Good point! And bring a book (and a lot of patience).

You can make your DMV appointment online. Also, you can read sample tests.
Good luck.
If you are near Warner Center, there are some nice restaurants. Kate Mantilini is good. I think they are closed for lunch on weekends.

Thanks :)

Lease is signed and confirmed, moving in and furnishing our new place over the next couple weeks.

Very close to Warner Centre. So far the best food we have found was at Ladyface Brewery in Agoura Hills when we went for a weekend drive.

There's another place down the road called The Lab which is also pretty good.

Managed to get a car lease today, despite not having enough credit to even get a Macy's card :o It's amazing how much everything here relies on credit.

Any reco's for car insurance? Geico quoted me a ridiculous $350 a month

You are going to have a tough time getting reasonably priced car insurance without a US driving history.

Mercury, which I despise for other reasons, and 21st Century usually have the lowest premiums. You may also want to check with the Automobile Club of Southern California.

Thanks TWA. Best i can find so far is Viking @ $210 pm.

Probably should have looked at insurance costs before leasing a car instead of just buying an older used car... Oh well, that's moving to a new country for you

Insurance rates vary greatly even on new cars. Rates depend on horsepower and cost of repairs.

When my now college student first got her license, I gave her my then four years old Prius. Big mistake. The insurance company customer service representative advised me that I should have gotten her a Toyota Corolla; it would have saved me 50%. Live and learn.

have you taken out renters insurance? You should consider shopping for both at the same time as you might get some multi-policy discount.

Got a great quote from AAA, half the price of others, and under 2k pa, and yes i am combining my quote with renters insurance.

Just need to prove my good driver record from Aus and they should accept me. Might need one moth from a different provider as California law only gives you 3 days to get insurance, whereas it will take over a week to get my record from the authorities in Aus

^

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SO i have been here for 90 days now and still have no record of any credit according to my bank. Was even denied a Macys card! Only thing i have is a car lease

What is the best way to get my credit up and running asap? I assume a credit card with a deposit on file?

You might want to ask in the credit card forums here on FT. They might have better suggestions.

90 days is too soon really. You won't have anything in your credit file probably for 6 months. Usually it takes the bank 90 days to just start reporting a new account if you have existing business with them (e.g. car loan or lease).

And yes, you should get a credit card secured by a deposit to speed up the process.