Jesus it's objectively worse. NY/Chicago/London/Paris/Tokyo you can conceivably and easily nip out to a grocer's, bodega, cafe or pub within 10 minutes of where you are. LA? Outside of certain certain pockets like DTLA, KTown, WeHo or similar walking is tough and if your friend is across town you're SoL without a car.
Rogue is the gold standard but I honestly haven't seen any deficiencies with other smaller brands like Rep or Titan Fitness. I don't know your fitness level, but if you have the space I always recommend the basics: squat rack if you have the time (can also function as pull-up and bench), dumbbells, curl bar if possible, and free weights. I'd keep an eye on used/craigslist listings as well, with the pandemic lifting, a lot of people who spent a lot of money on excess equipment will be looking to unload extra equipment.