I'm from texas and I'm think of moving to cali. aftere college graduation. I just don't know where I should move to. What are some good ares to live in. what do they have?
-Thanks!
2006-09-23 10:22:01 · 9 answers · asked by lakimbria2000 2 in Travel ➔ United States ➔ Los Angeles
It depends on what you want and what your career goals are. The job market here is tightening, but still offers lots of opportunities for someone with the right education and a willingness to start small and prove themselves. Overall it is a very expensive state to live in, but wages are also amongst the highest in the nation so that helps offset the expense -- having a solid college education will help a lot.
California is probably the most diverse state in the union, no matter how you define it -- culturally, politically, economically, and professionally. Not surprising considering it's size and population.
Southern Cal is very warm but not too hot, nice weather almost all year, and has many opportunities for beach-oriented recreation and inland hiking (the terrain is hot and dry). There are a lot of high-tech equipment companies, especially aviation-related, around LA, and a lot of defense contractors there and around San Diego. Housing used to be fairly affordable around SD and once you got out of the heart of LA, but I don't know if that is still the case. San Diego and Long Beach (near LA) are the only remaining major military areas of California aside from the AIr Force bases in the central valley. Southern California is typically more conservative politically than the rest of the state ecept for far northern Cal and parts of the central valley (the ranching areas).
The Monterey Bay area is a haven for ocean sciences, surfing, beach lifestyles, sailing, SCUBA diving and snorkeling (the water is very cold but the kelp forests and sea otters are worth it -- only the Channel Islands area off Santa Barbara further south compare), hiking and camping along the coastal mountain range, small businesses, artisans and craftspeople, and "alternative lifestyles." Politics are very liberal but in an odd sleepy sort of way that is very hard to describe (I grew up here, and still can't exactly explain what it is like -- Berkeley on Zoloft?). The Monterey Bay area tends to be rather staunchly anti-growth, so ther really are no "sprawling metropoli" here and as a result the lifestyle tends to be slower and less stressful compared to most of the rest of the state. The Defense Languages Institute, where military personel learn foreign languages, is located in Monterey.
San Jose area is the place for high-tech electronics -- this is where the industry was really born, and it remains a leader today. The area is commonly called the "Silicon Valley" area, and pretty much every semiconductor manufacturer can be found here. Politically the Silicon Valley is fairly balanced.
The San Francisco "Bay Area" includes the "Peninsula" cities which are heavily oriented towards finance, corporate headquartering, and research facilities, with the more industrial cities being in the East Bay. Again, ocean and hiking related activities are very popular. along the coasts, waterways, and coastal moiuntain ranges. Politically the Bay Area is the far-left of the state.
Inland from the Bay Area is the Central Valley, which is mainly agricultutral and ranching and food processing/canning. This is NOT a good place for anyone with respiratory problems (the dust and pollens will really aggravate them). If you like a "cowboy" lifestyle, though, this is the place for you -- only the far northern parts of the state are similar. This area tends to be more politically conservative than most of the state except for the LA area.
The far northern part of the state is an interesting mix -- probably the most beautiful place on earth all told. It is sparsely populated. Most of the business there is ranching and lumbering related. You will find no better fishing anywhere in my opinion. When you have been to Mount Shasta, you will wonder why the whole world doesn't live there and at the same time be so glad that they don't seem to be willing to drive the few hours to get there. There is not a single major or even minor city in this reagion, just a lot of towns from small (where the population is less than the elevation -- my favorite kind of town) to midlin' (a few thousand tops). Tourism is a big segment of the economy, and as a result of its seasonality the land and homes here tend to be very affordable -- but only if you can find work. Politically this area is composed of opposites, well-left-of-center environmentalist and artist types and well-right-of-center ranchers and lumberjacks.
Finally there is my very favorite part of the state, the High Sierras and the Sierra Foothills, running along the eastern border. There is no work here and all the multimillionaires from Silicon Valley and the Bay Area have driven property prices to stupid levels, but it is a truly incredible place to spend vacation time or plan to retire here. There is world-class skiing in the winter and a lot of seasonal jobs surrounding that industry (but that only covers 4 months out of the year and unfortunately also attracts a number of druggie/burnout types with their attendant problems), great camping, hiking, fishing, and hunting the rest of the year, and probably 30% of the land is federal or state owned so there is a lot more call for rangers and BLM personell here than in most of the rest of the state. Politically it is relatively neutral but can swing to an extreme depending on the location -- not that it has any effect, the state political machine doesn't even know most of this part of the state exists... which makes it noce because people don't take their politics quite as seriously here as they do in most of the rest of the state.
Like any other state, our cities and metro areas have good neighborhoods and bad ones. Before comitting to a long term rental, I would contact the local police department and ask them which neighborhoods they reccomend and which they suggest you avoid.
2006-09-23 11:28:38 · answer #1 · answered by Mustela Frenata 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
One other significant correction to the long post...
The political analysis looks like something from the 1980s (when the North always supported the Democrats and the South supported the GOP consistantly). That is no longer true. It's a far more complicated situation right now.
L.A. itself has become a Democratic stronghold. So, Angelenos (who voted for both Al Gore and John Kerry by a 2 to 1 margin) would probably not appreciate being called the capital of the state's "conservative" wing.
Although it is certainly true that much of the rest of Southern California is still Republican, those numbers are starting to turn due to immigration pressures, white flight, and so forth. The Democrats won Santa Barbara County outright in 2000/2004, and San Diego is not as easy for the GOP as it used to be.
Meanwhile, suburban and rural Northern California has more or less ditched the Democrats -- with only the urban core (San Francisco County, Alameda County, etc.) remaining firmly in Democratic hands. The Monterey Region is now only very weakly aligned with the Democrats, and the Sacramento Valley has already gone GOP.
2006-09-23 19:59:16 · answer #2 · answered by SFdude 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
That last, long answer was generally correct, with the exception about the Central Valley - it has grown exponentially in the last 5 years or so, yet remains one of the few affordable places to live housing-wise in the state. There are many bigger and smaller cities throughout that have lots of job growth and opportunities. This is also true of some of the outlying areas that were once considered to be desert, but are now becoming suburbs! Coming from Texas, if you go to any of the very heavily populated areas you will experience both financial shock, and culture shock! If you work in high tech, areospace or the entertainment industry the pay might help you be able to live comfortably....but most newbies to the state struggle for many years before "getting it" and finding a niche.
Unless you have a lot of money in the bank and are willing to spend it all to live off of, you probably ought to consider job shopping (and finding) before moving. A few weeks vacation to see first hand would be advisable as well...good luck!
2006-09-23 19:15:44 · answer #3 · answered by Golfgirl 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It depends on what you can afford. I hope you will have a good job or come from a wealthy family because all of California is grossly overpriced. I am a Californian and go back often to visit family, but ended up moving out of state and was able to purchase my first home for hundreds of thousands less than in California. However, if you're still interested, here are my top picks:
Balboa Beach / Newport Beach (Southern CA): VERY pricey but ideal and gorgeous. A very health-concious community
Napa Valley / Sanoma (Northern CA): Also pricey, known as California's wine country. But again, gorgeous!
Ramona (Southern CA) : about 30 minutes east of Oceanside. This small town feels like it's in the country with rolling green hills and cute shops. But you're only half an hour to an hours drive from the beach and Disneyland. Not sure about price.
Shaver Lake (Central CA): This mountain community is wonderful if you love pine trees and lakes. They get heavy snow in the winter and are packed with tourists in the summer, but I grew up around this part and it's great. It might be a bit pricey though now-a-days.
Good luck!
2006-09-24 01:00:24 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
California native. I don't know anything about Texas but Ca. is great if you move up north like in Eureka if you like the rain and Redding if you like the heat. So. Ca. is scary in places, avoid any inland empire locals. I left there to get away from the constant crime and smog. Your young and maybe a bit adventurous so look towards the sea. Oh yeah, take a lot of money, the average house is upwards of $500.000 to rent a one bedroom apt in a good area it is $1.000 a month and up. Good luck.
2006-09-23 17:36:38 · answer #5 · answered by sideways 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
The Bay Area and East Bay in Northern CA are beaituful places to live. I live in the East Bay and while we are only 1.5 hours away from San Francisco, we are still in the suburbs. We have farms with fresh fruit right down the street from us one way, while being only .5 hour away from a wonderful mall with an Abercrombie, Hollister, Macys, AE. etc. And they are planning a huge mall 5 min away from my house to be finished in 2010. While I don't know your personal preferences about weather, and location and such. The East Bay is really a nice place to live. Good Luck!
2006-09-23 17:39:38 · answer #6 · answered by sunshine & summertime 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
California is a lot like Texas in that the climate and sorts of people change dramatically from area to area. What line of work will you look for and what kind of weather are you looking for? Do you need to see seasons change, live in hot desert, like the mountains, big city, rural, multicultural??
That would help in which part of CA you might like.
2006-09-23 21:38:08 · answer #7 · answered by funschooling m 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
San Bernardino County has great places to live, and is near L.A. about half and hour !
2006-09-23 21:41:03 · answer #8 · answered by A Colin 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Wow Mustella good answer...may be the best answer ever for yahoo answers...
2006-09-24 21:02:21 · answer #9 · answered by Paris Hilton 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋