Considering a move to Cali - Can I afford it?

[mjshira]

Originally posted by motion
I can't believe you guys are recommending that someone pulling down 250K a year shoule rent a place for $1,600 a month. That's big bank that should allow him to live pretty much anywhere he wants. And that's not even factoring in the wife's income. What I can't figure out is why someone making this kind of money with no debt, living in IN, with no idea about CA earning numbers, no idea about CA home prices, has only 50-100K to put down on a home. I'm confused about this picture.

its called starting out with 100K+ of student debt... I have that nearly all paid off now.

[Chocaholic]

Originally posted by Porsche-O-Phile
But we also don't have guys whose crowning achievement in life is snorting an entire tin of Skoal up through an empty Budweiser bottle.

You don't??? You need to leave your neighborhood and have a look around S. Cal say, 40 minutes east of the PCH. Orange County would be a good place to start.

But, what we don't seem to have here is snobs like you stereotyping based on too much time in front of the Blue Collar Comedy channel. I have millionaires living on both sides of me...but you would NEVER know it to sit and have a beer with them on the boat dock, or to look in their garages and their houses. On the other hand, in CA, pure peer pressure seems to be the over-riding motivation to have houses and cars most can't afford.

[the]

Originally posted by Chocaholic
I have millionaires living on both sides of me...

Big deal. Apparently, every man, woman and child living in California is a millionaire.

I've been told on this very board that while maybe you wouldn't pity a Californian only making between $200-$300K per year, a Californian considers that merely a "decent" income.

[Chocaholic]

Good points, the. On one side is an AT&T executive retiree (35 years). On the other is a country boy who owns one of the biggest fence companies in the SE. Mow their own lawn, maintain their own houses, own their cars outright and enjoy a cold Bud while tossing a line in the water on an occasional weekday morning.

But rest assured, everyone else is chomping Skoal and spitting it on their shoes.

[Moneyguy1]

THis reminds meof the book: "The Millionare NExt Door"....YOu know..the guy that drives a Ford and mows his own lawn......

Physical assets do not let the casual observer tell if they are owned outright, mortgaged or leased.

[snowman]

Making it in SO CA is not beyond the possibilities for the average couple. Take the average pair of engineers. Each making about $100k to $150K for a total of $200k to $300k. A starter home is about $650k in Orange County. With 20% down ($130k) and a balance of $520k and 6% interest over a 30 or 40 year mortage, you get about $4000 per month. After tax it is LOWER than a $1600 per month rental. The tax man is ruthless.

This is far from impossible. I had some young engineers working for me that had saved over $200k at 26 years of age, single. One guy had over $300k saved (he invested in real estate).

Thats how they are doing it, one buck at a time.

My own daughter, age 26, just did the same thing with her new hubby. I suspect that she is typical of the new breed of young people coming into the market. No bucks from dad or mom.

So for all of you slackers out there, get on the stick and get to work. You can do it if you want to.

[bigchillcar]

wow. different world. i left flying learjets to return to flight instruction, as i decided teaching was what fed my soul, thus my own priority. so i went from just over 100k to now around 35k instructing around 20 hours per week. my house is 1,300 sq. ft. i paid $79,500 with 18k down...mortgage piti is $490/mo. however, arkansas isn't most folks 'end of the rainbow'. i hope to sell one day, buy a cabin on a large area lake, have a little fishing boat and do a little instructing from a local airport. i will say it sucks not having health insurance anymore. but that's another story. way too populated in cali for my taste, but hope ya'll can make it work, james. one man's dream can be no better than another man's.

[snowman]

so you don't have health insurance by your own choice. I say thats y our choice as long as you don't impose upon me and my health insurance. We have the best health insurance in the world for over 250 million people. Some, about 40 million, have no insurance, but in fact have better actual health coverage than anyone, anyplace in the world. So bottom line. Don't FK up the coverage of over 250 million people to have theoretical coverage for 40 million people. People in the UK, Canada, France, Germany could only hope and pray to have the coverage the UNINSURED in this country have. DON"T FK UP THE INSURANCE OF OVER 250 MILLION PEOPLE, with so called universal coverage.

Put another way, 40 million no counts vs 250 million responsible people. Commuinist vs rational people.

I Say, if push comes to shove, let the 40 million die!

[bigchillcar]

lol.

yes, i'm self-employed and it's by my choice. i'm considering purchasing 'catastrophic' health insurance to cover anything very serious of over 15k. short of that, i go to local medical clinics and pay their fee.

[mjshira]

it is amazing the deep rooted passion that this thread has made evident. I frankly just wanted to learn about the reality of 'maybe' moving back to Cali. I've ended up learning a lot more!

[RoninLB]

live on a boat

[mjshira]

not a bad idea Ronnie.

[RoninLB]

here's another one.


LA & metro is very different culture from NYC & metro. What they have in common is both are concrete jungles.


Check out job opportunities in Silver City, New Mexico and live in the Gila Wilderness. It's as pristine and wildlife wild as when Geronimo lived there.

HP is also road warrior friendly.

[mjshira]

My wife works in health care, I can work in any industry but primary has been financial services/banking. I'd love that area but not sure if there are jobs there. We will see, based on this thread I've got about 3 years worth of saving to do before I can make this change. My wife is getting sponcered by her company to do her MBA so once that is done we want to start a family. Timing should be right.

This is a great place to be, just not sure its a 'forever' place to be for us...

[techweenie]

Some good, some incredibly stupid advice here...

All I can say is that I've owned and rented in both Northern and Southern California, and now is not a good time to buy unless you like throwing money away.

Move back, by all means. We'd love to have you. But lease a nice 3/2 suburban house for a year and get your bearings. By then, the real estate market will be a bit more sane and you can plant yourself for a while.

There are little 'pockets' of very nice neighborhoods all over the Bay Area and So Cal. Most have been discovered and gentrified, and speculated sky high. But hang out here for a while and you'll find what you're looking for.

Want space for cars? There are very large lots (for us, 1/2 acre is a large lot) scattered all over L.A. Many houses with workshops or huge garages (I'm presently renting a house with a 4-car garage for $1800/mo.) Want easy access to twisty roads? The beach? TRE? There are neighborhoods you'd love to live in with homes as low as $750K. ($700K next year)

[mjshira]

thanks, I appreciate your points. I think we are going to plan for it. While three years out might seem too early to some, I think it is hardly enough time given the expense, etc.

Would love to be out there with all my fellow car-aholics :-)

[Noah930]

slight threadjack:

Originally posted by mjshira
My wife is getting sponcered by her company to do her MBA so once that is done we want to start a family. Timing should be right.

Unless you're independently wealthy, I don't know if there's ever a "right time" to start a family.

[Noah930]

Originally posted by techweenie
Move back, by all means. We'd love to have you. But lease a nice 3/2 suburban house for a year and get your bearings. By then, the real estate market will be a bit more sane and you can plant yourself for a while.

I'm moving back, too. Hopefully around the end of summer. And while my new job will be close enough to where I grew up that I could live with my parents (though I don't think my wife would be so keen on that), that's my plan: rent for a year or two, figure out exactly what/where we want, and then buy.

[mjshira]

good luck

[RoninLB]

Originally posted by Noah930
I'm moving back, too. Hopefully around the end of summer. And while my new job will be close enough to where I grew up that I could live with my parents (though I don't think my wife would be so keen on that), that's my plan: rent for a year or two, figure out exactly what/where we want, and then buy.

Originally posted by mjshira
good luck

one thing I know about James is that he has the brass to pull off anything he's after.


3yrs is enough to at least visit the NM area i mentioned. At worst it'll put many things in perspective during a great vacation.

The Gila sits in the 3rd largest sq mi County in the US. Pop is 2,800. Locals drive like those in Montana so the 2 area cities are a sweet drive away. Other than a quick eyeball in the 911, you need a 4-wheeler to get around like the locals.

hanging with many locals in the coffee shop from daybreak till 9am in a very small Gila town is amazing.