Retirement in California? (San Diego, San Francisco, Orange: 2014, apartment, rent)

[Tenebrae]

Dem HOA fees... O_O

I don't know about the rest of you, but those fees really knock properties like that down in my list of places to go. Every time I think I've found a bargain house somewhere, I have to check for an HOA and what kind of fees / restrictions there are.
I lived in the SF Bay Area (Alameda) for quite a while and loved it, but the cost of buying a home was prohibitive. Went to Austin, TX so my fiance and I could be closer to our families (his is in TX and mine's in MO straight North on I-35). Unfortunately I wasn't the only person to move from CA to Austin, and now people like me have priced me right out of my idea of buying a home in Austin, too.

I've started casting my gaze broadly around the US for a place to buy a home and "retire". I've noticed that there are actually a few spots around California that might be doable where the property taxes aren't sky high. My old college town of Chico, for example, has a few homes that I'd call "affordable".
Also currently on my radar are Kansas City, MO where my family is from - my mother would love nothing more than to help me get a home in KC.
Maine is also a serious contender for many reasons such as low property taxes, affordable houses and LAND, cool / cold / insaaanely frigid weather (yes, cooler weather is a plus for me), and an openness to the notion of a quaint little tea shop that I hope to open and run when my wrists finally give out after years of computer work.

I sure miss Alameda, but the prices are great to rent...not so great to buy. Oh well. I'll keep looking.

-T.

[2sleepy]

Originally Posted by Tenebrae

Dem HOA fees... O_O

I don't know about the rest of you, but those fees really knock properties like that down in my list of places to go. Every time I think I've found a bargain house somewhere, I have to check for an HOA and what kind of fees / restrictions there are.
I lived in the SF Bay Area (Alameda) for quite a while and loved it, but the cost of buying a home was prohibitive. Went to Austin, TX so my fiance and I could be closer to our families (his is in TX and mine's in MO straight North on I-35). Unfortunately I wasn't the only person to move from CA to Austin, and now people like me have priced me right out of my idea of buying a home in Austin, too.

I've started casting my gaze broadly around the US for a place to buy a home and "retire". I've noticed that there are actually a few spots around California that might be doable where the property taxes aren't sky high. My old college town of Chico, for example, has a few homes that I'd call "affordable".
Also currently on my radar are Kansas City, MO where my family is from - my mother would love nothing more than to help me get a home in KC.
Maine is also a serious contender for many reasons such as low property taxes, affordable houses and LAND, cool / cold / insaaanely frigid weather (yes, cooler weather is a plus for me), and an openness to the notion of a quaint little tea shop that I hope to open and run when my wrists finally give out after years of computer work.

I sure miss Alameda, but the prices are great to rent...not so great to buy. Oh well. I'll keep looking.

-T.

What you are saying is true, but we left over $150 a month in HOA dues behind when we moved from Reno. That money would have been insignificant if any amenities went with it but all we got was a boat load of rules and restrictions and 'tickets' for having brown spots in our lawn in September. California property taxes are set at 1%, you just have to be careful for assessments and Mello Roos. In suburban Sacramento we pay 1% plus one assessment of $47 a year. In Reno our property tax was higher than in California and went up every other year when they would reappraise the property, at least in California you know that unless there is taxpayer approved assessment your taxes won't go up.

I grew up in the SF Bay area and miss it, but we less than an hour away which works for us

[goolsbyjazz]

Thanks everyone for the great information being shared in this forum. It certainly helps to put things in context and helps one temper the "dream" phase with pertinent facts.

[BayAreaHillbilly]

Here, if you want urban excitement, a good neighborhood and a mild climate, then you are talking about SF, LA and SD. In that order, they go from outrageous, super expensive, expensive. Then there are the second cities, all inland. The trade offs begin. Then there are the places that are not major cities. More trade offs. It's all about trade offs.

Meanwhile, if one is willing to budge a bit on climate, and consider other states, one can optimize urban excitement and a good neighborhood, at a far, far lower cost.

[goolsbyjazz]

Originally Posted by BayAreaHillbilly

Here, if you want urban excitement, a good neighborhood and a mild climate, then you are talking about SF, LA and SD. In that order, they go from outrageous, super expensive, expensive. Then there are the second cities, all inland. The trade offs begin. Then there are the places that are not major cities. More trade offs. It's all about trade offs.

Meanwhile, if one is willing to budge a bit on climate, and consider other states, one can optimize urban excitement and a good neighborhood, at a far, far lower cost.

Hmmm, such as??? Love the screen name by the way!

[NoMoreSnowForMe]

There are a lot of low income senior housing communities all over CA. That's the kind of retirement I have. I do not own property, I rent. Some areas have long waiting lists, and some do not.

My first low-income senior apt was in Redding, CA. I couldn't afford any in the SF Bay Area. Nice place, well cared-for. But, Redding was too hot for too long for me. So, I've just moved into another similar building in Crescent City, which has much cooler weather, and is on the coast. Crescent City is pretty affordable, even though it's on the coast. So far, it seems like a nice small town.

I just got here last Wednesday, and this morning I heard these loud sirens going off. Crescent City is prone to tsunamis, and I thought, Oh great! I've only been here less than a week, and here comes a tsunami! But, it turns out that every Tuesday, they test the tsunami sirens LOL!

At any rate, if you don't mind the idea of being a renter in retirement, there are a lot of senior apt options. It seems to be big business here, with large management companies buying up old buildings and hotels, and getting government funding to turn them into affordable senior housing.

[MarciaMarshaMarcia]

I can only address SoCal...the only parts that are affordable for retirement these days are the desert & perhaps some pockets of the mountains, i.e., Big Bear or Idyllwild. Some areas of the desert would not be safe or desirable for a retiree, but there are still some safer places such as Borrego Springs. The costs of cooling a desert home for half the year may offset the lower housing costs and since the OP appears to already live in the desert, this might not help.

[Tulemutt]

Originally Posted by thisplacesucks

I can only address SoCal...the only parts that are affordable for retirement these days are the desert & perhaps some pockets of the mountains, i.e., Big Bear or Idyllwild. Some areas of the desert would not be safe or desirable for a retiree, but there are still some safer places such as Borrego Springs. The costs of cooling a desert home for half the year may offset the lower housing costs and since the OP appears to already live in the desert, this might not help.

I retired in San Francisco proper. I find it entirely affordable.

That said, I know about a bazillion places in the state, that are not in the desert or mountain pockets, and are even more affordable.

Ok. Not a bazillion. But a bunch anyway.

[V8 Vega]

Originally Posted by goolsbyjazz

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Hmmm, such as??? Love the screen name by the way!

Medford Oregon or south west Oregon.

[Cnynrat]

I agree that it makes a huge difference whether you have lived in CA your whole life vs. trying to move here from somewhere else. It's true that there are places that have somewhat reasonable housing prices, but where most people live you need a big nut to buy into the California housing market. In those same areas rents are proportionally high as well.

One of the negatives about living in CA is the system for paying for local government services is broken. The combination of inflation (over a long period of time) and high public employee costs together with significant barriers to increasing local tax revenue has starved many cities of the resources needed to keep up with increasing costs, unfunded mandates from the state, and so on. Absent significant structural change this problem is only going to get worse.

My wife has lived here her entire life, and I've lived here since my early '20's. We've done well in our careers and if we wanted to we could afford to stay in CA when we retire in a few years. There was a time when we thought about retiring somewhere in the central coast area. We've seen increased congestion, even in places outside the major metropolitan areas, a dysfunctional state government, and an unwillingness to tackle the real issues faced by the state. as just one example, apparently it's more important to build a train that will be used by few than it is to secure a reliable long term source of water for the state.

We bought our retirement home in north Idaho a year ago, and plan to relocate there when the time comes.