I want to relocate to california?

Question

I have always wanted to live in California since I was a little girl. My husband said we could consider it, but we need to research it first. Where is somewhere nice and not to expensive and resonable distance from the ocean. I have always thought that LA would be so fun or Venice Beach. I don't know the area and know that those are expencive places, but what is nice that is close. What are we talking about for prices and cost of living?

Answer 1

Calfornia is one of the the most if not the MOST expensive state to live in. San Jose and Silicon Valley houses cost a fortune, as do the good or decent parts of L.A. San Diego also is alot.

The rest of CA could be a bit boring. so if you dont live in the famous fancy places CA could turn out to be any boring place. and unlike your dreams that you picture it as.

It depends on where you live now. because i know that if you can sell a simple 4 bed 2 bath house in Bay Area for 1 mill easy. and buy a mansion in the middle of the country somewhere. so if you moving from Central US or somewhere which is cheap then youll have hard time starting up.


but dont give up. look around. i dono what im saying for the most part.

Answer 2

I live in the SF Bay area, and the median price for a house here is about $670,000. However, this may be coming down over the next couple years. If I were moving here, I would not plan on buying for at least a couple years, so you can get comfortable with the various neighborhoods, and also to take advantage of any price declines. Prices certainly won't be going up much if at all, since hardly anyone can afford to buy a house here now. Costs for most everything else are comparable to other places in the country. Housing is the killer.

But just because you shouldn't buy, doesn't mean you can't live here. Renting is much cheaper than owning right now; at least half the cost on a monthly basis for equivalent housing, and in some places one third the cost. Rent, and bank the difference until prices get more reasonable.

Anywhere near the coast is going to be expensive, compared to inland. Here, 'inland' would mean an hour's drive or thereabouts, to the coast. You can check Craigslist for prices to rent or buy.

I am right on the eastern shore of SF bay, and I'm paying $1100 a month for a 565 sf studio apartment (top floor, with a 45 sf balcony) with a Bay Bridge view. Similar units, being sold as condos, are going for $270K. You can rent a really nice, brand new loft style 1 bdrm apt nearby for $1600/month.

LA is similar in cost. I grew up there. Yes, Venice beach is a fun place. If you can't find a place in Venice beach, try nearby neighborhoods like El Segundo. They lack the cachet, but are close to the beach. No place is cheap, though.

Answer 3

You Want To Move To California, But, Somewhere Cheap? And Close To The Beach! Well, Wake Up Sister! There's Nothing Cheap In California, House Wise, Especially Close To The Beach! I Live In California Now, And I Moved From Indiana. It's So Expensive. But I Knew That Before I Moved Here. Go To www.craigslist.com. And Click On California, Then Orange County! And Check Out The Prices. It's Ridiculous!

Answer 4

Anywhere near the coast, especially in Southern California is going to be really expensive! If you want to live in California, some more affordable areas to live are the central valley, northen california, the inland empire, etc. We live 12 miles from the beach and Malibu and all we can afford is a condo! If you want a home with a yard you either need to plan on spending $600,000 or more on a home!

Answer 5

I live in Ventura its a beach town about 60 miles north of LA. You will spend for a small house here at least $600,000 and that is not for a great place.
The question is how far from the coast do you want to live and what type of work do you or your husband want to do. Commuting is never fun. Also will you come with a big profit from another home, or do you want to rent. You can rent for $2000 to $3000 a month a nice house

Answer 6

I live in the Murrieta/Temecula area- east and south of LA- yes you deal with traffic, but we are closer to San Diego and don't have as much smog. Also I can go south and get to SD beaches or out the 91 (but early-I get up at 6AM) and hit the beach in alittle over an hour. Cost is crazy but we are all swimming in the same pool if you know what I mean- the best thing you could do is vacation out here---maybe check mid and northern Cal too.We are searching in the states for property and learned ALOT from vacations to the areas we're looking in....

Answer 7

anywhere near the beach, heck anywhere in cali except for the desert that is, is expensive as hell!!!! since everyone wants to move to california these days the prices are going up. The average house would be prolly 500 to 600 Gs. And don't expect a big house with that price either.

Answer 8

Well, I live in Bakersfield which is about 90 miles from LA and hardly the beach and a 1800 sq ft house is $370,000! Cali is nice in some ways but expensive, polluted and crowded. Bring alot of money and you better love waiting. Waiting in lines, waiting in traffic, waiting to get in to places and the list goes on! By the time you pay your house payment you can't afford to go to all of Cali's nice places! That's why I am moving.

Answer 9

uhmm
way to much. the price of merely exisiting is ridiculous. redondo, manhatten, hermosa beach are all really cool and you can find some cheap condos/apartment/houses for rent, maybbee an averagly priced house. venice is cool but can get hairy at night in some parts.
for los angeles city, the westwood area is really nice.

http://www.dilbeck.com/dilbeck_cfmfiles/main/searchlistingscriteria.cfm?tpid=2

california is just expensive.

Answer 10

Hey hun!
Yeah Santa Monica & Venice are expensive. Nice but expensive.

It definately is fun here in L.A.

Whoever you are, whatever you are - there's something for you here and you'll love it. It's worth it - I LOVE it. I'd rather have an apartment here than a house anywhere else. I don't want to ever be a bored housewife thats why.


Gas Prices
Currently $3.40 - $3.90

Rent
1 bedroom ranges from $700 - 1400 depending on area
2 bedroom ranges from $900 - 2200 depending on area
Average 1 bedroom is probably $1100, average 2 bedroom probably $1500
To rent a house ranges from $1400-$3000
Use www.craigslist.org
Be sure to get one with central A/C and heat as well as some sort of parking. Parking is important in L.A.

Real Estate
Condos average from $300,000 - $600,000. I have seen some condos for $150,000 - $300,000 but in worse areas or they are something called "co-ops which I am not exactly sure what that is. HOA fees for condos range from $150-500 depending.
Houses also average from $450,000 - $800,000 depending on the neighborhood. In more ghetto areas houses are $300,000-450,000 (or it's a smaller or run-down house). Use www.craigslist.org and www.ziprealty.com to find housing.

Bills
Are suposed to be a little higher than average but I'm not really sure

Traffic
HORRIBLE TERRIBLE HORRIBLE . Taking the bus is many times better - and cheaper. $52 bucks a month gets you unlimited rides. And if you are going to be at UCLA and on the Westside alot then another $60 for the Santa Monica bus. IF you have a car, parking at UCLA is alot. And of course gas and insurance both are terribly expensive out here.



Neighborhoods
I reccomend Glendale area. Glendale is a bit cheaper than the average but also very nice and very safe. Glendale / Burbank / Pasadena is the best area to live in with regards to both price and quality. Glendale has a local bus for a quarter, rent for 1 bedroom is $800-1000 with Pasadena and Burbank being about $900-1200.

Hollywood is nice if you want a bit more excitement and flavor. Hollywood ranges from really cheap to really expensive. North hollywood is really cheap $700 apartment.



Entertainment
Hundreds of clubs, bars, strip clubs, restaurants, malls, movie theatres, complexs, fairs, festivals, events, etc.etc. It is literally IMPOSSIBLE to be bored in Los Angeles. Whatever type of person you are there is something for you. There are hundreds of different neighborhoods and they are all different in some way. Whatever race you are, whatever weird activities you like, whatever music you like - you will never feel weird or alone in Los Angeles. It is a very exciting place to live. BUT the right area can still be good for families. It is possible to raise good well-rounded kids here if you live in the right area and raise them right.

If you are young or going here for college or don't have kids yet, you'll LOVE it here. It is just a paradise to be young in Los Angeles.

The buses run everywhere so despite what you hear you don't really need a car in L.A. It helps of course but it's so expensive these days to drive that it's nice to always have the bus there to fight traffic for you.


Weather
It gets somewhat hot here but I am from Texas and Texas is worse. The winter doesn't get too bad and obviously it doesn't snow except high in the mountains. Many apartments don't have central air and heat they have A/C in the wall like in NYC but be sure to look a bit harder for an apartment with central A/C and heat it's well worth it. It only rains in the winter months. In the summer it hardly ever rains. When I moved here I went like 6 months without seeing rain. Where I grew up in Houston it usually rains at least once a week no matter what time of year. In Los Angeles we have a "rainy season" which is from about November - March. Sometimes it will rain off and on for days at a time. But once March comes you start to miss the rain. Better than having tornandos. There is rarely thunder and lightening. It's really gentle rains not really storms. No hurricanes. Earthquakes occur often but most are so tiny you can't feel them and most are out of the city and don't cause any damage.




Job Market
There are always job opportunities out here. Minimum wage is $6.75 .. Average working-class job is $8-10/ hour (restaurants, coffee shops, stores, etc.) Most office jobs starting entry level pay at least $30,000. My job pays $12/hour in a nice office. To find jobs try www.craigslist.org Use them also for apartments.