Many move, but why do they return? (Oxnard, Visalia: for sale, real estate)
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In both places I have seen many new neighbors from California move in....just about 80% of them move back to California within the first 9 months.
I'm not so sure I buy this. Eighty percent? Maybe eight percent.
Has someone actually taken metrics? Or, is this just a subjective estimate? I don't have metrics but I haven't read or been made aware of any study with data to support this.
My guess is very few people move back. They moved for several reasons, the majority of which are probably economic. The economic arguments have gotten even stronger over the past several years.
That's the boat I'm in right now... I have about $26,000 in student loans left to pay off, and no way to afford a house in California, so I'm looking elsewhere.
Also, when I graduated in 2005, my last semester's tuition was over $1500 at a CSU campus, last I checked it was over $2500, and was expected to rise further, until it reaches $3200 per semester next year (that was the estimate). When I started CSU Chico in the spring of 2002, Tuition was $1050 per semester.
I also paid about $600-800 per semester in textbooks and supplies.
Remember what I said about education always is where the cuts are made? Now the students have to pay almost 3x the amount to get the same amount of education.
I will say that the CSU system is first-rate, even though I went to a "party school" like Chico State (no partying here, though... I'm a family guy).
Looks like California better figure out something pretty soon.
Honestly....and I actually hate to admit this....but these forums have actually allowed me to rethink my atitude against California.
I begged my husband for two years and finally convinced him to have us move to Oregon after he gets out of the Marine Corps. We most likely still will go there. I love it up there. I just don't want to be one of the folks who regret leaving. I guess I don't hate California enough not to regret leaving.
Who knows...I might change my mind again next time I sit in traffic.
Honestly....and I actually hate to admit this....but these forums have actually allowed me to rethink my atitude against California.
I begged my husband for two years and finally convinced him to have us move to Oregon after he gets out of the Marine Corps. We most likely still will go there. I love it up there. I just don't want to be one of the folks who regret leaving. I guess I don't hate California enough not to regret leaving.
Who knows...I might change my mind again next time I sit in traffic.
I completely understand where you're coming from CantWait2BThere... that's my biggest fear as well.
Then again, this fear is present in just about everything we do in life that's unfamiliar, whether it be changing jobs, getting divorced, buying a new car... life is filled with uncertainties. I think it primarily depends on your ability to adapt, and making the best decision you can under the circumstances.
I've lived my entire life in California, and have never been off the west coast, except when I went to the Nevada side of Tahoe. I've been as far north as Richmond, BC, and as far south as San Diego, but that's it...
It's going to be a big change, and that's the scariest part, but thankfully the past few years of my life have been full of change (and stress to go along with it), so I think I've laid the foundation for something bigger.
I'm sure there'll be times that I have regrets, but I'm hoping that the positives will outweigh the negatives, so that the longing for what I knew is minimized, and the adventure of starting a new life elsewhere keeps my attention focused where it should be... in the present and future.
Graffixjones...I thank you for your post. I wish you all the best in whatever life is taking you.
Here's the thing that makes me stop to wonder though; how much of our lives, or what percentage of it, should we really try to control? I mean, there are things that happen to us based on circumstances we really can't control, and those are the times when the experience can really be based on our reaction to those times, be they good or bad. But when bad things , or at least less than desirable things happen based on our intentions and/or choices it gets pretty hard to tell ourselves, "Great you idiot, you were better off before." At those moments we get too busy kicking ourselves and it makes it harder to adapt to change.
So when I think of leaving California for all the reasons that attract me to Oregon , I can be pretty confidant that I know myself well enough to know that my desires for my family and for myself are real. The question I wish I could have answered now is, " Are we doing the best thing?"
Hopefully yes, perhaps no. Maybe there is no best thing.
My thoughts on this are that as someone who has lived all over the country, I've never experienced anything close to California, where the residents are almost intolerant of anything remotely different than their own state. When they move, it seems like they like to move to places that hug the CA border. To me, Seattle isn't going to be THAT different than SF in regards to cost and the types of people that live there.
What's more is that people seem to be somewhat stupid when they make a move to a new place. Most do not actually investigate the areas they're considering a relocation to. Many just see one thing, and one thing only: The houses. I've seen SO MANY of these city forums where someone from CA is moving to NC and is essentially buying a house, almost sight unseen after a random weekend , 5 hour visit. That's about the dumbest thing I've ever seen. You aren't going to learn a single thing about an area buying something before you even try it out. Most of these people have kids and they're line off thought is that they HAVE to buy right away... for the kids, for the kids! Yet when they realize that in reality, the area they moved to isn't their tastes, or perhaps in a not-so-great neighborhood, they're unhappy, and then what? Boo-hoo! Move back to California!
Almost every single state has interesting, unique areas with natural beauty, culure, and character. You have many tools at your disposal to empower yourselves to learn about anywhere in the country. Use them.
Lastly, the media is in bed with the building and various lending,banking, and financial industries. Understand that the industry is very well aware that the East Coast and West Coasts are now baked and done housing boom wise. They're looking for fresh meat. Hence when you read something like:" Raleigh/Durahm, NC is the BEST place to live in America", while some aspects of that report might resonate truthfully, there is also a ripe opportunity for industry giants to reap the rewards of having new markets to grow. Most "best" places are also some of the cheapest places to live. Many off these areas are sparsely populated too. So you have MANY choices.
But people instead like reading popular reports about various cities, so to Austin,Raleigh, Seattle, and Phoenix they will go, blindly buying that 150k house next to a "good" school.
Don't be like cattle. Research, read, investigate, and learn about an area you might want to move to. Once you move there... RENT for at least 6 months, a year being more optimum. Then you won't be one of those people who screwed up because you didn't do your homework.
Again- it is a big country full of wonderful places. Get to know them.
broken_arrow,
While your post was a bit terse and abrasive, you do make some good points. One should try to get as good of a 'feel' for a potential moving destination before jumping in head-first.
Thankfully the internet has made this investigation much, much easier... that's how I found City-Data. The fact that other people are also here asking questions (and answering them) also means that people aren't just flying blind.
"Best" is also a relative term, so one needs to know the criteria that organizations use when compiling a "Best Places" list. For instance, my "Best Places" criteria consist of:
1. Relatively low crime
2. Relatively low cost of living
3. Good educational and cultural opportunities
4. Good economic opportunities
5. Friendly people
6. Relatively good climate conditions.
I would tend to think that these criteria are also important to the majority of people, because if any of these areas are lacking where they currently reside, they tend to look elsewhere for residence. It all depends on where these criteria rank on their list of importance that determines how happy they will be someplace new.
I don't know anyone personally who suddenly decided, after reading a magazine article or viewing a television show, to up and move across country to the next "Best Place"... however I do agree with you that some people only focus on two or three of their important criteria, rather than finding a place that comes close to addressing them all, and that's where they go wrong. They think that they can sacrifice some of them for others, and end up being miserable.
Well, I'd say there was some truth to that abbove.
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