LA or Orlando

[VicD81]

Got a lucrative job offer in LA but Ive never been, Ive got another not do lucrative offer in Orlando. I hear great things about Cali and would love the chance to live out there. I used to live by Orlando so I know all about FL. Anyone live in the LA area have insight on Cost of living and Quality of life for a Family of 4, two of which are under 2 years old.

 

[chessplayer86]

I used to have a friend over at L.A. She used to tell me how expensive it is to live there.. But there are cities close to L.A. not too expensive...

 

[VicD81]

Yea I figure I would have to go outside LA to live comfortably.

 

[SantaMonicaHelp]

I live in LA and I love it. Just the heads up the traffic is horrible here but other than that it's most amazing city I ever been. With the food and multi-cultures and all the museums and night life. I mean if you like city life you will love living in LA.

-YK

 

[VicD81]

I used to live in NY and worked in NJ and it would take me 2 hrs to go 25 mi. Cant imagine traffic being worse than that. I dont really plan on living in the city but close enough to enjoy it and diversity and culture is important. Thanks for the input.

 

[MrSquid]

I'm in LA too. There are fairly affordable areas to live here - you just won't be near the ocean. ;)

Traffic can blow (although not 2hrs for 25miles) depending on where you need to get to. The key is to live where you work. Then you can pick & choose on your free time if you want to deal with traffic.

What area is the job located in?

 

[mainereefer]

I was in carona for a wile... about 1/2 hr east of la, was great.... la has way to many people for me :)

 

[eg8r210]

I used to live in NY and worked in NJ and it would take me 2 hrs to go 25 mi. Cant imagine traffic being worse than that. I dont really plan on living in the city but close enough to enjoy it and diversity and culture is important. Thanks for the input.

If you plan on enjoying culture and diversity then LA probably has more of what you are looking for. I just checked an online cost of living index and compared Orlando to LA/Long Beach area...
Price difference in Los Angeles-Long Beach, CA

• Groceries3%more
• Housing119%more
• Utilities3%more
• Transportation13%more
• Health Care20%more

 

[gcarroll]

If you plan on enjoying culture and diversity then LA probably has more of what you are looking for. I just checked an online cost of living index and compared Orlando to LA/Long Beach area...
Price difference in Los Angeles-Long Beach, CA

• Groceries3%more
• Housing119%more
• Utilities3%more
• Transportation13%more
• Health Care20%more

Although you might be able to find housing for 119% more in the LA area, that doesn't exactly mean you would want to live in that part of town.

 

[VicD81]

The job is at the airport.
I did notice the housing is a tad on the pricey side. Id have to say comparable to NJ Housing.

 

[MrSquid]

I'm in the area of LAX. Real estate in parts of this area are blowing up with all the tech companies moving in. If you are looking to buy, check out Redfin's site or app. If you are looking to rent, check westsiderentals.com.

Just a warning...this area is pretty much a dead zone for reefing. :(

 

[VicD81]

Thanks.

I would have thought different being on the Pacific and all.

 

[MrSquid]

I should rephrase that. The west side of LA is pretty bare for LFSs. LA in a very general sense has a lot of good stores. GREAT stores if you don't mind driving an hour or more.

 

[FLipp]

move to orlando! your kids will love you forever. hahahaha

 

[VicD81]

LOL! I bet.

 

[FLipp]

and we have WWC. :)

 

[rdevoe11]

my parents live in the general LAX area, Playa Vista specifically. Great up and coming area, lots of families, parks, great schools, shops, you name it. takes no more than 15 minutes to get to LAX and Santa Monica. that being said, depending on your definition of lucrative, it may or may not be affordable. I can say that the 2/2 condo (its huge btw) my parents are currently in is running them about $4500 a month in rent (temporary job assignment) and if I remember correctly it was valued around $650k.

as it happens, I live in central Florida (about 45 minutes from orlando). there are some great areas not too far from MCO (assuming if your cali job offer is at LAX then the florida job must be MCO lol)..Baldwin Park and Avalon (I think) are two of them. The area south and west of the airport is also starting to grow quite a bit though Im not as familiar with it. Goes without saying its a fair bit cheaper to live in Orlando vs the LA area.

hope some of this helps!

 

[VicD81]

LOL Yes MCO. The MCO job pays significantly less but being as how rent for a decent place is only about $1000 id say its manageable. I Lived in the Volusia county area for 7 years about 6 years ago and I loved it but have always wondered about the "Cali Life"

 

[eg8r210]

LOL Yes MCO. The MCO job pays significantly less but being as how rent for a decent place is only about $1000 id say its manageable. I Lived in the Volusia county area for 7 years about 6 years ago and I loved it but have always wondered about the "Cali Life"

Every time I hear "Cali Life" I hear TAXES. LOL.

 

[FateX8]

yeah thats another thing to remember, FL doesnt have state taxes so even though youre making less, you might be making about the same.
i lived in florida for 7 years and just moved to ny and with the increase in cost of living and taxes i make a lot less here then i did in fl even though my paychecks here are higher.