Bay Area to Dallas - Cost Benefits ? (beaches, office)

[serger]

Originally Posted by Colt .45

Gimme tornadoes anyday, at least with Tornadoes you get SOME warning.....I dont know how Californians do it knowing anyday, anytime could be the big one, with no warning at all......

About the tornadoes - apparently you didn't have one go through your house...

And also, in regards to the quakes:

National hazard map shows Dallas quake risk has grown tenfold | | Dallas Morning News

[Colt .45]

Originally Posted by serger

About the tornadoes - apparently you didn't have one go through your house...

And also, in regards to the quakes:

National hazard map shows Dallas quake risk has grown tenfold | | Dallas Morning News

LOL!! Are you seriously comparing the little tremors DFW gets compared to the actual quakes Cali gets?! the DFW quakes are more than likely from Fracking more than our fault lines.....Cali quakes come from actual major fault lines, that have a potential to absolutely level California whenever the big one does hit....Tornadoes suck and are deadly, of course.....but quakes are by far the more potentially devastating.....and again, no warning whatsoever....you dont get much warning with Tornadoes either, but still better than nothing at all....and unless youre living under a rock, you at least usually know theres a potential for Tornadic weather, days in advance.....

[serger]

Originally Posted by Colt .45

LOL!! Are you seriously comparing the little tremors DFW gets compared to the actual quakes Cali gets?! the DFW quakes are more than likely from Fracking more than our fault lines.....Cali quakes come from actual major fault lines, that have a potential to absolutely level California whenever the big one does hit....Tornadoes suck and are deadly, of course.....but quakes are by far the more potentially devastating.....and again, no warning whatsoever....you dont get much warning with Tornadoes either, but still better than nothing at all....and unless youre living under a rock, you at least usually know theres a potential for Tornadic weather, days in advance.....

I'm not comparing anything to anything, you are. I've been in a major earthquake as a kid, not much happened to large heavy buildings that are actually very prone to damage (hint, not in Dallas).

Speaking of California, at least they have some codes for quake resistance.

Good luck with the "potential for Tornadic weather". Out of curiosity, what do you do with each days ahead potential warning , leave everything, go on vacation? The average real warning is 13 min, btw.

Lastly, if stick houses are good for anything it is a quake, and not a tornado/hurricane.

[bayarea07]

DM'ed you my details

Originally Posted by BayTexan

We moved from the Bay Area and I go back quite often as I work for a Bay Area company too! And every time I go back, I am so thankful I moved - my only regret - why I didn't do it sooner! I mean $4000+ a month to rent a 2-3 bedroom in Cupertino or some good school district - are you kidding me?! And let's not even talk about the home prices!

Yes, you will miss the beach, mountains, Yosemite blah blah blah - this is exactly what my friends told me when I left. And I asked them - well, when did you go last? :-) They had blank looks on their faces (given work schedules and how crowded they get during long weekends/holidays, you go once in a blue moon anyways!) ... With the amount of money you save, you can fly back on vacation and enjoy the sights! At the end of the day, life is about work, kids, school, activities, friends, family right? Unless you have deep family ties or you want VC funding for a start-up, there is no reason to live in the Bay especially if you have kids and are a one or even two IT income family (this coming from someone who lived there over 15 years). The weather doesn't pay the bills Yes, the job market is hot but having been through the dot bomb, I think we are very close to another implosion (and the boom and bust cycle that is Silicon Valley).

Anyway, back to Dallas - yes, it gets hot in the summer and somewhat cold in the winter. We live in Plano and really enjoy it here. It's very diverse with outstanding schools and extra-curricular activities and housing though having gone up in the past few years, is inexpensive compared to the Bay Area. 5-600K will get you a nice 3-4000 sq ft house with a pool and 4-5 bedrooms etc. Where can you find that over there - the same house in a good school district would probably be 2-3 million (and 1 million will only buy you a crap shack with 1500 sq ft that is probably 50 years old or a fixer upper!). And even in this market, you can still find homes in different price ranges in Dallas.

And if you are keeping your salary, that's an automatic ~10% hike since there is no state income tax here. Yes, property taxes are higher but the values are lower (2.25% on a 500K house is pretty much the same as 1.2% on a 1 million house right?). Gas is definitely cheaper. Groceries and other stuff are about the same. Insurance maybe slightly higher and utilities also (as you use the AC all summer etc.). But, overall, my wife and I (both working) are able to save a lot more and have a much better quality of life than we did in the Bay Area (and our kids absolutely love it here). We just did our taxes and excluding Federal taxes (which are pretty much the same for both places), we are paying probably only about 30-40% of the taxes we paid in CA (including property taxes).

So, yes, it's a trade-off. But if you want a decent quality of life with the ability to own your own home in a large diverse metro area with a good job market and lots of amenities (4 professional sports teams, excellent airport etc.), then DFW certainly fits the bill (where you can afford to have a home, 401K, college savings plan as opposed to the Bay area where these may be mutually exclusive unless you are a Google or Facebook gazillionaire )

Sorry for the rambling post but hope it helps. Feel free to DM me for more information and good luck with your decision!

[EDS_]

Originally Posted by bayarea07

DM'ed you my details

Not including taxes you'll feel like you received a 43 - 45% raise in Plano vs. where you live now.


Here's an illustration of COL and taxes - a $250,000 home in Plano will be nicer on balance than a $500,000 home where you are coming from.

State and locally imposed taxes....

CA taxes at your income rough numbers:
$7,686 CA income tax
$6,650 local property taxes on a $500,000 home
9.5% sales tax

Plano rough numbers:
$0 income taxes
$5950 local property taxes on a $250,000 home....$350K ($8,330), $500K ($11,900), $750K ($17,800)
8.25% sales tax

[turf3]

Save fast before that H1-B guy gets your job.

[bayarea07]

Originally Posted by turf3

Save fast before that H1-B guy gets your job.

This is the attitude that repels me from texas :-)

[EDS_]

Originally Posted by bayarea07

This is the attitude that repels me from texas :-)

Don't let one guy's flip comment bother you.

[BayTexan]

We have people like this everywhere (even in the Bay area :-)).

And I have been working remotely for my Bay Area company for over 4 years now and have not been replaced by an H-1B :-) If you are good at what you do, and are well respected by your management, you have nothing to worry about. There are no guarantees with jobs these days - you could go into the office daily and still be replaced!

Originally Posted by bayarea07

This is the attitude that repels me from texas :-)

[bayarea07]

I Agree 100%

Originally Posted by BayTexan

We have people like this everywhere (even in the Bay area :-)).

And I have been working remotely for my Bay Area company for over 4 years now and have not been replaced by an H-1B :-) If you are good at what you do, and are well respected by your management, you have nothing to worry about. There are no guarantees with jobs these days - you could go into the office daily and still be replaced!