Location: Irvine, California
Size/Type: 3 bedroom apartment (approximately 1400 square feet)
Length of Residence: 8 months
As soon as I graduated from high school, I was determined to move some place very far away. I shocked everyone and took a leap of faith and moved from a small town in Wisconsin to California. I had been using an online roommate service to try to find a place. Within no time I had found two roommates and decided on my first apartment, without even seeing it in person.
It was a big change of pace and transition from my parents' house to living on my own in a big city and with two other girls who I barely knew.Being under 21 and very naive, I was so lucky to have landed a great place with two wonderful roommates.
What I loved about this home: The apartment complex was less than 10 years old, so everything felt new and clean. As a single girl living on my own for the first time, it was reassuring that the complex was gated. My apartment was directly across from the pool and hot tub, which was a great place to relax after a long day at work.
What changed when I moved on to my next home: After less than a year of living in my first place, one of my roommates was getting married and moving into her own apartment with her soon-to-be husband. Unfortunately, we couldn't just replace her with another roommate because she worked for the complex and we were paying a discounted rent. I was dating someone in Los Angeles and constantly commuting there for the weekend, so I decided to find a place closer to him. After looking for my own place for a few weeks, he asked me to move in with him (8 years later we still live together in the same place).
Everything changed when I moved into my new place (or should we say, my boyfriend's place). It is very different living with roommates than living with a significant other. We were building a home together and had to discuss both of our routines and requirements for cleanliness. Living with a boyfriend/girlfriend can make or break the relationship, so it was a big challenge adapting to my place and keeping the relationship alive.
Best bit of advice for people moving into their first home: Have fun!! Don't get hung up on not having enough money to decorate your place all at once. Buy pieces over time until you fill up your home with furnishings you love.
Image: Rental-Living.com
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Wow that is pretty brave. I bet it was a lottery finding great roommates. You did great!
I did the same thing after I graduated from college. I always told my parents, 'I'm moving as far away from this place as I can get." I made good on my promise and moved from a small town in WV to So. Cal. More than 30 years later, I've never looked back. Best advice I received at the time: Love your job and make good friends. Sounds like you've done just that.
I just moved out of one of Irvine's gated luxury apartment complexes, and I'm so delighted to be out the soulless ultra-right-wing Republican military industrial complex that is The Irvine Company. All owned by one guy, the town is so rigid, undiversified and corporate that it's like living in a Halliburton cubicle. The Company apartment complexes are surrounded only by corporate merchants, no small business/entrepreneurial is granted space to flourish, so you have Carl's Jr on every corner but you have to really dig or leave town to find a restaurant worth eating in or buy clothes that have any flair.
I served my time there so that I can tell you what I wish someone had warned me of: don't be seduced by the gates, the pools and the cleanliness! It's a trap! Run!
@LolaDanger one thing I can say about Irvine is that it's quiet, and really, that's all the reason I need to want to live there. I don't, because it's also expensive, but I want to.
@LolaDanger: Hahaha. Spot on. I loathe Irvine. Well, I pretty much dislike most of Orange County (though I went to college there). But of all the O.C. cities, Irvine is definitely the one I try to avoid the most.
@arcane: I get that you want to live in Irvine because it's quiet, but I think there are plenty of equally quiet neighborhoods in O.C. that aren't as expensive as Irvine (they're not exactly cheap either, though) and offer way more diversity. But I'm a firm believer in not disparaging something before you've even tried it, so I hope you fulfill your desire to move there. Maybe you'll like it.
Ah, Irvine, City of the Beige. Cul-de-sacs, strip malls, idiot politicians, gestapo like police but it is
safe. Great place for soccer moms, junior leaguers, yippees/yuppies and grandparents.
I grew up in Irvine. I find it so interesting to read about someone essentially 'escaping' small town life in the Midwest for a California dream... in Irvine!
I think @LolaDanger describes it best... soulless. I am thankful for the great education I got from Irvine's schools, but I could never move back to a place that actively regulates the color of your house and height of your lawn.
In other news, what exactly was the point of this post? I was anticipating seeing what someone did to overcome the 'soullessness' of Irvine with clever interior decorating, but that dream was dashed with a generic testimonial. Did I miss something?
I'm so glad most of these comments are from people who share a strong dislike for the city.
Down with the Irvine Company!
I had to laugh when she described Irvine as a "big city." I grew up in Irvine and have been back for the past ten years, after many years living in real big cities like Boston, Manhattan, DC, and LA. I initially feared the move back to Irvine because of what's been called "soullessness" in other comments, but I have grown to love it because it is quieter and slower than the other places I've lived, and because it feels like home. It's also so centrally located that you can be anywhere in SoCal in no time at all, if you're bored of staring at the beige. As a single woman, I value the safety of it, too. And, as an animal lover, I have to say kudos to the Irvine Animal Care Center...I think much of the perception of Irvine is exaggerated and comes from those who have never really spent much quality time here but, instead, criticize from afar.
what a bunch of judgy snob comments. give this young girl a break!
Love this 'My first Apartment' series! :)
I spent a few years living in Irvine, and I can honestly say that it was the worst place we ever lived in. Soulless, beige, and snobby.
You know, I spent a lot of my life in Orange County and believe me, I can totally trash it when I'm in the mood. But I will say, Irvine is very safe and peaceful. It's one of the few cities in Orange County that has great bike paths. And, there are a LOT of great Asian supermarkets / restaurants. It's not all bad. I think that calling it soulless is unfair--it's just one of those "you need to look below the surface" scenarios.
There are, indeed, little pockets of soul hidden here and there (that's about it, just here and there, those two places) in Irvine; what I was referring to as soulless is The Irvine Company -- the corporate mega-monster that runs the town with an iron fist and a greedy palm. You can find quiet there, and it is fairly safe, it's true. But I've found quiet and security in my new place in San Clemente, way down south almost to San Diego - AND much more space for the money, beautiful surroundings, beach right there, ocean view, nice little small business/entrepreneurs/wonderful restaurants, and friendly, engaging people. It's still Orange County, but it feels like a whole 'nuther world.
OC is not for everyone. There is generally one design "The Irvine Company", having worked for them for some time in the past, they truly have great values and know how to create an oasis within congested Southern California (different from any place that I’ve traveled). I've lived in most parts of LA, OC and IE and still find myself at home in OC. No crazies running around cursing in the middle of the night, no loud clubs beating their bass ‘til well past midnight, no 2 hour drive to get 5 miles away, no meth labs out of a vacant shed in the middle of a dry 5 acre plot of cow manure infested smelling land. Irvine is clean, quiet, safe and has plenty of open preserve space for the outdoors. Home values and rents will always stay high because of the strict hand of the “man”.
– Perfect for families maybe not so much for a single 21 year old…