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Been around the whole country and unlike yourself.....can appreciate the whole county. But one can easily confirm what I'm saying, just look at voting records and educational attainment. And when you do find a small city in the west that votes liberal and has high educational attainment, well, its going to be unaffordable to those working locally. Great places for LA, San Fran, etc....entrepreneurs to buy second homes to relax....poor places for moderate income liberals that want a slower pace of life.
Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo Counties are actually part of Southern California! Here in Santa Maria we have Albertsons groceries stores, and Auto Club of Southern California offices, but people in Monterey County don't they have Safeways groceries stores insted, that's because those businesses are only in the Southern California area. We even get local channels from LA, we get KCAL 9, KTLA 5, and NBC 4, and i'm sure people in Monterey County get those channels. I just don't understand why KSBY 6, and KCOY 12 considers SB in SLO counties to be part of the Central Coast, in reality they don't. The only local tv station that consider us SB in SLO counties to be part of SoCAL is KEYT news.
We have Albertson's in Flagstaff and Safeway in Sedona and Flagstaff, AZ
Been around the whole country and unlike yourself.....can appreciate the whole county. But one can easily confirm what I'm saying, just look at voting records and educational attainment. And when you do find a small city in the west that votes liberal and has high educational attainment, well, its going to be unaffordable to those working locally. Great places for LA, San Fran, etc....entrepreneurs to buy second homes to relax....poor places for moderate income liberals that want a slower pace of life.
I think people working locally can afford to live in SLO. Think of all the college professors, doctors, architects, and more. Also, I think some people have owned homes before prices went up like my friend's parents. Los Osos, Grover Beach, and San Luis Obispo have affordable areas.
As for liberal communities in SLO County: San Luis Obispo, Cambria, San Simeon, Avila Beach, Cayucos, Los Osos, Morro Bay, and Grover Beach all have 60% or more with voters registered as democrats.
Templeton, Paso Robles, Santa Margarita, San Miguel, and Atascadero (North County) all have 50% or more registered Republicans and Templeton happens to have the most percent of registered democrats and you will typically find more things for liberal minded and education attainment in Templeton like Trader Joe's, indie coffee shop, wine shops, tennis club, art galleries, and a more rural environment.
Arroyo Grande, Nipomo, and Pismo Beach tend to be more 50/50.
I think people working locally can afford to live in SLO. Think of all the college professors, doctors, architects, and more.
On average they cannot, the median household income for SLO is around $60,000 and that isn't enough to afford a home in the area. Professors at state colleges don't make that much.
As for the liberal issue, California has a general lack of small liberal towns that are affordable to middle-class folks. If you look at the median incomes for the cities you mentioned and compare them to the costs of living you'll find a big mismatch, the living costs are just higher than what most people can expect to make in the area. The number of registered democrats really doesn't tell you how liberal a city is, you have to look at a number of things.
On average they cannot, the median household income for SLO is around $60,000 and that isn't enough to afford a home in the area. Professors at state colleges don't make that much.
As for the liberal issue, California has a general lack of small liberal towns that are affordable to middle-class folks. If you look at the median incomes for the cities you mentioned and compare them to the costs of living you'll find a big mismatch, the living costs are just higher than what most people can expect to make in the area. The number of registered democrats really doesn't tell you how liberal a city is, you have to look at a number of things.
True on the liberal issue.
I still think it's affordable to live in those towns, but you do pay more in housing than more urbanized area cuz u pay for the beauty.
Regarding, SLO, you have to realize college students living there bring that down. Most of the families I know are very wealthy and many middle class families I know live in condos or have had their homes for a while.
For instance, my parents bought into a town in this county and after the area grew and the area got nicer the house cost went up.
Prices went up with the demand or down with less demand. Prices are down for less desirable towns like Paso Robles and Atascadero.
but you do pay more in housing than more urbanized area cuz u pay for the beauty.
The most expensive areas of California are urbanized.....
Quote:
Originally Posted by the city
Most of the families I know are very wealthy and many middle class families I know live in condos or have had their homes for a while.
So, as I said, these towns aren't affordable to middle-class families....liberal middle-class families are far better off relocating to other states (e.g., New England states) that have affordable small liberal towns.
At some point people have to realize that California has become a machine to transfer wealth from young working families to older retired or soon to retire households.
The most expensive areas of California are urbanized.....
What I meant was that the cost of living compared to income from jobs in the area for the middle class is that the jobs don't pay as much as in urbanized areas and housing is still high. So unless you have a high paying job or you bought your house before prices rose for MOST And NEW middle class families it isn't affordable.
So, as I said, these towns aren't affordable to middle-class families....liberal middle-class families are far better off relocating to other states (e.g., New England states) that have affordable small liberal towns.
I think it used to be it was affordable, but I think in recent years prices have skyrocketed for houses. Like I said, my parents bough their home for a reasonable $200,000 in a very nice town and as the area got popular the price went up to $500,000. My town had mostly middle class families, but as it grew it had more upper middle class families move in and it was far better to live in my town than Paso Robles and Atascadero because Paso and Atascadero in the past had a bad rep at their schools. Now I would say Atascadero schools are good, but Paso schools still have gang and violence problems and lower test scores. When it came to my high school it was known that every kid who wanted to be in AP class could get in and my school has the best performing arts classes around and among other nice things like small class sizes for being a small school with big school amenities.
At some point people have to realize that California has become a machine to transfer wealth from young working families to older retired or soon to retire households.
I think there are still affordable areas. But they are shrinking. I'm starting to think where I want to move after I finish college. I could spend a lot on a house in San Luis Obispo or Pismo Beach or I could move to Orcutt or Arroyo Grande where prices are cheaper and you still get good schools and low crime rates.
I thought I would come back and give everyone an update. I flew out to CA a few weeks ago and landed at the Santa Barbara airport, wow, what a stunning approach into SBA with the Coastal Range on one side and the ocean on the other. My interview went well, very well actually and I have accepted a new job in the Santa Maria area that I will be starting in early January. While out there I looked at several apartments and found a few that suited my needs so I am pretty excited. The new employer is offering a small relocation package, with reimbursment after I begin my job. All in all I am excited, yet nervous for the move. My main concern is how far away California is from all the places I am familar with and especially my family on the east coast, thank goodness for planes!
The COL difference isn't as bad as I thought, my apartment will be about $200-250 more than I am paying here in Texas but groceries are similar thanks to stores like FoodsCo, Trader Joe's, Costco, etc. My utilities should decrease as well considering most of the apartments don't even have a/c. My car insurance may actually decrease, considering Houston is crazy expensive for car insurance. Plus little things like a higher salary, better benefits (less expense for health insurance, etc.) mean I should come out a fair amount better than in Texas. The rest of my expenses (cell phone, TV, student loans, car payment, etc.) are fixed and will be the same if I was in CA, TX or AK. Of course one thing that may get delayed is my eventual buying of a house. Home prices are still really high in CA when compared to TX.
Thank you for everyone's input and help, I hope this ends up being a smart move for me.
I thought I would come back and give everyone an update. I flew out to CA a few weeks ago and landed at the Santa Barbara airport, wow, what a stunning approach into SBA with the Coastal Range on one side and the ocean on the other. My interview went well, very well actually and I have accepted a new job in the Santa Maria area that I will be starting in early January. While out there I looked at several apartments and found a few that suited my needs so I am pretty excited. The new employer is offering a small relocation package, with reimbursment after I begin my job. All in all I am excited, yet nervous for the move. My main concern is how far away California is from all the places I am familar with and especially my family on the east coast, thank goodness for planes!
The COL difference isn't as bad as I thought, my apartment will be about $200-250 more than I am paying here in Texas but groceries are similar thanks to stores like FoodsCo, Trader Joe's, Costco, etc. My utilities should decrease as well considering most of the apartments don't even have a/c. My car insurance may actually decrease, considering Houston is crazy expensive for car insurance. Plus little things like a higher salary, better benefits (less expense for health insurance, etc.) mean I should come out a fair amount better than in Texas. The rest of my expenses (cell phone, TV, student loans, car payment, etc.) are fixed and will be the same if I was in CA, TX or AK. Of course one thing that may get delayed is my eventual buying of a house. Home prices are still really high in CA when compared to TX.
Thank you for everyone's input and help, I hope this ends up being a smart move for me.
Congratulations on the new job and thanks for the update. I'm sure this will end up being a smart move!!
I thought I would come back and give everyone an update. I flew out to CA a few weeks ago and landed at the Santa Barbara airport, wow, what a stunning approach into SBA with the Coastal Range on one side and the ocean on the other. My interview went well, very well actually and I have accepted a new job in the Santa Maria area that I will be starting in early January. While out there I looked at several apartments and found a few that suited my needs so I am pretty excited. The new employer is offering a small relocation package, with reimbursment after I begin my job. All in all I am excited, yet nervous for the move. My main concern is how far away California is from all the places I am familar with and especially my family on the east coast, thank goodness for planes!
The COL difference isn't as bad as I thought, my apartment will be about $200-250 more than I am paying here in Texas but groceries are similar thanks to stores like FoodsCo, Trader Joe's, Costco, etc. My utilities should decrease as well considering most of the apartments don't even have a/c. My car insurance may actually decrease, considering Houston is crazy expensive for car insurance. Plus little things like a higher salary, better benefits (less expense for health insurance, etc.) mean I should come out a fair amount better than in Texas. The rest of my expenses (cell phone, TV, student loans, car payment, etc.) are fixed and will be the same if I was in CA, TX or AK. Of course one thing that may get delayed is my eventual buying of a house. Home prices are still really high in CA when compared to TX.
Thank you for everyone's input and help, I hope this ends up being a smart move for me.
Congrats bro...
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Update
Of course one thing that may get delayed is my eventual buying of a house. Home prices are still really high in CA when compared to TX. 
