There are just under 10 million people currently living in Los Angeles according to the Census Bureau. With the cost of living adjustments, there is a definite portion of the population that is attracted to the downtown LA lofts and downtown living in general. Before you start living in downtown Los Angeles, you should do some research to make sure it is the right place for you.
For some, the advantages of living in a big city are clear, but discovering your options and researching how to find an apartment will insure that you love where you live. Using some simple criteria or an apartment hunting checklist will save you time during your quest for living in downtown Los Angeles.
As part of your initial research for apartments, you can look at various third party websites to read customer reviews. Typically, the residents will post their takes on their experiences that you can use to narrow down your search. You should look for comments about amenities, floor plans and their community experiences. Usually these comments, coupled with research from the real estate websites will give you enough information to decide which apartments deserve a visit.
Living in apartments has definite advantages when compared to the cost of buying your own home, so figuring out how to choose between living in downtown Los Angeles will be significantly easier if you do the background research on each place prior to visiting. It lets you get a glimpse of the layout and neighborhood that you could move into. You can take all of your research and confirm it at an onsite visit. This will also allow you to see the inside and to experience the neighborhood, traffic and other qualities of the location.
Whether you are looking at one bedroom apartments or something larger, you should visit it at different times of the day to get a glimpse of the traffic and noise level. Another key to evaluating an apartment is the neighbors attitude about the landlord or management company. Researching how to find an apartment will always come back to your preferences for layout, cost, amenities and neighborhood characteristics, so take the time to do appropriate research.
Take time to watch or talk with the neighbors to see how they interact with each other and other residents. See if they tend to take advantage of the various amenities or if they merely contribute to increased rent. Short of living in the apartment, you will have to study all the individual features to confirm if it is where you prefer to live.
After living in the suburbs for so many years, I would jump at the chance to move downtown to be right in the heart of the city.