I got a job in Santa Monica, while living in Long Beach. Commute was painful at 45-60 min, and I only had to be at work by 10:30. I moved into a 1BR for $1500

I got a job in Santa Monica, while living in Long Beach. Commute was painful at 45-60 min, and I only had to be at work by 10:30. I moved into a 1BR for $1500 in nearby Culver City, which cut my commute down to 20-25 minutes. Not so bad. I'm across the street from a little downtown area with bars, restaurants, a movie theatre, 3 yoga studios, and a grocery store. Fairly walkable. The job market is pretty hot. The problem in my job search was lining up interviews to get as many offers as possible at once so I could have my pick of the litter. And even nicer weather than the Bay Area to boot.