South Mariposa Ave, Koreatown

I'm at Mariposa and 4th, and I walk on Mariposa between 3rd and Wilshire constantly, day and night. The block is always interesting: there's always kids running around causing trouble, people smoking weed on the stoops, broken furniture and TVs on the curb, in the middle of tons of quaint 1940s buildings, food trucks, and really scenic views of DTLA and K-town.

I live on the 4th floor, and I have a view of downtown LA from the window of my 900 sq. ft. apartment, which is gorgeous with exposed brick and hardwood, for $1170/month, utilities included. The building is mostly Latino singles and families, with a cool hipster population attracted for the price.

I love this street because it feels urban, gritty and real -- it's not whitewashed like Culver City (where I used to live) or West LA. I don't ever feel unsafe living on this block -- there's always kids, families, and people on the street. But it often feels like the hood -- for instance, if you walk up to 3rd street and then walk over to Vermont, you're going to pass strip clubs, cash for gold joints, dollar stores, smoke shops, etc. If you can't hang, then don't live here. But there's a really interesting creative class of folks who work in animation, music, film, TV that live in this neighborhood, ride on buses / trains, and love it.

Another reviewer was talking about being freaked out by 2nd and Mariposa... well... all of Koreatown gets really sketchy north of 3rd. Like Vermont / Santa Monica or Vermont / Beverly train stops? Sketchy. East of Vermont towards Macarthur Park? Sketchy. Just pay attention to context and the neighborhood is fine.

South Mariposa is one of the little side arteries of major Wilshire Boulevard (a terrific street, drive the length of it on a Saturday afternoon and see the many facets of L.A.'s collective character!) Mariposa is in the Mid-Wilshire section of town, and as with most of the old streets in this area, you'll find some really cool old 1920's apartment complexes mixed in with the newer and far less appealing 70's-era buildings. Urban mix of neighbors with a mostly Hispanic population. The street is relatively quiet once you get a couple of blocks past each of the main street crossings (Wilshire, 2nd, 3rd Street, etc) but ALWAYS keep personal safety in mind, especially if you're alone and walking to/from bus stops, convenience stores, etc. I lived in the great old El Montalbo Apartment building at West 2nd & Mariposa, and I can tell you that I was harrassed in broad daylight more than once as I walked a mere one block to the local AM/PM. The charming art deco apartment buildings are a slice of Raymond Chandler's Los Angeles, but honestly, even though rent here is still fairly cheap, the neighborhood's just a little too sketchy, at least for this single girl, and if you don't have a car, it's a long trudge to the grocery stores on Vermont. Check out the Museum District area of Wilshire Blvd where the neighborhoods are nicer, and the rent not too bad if you've got roommates to split the bill.