Relocating to L.A. - Where to start?

[Riv]

I know this is going to come off as completely clueless and unprepared...

My wife is looking at Grad School at UCLA, and it looks like we will be relocating this coming summer from the Midwest to Los Angeles.

I have a rather well equipped home studio that I'll be needing to house when we get there. Since we're looking at potentially 5 years, the idea of putting everything in storage is simply not an option.

The studio is centered around a rather physically large 80 series Neve, with several racks of outboard and has a rather large microphone collection. There are some other large items, such as an EMT 140 Plate and a Synth and Keyboard collection that includes several modular synths, a Mellotron, etc. Add to this a large guitar and amp collection and you get the idea...

I have bounced the idea around of opening a small room in L.A., but I've never been all that interested in running a commercial studio, not to mention that the studio market is not a good one to jump into at this time.

So am I completely off my rocker? Is there any chance that I'll be able to find a place that a non-trust fund guy from the Midwest might be able to afford? I don't even have the slightest idea what kind of costs I might be looking at, although I know that they'll be substantially greater than here.

I'm hoping that there are some people out there that will be willing to help me bounce some ideas around and see what my options are.

Thanks!

Riv

[drBill]

Riv -

Real estate prices are a LITTLE better than they were a couple of years ago, but in the last few months, they are climbing up again. UCLA is on the west side of town, and that is (argueably) the most expensive area to live. Unless she wants a BRUTAL (and I do mean brutal) commute, you'd be best finding a place on the west side.

A house there that would house you, your wife and a studio will run you probably $700k-1.2 million. If you look more "outward" towards the valley, SG valley, etc. you can get a suitable house for maybe $450-700k. The area might be questionable though.

Rental? You're looking at $2500-3500+ a month. Guessing there, but my area is around $2500-3000, so I think that's a safe bet.

Good luck, there is a studio on every block. (At least)thumbsup

And to more specifially answer your REAL question, yes, you are completely off your rocker. We all are. At least those of us still left......

Bill

[RCM - Ronan]

Spend time looking at the commercial listing on Craigs List. That is actually how I eventually found my current space (even though it did take me about 6 months of looking) The good news is that there are lots of places available these days, but finding one that is secure and where you can make noise it still a bit of work.

About 5 miles east of UCLA is an area called mid city, where i am. Its a cool area with modest rents and lots of for lease signs.

Good luck

[Riv]

Thanks guys!

I'm certainly not in the position to look at buying a house now - particularly not in the $700K+ range. We'll be looking at a rental.

Where is Mid City in relation to the other areas? Is it a pretty safe area?

If I were to look at setting up a commercial place, is there any way to place yourself above the "studio on every block" crowd?

How many well equipped Neve rooms are there in L.A. these days?

Thanks,
Riv

[The MPCist]

If I were to look at setting up a commercial place, is there any way to place yourself above the "studio on every block" crowd?

With the state of our economy and music biz, I wouldn't be so much towards opening a new commercial facility -- it's almost impossible to place one over the average studio in LA... most are project studios with impressive gear actually probably owned by some engineer or producer or artist,etc. Too many.

I wouldn't worry about the other studios. Just one thing:

What am I going to do with my studio?
Am I a composer/writer?
Am I an arranger?
What services can I offer other than 'a recording space'?

If you gear your studio for yourself and providing a service to other producers (arranging/composing/playing guitar/drums/etc), it'll be a bit easier than just opening a commercial room for others to come record. It's too hard these days with almost everyone having a PT rig, Neve/API gear, etc.

How many well equipped Neve rooms are there in L.A. these days?

There are lots of well equipped Neve/SSL/etc rooms. Remember it's LA, the land of studios.....

[drBill]

Originally Posted by The MPCist

With the state of our economy and music biz, I wouldn't be so much towards opening a new commercial facility -- it's almost impossible to place one over the average studio in LA... most are project studios with impressive gear actually probably owned by some engineer or producer or artist,etc. Too many.

I wouldn't worry about the other studios. Just one thing:

What am I going to do with my studio?
Am I a composer/writer?
Am I an arranger?
What services can I offer other than 'a recording space'?

If you gear your studio for yourself and providing a service to other producers (arranging/composing/playing guitar/drums/etc), it'll be a bit easier than just opening a commercial room for others to come record. It's too hard these days with almost everyone having a PT rig, Neve/API gear, etc.



There are lots of well equipped Neve/SSL/etc rooms. Remember it's LA, the land of studios.....

Good advice. LA has probably 100X's more studios than it really NEEDS. Why you have a production room and what you want do with it YOURSELF is far more important. If you can answer those questions, and the numbers make sense on paper, then find a place and get to work installing your gear. If you can't answer those questions or the numbers don't make sense, then you're better off putting your gear in storage or selling it and gearing back up when they DO make sense.

Honestly, right now, today, I'm convinced that studios in mid-market cities are doing much better than the studios in LA, NY, NVille, etc.. I know LOTS of musicians in LA, and I don't know a single one who doesn't' have his own studio or access to one. There's a huge glut of studios here. They open every day, and the close up shop every day. Yours, as nice as it sounds, will be just another studio on the block.

[rack gear]

with all that stuff, finding a space large enough for all of it (that you can afford) would probably be the biggest challenge.

I'd be looking at living east... silver lake, echo park, eagle rock, mt. washington, highand park, atwater village... it's all a bit of a hump to UCLA but the prices to rent a house, and the type of gear you have would certainly make you popular there...

in echo park, there's actually a studio/rehearsal facility that has decent secure spaces in it - complete with gated parking that is fairly new as a studio/music complex

coming from the midwest to LA, I'd start meditating now to prepare for the culture shock, and traffic.

what do you plan to do for a living in LA?

[James Lugo]

I think you need to do what's in your heart. There's still plenty of money to be made in LA in music if you know where to look. My income has steadily increase over the past decade and I'm at the top of my game musically, professionally and financially.

What does the rat do when they move the cheese? Does it keep going to the same door? If it does it's f**ked. The cheese has been moved, time to find a new door. There's plenty of doors in LA if you're willing to look.

my 2 cents

[The MPCist]

Originally Posted by James 'LA' Lugo

I think you need to do what's in your heart. There's still plenty of money to be made in LA in music if you know where to look. My income has steadily increase over the past decade and I'm at the top of my game musically, professionally and financially.

What does the rat do when they move the cheese? Does it keep going to the same door? If it does it's f**ked. The cheese has been moved, time to find a new door. There's plenty of doors in LA if you're willing to look.

my 2 cents

Yep, exactly what James said! Gotta follow your heart and knock on many doors. The cheese is there.

[Plush]

Don't open a commercial facility. Just set the gear up in your garage.

[Fletcher]

Find a multi-room facility that has a room that could use an "upgrade" and work out a "lease" / "time trade" scenario. You get XXX amount of hours of time use in the facility and they get to book the room with your gear in it. Say you get 150hrs. per month and they then have the potential to book the rest [there are 168 hours in a week that can potentially be booked though its usually closer to 120 hours if the place is busy].

Win / win as you have a place to house your gear [make sure that it is there responsibility to keep your gear maintained] and you have 150 hrs. a month to book out your room... book it at $50/hr. and you'll gross $7500/mo. which is almost a living wage.

Just a thought... not necessarily a good one.

Peace.

[gsilbers]

There are local craiglist listings with houses that have studios .

As for areas ; westside is too pricey.

Try topanga

Or places in the valley.



Another thought is that a lot of folks have a regular apt for them an kids and then rent a small studio space elsewhere like in the valley
but depends on the type of work. Sometimes u wanna be where the action is like Hollywood , Santa Monica

[aclarson]

There's a ton of lockouts available for rent, so you could rent one of those and have a separate living space, that's what I did after having trouble finding an affordable house. I made the trek from the midwest about two years ago, and I'm loving life here. You'll probably get all sorts of LA bashers on here, there's a lot of people who tried to be famous and failed, and because they're bitter, they love to be Mr. Pessimist on threads like this, so just be aware, have realistic expectations, and set short-term goals that you can accomplish one-by-one.

[Etch-A-Sketch]

just be careful when using craigslist out here. There are a lot more nut jobs in LA than the mid west. A friend of mine is touring with Cirque de Soleil and has had no problems finding rentals through craigslist in other cities, but here in LA it was a nightmare. When she finally secured a place and were ready to move in, they found out someone else moved in!! The guy listing on craigslist wasn't the owner of the place, he was renting it and was trying to sublet it illegally without the owner knowing. The owner found out, evicted him, and leased it to someone else, but the guy was still trying to go through with renting it so he could scam someone out of the money. There are some EXTREMELY shady people out here. So just keep your guard up. If it feels wrong/funny, it probably is.

One thing I suggest, is west side rentals. Los Angeles Apartments, Orange County Apartments, and San Diego Apartments

Most people that lists there are legit (they have to pay to list, so they are usually on the up and up). But more important than anything else, you can see all the different areas of LA and how much rent is in those areas. I have found a couple of my apartments through west side rentals, but even moreso than that, I've found ALL of my apartments from looking at listings on west side rentals. The last two places I rented before I bought my house, I found down the street from a place listed on west side rentals. After looking at the place listed, I just started driving around the area and found better places in the same price range.

As a few other people mentioned, you might be able to find a studio space to rent separate from your house/apt. If you do, you want to look for a "four walls" deal. Basically they rent you a bare empty space, you provide everything else. Those are a cheapest type of deals and you can sometimes find them within already established studios. For example, the famous "Rumbo Recorders" studio now does this. They took a lot of the open spaces around the pre existing studios and turned them into production spaces for rent. When you rent it, you just get the empty space to do what you want with.

As others have mentioned, the UCLA campus is in a beautiful area. But it is also very expensive. So you and your wife will have to weigh the "long commute with low rent vs No commute with high rent". And just to give you an idea of how bad traffic can be on the West side of los angeles. It can take anywhere from 30 min to 2 hours to travel 3 miles depending on the time of day and if there is an accident or not.

When I first moved here, I lived right off Venice Blvd in Culver City. It was very congested then (almost 10 years ago)... now it's even worse!!!

Also, you WILL need a car unless you live pretty close to UCLA. The bus system here in LA is insane. It is so convoluted, they actually have an 800 number you can call to figure out which buses you need to take to get where you want to go. That's why most people in LA drive. Even though traffic is bad, it's usually much better than the public transportation in the city! LOL

Also look up crime rates in the areas you are looking to move into. You just want to make sure you don't inadvertently go for a really nice place with low rent that you think is a steal, only to find out it's in the middle of a gang-ridden section of Korea Town or Compton or something.

[Riv]

Hey guys - thanks for the responses!

Fletcher - I've thought about what you're suggesting. I haven't been sure that it's a possibility, but I'm thinking it might be worth looking into.

[Riv]

Sorry to be uninformed - what is a "lockout?" I'm not familiar with the term.

Also, would anyone feel comfortable sharing any rental figures? I understand if you're not, but I have no idea what kind of money I'd be looking at to rent a separate studio space in various areas. I've looked on Craigslist, but not knowing the geographical layout that well, it's a little tough.

Thanks again guys! This is really helpful!

Riv

[memphisindie]

Go to the HUD website, look for foreclosures in an area that is still tolerable, (you'll have to ask around) be a benefit to your neighborhood without pissing people off and your neighb will be fine.
There are plenty of options in LA that locals won't think about because they are used to the way it was at the height of the bubble. Do your best. You'll be fine.

[Etch-A-Sketch]

Also, I just realized coming from the midwest it might be difficult to figure out what we are talking about when we say "the Valley" or "Korea Town".

Most of LA is listed as "Los Angeles" even though the different sections have unofficial names. Like the "Mid Wishire" district is pretty nice, but a few blocks away is Korea Town. But on a map both are simply called "Los Angeles".

The "Valley" everyone refers to is the San Fernando Valley. It Runs Along the 101 freeway (if you are looking at a map) and ends kind of where the 101 freeway turns and starts going through hollywood. There's a big range of "hills/mountains" called "The Hollywood Hills" that separate "The Valley" from Los Angeles. If you are looking at a map, Mulholland Drive runs along the top of these mountains/hills and is a good visual reference on a map to discern what is "the valley" vs what is "Hollywood and Los angeles". The sucky thing is, there is no easy way to get from the Valley to Los Angeles or the West Side. There are only two little roads that Go from the valley into hollywood. So you usually have to take one of two main highways to "cross over". The 405 freeway runs down from the valley to the West side of LA and the 110/5 freeways run through the center of LA. The 10 Freeway goes from Santa Monica Beach through west LA and into downtown (and continues out into East LA). The Spot where all the highways converge (The 10, 110, 5, and 710) is considered the Downtown area. When looking at a map you should see it pretty easily, it's the clusterF@#$ of highways in the middle of LA! LOL

UCLA is located close to the 405 Freeway, just on the LA side of the Hollywood Hills. So a lot of people that go to UCLA live in that area of the Valley (Encino, Sherman Oaks, Reseda, Van Nuys). But be aware that the 405 heading south from the San Fernando Valley into West LA (Called the "Sepulveda Pass") has really bad traffic backups every day. And it's about to get worse. For the next three years they are going to be widening that section of the highway (because it really is a bottleneck) from 3 lanes in each direction to 5 lanes on each side.

I just found this Wiki article on the different areas of LA... It doesn't have pictures but it at least lists the names of the towns within each area so you can have a better idea of some of the places we are talking about...

List of districts and neighborhoods of Los Angeles - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

One thing that helped me learn my way around LA was the Streetwise LA map. It's small enough to be able to glance at while driving around. It has all the highways and the main streets highlighted and then all the little streets in smaller print. It really helped me figure out where everything was pretty quick... here's a link to it if you are interested.

Map of Los Angeles, California

[Etch-A-Sketch]

Originally Posted by Riv

Sorry to be uninformed - what is a "lockout?" I'm not familiar with the term.

Also, would anyone feel comfortable sharing any rental figures? I understand if you're not, but I have no idea what kind of money I'd be looking at to rent a separate studio space in various areas. I've looked on Craigslist, but not knowing the geographical layout that well, it's a little tough.

Thanks again guys! This is really helpful!

Riv

A lockout is basically a month to month lease. You "lock out" the space on a monthly basis so nobody else can rent the space. Usually though a lockout refers to a studio that is already equipped. For example Jack Joseph Puig "locked out" Oceanway Studio A every month for the past 11 years straight. He just recently gave up his lockout of studio A and moved into one of the other smaller rooms in Oceanway.

Not sure if you'd be better off doing a lockout or just a straight up lease. depends on what kind of money you can get the space for.

As far as prices go... it's really hard to say since they can vary so much. I know a guy that has paid everything from $400/month to $2000/month for "four walls" type deals. It varies greatly depending on the size of the space and the location. The fact that you have what sounds like a decently size console and a lot of gear, you probably won't be able to get a really small space (in the $400~$500) range.

I know there is a real estate company out here called Beitler that has a division that specifically deals with Studio leases and purchases. A few years ago I met one of their sales agents at a music seminar. They do all types of commercial real estate... But since LA is kind of like the "Studio Capital" of the US, they have a couple guys who deal mainly with recording studios and post production studios. You can try giving them a buzz and see if they have anything to offer you.

[ScumBum]

Originally Posted by The MPCist

Yep, exactly what James said! Gotta follow your heart and knock on many doors. The cheese is there.

Mmmmmm....Cheese.......

[Jules]

Try a few searches using the 2nd search box down (the Google site search)

Try "moving to LA"
"Relocating to LA"
Or just relocation or relocating


Or some other key words - I am sure you will find some similar threads to read.

[Riv]

Thanks again for the info guys!

My L.A. experience is usually limited to a small area - Hollywood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, occasionally up into Van Nuys and Valley Village, and out to Santa Monica, Venice, etc. All areas that are probably the more expensive.

It's going to be tough moving all this stuff across the country.

So if I'm looking for a situation in an existing studio, should I just start calling around?

Thanks again for everything!

-Riv

[Mesa4x12er]

Originally Posted by drBill

UCLA is on the west side of town, and that is (argueably) the most expensive area to live. Unless she wants a BRUTAL (and I do mean brutal) commute, you'd be best finding a place on the west side.

Hell yes... I was just out there again and everytime I forget about the traffic. I'm from houston and can have some serious traffic but that place just blows my mind. I was near LAX area and never had to go more than 15 miles to anywhere and I'll be damned if 15 miles was at least an hour anytime of day. Actually even 8 mile trips were over an hour sometimes.

Good luck OP!

[Mesa4x12er]

Originally Posted by Riv

Thanks again for the info guys!

My L.A. experience is usually limited to a small area - Hollywood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, occasionally up into Van Nuys and Valley Village, and out to Santa Monica, Venice, etc. All areas that are probably the more expensive.

It's going to be tough moving all this stuff across the country.

So if I'm looking for a situation in an existing studio, should I just start calling around?

Thanks again for everything!

-Riv

I've been lost in the ghetto a few times and I still say the scariest place in all of L.A. is Beverly Hills. About a month ago some shithead in a Lamborghini almost took me out. Nice ass car but you could just tell he wasnt worried about having an accident. No one out there seems to be so they are the most maniac drivers on the planet. The rip I took out there before that I got rearended on Wilshire at a red light. Guess you don't worry if you can buy your way out of anything. :p

"5150 BUL" <----Avoid this Lamborghini

[gsilbers]

Good point above of cheking crimerates

go to

CrimeReports | The National Crime Map and type 90025 and then look around the la map to see what are the bad neiborhoods.




Also, what help me out was actually drive around the area
u would like to live and work and there'll be for rent signs u can go check out right there.

At the same time keep checking craiglist for places and after cheking then drive round the neiborhoods and you'll find more

[alexmine]

Hello everyone. New member here. I've been doing post for 10 years in Toronto and am heading to LA in the new year to explore work possibilities there.

I have some questions that are pertinent to this thread. They’re about health care. I know this is a much debated topic right now in America and I really don't want my questions to turn into a pro-government option/pro-private insurance debate. So, please, please don't do that. I'm just hoping to find out what IS, not what might be in the future.

My questions are: Knowing that most people work freelance out there, what do you freelance guys/gals do for health care? Are there any insurers to obviously stay away from? Any you’re happy with? What should one reasonably expect to pay for insurance (I know it depends on age, general health, etc. – I’m just hoping to learn the basic range that people pay)?

Thanks in advance for any insight or advice you may offer!

[mike vee]

look in the encino/sherman oaks area. Much cheaper than the westside and a short trip down sepulveda to ucla. Still a vey trendy/artsy place with lots of musicians. GOD I MISS LA GET ME OUT OF PHILLY!!! AHHHH!!!!

[James Lugo]

Originally Posted by alexmine

Hello everyone. New member here. I've been doing post for 10 years in Toronto and am heading to LA in the new year to explore work possibilities there.

I have some questions that are pertinent to this thread. They’re about health care. I know this is a much debated topic right now in America and I really don't want my questions to turn into a pro-government option/pro-private insurance debate. So, please, please don't do that. I'm just hoping to find out what IS, not what might be in the future.

My questions are: Knowing that most people work freelance out there, what do you freelance guys/gals do for health care? Are there any insurers to obviously stay away from? Any you’re happy with? What should one reasonably expect to pay for insurance (I know it depends on age, general health, etc. – I’m just hoping to learn the basic range that people pay)?

Thanks in advance for any insight or advice you may offer!

Most everyone I know has Blue Cross or Kaiser (sp?). I had Kaiser for years and it was fine and not to much bread, $239 a month. I have Blue Cross now and it's fine, around the same price. Kaiser has a huge 10 square block facility of hospitals in east Hollywood.

Good luck in your relocation, LA's a fabulous place and there's plenty of work if your smart. You just gotta get out here and get your hustle on.

[memphisindie]

Originally Posted by mike vee

look in the encino/sherman oaks area. Much cheaper than the westside and a short trip down sepulveda to ucla. Still a vey trendy/artsy place with lots of musicians. GOD I MISS LA GET ME OUT OF PHILLY!!! AHHHH!!!!

Ha ha, I heard that! Ever been to Memphis? Even worse than Philly.

I need to move too, I'm already connected, but, finding a place to live is tricky, thanks for the tips.

[yeloocproducer]

One thing to consider... I've had 3-5 recording engineer / musician / DJ / producer friends tell me they are moving here in past 3 months. I think LA is one of the last oil cans to huddle around during the music industries retraction, and everyone is "going for that cheese" at the same time based on what I'm hearing from friends and this thread! I'm guessing it will get even more competitive here soon.

Folks are disenchanted with Chicago right now in particular, it seems.

And yes the east side is great but UCLA from the east side is pretty much a no go on the commute. It would be easier to get to Pepperdine in Malibu than UCLA from here!