[e90335e36m3]

I am finishing up my current assignment in Poland (1 year long) and will be flying out for a second interview for a role in San Diego. The job is a good fit but my wife and I are unconvinced about the prospect of moving back to California. Our home is in Charlotte. Like my current role, I imagine this assignment will be temporary (2-3 years) and I'll probably end up back in Charlotte or elsewhere.

Probably the biggest downside is the cost of living and moving into an apartment after living in a home, as it probably doesn't make sense to buy. I'll be turning my Charlotte home into a rental property.

Have any of you guys moved from a low cost state to San Diego and actually stayed?

[roastbeef]

i'd rent, rake up the money while you're renting your NC house and work on paying that down.

[upstatedoc]

get a job where you don't have to move thousands of miles every few years?

[qba335i]

Originally Posted by upstatedoc

get a job where you don't have to move thousands of miles every few years?

Those jobs usually pay pretty well and come with tons of extra benefits. I have some friends in Europe and UAE doing that... high salary, entertainment budgets, house/car allowance, faster promotions...


OP:
are you in Warsaw or Cracow?

Compare the cost of living and ask for salary adjustment. There are many online calculators that should give you an estimate/range?

[ScottyRyan2019]

In German, San Diego means, A Whale's Vagina.

[pz619]

It's expensive out here, but generally pay is higher and obviously the region is just about perfect from a weather standpoint. Further inland you live, the cheaper it'll be. Want to live by the coast? So does everyone else, expect to pay.

[Germanauto]

For California standards SD is more affordable. The closer you are to the ocean the more expensive and smaller the property will be. La Jolla is probably the most expensive suburb there.

[nathandev]

Stick to one place would be better for you guys. Find the permanent job, if that's not possible in your field you should move alone for work.

[lsturbointeg]

i'd go back just for the California Burrito!

[CLABRO]

I went from a very low cost of living state (Oklahoma which typically ranks #1-3 in cost of living data) and moved to California 5 years ago.

My scenario was a bit different than yours. The only reason I moved there was because I had just finished school and being in the medical field, I could work just about anywhere and my girlfriend at the time needed some experience in advertising in a big market so we chose Los Angeles.

I knew at the time that we planned on only staying there for a few years to get job experience and also a chance to do something fun like move to LA since we were young, didn't have any kids, etc. After 4 years of living there, I moved back to Oklahoma last summer.

After living somewhere in the south or midwest, it's hard to adjust to the cost of living in a place like California. Their housing market is 109.2% ABOVE the national average (and Oklahoma's housing market is 24.8% BELOW the national average). And that's just for housing. Then when you factor in the higher cost of gas, utilities, time spent in traffic and driving, smog/air quality, etc; all of those things outweigh the good, IMO.

This is just my opinion and even though I'd choose to live in Oklahoma (or in the south/midwest) over California, I know people who are the opposite and would die to live on the coast of California. It's beautiful and I do see why people flock from all over to visit and why a lot of people live there. Everywhere has it's pros and cons and my priorities or desirability in life right now is good job experience, have fun/be happy, be with friends and family, save money, and plan for the future; and all of those are easier to do in Oklahoma for me.

[cfm56d7b]

My friend relocated from Charlotte, NC to Southern California. He and his family do not miss storms, ice, and the usual assortment of East Coast weather elements.

There isn't a perfect place to live; just compromises once is willing to make.

Commutes in SoCal are longer than average mainly due to housing affordability. Some people I know live in Temecula and commute to La Jolla.

[itsbeenfunmike]

Came from Florida and have been stationed in California since 2008. Love it here. Food's great, the weather is great. There are different climates to be experienced only a few hours away. The emissions laws are a bit strict but not as strict as people from out of state may make it out to be. The traffic is bad the closer to the city you are but that's only during rush hours (morning and night).

Sure there are some bad drivers around but the same can be said anywhere else in the world, (especially FL where the majority of the drivers are seniors and should not be on the road).

I would hold out on buying a property here tho, we got our house a few years back when the market was low so we got a great deal, right now its kinda high.

[UncleWede]

Try to find somebody from one of the universities in the area who are going on a sabbatical or extended research project, they need you to watch their home for a year or so. There may be a plethora of military that fit in that category as well.

Someone above LIED that rush hour is the only time the traffic is bad. When I left at noon yesterday it said I would get home about 2:!5. By the time I got about 1/2 way, I was going to get home at 3:00. We made it at about 3:10. I did my best to skirt around the heart of LA but still had to pass thru Pasadena. Not a single accident, not police activity on the side, no naked women washing cars, just traffic.

[Dang3r]

We're planning to return to SD for a week at the beginning of October but not sure where to stay. Air BNB at La Jolla or an Appartement near Gaslamp Quarter… What would y'all prefer?

[lsturbointeg]

Originally Posted by cfm56d7b

My friend relocated from Charlotte, NC to Southern California. He and his family do not miss storms, ice, and the usual assortment of East Coast weather elements.

There isn't a perfect place to live; just compromises once is willing to make.

Commutes in SoCal are longer than average mainly due to housing affordability. Some people I know live in Temecula and commute to La Jolla.

i use to do that. i use to commute from San Jacinto (Hemet area) to La Jolla for 3 years because the housing was cheaper out there. 1.5hr commute one way. that's what a lot of military people do who commute from Temecula to San Diego

Living in San Diego pretty much all my life except for the last 7 years here in OH i'd go back in a heartbeat if the money was there. but the money is here in OH. never seen the different season's throughout the year until i came out here. don't care for the snow or the cornfields. i do care for the fact that the car culture isn't as popular out here as in west/east coast.

Originally Posted by CLABRO

After living somewhere in the south or midwest, it's hard to adjust to the cost of living in a place like California. Their housing market is 109.2% ABOVE the national average (and Oklahoma's housing market is 24.8% BELOW the national average). And that's just for housing. Then when you factor in the higher cost of gas, utilities, time spent in traffic and driving, smog/air quality, etc; all of those things outweigh the good, IMO.

Interesting...so what kinda prices are we talking for a comparable house in CA vs OK? Spent a minute or two on Zillow and noticed that a lot of the more $$$ homes in Tulsa seem to be newly renovated "flip" homes that are ultra modern inside and out, but located within neighborhoods where the rest of the homes are easily ~40 years old..?? Given your profession though, you likely live like a king out there regardless

Originally Posted by itsbeenfunmike

The traffic is bad the closer to the city you are but that's only during rush hours (morning and night).

Spent a week in SD in mid-April and coming from DC/Baltimore traffic, I was astounded at how quiet the city was around rush hour...so much so that I asked peeps if there was some type of federal holiday I didn't know about given how empty the roads were in the middle of the city at ~5 PM on a weekday.

Originally Posted by Dang3r

We're planning to return to SD for a week at the beginning of October but not sure where to stay. Air BNB at La Jolla or an Appartement near Gaslamp Quarter… What would y'all prefer?

Spent a week at an AirBNB in Pacific Beach a couple months back. It was a newly renovated 2 bedroom bungalow just a few blocks away from the beach, bars, etc. ~15 min drive into downtown SD as well. Had an attached garage which was fully stocked with beach chairs, surfboards, and bikes that were free to use. The place was really amazing and very reasonably priced.

If you're interested, PM me and I'll send u the link.

[cfm56d7b]

If you are planning to relocate to San Diego, renting first for 18 months would be very prudent. It's always good to be in the position to learn the market dynamics and never be in the buying rush.

[Captain Blood]

Originally Posted by ScottyRyan2019

In German, San Diego means, A Whale's Vagina.

Fake news. It means: Not as many fires as up north.

SD is beautiful. If they make a cost of living adjustment, then you are a lucky guy. Del Mar/La Jolla and the beaches in that area are fantastic!

[CLABRO]

Originally Posted by FCobra94

Interesting...so what kinda prices are we talking for a comparable house in CA vs OK? Spent a minute or two on Zillow and noticed that a lot of the more $$$ homes in Tulsa seem to be newly renovated "flip" homes that are ultra modern inside and out, but located within neighborhoods where the rest of the homes are easily ~40 years old..?? Given your profession though, you likely live like a king out there regardless

The same size house in LA is 5x more expensive than it is in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

So according to Zillow as of April 30, 2019:

The median list price per square foot in Tulsa is $100 sq/foot.

The median list price per square foot in Los Angeles is $526 sq/foot.

https://www.zillow.com/tulsa-ok/home-values/

https://www.zillow.com/los-angeles-ca/home-values/

For example, a 3,800 sq. foot home in LA would be $2 Million (if you take the median price per sq/foot of $526) and in Tulsa that same size house would be $380,200 (if you take the median price per sq/foot of $100).

[happyjack]

a place where the beer flows like wine! where beautiful women instinctively flock like the salmon of capistrano! a little place called san diego!

my son just finished his freshman year at SDSU. we've been out there 4 times over the last year. if you're into beaches, beer, burritos, and babes, then it seems like a pretty sweet place to be.

our financial advisor recommended that we at least consider shopping for an investment property where he could live for three years and we could potentially collect rent from his roommates. it does appear there's a pretty big bubble going on right now...not sure i want to take the plunge with a purchase.

[PoorLurker]

How much are house cleaners in Tulsa? Is this a nice neighborhood? What type of people will my neighbors be?

https://www.redfin.com/OK/Tulsa/9649.../home/74244818




Was going to say San Diego isn't priced that bad. Then, I recall driving through a pretty rough area only to find out the housing is mind blowing.

Where in San Diego is your job, OP? If it's in a suburb, then that totally changes things.

There are always pockets of affordability in most metro areas. One doesn't need to commute 1.5 hours each way to live comfortably. If so, maybe they need to check their levels of comfort, haha.

[hooligan_G01]

Originally Posted by Schwarzschild Radius

Fake news. It means: Not as many fires as up north.

SD is beautiful. If they make a cost of living adjustment, then you are a lucky guy. Del Mar/La Jolla and the beaches in that area are fantastic!

Is Fidel's still around in Del Mar? As I recall it was up just a little north of the horse track....

Awesome Mexican food and a really cool sunken courtyard area.