By Andrew Dove
Sounds crazy, huh?
Well I’m living it!
Hello everyone! My name is Andrew Dove, I’m a 20-something L.A. native running a massage business on the Westside. I work only 8-10 hours a week so that I have more time to volunteer, be involved in the community, and whatever else I feel like doing on any given day.
Disclaimer!
Even at minimum wage, which is $9 dollars in California, you will be making much more than $800 a month after taxes, working a typical part-time and or full-time job. That being said, the purpose of this is to trim the fat from life so to speak, to produce less waste, and overall promote a healthier and more conscientious society. Even if you’re not down with that program at least this can teach you how to save up for that $1,000 thingy you’ve always wanted, you consumerist you.
That means you can set aside the money you earn building your retirement, investments, and maintaining a solid savings that can be used for travel and any emergencies that might come your way.
L.A. is a happening place, people are friendly, there is so much to do, so much to see, and all kinds of different locales to explore. The rising cost of living here might make some transplants feel a little nervous, but with a little knowledge we can make $800 work!
Here’s how:
To put things into perspective, my average budget looks like this:
+ Rent: $700 (including utilities)
+ Cellphone: $60
+ Food: $40
+ No insurance (I am still on my parents’ health plan)
Basics
Rent will the meat of your expenses. Try to aim for a $600 to $700 range, but $500 can be found with a little luck and patience. Note: if you have a roommate, things will be much more flexible, it’s much easier to find a 2-bedroom apartment for around $1,400 to $1,500, like I did in the Palms area. Other places to check out include:
+ Mid-Town
+ Koreatown
+ Inglewood
+ East L.A.
Food, toiletries, and the essentials
In earnest, if you must buy food, make friends with someone with a Costco card because buying in bulk is your friend! Stock up on oats, beans, and veggies in bulk. Cook oatmeal, soups, stews and curries. Freeze or refrigerate what you don’t eat and $10-$20 can last you the whole month.
But if you’re like me, you’ll find creative ways of getting around that. I help out at food banks quite often and they typically give for free their excess food that they have no room for. While this might mean you’ll be taking a ton of cheese and yogurt one day and strawberries and bread the next, the combination of things is usually more than enough for me to get by with.
Go-go gadget Metro!
Getting around town in L.A. is only getting easier, with new bike lanes, buses, train stops, and extensions being put into place every year! Metrolink and metro buses cost $1.75, but they can be transferred indefinitely within two hours of first use, which means you can go from Venice to downtown to Glendale to Long Beach and anywhere in between one way with just $1.75! Blue and green buses cost only $1 and are fairly clean and modern. But never forget about the best form of land transportation, the evolutionary process of millions of years, the bipedal locomotion that our ancestors relied on across the ages: Ah yes, the joy of walking.
The best things in life are free
L.A. is bursting at the seams of free things to do and see, many of which can include free food and goodies. I highly recommend joining just about every free club, newsletter, and email list. Here are some of my favorites:
+ Giant Robot. They’ve had pizza and sushi platters at opening nights on multiple occasions!
+ Natural History Museum
+ Cinefamily. Hint: Google “Cinefamily sneak peeks.”
+ Freethingstodoinla.com
Don’t budge on your budget!
The idea is to incorporating conscientious activity into your life.
Now this is the part that requires the most discipline. Budgeting is quite the difficult experience, but with some 2nd grade math and the patience of a mantis you can do it. With some time and practice, your throwaway consumerist shell will crumble, and from the remains will emerge a beautiful minimalist butterfly.
You can then fly free, free from the transparent web of imposed social constructs woven by greedy, profit-driven arachnids.
It is free to be free.
About Andrew Dove: Andrew is a crazy 20-something who owns a massage business in West L.A. In his copious amounts of free time he can be found volunteering at a local food bank or participating in various cosplay and video game—playing activities.
P.S. The opinions expressed in this piece are solely of the author’s.
…im unsure if this information is still relevant? But from my experience, this budget seems a bit incomplete. For one, your budget doesnt leave room for busfaire. And from my experience, when you present a transfer ticket to a bus driver, they take it and rip it and throw it away, so you cant use it multiple times, though you can buy another.
I just started my first job, i make 14 an hour, but im a college student so i can only work about 3phours a week, barely hitting 800 mark. I live at home but i do want to move out eventually(stupid L.A. rental prices. From what i see though, living independently on 800, (which is what i was looking for) is impossible or at the very least, incredibly irresponsible.
I want to know how you eat on $40 a month?