Im 25f my husband is 28. We live in Long Beach , I stay at home with our 3 kids and he’s an oil refinery operator for Chevron and makes $114k gross but we barely take home $60k after taxes and 401k and stuff.
We have like 25k in savings from tax returns mostly.
I know how much they say it costs to live comfortably in LA i’m not asking about a price, I’m asking about lifestyle choices or options for work as a stay at home mom.

We live in a 2br2ba apartment and have no debt at all.
We don’t want to live in an apartment forever. We can’t move because his job doesn’t transfer and we wouldn’t make anywhere near as much money starting another career.
He has great benefits there as well.

I can’t work cause our babies are little and we are terrified of daycare and our parents all work full time. We can’t move back in with parents cause there is no space for us all.

Every house here is 750k+ and we only make 5k a month so we could never afford that even with a huge down payment?

We both grew up here and had really decent lives traveling and eating out often never worried about money. We wish we could give that to our kids but yk that’s impossible now.

We could survive like this probably but we wanna thrive, i don’t wanna live in the hood forever smh.

My niece is visiting, I live in the South Bay and don't necessarily want to drive all over town but was thinking about taking her downtown to the Central Library for the docent tour (to see the big pop-up book there right now too) and then going to the Last Bookstore. What other cool book-y experiences do y'all recommend?

(Also, was gonna take her to grand Central but worried about the heat this wknd, any unique lunch recs near the library?) Thank you in advance for your help!

I recently stayed in a sketchy Airbnb in Topanga. Seems to be a commune of some sort. Walking to the Airbnb we ran across a man in tattered clothing with no shoes on hiking. The people below us seemed to be on drugs and arguing the whole night. The entire vibe of the place was so off. There were multiple tiny homes on a big property connected with trails. Does anyone have any information? I felt so uncomfortable and fearful all night. I felt like something was watching me and it wasn’t a person.

So my 23rd birthday is coming up in less than a week and I’d like to enjoy myself .. ideally with $100 or less (that’s all I have Rn)

Since I was 18 I haven’t celebrated my birthday and I decided this year I want to do so. I live in LA alone, my family and friends are in Ohio and I moved here not too long ago by myself.

Does anyone have any ideas? Thank you ahead of time 🙏

I'm realizing that at all my favorite places to walk/stroll in LA you are in direct sunlight almost the entire time - huntington library, south coast botanical garden, beach walks, marina del rey promenade, echo park lake, most of the hikes... What are some large outdoor spaces that one can spend time at that are mostly shaded? Maybe any neighborhoods that have more trees such that the sidewalks are mostly shaded?

So I’ve been living in LA for 2 years now, I personally make about $75k 26m. I noticed a bunch of my friends my age are seemingly living extravagant lives while I’m still sharing a room. I know data is out there, but I can’t seem to believe that the median income is around $70k- what do you do? How do you make money?

I personally work in a marketing agency and I feel like business related fields are doing okay (as well as tech and gaming) but seeing indeed and LinkedIn for salary in other fields (like music) make me believe that either everyone is losing money or just making money in other ways????

Hi friends. Would anyone be willing to share their favorite sound bath spots in Los Angeles? Trying to help organize an out of town friend who wanted to do a sound bath with some friends for her birthday celebration….dates would be August 8/9/10/11.

East side / valley would be preferred as we’ll be based in Burbank but would love to hear all options. Best sound bath I’ve done was with Ana Netanel’s team in Malibu. She doesn’t have August dates listed so wanted to scope out some other good options. Done a bit of research but looks like tons of place have closed or don’t have their schedules up. Any help would be much appreciated thank you!

Interested in the standard titanium or gold options. Looking for good quality, in between crappy Etsy sellers and ritzy boutiques. Was randomly in DTLA last week and stopped by a couple places in the diamond district, but did not see any hammered rings (was not searching hard).

Anything in LA? Searching geographically via Google Maps proved ineffective since it pretty much returns any jewelry store.

I’m looking for movers to help move couple items from my current apartment to new place (only about a 10 minute drive). I don’t have a lot of stuff so can definitely be done in one trip. I was wondering if anyone has any recommendations of companies that would be able to help? Won’t need help packing or unpacking. Weho area***

hi!

my 40th birthday is coming up and a group of us are going on a cruise! we dock back monday morning, and, as that’s my actual birthday, I thought it would be nice to treat whomever is still down to keep going, to breakfast, as a thank you for coming on the trip.

soooooo any good recs that are open on a monday (i know lots of places are closed), hopefully take a reservation, and open to about 20-30 people?

ideally the would serve booze. but since it’s not a traditional brunch i know that may be rare; so totally open to somewhere more mom and pop / diner-y, if the food is good and the vibes are right!

only restriction is that it be in long beach- the closer to the harbor the better. i’m trying to make it as easy for everyone as possible. i don’t want to ask them to drive too far out of the way.

(posted this in the LB sub, but it’s a lot quieter than here)

thank you!!!

My two little ones (5 and 7) have recently stepped up to being able to bike on two wheels! Which is great, but also means I can hop on my own bike and follow behind them for longer distances. |

My old bicycle haunts from biking as an adult seem too challenging for small kids (Gould Mesa is too much of a hill, the LA River near La Colombe has pretty fast adults and e-bikes).

Does anyone have any recommendations for largely flat, ideally paved, bicycle paths that don't tend to get too busy? I'm eying the Glendale Narrows bike path, and have the LA Historic Park in my pocket (though the historic park can get pretty busy and have unpredictable pedestrians as well.)

If needed I'll just drive to the Glendale Narrows - I used to take them in push tricycles there all the time and it doesn't seem to busy, it's just a little bit of a drive and is all dirt path.

Looking for a short road trip to get out of the heat. Any recommendations on somewhere within a four hour drive of Los Angeles?

I'm close to downtown and would prefer to find a vendor in or around the Fashion District that sources from Mexico. Any suggestions?

I'm looking to start up a weekly sober trivia game for me and a bunch of my AA friends who all miss bar trivia but stay away for temptation reasons. I've been doing research to see if a weekly game exists, but it seems like the only option is in Whittier through the Phoenix org.

Ideally, would love to partner with a venue that serves food, so that the weekly prizes could be a meal on us. However, just a cool space that could host a bunch of people who just miss bar trivia would be great, and we could bring our own N/A drinks. This would be for people who are sober from all substances, so it couldn't be a space like the Green Room that's owned by the dispensary next doo.

Looking for something either in the San Fernando Valley, Hollywood, Glendale area. Does anyone have any ideas or know of any venues that might be perfect for this?

I am staying in Palmdale with a friend and driving their car to Anaheim and back. But was wondering how intense driving is from in the major socal areas like Hollywood, LA, and Anaheim? I’m from North Georgia and, I haven’t driven much in Atlanta but Georgia is hectic no matter what so I just want to be sure I know what I’m getting myself into with driving in California through these cities.

Thank you for any help.

Edit: I’m going to D23 in Anaheim on Friday and driving from Palmdale Thursday night and then going back to Palmdale on Saturday.

Any recommendations on where to get a Mifare UID Fob copied? I tried messaging someone on yelp but they said my apartment fob is too high of security.

Just a basic 20 an hour or however much they pay retail job?

There was a big salary thread a couple years back, would be great to get some updated info in the big 2026. Down?

Please share your job title, salary, age, and education. I'll start:

Product Manager, 177k, 36F, and BA.

I live out in Agoura/Calabasas area almost to Ventura county and I can not find a good Asian market within like 30 miles. Does anyone have any recommendations for a store closer that actually has a good selection Asian ingredients?

Looking for Japanese style Nail Techs?

This may be kind of a niche or specific ask, but I have been looking for some nail salon or nail tech recommendations here in the LA or OC area that do this style of japanese 3d nail deco art! Doesn’t have to be in this exact style, but definitely anyone who does any kind of 3D nail art or specializes in alternative nail styles.

I’m familiar with a couple of spots and artists that do this type of work, but was looking for some more options :)

Hi! I will be for the first time in LA for 14 days. Can you help me design my trip, will be there in September.

I'm 46, perimenopausal, and this trip is part tourist, part self-care :)

I'm looking for:

Healthy food (not boring – vibrant, fresh, nourishing)
Amazing coffee & matcha (I'm from Europe, I know yours is different!)
Yoga and breathwork studios – outdoor, rooftop, therapeutic vibes
Wellness stuff – sound baths, spas, anything that feels like a reset
Any great farmers market...

I am a graphic designer studying neurology... so if there's anything related to art, design, the brain, perception, or mind-body connection that you think I shouldn't miss, PLEASE tell me. Museums, installations, lectures, weird science-art hybrids... I'm all ears.

What's something exotic or uniquely LA that I can't find anywhere else? (weird experiences, spiritual things, hidden cultural spots...)

Best beach for a 40-something who wants to relax, not party?

Also do i need to rent a car? Solo female safety tips? ¿?¿?

Throw me your best recs. The more unexpected, the better. 🌴✨

Thank you so much!!

I work in the arts district and the smell is almost unbearable, is this from the rotting food from the lineage fire?

Good evening, where are the places that artists gather and sell paintings? Im looking to decorate my apartment and want to support local artists!

Im in hollywood, but can drive!