirements issue - please help/advice needed
Just to repeat (probably needlessly) what everyone else is saying... $50k in LA stinks!
When we lived in LA, my husband was on that as an academic researcher. I was on a J2 visa, which, like the L2, means you need to apply for an EAD and can't work until it's in hand. We had some tight times financially, and we are not big spenders! You can survive on $50k for two of you, but unexpected bills and big outlays (like buying a car) can be problematic. It also limits socializing, which is a downer when you've just arrived and want to make friends and contacts.
Re. the rental issue: we arranged our apartment prior to arriving, as we also have cats. I agree with what you've said about going for apartment complexes rather than anything on Craigslist. I know you can't tell everything about a place until you actually see it, but if you're an astute Googler and not too fussy then you might be okay; we didn't have any nasty surprises, and ended up in our place for 2.5 years. They wanted to see a copy of my husband's work contract, but I don't remember a specific income requirement.
Are you looking on the Westside? There are lots of quite reasonably-priced apartment complexes in the unremarkable zone between Santa Monica and Westwood. If you're concerned about safety, you can check out the zipcode's crime levels on the LA Times website.
When we lived in LA, my husband was on that as an academic researcher. I was on a J2 visa, which, like the L2, means you need to apply for an EAD and can't work until it's in hand. We had some tight times financially, and we are not big spenders! You can survive on $50k for two of you, but unexpected bills and big outlays (like buying a car) can be problematic. It also limits socializing, which is a downer when you've just arrived and want to make friends and contacts.
Re. the rental issue: we arranged our apartment prior to arriving, as we also have cats. I agree with what you've said about going for apartment complexes rather than anything on Craigslist. I know you can't tell everything about a place until you actually see it, but if you're an astute Googler and not too fussy then you might be okay; we didn't have any nasty surprises, and ended up in our place for 2.5 years. They wanted to see a copy of my husband's work contract, but I don't remember a specific income requirement.
Are you looking on the Westside? There are lots of quite reasonably-priced apartment complexes in the unremarkable zone between Santa Monica and Westwood. If you're concerned about safety, you can check out the zipcode's crime levels on the LA Times website.
#40
Just Joined
Joined: Jan 2014
Posts: 7
Re: Rental requirements issue - please help/advice needed
Hello there,
Looking for advice from people who moved to LA/ or anywhere in the US where the rent was not so cheap.
Here is the situation:
My husband is being transferred to LA, he will earn about $50 000 per year. Unfortunately, I have to quit my job in the UK and find another job in LA when we arrive. However, we would like to have found a place there BEFORE we get there (with the Internet it's quite easy). Every single residences I asked said that we need to satisfy the salary = 2.5 times the rent. Unfortunately, with only my husband's income, we cannot satisfy this requirement at the time of application. Once I have a job, we would EASILY satisfy it though.
Anybody had the same issue? Any tips or advice? Is the only solution to stay in a hotel until I find a job and we can satisfy that requirement?
Thanks a lot
Lulu
Looking for advice from people who moved to LA/ or anywhere in the US where the rent was not so cheap.
Here is the situation:
My husband is being transferred to LA, he will earn about $50 000 per year. Unfortunately, I have to quit my job in the UK and find another job in LA when we arrive. However, we would like to have found a place there BEFORE we get there (with the Internet it's quite easy). Every single residences I asked said that we need to satisfy the salary = 2.5 times the rent. Unfortunately, with only my husband's income, we cannot satisfy this requirement at the time of application. Once I have a job, we would EASILY satisfy it though.
Anybody had the same issue? Any tips or advice? Is the only solution to stay in a hotel until I find a job and we can satisfy that requirement?
Thanks a lot
Lulu
#41
Account Closed
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 0
Re: Rental requirements issue - please help/advice needed
50,000 is right about where the median household income is for LA area, its not really that low of a wage if you ask me.