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i bet you can figure out why the decision to move... i have had it with california and its liberal socialism. a few events in the last few weeks have prompted this underlying need to get out of california that ive had for quite some time now. i started a new business in october of last year as an energy consultant/lighting specialist. in november i applied for my CA contractors license, and with over 10 years of construction experience in many fields and many hours investigating and researching with the state board and third party schools to make sure i qualify, the 4 year minimum experience california requires is not the problem as long as i pass the licensing test. long story short i pass the tests and shortly after california "randomly" selects my application for a investigation. after the investigator butchers my application and work experience, pulling rules and requirements out of his ass and making stuff up as he goes. yesterday he just told me that i do not qualify for a california contractors license and the $300 fee and $400 schooling i bought are gone.... you can keep your little state income revenue license and im outta here.
any way thanks for reading my little rant. but to the question. i am a conservative white male and with the long list of californias problems i want out. i dont want to live her anymore and DEFINATELY dont want to raise a family here. ive been looking into moving north to oregon or washington. ive been doing some research and washington ranks in the top 10 for small business owners, but its pretty desolate. oregon may not be so business friendly but it seems like it would be a nice place to live. i know you cant have it all and im gunna have to sacrifice some things, like probably the beautiful california weather, but i think it is well worth it considering you pay out the ass for it anyway in taxes and this and that or whatever sacramento wants to do. im willing to comprimise for anything better than california. so what better? washington, oregon? ive even been thinking of maybe northern texas or oklahoma, but i dont know ive hardly been out of california.
i just want out of california. anywhere is better than here. and if oregon isnt much better then thats what im asking.
i did look into vancouver and portland. those seem like the best options. ive heard tri cities is windy and i hate the wind and northern washington seems alot colder alot longer then southern.
So you want to leave the problems of a blue state by moving to another blue state?
Makes sense...
Yes I almost snorted when I saw that he mentioned that he's tired of California's politics. Then the two choices he's looking into are: California-Lite #1 and California Lite #2. Honestly, out of the PNW, Idaho might be the better choice.
With all that said, I've often hear that Washington is very business friendly and a lot more business/tax friendly than Oregon. (I do not own my business nor have I started one in either state, so I have no way of actually confirming this.) Since OP mentioned that he's tired of the "liberal socialism"... perhaps he should look at either the central or eastern sides of both states-- as those sides are known for being more Conservative. The only downside is that those areas aren't exactly hustling and bustling (and that's also one of the plus for them).
Though Washington is still blue, it's not nearly as "off the charts", so to speak as California. Washington is a very business-friendly state from everything I have heard, much moreso than Oregon and certainly moreso than California.
Most of the areas that are rife with business opportunities are major population centers. Major population centers tend to be blue, especially on the coasts. Hate to break it to you...
I will simply point to the large large number of centrist cities in Washington as great places to do business:
Renton
Bellevue
Issaquah
Everett
Tacoma
Olympia
Auburn
Vancouver, WA
Spokane
Moses Lake
Tri-Cities (Moscow/Pullman)
Remember that while WA may be "blue" there's a very solid conservative basis here and many many liberals here snort with disgust at the ridiculousness of some of the policies of CA. When San Francisco banned happy meal toys in McDonald's, people here went "Ahahahaha! There goes San Fran with their crazy bleeding heart ideas again." Even the most liberal granola-eating, flannel wearing, black rimmed glasses liberals here will say San Fran is just nuts.
I also know that there's a TON of liberals out here who own guns and like the shoot them. I will simply point to recent wave of home break ins in WA state that have resulted in one (or more) intruders shot and killed. You can Google it.
Yeah, Seattle may be pretty solidly liberal and have more population leaning the same liberal as California, but one city does not make an entire area. There's also towns in WA
WA Desolate? How so? We're an outdoor mecca. We have rainforests and mountains. Skiing and hiking. Canoeing and fishing. Forests and desert (east of the cascades). And there's enough people in the area.
WA also has no income tax. Take that to the bank.
10.5% sales tax though.
OR has a 10% income tax.
0% sales tax though.
Living in Vancouver and shopping/doing business in Portland is a very popular way to skirt around these issues.
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