Koreatown

You might be surprised to learn that the section of LA known as Koreatown is actually made up mostly of Hispanic residents. According to demographic numbers only about one in three identifies themselves as Asian. The area, nevertheless, does have a lot of Korean signs and restaurants.

This is an extremely crowded and largely poor area. About a hundred thousand people live in this small area—its about the population of Pasadena all packed into just a few miles. The fact that this is a poor area however, also means that rents are lower and many people come to this area specifically to take advantage of the more affordable rents.

In other words, this is one of those neighborhoods where you have tons of apartment buildings.

Of course, you might think that crime would be an issue in such a poor area as it is in many others. Crime is a complicated matter for this area. This is definitely an urban area with lots of homeless people and sirens at night and it does have the feel of New York City. But I am not sure how to gage the level of danger here. On the one hand, the per capita crime rate is actually fairly average—right within the ranges you would expect. On the other hand, there have been 32 murders in Koreatown since 2007--that is 8 per year roughly (though last year they only had two murders). That too, is misleading however when you consider the population of the area. Once that is considered, the per capita murder rate makes this a fairly safe location. Yet, I have a hard time saying that a small area where some 32 people have been murdered is not dangerous. The fact that Koreatown also has a dirty unkept look isn’t reassuring either.

There are also a couple of cool places to check out in the neighborhood, R Bar and the Honey Pig.

Overall, I don’t think I would like living here, but if you are on a very tight budget, or like a hyper urban setting, you will love this place.

Koreatown definitely isn't one of the most desirable neighborhoods in Los Angeles. It's kind of in the middle of nowhere and the middle of everywhere. It's surrounded by all major streets and is quite close to downtown; but, it's not by anything cool like a beach, park, mountain, nightlife, etc.
The demographic, I would say, is perhaps more Latino than Korean. Most of the advertisements and buildings definitely are written in Korean but there is a huge Latin population in the neighborhood.
The apartments are cheap and there aren't many single-family residences. The cool thing about a lot of these apartements is that they are really old buildings so the architecture and finishes of many of these places are spectacular. So, if you want a cool, old apartment and don't care about safety, convenience or a neighborhood feel, this is the place. There is absolutely no neighborhood quality to Koreatown. The streets are too big and busy and it's just really commercial. There's hardly any green and nothing attractive aside from the older buildings that aren't totally run down.
However, the Korean restaurants are incredible and the Olympic Spa is definitely worth a mention. Every one I know (myself included) raves about Olympic Spa. It's cheap and it's no frills. But, the treatments are sensational. These ladies are not pussyfooting around in the joint. We always go to the spa and get beat down for a bit and then either venture into one of the restaurants for Korean BBQ or head into the original El Cholo. El Cholo is amazing and always packed. It's a must visit. I wouldn't live here, but it's great for a day excursion.