[la_mode]

Considering leaving suburbia for one of these.

Have enough saved up where I can relocate to either. I work from home as a graphic designer so I can do either city.

I should also clarify, I'm not trying to live in the most hopping part of town, just want to be within 20 minute cab ride of the good clubs (which is easy in Vegas) but not as easy in LA. Some neighborhood bars/restaurants are fine with me. Both have hot women.

Starting with Las Vegas:

pluses:

- 24 hour everything
- easy to find parking
- low cost of living (can find a nice apartment with new appliances under 800 per month, impossible in LA)
- convenient airport that's easy to get to
- not difficult to get around, traffic off-strip isn't too bad

minuses:

- very dry air
- too hot in summer
- no ocean (but I probably wouldn't go to the ocean much in LA)
- everything looks brown
- there is just something kind of strange about the desert, lots of redneck tourists
- because it's the "city of second chances", there's probably lots of idiots roaming around

LA

pluses:

- it's LA, most relevant city in the world
- supertall palm trees
- a culture unique to itself
- weather isn't as hot (as long as you're not in the valley)
- warmer in winter, Vegas can be cold some nights
- very diverse population
- anywhere you go...mentioning you live in LA is a DHV
- if you're in a creative industry, there's no better place

minuses:

- while Vegas has celebrities, LA is the celebrity city in the world. If you're not famous (or semi-famous in anything), you're not too different than a visitor even if you live there
- Rich/poor dynamic, a lot of the middle class leans poor in LA
- Outside of the valley, finding parking can be a chore
- Expensive. 1k gets you a small studio in most of LA, but not West LA
- CA is a police state (but so is the entire US at this point)
- lots of insufferable geek chic/hipsters who are obsessed with Apple products, Judd Apatow films
- the high-end nightlife caters to celebrities for the most part

Now, I'm leaning towards LA. I've thought the Valley might be a good compromise. I don't care for density and have never liked relying on public transportation. I've been a trance dj in the past (released a few songs on beatport) and both cities have a strong trance scene (but you gotta be big time to play any major club in either). There's just more opportunity in LA and connections for anything creative.

I do like the proximity of both cities and always thought when you're in one, it's easy to get to the other.

To those of you with lots of experience with both cities, which do you prefer overall? Are there things you like about Vegas (besides casinos) you wish LA had more of and vice versa?

[slubu]

Get McQueen in here. He should be able to provide some input.

[Christian McQueen]

Unless you're in the industry in Vegas, I.e. hosting, stripping, bartender, performer, then I highly recommend going to La.

There's 3 things to do in Vegas and that's about it: Gamble, Drink and Fuck.

That all sounds great and it is...for 3 months. Then you want to shoot yourself. The heat is flat out bullshit, hot as fuck with no relief.

There's ZERO culture there and the girls are the biggest gold diggers you'll ever meet.

LA is more expensive, however, it's doable unless you're a lazy fuck. You have literally EVERYTHING in La and if you're pursuing dj'ing it's not as hard as you think to start playing at Hollywood clubs. In fact I may help you after I hear your stuff.

On that note, I'm flying to Vegas tomorrow. Nothing beats Sin City for easy fresh pussy. : )

[Drazen]

3 months? After 3 days in Vegas I cannot wait to get the hell out of there. I love it, but only for 2-3 day benders. I can't imagine living there unless you have significant tax savings or as McQueen says, are in the industry.

You can't beat living in LA, its great. So much to do here and Vegas is a 40 minute flight away.

Vegas is like living in a flyover state that happens to have the LV Strip (which I imagine you won't go to that much after the novelty wears off and you'll be "kickin' it local"). I mean you can get a house for what you can get an apartment in LA, but then again in LA, day to day living is way more tolerable.

[la_mode]

I definitely would prefer LA, but it's the cost of living to be in one of the better parts that makes it difficult.

[Courage Reborn]

Gonna throw a wildcard in here, as I love/hate LA and Vegas both in special ways.

Scottsdale Arizona. it's cheap and hot like vegas, but the culture and work opportunities are both closer to LA.

Hot blonde white girls in heels & cocktail dresses? Scottsdale has got em in droves thurs-saturday nights. All contained in a nice compact area too, near the W hotel. Hotter looking than the median LA talent, unless you're hooked up at the A list spots. Challenge/effort/cockblock level is on par with LA. Not easy, but doable.

I'd suggest a weekend trip and compare. I think you will be impressed. Nightlife is slept on here. Big time. If you can deal with the heat & lack of daygame options, it's a real option overall.

Hell, I was considering moving there myself from LA, until I discovered how much I love Quebec women and Scotish lasses.

[Brosemite]

(09-17-2013 11:09 PM)Courage Reborn Wrote:  

Gonna throw a wildcard in here, as I love/hate LA and Vegas both in special ways.

Scottsdale Arizona. it's cheap and hot like vegas, but the culture and work opportunities are both closer to LA.

Hot blonde white girls in heels & cocktail dresses? Scottsdale has got em in droves thurs-saturday nights. All contained in a nice compact area too, near the W hotel. Hotter looking than the median LA talent, unless you're hooked up at the A list spots. Challenge/effort/cockblock level is on par with LA. Not easy, but doable.

I'd suggest a weekend trip and compare. I think you will be impressed. Nightlife is slept on here. Big time. If you can deal with the heat & lack of daygame options, it's a real option overall.

Hell, I was considering moving there myself from LA, until I discovered how much I love Quebec women and Scotish lasses.

Can Scottsdale really be as hard as LA?

[la_mode]

Possibly, the ratios are known to be the worst in the country there, and Denver as well.

In my opinion, no US cities have good ratios, they only do because of the senior citizen population. The US is not far off China in terms of ratios in the dating ages - but that's a different topic.

[CaP7]

$800/ month + utilities. If you work from home, won't your a/c be on 24 hours a day? I would guess LA electric bill would be a lot cheaper. My bill last month was $17. Santa Monica-no need for a/c.

[Tenerife]

To the OP:

I'm moving to vegas in a few weeks. What you can do is get a month to month studio in vegas (they are fairly common and cheap).

From there you can take weekend trips to LA.

If you do live in LA, I would not recommend the valley. You can try Koreatown/wilshire, or the pico/miracle mile area. Both are good value and close the relevant areas: weho, hollywood/highland, downtown, and santa monica. There's no point living in Weho....you're going to have to drive in LA there's no way around it.

[speakeasy]

It's a no-brainer. Vegas is a place people move to when they can't cut it in L.A. Yes it's cheaper, but it's cheaper for a REASON. Because nobody actually WANTS to be there. I can't take more than 2 days of Vegas. After 3 days there my best memory of the place is seeing it shrinking in the rear-view mirror as I drive south on I-15. I just read that Britney Spears is going to start a residency at a Vegas casino. She used to live in L.A. Now that she's washed up, she's on her way to Vegas. What does that tell you? The place is trash once you get away from the glamor of the strip. It's suburban hell. Does it even have an actual downtown?? I've never seen one. Like a central business district with bank towers. Nope.

Btw, the thing about the heat in the San Fernando Valley is wildly exaggerated. Believe it or not, I don't use my air-conditioner most days, even in the peak of summer. I have a thermostat that sits on my desk. Only in August and part of September does is start climbing above 81 degrees inside my room. That's a perfectly tolerable temp to me to leave my windows open and not turn on the air. Outside of mid-summer the weather is no different than over the hill, except it gets about 10 degrees colder in winter, but who cares? 45 degrees at night in January isn't going to kill you.

[la_mode]

I guess that's the thing...I don't mind that Vegas is a bit "suburban", and in many ways, having visited LA several times, there is something about the valley I've always liked, and it probably has to do with it being suburban as well.

Ktown for example just doesn't really do it for me, I'd much prefer Los Feliz but that's getting up there with Westside prices.

[OkStudies]

(09-17-2013 11:28 PM)la_mode Wrote:  

Possibly, the ratios are known to be the worst in the country there, and Denver as well.

In my opinion, no US cities have good ratios, they only do because of the senior citizen population. The US is not far off China in terms of ratios in the dating ages - but that's a different topic.

US is not even close to china. This forum needs to stop with all the dumb exaggerations for once.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_sex_ratio

[Tenerife]

(09-18-2013 12:38 AM)la_mode Wrote:  

I guess that's the thing...I don't mind that Vegas is a bit "suburban", and in many ways, having visited LA several times, there is something about the valley I've always liked, and it probably has to do with it being suburban as well.

Ktown for example just doesn't really do it for me, I'd much prefer Los Feliz but that's getting up there with Westside prices.

The valley is great if you like bad logistics and no night life.

A cheaper place close in like Miracle mile, or mid city would be a good choice.

All of LA is suburban, with the exception of Downtown and K-town.

[Easy E]

(09-17-2013 10:46 PM)la_mode Wrote:  

I definitely would prefer LA, but it's the cost of living to be in one of the better parts that makes it difficult.

What is your budget for housing?

[la_mode]

900-1k, including utilities. Don't want roommates unless they're women working in porn.

[Easy E]

(09-18-2013 07:33 AM)la_mode Wrote:  

900-1k, including utilities. Don't want roommates unless they're women working in porn.

If you are ok with a studio or maybe a small one bedroom, then I would recommend living in North Hollywood. It's in the valley, but you can still catch plenty of freeways near there to get around. Try to rent a place closer to the NoHo Arts Districts since the neighborhood is better there.

[la_mode]

(09-18-2013 01:05 AM)OkStudies Wrote:  

(09-17-2013 11:28 PM)la_mode Wrote:  

Possibly, the ratios are known to be the worst in the country there, and Denver as well.

In my opinion, no US cities have good ratios, they only do because of the senior citizen population. The US is not far off China in terms of ratios in the dating ages - but that's a different topic.

US is not even close to china. This forum needs to stop with all the dumb exaggerations for once.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_sex_ratio

When you really break it down, the US is bad. In terms of pure ratios, you are right, it's not as bad as China.

But when you take in all the women with multiple "baby daddy's" and women who are in the same weight class as Riddick Bowe - then the US becomes closer to China.

At least the average Chinese woman isn't fat, although it's probably going that direction.

[la_mode]

(09-18-2013 01:56 AM)Tenerife Wrote:  

(09-18-2013 12:38 AM)la_mode Wrote:  

I guess that's the thing...I don't mind that Vegas is a bit "suburban", and in many ways, having visited LA several times, there is something about the valley I've always liked, and it probably has to do with it being suburban as well.

Ktown for example just doesn't really do it for me, I'd much prefer Los Feliz but that's getting up there with Westside prices.

The valley is great if you like bad logistics and no night life.

A cheaper place close in like Miracle mile, or mid city would be a good choice.

All of LA is suburban, with the exception of Downtown and K-town.

I've thought about that, but I do better directly from POF dates and meet at a bar or restaurant for drinks. Never really been one to open up sets nightclubs unless they say hi to me first.

To really enjoy nightclubs, you have to have the bankroll as well, otherwise it's just a mitigation effort to not spend too much.

[Duke Castile]

Why don't you get a short term lease in Vegas and live there for 6 months or so and figure out if you like it. Take little trips to L.A. and explore.

L.A. doesn't know what a short term apartment is. You'd be locked into paying 1300 a month for a year just for rent in some lousy place.

If you come to vegas first your moving expenses to LA would be something like 300 bucks.

Disagree about there being nothing to do but party in Vegas. Mount Charleston (mountain top forests), Red Rock (gorgeous rock climbing/hiking), and Lake Mead (skiing swimming) are in the backyard.

You think LA isn't a desert? Tell me how many trees you see that aren't planted.

Trust me, you aren't going to feel like driving 30 minutes to go three miles to the grocery store just to run into 4 bums, people with shitty attitudes, and overpriced food.

There were times when I really loved LA but I'd never want to live there again unless I was a millionaire.

Edit - Just read through the rest of the comments. Guys talking about "I can't stand the place after 3 days". Well no shit, you came and binged out and now you want to go home and sleep it off and not in a hotel you're probably sharing with some other dude.

Just read the comment about you liking the Valley.....not sure what to say about that.

You go out in L.A. and tell girls you live in the Valley and even the ones that live there won't want to talk to you.

Who cares if girls in Vegas are gold diggers (there's plenty that aren't), they still want to bang. Girls in LA are status diggers and gold diggers.

[la_mode]

Someone elaborate more on this "LA attitude" thing? I was under the impression this was mainly a West LA thing among those trying to get into the industry. I know there are going to be some annoying attitudes among the hipsters as well.

I found LA to be friendly, and because of so many immigrants, it seemed as if most people minded their own business. It is definitely hard to find an apartment without lease in LA, which is surprising given how big of a city it is.

[Drazen]

LA isn't friendly at all. People are generally selfish assholes who will smile to your face and stab you in the back if it helps them to do so.

West LA people aren't trying to get into "the industry", most are already settled in professional careers (lawyers, docs, etc) or post college people partying it up a bit longer.

I would not live in the Valley under any circumstances personally. If you're a DJ, you need to live in mid-city area or even Koreatown.

[renotime]

Nevada has no state income tax. Need I say more?

[Easy E]

(09-18-2013 02:52 PM)Fisto Wrote:  

Why don't you get a short term lease in Vegas and live there for 6 months or so and figure out if you like it. Take little trips to L.A. and explore.

L.A. doesn't know what a short term apartment is. You'd be locked into paying 1300 a month for a year just for rent in some lousy place.

If you come to vegas first your moving expenses to LA would be something like 300 bucks.

Disagree about there being nothing to do but party in Vegas. Mount Charleston (mountain top forests), Red Rock (gorgeous rock climbing/hiking), and Lake Mead (skiing swimming) are in the backyard.

You think LA isn't a desert? Tell me how many trees you see that aren't planted.

Trust me, you aren't going to feel like driving 30 minutes to go three miles to the grocery store just to run into 4 bums, people with shitty attitudes, and overpriced food.

There were times when I really loved LA but I'd never want to live there again unless I was a millionaire.

Edit - Just read through the rest of the comments. Guys talking about "I can't stand the place after 3 days". Well no shit, you came and binged out and now you want to go home and sleep it off and not in a hotel you're probably sharing with some other dude.

Just read the comment about you liking the Valley.....not sure what to say about that.

You go out in L.A. and tell girls you live in the Valley and even the ones that live there won't want to talk to you.

Who cares if girls in Vegas are gold diggers (there's plenty that aren't), they still want to bang. Girls in LA are status diggers and gold diggers.

Good point, Fisto. The thing that sucks about LA right now is the rents are going up like crazy. Anywhere decent is going to set you back. Plus, like you said, everyone wants a one year lease.

(09-18-2013 03:34 PM)PartyonBro Wrote:  

LA isn't friendly at all. People are generally selfish assholes who will smile to your face and stab you in the back if it helps them to do so.

West LA people aren't trying to get into "the industry", most are already settled in professional careers (lawyers, docs, etc) or post college people partying it up a bit longer.

I would not live in the Valley under any circumstances personally. If you're a DJ, you need to live in mid-city area or even Koreatown.

On his budget, he will only be able to afford a tiny studio those places (if that), unless he chooses a sketchy apartment complex.

[la_mode]

(09-18-2013 03:34 PM)PartyonBro Wrote:  

LA isn't friendly at all. People are generally selfish assholes who will smile to your face and stab you in the back if it helps them to do so.

West LA people aren't trying to get into "the industry", most are already settled in professional careers (lawyers, docs, etc) or post college people partying it up a bit longer.

I would not live in the Valley under any circumstances personally. If you're a DJ, you need to live in mid-city area or even Koreatown.

Besides The Peace Corps, Salvation army, and Save the whales - most of society is selfish, it's just human nature to put ones self above all.

I've never really been one to invoke the public and I'm a pleasant guy although not necessarily friendly beyond what's necessary. One of my good friends is all about what he calls "civilian contact", he just likes to make conversation with absolutely everyone, waiters, clerks, people in line at the post office, random people walking around, etc.

I told him the Vegas strip would be his dream, since it's easy to start conversation there.