Los Angeles has a variety of housing and rental properties to suit singles, couples, and families. If living in Beverly Hills, Malibu, or the Hollywood Hills is out of your price range for now, the surrounding areas – places like Santa Monica, West Hollywood, and Los Feliz – offer price ranges to suit all pockets.
Los Angeles is home to one of the greatest numbers of modernist architecture in the country, and of course Spanish architectural influences are omnipresent. You will be hard pressed to find any property older than a hundred years.
LA’s contemporary condos are magnificent and meant for LA living, with light airy rooms and open floor plans. Property is generally bigger in the USA than in Europe and Asia, with bigger rooms, larger kitchens and garages.
Types of Housing
Rooms: Renting a room in a house is ideal if you love living with other people and sharing the bathroom and kitchen. There is no stigma associated with being over thirty years old and renting a room in the USA as there is in the UK and parts of Asia. Many professionals still rent and share houses, preferring to rent in a swanky house share in Malibu than paying the same rent for a single apartment in Hollywood. Sharing a house may also be the only option for expats without a social security number and credit history. Although many fellow tenants are as vigilant as landlords, there’s more chance of being given a break. Sharing a house is ideal for expats with very little or no contacts within the city. Find your network and share a house with them.
Apartments: Apartments range from cozy classic Hollywood apartments built in the 1930’s to ultra modern apartment blocks. LA loves the new with apartment blocks shooting up as regularly as the sun rises and 20th century apartments being remodeled and modernized. Apartments can be spacious with light and airy rooms and a good size kitchen. Apartment blocks range from classic two floor buildings with eight apartments to downtown high-rise apartment complexes. Most of them come unfurnished, with some exceptions.
Studio Apartments: These contain no separate rooms except for the bathroom. Your bedroom is your living room. Studios are popular as artists’ spaces and single people, hence the prices are most likely on lower end.
Bachelor Apartments: These usually refer to a studio apartment that does not have a full kitchen but a small one (kitchenette), hence the prices are most likely on the lowest end.
Duplex: A duplex is a house that accommodates two households in one building. Prices are in the same range as apartments.
Condominiums: Unlike the regular apartments, condominiums, or more commonly referred to as condos, are for sale although you may see them for a rent or lease when the owners rent/lease them out. Although the condos are for purchase, you are obliged to comply with some regulations that are set in place across the property, such as the exterior painting and decorations to keep the uniform look of the property. Most condo property companies charge the community fee for the maintenance of the common areas such as the swimming pool, meeting area, etc.
Single Family Home: This is a detached home and can range in purchase price from $200,000 to $12,000,000 and up, depending on location. Depending on size, there are 3-6 bedrooms and bathrooms.
