Would Northern California be a good fit for me? City recs please! (Sacramento: apartments, rentals)

[Peacelephant]

Hi! I’m starting to consider moving in 2021, depending on how the election goes. I live in Austin, TX which is wonderfully liberal but within a red state. Coronavirus has shown what little power liberal cities have within red states (even when they’re the capital) and I’m concerned about what a second Trump term would look like. I’ve lived in central Texas most of my life and it’s home, but it may be time to move on. I also am not a fan of how little season change we have here anymore. It’s absurdly hot for nearly half the year, and we’re constantly breaking heat records, which is vastly different from even when I was a kid (I’m 31).
I’m having trouble getting a gauge on where in Northern California would be a good fit for us. I’m a freelance illustrator so location is flexible for me but I tend to work local markets and stuff especially around the holidays. I make $30-35k a year usually. My boyfriend is in fabrication (making statues/ 3D installations but not fine art— instead for companies and usually out of something like fiberglass) and makes about the same amount of money a year.
Because I work from home, a one-bedroom doesn’t really fit our needs. For example, we have a two bedroom duplex with a bonus space (1200 sq ft maybe) here in Austin for $1650/mo. We don’t really have plans on buying a home but I suppose that could happen at some point.
We don’t have kids so schools aren’t important, and we don’t plan on having them. My retired parents would likely be following us though, and possibly my brother who is 29 and beginning a career in coding. We wouldn’t all be living in the same house though!
We are all varying degrees of liberal, and I would love to be around other young people (rather than a suburb or retiree community). My boyfriend and I like apartments with some quirkiness and “vintage charm” so preferably not the burbs!
My boyfriend and I love hiking and being outdoors, although we’re definitely not hardcore pros about it. The idea of living near mountains and forests and beaches sounds incredible. I would love to have four seasons (fall in particular- I wish desperately for a real fall) but probably wouldn’t be able to handle the reverse of my current situation with a 6 month winter.
My parents both love mountains and my dad love sunny beaches (but my mom hates them, lol). He goes on a lot of cruises and they have an RV.
Any recommendations would be wonderful! Thanks so much for your help!

[roadwarrior101]

I think you'd have difficulty affording anything decent in the SF Bay Area and much of the northern inland area would be too liberal for you. It sounds like you don't like a ton of heat, so I'd also probably not recommend the Sacramento Valley.

I'm thinking maybe you'd like somewhere along the north coast, in Mendocino or Humboldt County. Relatively mild weather overall. Summers can get hot, but not as bad as Texas nor as long lasting. Winters tend to be cool and rainy. They also tend to be pretty liberal areas, although a lot smaller vs Austin. Good luck!

[TimTheEnchanter]

Originally Posted by Peacelephant

Would Northern California be a good fit for me? I make $30-35k a year usually. My boyfriend is in fabrication (making statues/ 3D installations but not fine art— instead for companies and usually out of something like fiberglass) and makes about the same amount of money a year.

Not even close.

I'd be looking in New Mexico, Colorado, Washington and Florida.

[Axxlrod]

OP can't afford CA.

Look at Portland, OR or maybe outside Seattle.

[Nut4sweets]

You can live in a more affordable parts of Northern CA like Sacramento or Galt. You won’t be able to afford the area with the vintage charm though.

[Ruth4Truth]

Humboldt County is full of vintage charm. You could probably afford something there, maybe even a 2-br. with luck. And the towns there are full of old Victorians, with charm to spare. Look at Fortuna (claims to get more sun than the other towns) and Ferndale. It may be hard to gauge the price of rentals at the moment, because of Covid; there's not as much available as there normally is, but you might be able to get a general idea of rent costs.

The problem with CA is a) fires, b) the electrical utility shuts off service when there's high fire risk, so you'll have days now and then without power in summer/fall. But Humboldt at least will have a reliable water supply into the future. The fire risk is inland from the rainy/foggy coastal strip, where it's hot and dry in the summers/early fall. The towns in the coastal area stay in the 60's and low 70's through the summer, typically.

Visit the area before you decide to move there.

[JB316]

Check out Eureka, CA.


The city has some crime though, you should visit for a week first and find the good and bad areas beforehand.

[evening sun]

More than anything else, I'd be worried about selling your merchandise. Maybe make a trade trip to a market here, first & see how it goes.

[tikkasf]

OP, from what I read in your post, it seems your combined salary is in the neighborhood of $65K currently. I don't know if the same type of work would pay a bit more in CA. Monthly, $65K is around $5,100 -$5200 income. At that income level, I would look for a rentals in the $1600 to $1750 range. You can find 2 bedroom apts, duplexes, even houses in that range in California.... the questions is employment for both of you in these areas. Are your boyfriend's skills for is current type of work, transferable to other types of work that may be easier to come by & will pay similiar or perhaps even more then he is making now? Going by what you posted, you are priced out of the coastal & nearby coastal areas of CA.......except the rather isolated, far north coast. (Humboldt & Del Norte Counties) I have never been to Austin or even the state of TX. My assumption is that Austin probably has a fair number of cultural amenities and you may not be able to find something comparable in a city in CA that fits in your budget. As already one respondent noted, the areas of CA that are away from the coastal strip and affordable at your income level, tend to varying degrees, to be more conservative. I would suggest giving some consideration to the Sacramento region. Sacramento would offer cultural amenities that you are probably are used to in Austin & good specialized medical care is available there.....such as UC Davis. What I mean by region, is within driving distance to Sacramento proper......not necessary living in the city itself. Inland areas of California (think Central valley) typically have rather hot summers......but, likely less humid then TX


Note; I applied a filter for $1800 maximum rent in link below


https://hotpads.com/sacramento-ca/ap...&price=0-1800&

[semispherical]

Originally Posted by Peacelephant

We are all varying degrees of liberal, and I would love to be around other young people (rather than a suburb or retiree community). My boyfriend and I like apartments with some quirkiness and “vintage charm” so preferably not the burbs!

You might take a look at some of the foothill communities up the road (on I-80, Hwy 50, Hwy 49) from Sacramento. Places like Nevada City, Grass Valley, Auburn, Cameron Park, Rescue, Placerville. El Dorado Hills, Rocklin and Roseville will put you closer to Sacramento with the advantages that work/clients might be easier to find and there will be more apartments for rent, though the rental market is very tight in the whole area right now. Currently the foothills are dominated by Republicans, but the numbers of Democrats and Greens are increasing (I'm a liberal Dem) and I expect to see a power shift very soon, I hope with the Nov 3 election. Nevada City in particular has an "artsy" vibe.

Downtown Sacramento is building some new rental high rises and attracting a lot of young, single professionals if you want to be in the city but close to hiking, rafting, skiing, etc outdoor locations. Sac will get hot during the daytime in summer, but the Delta breeze usually cools things off at night.

The big disadvantage IMO to the more remote foothill communities is the ever-present fire danger, though if you are living in an apartment in town the risk is much less. Of course, it's always best to spend some time scouting the locations to see what is the best fit. Good luck!