Los Angeles California is the city of Angels and is often known simply as LA. This southern California city is the second-most populous city in the US with an estimated 2017 population of just over 4 million. The LA metropolitan area includes a larger combined statistical area of 18.7 million Angelenos.
Most recognized as the heart of the entertainment industry, LA is a sprawling city with a lot to offer its residents, including a rich and diverse culturally mixed community, iconic landmarks, world renowned cuisine, and a sunny Mediterranean climate.
Pack up your sunscreen, sunnies, and cameras as we explore what it takes to live and work in Los Angeles.
Working in Los Angeles
Industry
LA has an interesting and diverse economic makeup with a GDP larger than Belgium, and more manufacturing jobs than the state of Michigan combined. A world leader in entertainment, fashion, healthcare, and aerospace, LA has employment opportunities in a variety of sectors.
As of March 2017, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics is reporting that LA has seen a year on year decrease in unemployment rates, from 5% down to 4.2%. This is lower than even the national average of 4.6%.
This number seems a bit surprising considering that in January 2017, LA County lost 78,700 jobs, the majority of those being retail and wholesale trade, along with some transportation, warehousing and utilities positions. Some are attributing this loss of jobs to the increase in the state’s minimum wage that came into effect in January 2017, from $10 to $10.50, while others say that seasonality is more likely.
Employers to note
Some of LA’s largest employers include hospitals like Kaiser Permaente LA Med Center and Cedar Sinai Medical Center, Government offices like City Hall and the County’s Sheriff and Police departments, manufacturing and food facilities like Nestle and American Honda Motor Co Inc, as well as Motion Picture Producer and Studios such as Walt Disney and Sony Pictures Entertainment.
Other notable employers include UCLA, Six Flags, Warner Bros Studio, Paramount Pictures Corp and the University of CA Los Angeles.
Did you know…?
LA credited inventions include: the Space Shuttle, the hula hoop, MySpace, the global positioning system, the modern skateboard and the Mars Rover.
Living in Los Angeles
Life in Los Angeles
LA is where the traffic is legendary, the beaches are beautiful and the tourists come in droves for a reason. With many pros and cons to living in this city, there are a lot of factors that can make or break your experience here.
Geographically the city is surrounded by ocean on one side and mountains on the other so those needing an escape to nature are never more than an hour or two away. Culturally the city is full of museums like the Natural History Museum, The Getty Center and the Griffith Observatory.
You can always find a festival or community event happening somewhere in the city and something that will please everyone to eat. No joke, this city is full of world renowned, as well as up and coming, chefs to please your palette.
Transportation in Los Angeles
Transportation around LA is no laughing matter and is considered a major downside to living here, despite the revolutionary works planned for the next five years.
Sorry folks.
Planning ahead is crucial to making it on time to anything. To make the most of your time, it’s recommended to live as close to work as possible, and/or look for opportunities to telecommute.
However brutal the commute must be, in 2015 it was reported that 74.1% of residents chose to drive themselves to work while only 6% utilized public transit. 36.3% of commuters reported travel times between 30-60 minutes, and 13.4% traveling over 60 minutes.
Public transportation is available in the form of the LA County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro), servicing 1,433-square-miles and more than 9.6 million people. The Metro includes four light rail and two subway stations, as well as Buses that cover 170 routes with over 15K stops. Metro’s base fare is just $1.75 and has an estimated weekday ridership over 1.2 million passengers.
At least it’s cheap!
House prices in Los Angeles
As with most major metropolitan areas we’ve explored, LA is no exception when it comes to soaring house prices and high cost of living.
An improving economy and a shortage of homes have seen the median prices soar to its highest levels compared to the previous nine years. In LA County, the median price in December of 2016 climbed to $520,000. It’s important to note, that as with the other major areas we’ve looked at, LA also has its fair share of homes well above this median price and varies greatly depending on where you live in the city.
Education in Los Angeles
LA’s public school system is the second largest in the nation, the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). The schools enroll more than 640 thousand students from kindergarten through 12th grade. The district includes over 900 schools and 187 public charter schools.
Higher education in the LA area includes schools like UCLA, The University of Southern California, California State University Los Angeles, Loyola Marymount University, Pepperdine, Occidental College, Angeles College, Los Angeles City College, Mount St. Mary’s University Chalon Campus, and CBD College.
For those looking for a change of pace, LA seems like an interesting place to explore your options, as long as you can handle the traffic. Check out Resume-Library’s job listings in Los Angeles to see who’s hiring!
