Moving to California, should I be scared? (Sonoma, Sebastopol: health insurance, how much)

[grapico]

Well...moving out there in 3 weeks, all the economic news makes me worried though. No I don't have a job lined up yet, but I have plenty of money saved up I can probably live off of a year...

I am wondering how much tuition is going to go up as I plan to take classes there in the SF bay area.
Is education going to be cut drastically?
How bad can unemployment get?

That being said, the state looks bad as a whole... but county I am moving to is actually lower unemployment than where I am at now.

Honestly I don't think it is that big of deal, especially if you hate where you are currently and job isn't that good to begin with currently.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by grapico

Well...moving out there in 3 weeks, all the economic news makes me worried though. No I don't have a job lined up yet, but I have plenty of money saved up I can probably live off of a year...

I am wondering how much tuition is going to go up as I plan to take classes there in the SF bay area.
Is education going to be cut drastically?
How bad can unemployment get?

That being said, the state looks bad as a whole... but county I am moving to is actually lower unemployment than where I am at now.

Honestly I don't think it is that big of deal, especially if you hate where you are currently and job isn't that good to begin with currently.

First you ask if you should be scared and then you say, it isn't a big deal. Are you trying to convince yourself it isn't a big deal. As for education, of course I am sure you realize you will be paying out of state tuition which is very costly and how much will tuition go up? No one knows, but as for things not being all that bad, think again.

You say you have enough money to live on for a year, I hope you are talking $30,000 or more..I don't know where you are living now, so no one can tell you how where you are compares with Ca.

As long as you are moving for sure, in 3 weeks, should you be scared? Yes, can you survive? Hopefully, the young can do a lot, but I will be darned if I know why you would want to move to Ca at this time.

Nita

[uptown_urbanist]

Yeah, I'd be scared to move right now, especially if you are giving up another job. Honestly, what I'd be most scared about is giving up health insurance - all it takes is one accident or illness and all your savings go down the drain, even if you do have some insurance. Sounds like you have savings, which is good, but yes, I think it's understandable to be scared. It isn't "no big deal" with the combination of poor job prospects (in many fields, anyway) plus extremely high costs of living, but again, at least you can live off of your savings until you can find a job. Unfortunately these are tough times, but maybe you'll get lucky and will find something before you go through too much of your savings. I'm not saying that you're making a mistake in moving, but do think you're right to be nervous.

[grapico]

Well I will wait a year for in state...

I will have no bills except food, gas, car insurance and electric bill. My gf's parents have 2 houses in Sonoma county we can stay in for free just to do the upkeep.

I think my main concern is how longggg will I be out of a job. I work in IT...the current job I am doing is a contract, so no benefits as it is right now anyway as far as health insurance goes.

As for why, well my gf hates it here, as do I, in the deep south (got stuck here after living in Chicago).

I'm 28.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by grapico

Well I will wait a year for in state...

I will have no bills except food, gas, car insurance and electric bill. My gf's parents have 2 houses in Sonoma county we can stay in for free just to do the upkeep.

I think my main concern is how longggg will I be out of a job. I work in IT...the current job I am doing is a contract, so no benefits as it is right now anyway as far as health insurance goes.

As for why, well my gf hates it here, as do I, in the deep south (got stuck here after living in Chicago).

I'm 28.

Sonoma County is beautiful but it won't be easy to get a job there. It certainly isn't the most urban area in the state.

Good luck,

Nita

[grapico]

Originally Posted by nmnita

Sonoma County is beautiful but it won't be easy to get a job there. It certainly isn't the most urban area in the state.

Good luck,

Nita

Yeah I'm pretty sure I will have to commute down to SF or SR, we will be between to Sebastopol and Bodega Bay.

On the job situation, her brother is my age and says he makes about 20 an hour waiting tables out there...that is more than I am making now as a sysadmin here...

[AKgirlinCA]

What area in the "deep south" are you? If I may ask...

[grapico]

north florida panhandle, about 5 hours away from nearest big city, 15 miles from south georgia border....right outside of tallahassee.

[Steve97415]

Originally Posted by grapico

Moving to California, should I be scared?

No.

-If you're unquestionably moving to California, then you shouldn't be scared.

-If you're unquestionably scared, then you shouldn't be moving to California.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by grapico

north florida panhandle, about 5 hours away from nearest big city, 15 miles from south georgia border....right outside of tallahassee.

you don't consider the capital of the state a big city and you are thinking of moving to Sanoma? I know I might sound pretty negative, but I think you may be fooling yourself. So, someone is making $20 an hour waiting tables, that is pretty good money, but do you realize there are not even a lot of those jobs available right now. Not to mention $20 an hour in Cal is like $40 an hour other places.

Regardless, good luck to you and I hope it works out. Just be prepared to have a rough time, at least for awhile.

Nita