For those wanting to move out of California, or for those that already have (San Luis Obispo: cheap home)

[VC dreamer]

Originally Posted by leavingcali

I think non-mormans fear they will not be accepted into the community. I have spent some time in the Utah forum and that seems to be a common theme. What's your experience regarding this topic?

Don't worry!!! C'mon....move to Utah! The area I moved to (Utah county) is the heart of LDS territory, and I personally have not had any problems. I don't feel excluded by my neighbors or townspeople, and my daughter has not had any problems either. The women here are sterotyped...and that has been frustrating at times for me, but other than that...zero problems. My neighbors all welcomed us when we moved in, the local missioniaries, and bishops stopped by once. The left understanding that I was quite happy in my faith, and have not been back since.
SLC is so diverse...and is mostly non-lds there. It's conservative in it's politics, but the mayor is a liberal.
Utah has a negative reputation, that is undeserved.
C'mon.....come to Utah....and bring In-n-Out with you!!! I'm having double-double withdrawls!!!!! LOL

[dolly2me]

Hi,
I too, am a native Californian and moved to East Tennessee 10 years ago. My move was to be near my daughter who relocated to the southeast after she married. She and her husband were enticed by the lower cost of living, the superb housing market and a "better" place to raise kids.

It is very different living in the southeast. While many advantages do exist, this is the bible and tobacco belt, so if those things might be an issue for you consider a more progressive area to live. In addition, though much has progressed here, it is still 10 years behind California and other bigger cities.

It is beautiful here with many, many outdoor activities- the Great Smoky Mountains and many, many lakes and rivers.

After all these years, the newness has worn off and I am very homesick for California.

I think like others have said, it's all where you are in the journey of life.

Kathy

[YOU-CANT-EAT-SCENERY]

Originally Posted by VC dreamer

Don't worry!!! C'mon....move to Utah! The area I moved to (Utah county) is the heart of LDS territory, and I personally have not had any problems. I don't feel excluded by my neighbors or townspeople, and my daughter has not had any problems either. The women here are sterotyped...and that has been frustrating at times for me, but other than that...zero problems. My neighbors all welcomed us when we moved in, the local missioniaries, and bishops stopped by once. The left understanding that I was quite happy in my faith, and have not been back since.
SLC is so diverse...and is mostly non-lds there. It's conservative in it's politics, but the mayor is a liberal.
Utah has a negative reputation, that is undeserved.
C'mon.....come to Utah....and bring In-n-Out with you!!! I'm having double-double withdrawls!!!!! LOL

Double Double animal style with animal fries YUUUUMMMMMYYYY

[Kathleenh54]

You left out Rattlesnake Season and Santa Ana Season.

[jdavid93225]

Originally Posted by johns65vette

Double Double animal style with animal fries YUUUUMMMMMYYYY

And if you're really hungry, you can always get a 3x3 or 4x4! Don't forget about the neapolitan shakes, either!

Oops! I think we just let out the secret In-N-Out menu.

[grisandole]

I so miss In-N-Out! They do have them here in AZ, but the closest one to me is about three hours away.

I lived in SoCal most of my life, and wanted to get out badly! So, we moved to Stockton for about two years, which I enjoyed, then to Illinios, which I hated (Northern Chicago Suburbs); horrible weather and insane property taxes.

In 2003, we moved to rural Northern AZ. As a state, I find that in some ways, AZ is more liberal than CA; even though it is a "red" state, and there is that crazy sheriff in Maricopa county.

Anyway, AZ has low property taxes, and is pretty big on personal freedoms. And the state isn't all hot desert; I live in the mountains, we get snow and have four seasons.

I do miss CA, and we are trying to move back there so that I can be near friends and family. For me, living so rurally has made me very homesick. We are VERY rural. To get to the nearest grocery store, in the closest town, it's a 40 minute drive. And it's a small town, not a city. To get to a real city, we'd have to drive three hours to Flagstaff or Phoenix. So, for me, I can't handle the isolation...if I were closer to a city, I'd be okay.

[sedonaaz]

Originally Posted by grisandole

I so miss In-N-Out! They do have them here in AZ, but the closest one to me is about three hours away.

I lived in SoCal most of my life, and wanted to get out badly! So, we moved to Stockton for about two years, which I enjoyed, then to Illinios, which I hated (Northern Chicago Suburbs); horrible weather and insane property taxes.

In 2003, we moved to rural Northern AZ. As a state, I find that in some ways, AZ is more liberal than CA; even though it is a "red" state, and there is that crazy sheriff in Maricopa county.

Anyway, AZ has low property taxes, and is pretty big on personal freedoms. And the state isn't all hot desert; I live in the mountains, we get snow and have four seasons.

I do miss CA, and we are trying to move back there so that I can be near friends and family. For me, living so rurally has made me very homesick. We are VERY rural. To get to the nearest grocery store, in the closest town, it's a 40 minute drive. And it's a small town, not a city. To get to a real city, we'd have to drive three hours to Flagstaff or Phoenix. So, for me, I can't handle the isolation...if I were closer to a city, I'd be okay.

I hear ya. Yes there are certainly some things I miss about CA. But many big things I don't miss. We picked sedona, not just because its beautiful, but also because people from all over the world come here. And if we were going to live somewhere 'remote' (at least compared to CA) I wanted to live right in the middle of town. so we live 2 blocks from all the shops and restaurants. If I want isolation, I can walk 7 or 8 blocks to the forest service property, or hop in the car 3 minutes and be in the canyon or up in the hills or at the creek.

Sedona reminds me of La Jolla. No not the ocean. But the views are equally breathtaking, and I can walk around and hear german, japanese, french, and a host of other languages.

As far as services, its not that remote. Basic services in town are ok, groceries, health care, etc. but a lot more services are going into Cottonwood, 20 minutes away. Home Depot, Walmart, etc.
no, not any great shopping malls. we have to go at least an hour to Prescott, or 45 minutes to Flagstaff. so Sedona has inconveniences.
but with the growth of the Verde Valley a lot of shopping and services are going into Cottonwood, including a growing medical center area with a nice big hospital.

Sedona in some ways is as liberal as northern CA, but there are conservative folks here too. I call em the pioneer families. people whose families have been here since the 1800s, and early 1900s. so its a mix. but less conservative than southern california near san diego for sure. when we lived there I was amazed how red it was. I felt like a fish out of water there. I fit in much better here.

[grisandole]

Sedona is great! If I was living there, or near it or Flag, I'd be fine. I'm too remote for my taste.

[junkman18]

Originally Posted by sd2ca

jdavid93225, You hit the nail directly on the head!!! I'm stuck in the same boat career wise. I'd love to leave now, but that retirement plan is dangling in front of my nose. 6 more years and CA will be a blur in the rear view mirror.

Looking at several states for relocation. Where ever I wind up, it will be in a small rural community, preferrably 100 miles or more from a large city.

Try looking into Arkansas, there are some beautiful places, and low taxes, inexpensive housing or if you build it's a lot cheaper than building in California also... Check out the Northern part of the state.... Good luck, we left California last year in May....

[speedywriter]

Originally Posted by bkeast

SandyCo, I'm glad I could help a bit. One other thing I wanted to mention is, I don't know if you have kids or not, but one of the biggest complaints the residents seemed to have was that once their children get old enuogh, most high-tail it out of there as fast as their legs can take them, because there's so little opportunity there. Since I have two small kids, that was a really big deal to me. And yes, we would've been faced with having to drive 2 hours to Denver anytime we wanted/needed anything the local shopping center didn't offer; not a very convenient life Good luck to in wherever you decide. Also, I found this book very helpful in my pursuit of a better place to live: "Life 2.0, How People Across America Are Transforming Their Lives by Finding the Where of Their Happiness," by, Rich Karlgaard. In it, he lists 150 great (and cheap) places to live.

The book is a great tip, bkeast. Thanks so much for sharing that, as well as the info on WY. I had been looking into that area too.