California Losing To Texas (San Francisco, Georgetown: for sale, cheap house, neighborhoods)

[Boompa]

Originally Posted by Gentoo

They're not too crazy about us in the PNW. Not as bad as 20 years ago but still some hating going on. I've heard this about other places like Colorado as well as a few other western states. Now I've not been back east nor heard too much about the east coast so perhaps I jumped the gun by saying the rest of America.

Bin there dun that in Arizona. They hate californians coming there paying cash for houses but they never turn down the money. A Californian who sells his home for a paltry half million can afford to live well in Arizona.

[jifie]

Originally Posted by Boompa

Bin there dun that in Arizona. They hate californians coming there paying cash for houses but they never turn down the money. A Californian who sells his home for a paltry half million can afford to live well in Arizona.

Or most anywhere else in the US for that matter...

[user_id]

Originally Posted by Boompa

Bin there dun that in Arizona. They hate californians coming there paying cash for houses but they never turn down the money. A Californian who sells his home for a paltry half million can afford to live well in Arizona.

Assuming they have equity....which is often not the case.

[winkosmosis]

FYI, Texas isn't doing as well economically as the rightwing talking heads would have you believe. The Texas government has a bigger deficit than California.

Analysis: Texas vs California: A tale of two budget deficits | Reuters

And regarding taxes... The place I immigrated to and became American was Texas, and I'll always be a Texan, but I really can't see myself ever buying a house in Texas. The property taxes are so high that it's as though you're renting from the state government. I consider it fundamentally unfair to tax someone's property 3%+ under pain of confiscation. There's a myth that houses in Texas are dirt cheap. Well yes, they are dirt cheap in the far flung suburbs, but not urban neighborhoods and not in the suburbs of desireable cities (IE Austin). 3% of $500k is $15,000/yr, just in property tax.

[winkosmosis]

BTW, the Californians that people in other states hate are the the hipsters and yuppies who want to turn everywhere into San Francisco. Those particular Californians should just all move to Portland... and not Austin! If you can leave the passive aggressive stickers off your Prius, buy some cowboy boots without any ironic intent, and not complain about the weather all the time, Texans aren't going to hate you. I'm sure the same goes for Montana, Arizona, etc.

[jifie]

Originally Posted by winkosmosis

FYI, Texas isn't doing as well economically as the rightwing talking heads would have you believe. The Texas government has a bigger deficit than California.

Analysis: Texas vs California: A tale of two budget deficits | Reuters

And regarding taxes... The place I immigrated to and became American was Texas, and I'll always be a Texan, but I really can't see myself ever buying a house in Texas. The property taxes are so high that it's as though you're renting from the state government. I consider it fundamentally unfair to tax someone's property 3%+ under pain of confiscation. There's a myth that houses in Texas are dirt cheap. Well yes, they are dirt cheap in the far flung suburbs, but not urban neighborhoods and not in the suburbs of desireable cities (IE Austin). 3% of $500k is $15,000/yr, just in property tax.

If you are buying a house(mansion) worth 500k in TEXAS, then you can afford the extra 15000 a yr on taxes. And figuring I can get a 2000sf 4 bdrm house for 200k or less, and in CA that would cost me around 350k-400k at best, plus around a 1.25% prop tax rate, I'd still take TX.

[silverkris]

Originally Posted by winkosmosis

The place I immigrated to and became American was Texas, and I'll always be a Texan, but I really can't see myself ever buying a house in Texas. The property taxes are so high that it's as though you're renting from the state government. I consider it fundamentally unfair to tax someone's property 3%+ under pain of confiscation. There's a myth that houses in Texas are dirt cheap. Well yes, they are dirt cheap in the far flung suburbs, but not urban neighborhoods and not in the suburbs of desireable cities (IE Austin). 3% of $500k is $15,000/yr, just in property tax.

Noticed that you are in Maui, Hawaii. How are the property taxes in HI by comparison?

[user_id]

Originally Posted by jifie

If you are buying a house(mansion) worth 500k in TEXAS, then you can afford the extra 15000 a yr on taxes. And figuring I can get a 2000sf 4 bdrm house for 200k or less, and in CA that would cost me around 350k-400k at best, plus around a 1.25% prop tax rate, I'd still take TX.

This is essentially meaningless, there are many areas in Texas where you couldn't get a 2,000 sf 4-bedroom for $200k and there are many areas in California where you can get a 2,000 sf 4-bedroom for $200k.

On average Texas is cheaper, but that is primarily because Texas has fewer desirable and highly sought over neighborhoods.

$500k for a home really isn't that much....someone buying a home in that price range isn't going to have money coming out of their pockets. Regardless, property taxes are the best tax and I prefer the Texas tax system, though it is far too flat. It would be great if California raised its property tax to 2~3% and dropped its sales tax and lowered the income/corporate taxes (keep them highly progressive though).

[jifie]

Originally Posted by user_id

This is essentially meaningless, there are many areas in Texas where you couldn't get a 2,000 sf 4-bedroom for $200k and there are many areas in California where you can get a 2,000 sf 4-bedroom for $200k.

On average Texas is cheaper, but that is primarily because Texas has fewer desirable and highly sought over neighborhoods.

$500k for a home really isn't that much....someone buying a home in that price range isn't going to have money coming out of their pockets. Regardless, property taxes are the best tax and I prefer the Texas tax system, though it is far too flat. It would be great if California raised its property tax to 2~3% and dropped its sales tax and lowered the income/corporate taxes (keep them highly progressive though).

For someone in CA, 500k for a house isn't that much. As someone who is planning on moving to Texas, I've done plenty of research on the topic and I can assure you it will get you quite more than anyone would need in TX.

[rgb123]

Originally Posted by jifie

For someone in CA, 500k for a house isn't that much. As someone who is planning on moving to Texas, I've done plenty of research on the topic and I can assure you it will get you quite more than anyone would need in TX.

you are correct. It is not hard to find a nice house in any area for 200,000, even in Austin.

500,000 toward a house in Texas would go a loooooooong way. You could create rooms to mimic whatever weather you want...

the thing is you have a CHOICE. In California, I have no choice, I have to pay a crapload of income tax. In Texas, I have a choice of what I want to pay in taxes. With sales tax, I have choices. With income tax, I'm forced to pay a certain amount and let's just put it this way. If I had the kind of money to put down on a 500,000K house it probably wouldn't bother me as much as it does coming out of my salary.