LA Living
03-06-2026 | 02:40 PM
#51
Gets Weekends Off
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 20,898
Likes: 219
stop watching the fear news.
no, it isn’t except in very specific places used by media to play on the fears of those who don’t live in socal. the beverly hills station is used commonly as an example but is an insane outlier that we all joke about. gas in my extremely expensive city is under $5 for premium, even now.
here’s gasbuddy for my zip today (premium fuel):
that’s the absolute highest time-of-use rate. with solar, my electricity bill is two digits even in the heat of summer with central air. all my utilities combined are under $300 a month. in a *crazy expensive city*
here are the actual edison time-of-use rates for one of the plan options. a little planning and some solar helps a ton
yep, property taxes are high, but they’re also not crazy compared to many other places.1.25%
with comprehensive and uninsured motorist coverage on deep into six-digits worth of cars, i pay about $2200 a year in insurance. pretty manageable
no, you do not.
your media diet is leaking out.
no, it isn’t except in very specific places used by media to play on the fears of those who don’t live in socal. the beverly hills station is used commonly as an example but is an insane outlier that we all joke about. gas in my extremely expensive city is under $5 for premium, even now.
here’s gasbuddy for my zip today (premium fuel):
that’s the absolute highest time-of-use rate. with solar, my electricity bill is two digits even in the heat of summer with central air. all my utilities combined are under $300 a month. in a *crazy expensive city*
here are the actual edison time-of-use rates for one of the plan options. a little planning and some solar helps a ton
yep, property taxes are high, but they’re also not crazy compared to many other places.1.25%
with comprehensive and uninsured motorist coverage on deep into six-digits worth of cars, i pay about $2200 a year in insurance. pretty manageable
no, you do not.
your media diet is leaking out.
03-06-2026 | 02:41 PM
#52
Line Holder
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 1,741
Likes: 15
Electricity at LADWP is 25.5 cents per kWh, and on peak is 27 cents. I’d venture off peak is probably a little higher than some places but that off peak is much cheaper.
I saw a gas station at $4.09 yesterday. I’ve got an EV so truly I don’t pay much attention to the cost of gas these days, but I specifically saw that. The difference between gas in LA and the national average (call it $1/gallon) might cost you $400/yr if you drive a normal amount, but you’re a pilot so it’s probably even less.
03-06-2026 | 02:43 PM
#53
Perennial Reserve
Joined: Jan 2018
Posts: 14,280
Likes: 264
LAX has a median price for a starter home of $643K
For SFO it’s $962K
https://www.redfin.com/news/starter-home-report-august-2025/#:~:text=Table_title:%20Metro%20Table%20—%20Starte r%20Homes%20(August,$282%2C911%20%7C%20Active%20Li stings%20Yoy:%2015.30%25%20%7C
in SFO the median DOWN PAYMENT on a starter home is $375K.
in LAX, the minimum salary to qualify for a mortgage for a starter home is $184k.
https://www.sfchronicle.com/realestate/article/sf-home-down-payment-20187899.php#
https://www.realtor.com/advice/hyperlocal/salary-you-need-to-buy-home-california/
It’s scarcely any wonder that these places have gone junior with folks commuting in from LAS, TUS,and PHX.
03-06-2026 | 02:47 PM
#54
Banned
Joined: Sep 2016
Posts: 8,831
Likes: 499
the law you’re referencing only prohibits such stops if the tags are less than two months expired. after such grace period, you can be stopped for expired tags.
during the grace period, you can be cited for expired tags but it cannot be the sole reason for a traffic stop.
it takes literally seconds to fact check these things.
https://legiscan.com/CA/text/AB256/id/2843971
03-06-2026 | 02:48 PM
#55
Banned
Joined: Sep 2016
Posts: 8,831
Likes: 499
LAX and SFO ARE PRIME EXAMPLES of affordability problems.
LAX has a median price for a starter home of $643K
For SFO it’s $962K
https://www.redfin.com/news/starter-home-report-august-2025/#:~:text=Table_title:%20Metro%20Table%20—%20Starte r%20Homes%20(August,$282%2C911%20%7C%20Active%20Li stings%20Yoy:%2015.30%25%20%7C
in SFO the median DOWN PAYMENT on a starter home is $375K.
in LAX, the minimum salary to qualify for a mortgage for a starter home is $184k.
https://www.sfchronicle.com/realestate/article/sf-home-down-payment-20187899.php#
https://www.realtor.com/advice/hyperlocal/salary-you-need-to-buy-home-california/
It’s scarcely any wonder that these places have gone junior with folks commuting in from LAS, TUS,and PHX.
LAX has a median price for a starter home of $643K
For SFO it’s $962K
https://www.redfin.com/news/starter-home-report-august-2025/#:~:text=Table_title:%20Metro%20Table%20—%20Starte r%20Homes%20(August,$282%2C911%20%7C%20Active%20Li stings%20Yoy:%2015.30%25%20%7C
in SFO the median DOWN PAYMENT on a starter home is $375K.
in LAX, the minimum salary to qualify for a mortgage for a starter home is $184k.
https://www.sfchronicle.com/realestate/article/sf-home-down-payment-20187899.php#
https://www.realtor.com/advice/hyperlocal/salary-you-need-to-buy-home-california/
It’s scarcely any wonder that these places have gone junior with folks commuting in from LAS, TUS,and PHX.
03-06-2026 | 04:02 PM
#56
Line Holder
Joined: Jul 2023
Posts: 945
Likes: 335
03-06-2026 | 04:57 PM
#58
Line Holder
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 1,417
Likes: 519
I’m sure OP knows about all of these issues.
if I was richer than I was and didn’t have family in the east coast I’d live in CA.
OP welcome aboard you’ll find a great place to live in CA and the LAX base is one of our cooler ones pilot wise.
03-06-2026 | 05:05 PM
#59
Gets Weekends Off
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 5,653
Likes: 680
Other than Darth Vader, how many of you are buying more than 1,000 gallons of gas in a year? A $2 spread is a rounding error. Same idea for electricity. Other than year 1 or 2 pay, if your electric bill doubled would you really notice? Those are minor adjustments in an annual budget. For a few dollars a year, you can live in a great climate with outstanding outdoor recreation options. I love picking on Californians as much as the next guy, but there are plenty of great people to associate with. If you turn off the news, it's not all bad. If you plan on living there for just a few years, rent your accommodations and invest the difference. If you are making a long term commitment, frozen property values eventually take the sting out of property taxes. If you are worried about income taxes, start a side hustle and/or invest in real estate.
03-06-2026 | 05:11 PM
#60
.
Joined: Nov 2017
Posts: 3,556
Likes: 739
Other than Darth Vader, how many of you are buying more than 1,000 gallons of gas in a year? A $2 spread is a rounding error. Same idea for electricity. Other than year 1 or 2 pay, if your electric bill doubled would you really notice? Those are minor adjustments in an annual budget. For a few dollars a year, you can live in a great climate with outstanding outdoor recreation options. I love picking on Californians as much as the next guy, but there are plenty of great people to associate with. If you turn off the news, it's not all bad. If you plan on living there for just a few years, rent your accommodations and invest the difference. If you are making a long term commitment, frozen property values eventually take the sting out of property taxes.
This year, it actually ended up being cheaper to fly/rental car/hotel at the last minute because Diesel went from $2.80 to $4.79. Dumb luck that we were snowed in so bad we couldn't get the camper out.
Of course that meant I couldn't ra e the old fart SX after the pro race. (I won't ride SX on a borrowed bike, I have dedicated SX/AX only suspension)
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