If you’re hoping to find a new Valentine this year, it might help to have some ideas of where to look. While you never know where you’re going to run into the next love of your life, we can look at what we do know about the city’s demographics and other factors to give you a few suggestions.
For the heterosexual singles, you might want to position yourself in a neighborhood where the ratio of men to women tips in your favor. To figure out where those might be, real estate website Trulia created a map based on the most recent Census data. They looked at unmarried singles between ages 18 and 65 who were living alone, and then subtracted from that population an estimate of the number who are non-straight. They found that men outnumber women significantly Downtown and in Manhattan Beach, while women are in the majority around Beverly Hills and Pico-Robertson.
Image: Courtesy Trulia
Figuring out stats about LGBT singles can be a little trickier since the Census doesn’t ask for orientation outright. What the Census does tell us, however, is where the highest concentrations of married same-sex couples can be found and, Trulia suggests, we can work backward to assume those areas are likely to be the most gay-friendly. The results found Palm Springs takes the cake (two Palm Springs ZIP codes make the national top 10 list for highest concentration of gay couples), followed by West Hollywood and the Hollywood Hills. Same-sex female couples in particular seem to congregate down in Long Beach, especially in the Belmont Heights and South of Conant neighborhoods.
Once you’ve figured out where the boys (or girls, or both) are, the next question is where you should go to meet them.
If you’re into the bar scene, our lists of best singles bars and gay bars might be good places to start. Neighborhood-wise, West Hollywood and Hollywood are likely to be your best bests, coming in with the highest overall concentrations of L.A.’s best bars.
On the other hand, if you’re less into the bar thing and more the outdoor type, Topanga or Los Feliz might be the places for you to hang out and casually run into your new partner while out for a hike or climb. Not sure how to strike up a conversation? Maybe adopt a pet and take it out with you. Even if the dating thing doesn’t work out, you’ll still have a loyal companion.
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