Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I’m a student who has grown up and lived in Central New York (Syracuse) my entire life. I’m about to graduate college (Syracuse University), and for the past few years, was very interested in relocating to California. I especially liked San Diego, but jobs in my field (communications) could also be found readily in Los Angeles and Oakland/SF (same for Jacksonville).
However, with graduation a few months away, realization has set in. Coming from NY, it is easy to recognize that moving to and starting out in CA will be no simple task, despite the fact that I do not have any student loans.
Here are a few things that attracted me to California (in no particular order):
- Weather (I don’t want to see another snowflake - ever)!
- Life along the coast
- More of a laid back/relaxed approach to life
- Seemingly considerable civic engagement
- Potential to participate in a number of water sports year-round, or at least more than a few months in the summer in NY (I surf, sail, snorkel, scuba dive, swim, jet ski, etc.) (I know the surfing isn’t as great on the Atlantic)
- Professional sports teams
Despite all of these things, it seems that there is no easy way to break into CA without also breaking the bank. I have lived by myself for the past few years, so I wouldn’t be exactly thrilled about getting a roommate (this seems possible in Jacksonville).
My brief investigation into Jacksonville suggests that it might be a great alternative and offer many of the things I am looking for (and do so more comfortably when considering finances).
I found a number of great looking 1-bedroom apartments in Jacksonville for $800-$900 a month (some were even lofts downtown). Comparable apartments in San Diego would easily run $1,200-$1,500 a month (a big difference for someone just starting out making $30,000-$50,000). Another great thing is that Florida does not have state income tax.
Jacksonville seems like a good-size city to suit my interests… not as big as LA or San Diego, but not a one-horse-town like Syracuse. Having an NFL team is a cool thing, too. I’m not particularly worried about crime – every city has its share. Furthermore, I’m a single male not interested in marrying or having children, so that is not a factor in my search.
I have been to Orlando, Key West, and Miami before, but never Jacksonville. The flatness of the state bores me a bit, but that is no big deal. I also know that Florida is quite humid in the summer, but I’m wondering if Jacksonville’s proximity to the ocean might help that.
Wow, the two areas aren't comparable at all. My folks lived in Del Mar (San Diego suburb) until they died, and it is a beautiful place. But you are right, if you only expect to make 30-50K in San Diego, you'll be hard pressed to find a place.
Florida is much warmer than San Diego, also has considerably more rain (SD is actually classified as a desert). And, of course, Jacksonville is MUCH cheaper to live. The entire state is humid - Jax is no exception.
However, you will need to weigh the "cultural" aspect. Californians to me are much more liberal than Floridians (that's my opinion, and my generalization), there appear to me to be many many more state regulations than Florida has. I don't consider SD to be at all laid back. But then, I don't think of Jax as particularly laid back, although others on the board will disagree. But there is no question, it is very different than SD. I also think SD is too crowded, but then again, that's me. But coming from Syracuse, you may be suprised at how crowded SD is. Those freeways are horrific.
IMHO you need to visit Jax before you move here. I like Jax and you couldn't pay me enough to get me to move back to California, but Californians would tell you just the opposite. It sounds to me, just from what you have stated, that you would be happier in California. How do you know that you would only be making 30-50K per year in SD? Because if that's correct, I would expect you would make considerably less than in Jax.
Have you received job offers yet? I don't think I'd want to make any move without an offer.
Good luck, and let's hear from you once you've made a decision.
A fellow upstate New Yorker here. I lived in Ithaca for a while for school. I miss the Fucillo commercials on TV....its HUUUGGGGGE! I left the Finger Lakes area in 06, moved to Jersey for a year, and then to Jax just a few months ago. I had a great job opportunity here and I was curious about southern living and Florida weather so I came here. A few other things that attracted me here was the st.johns river, the atlantic ocean, the low cost of living, and the laid back lifestyle.
Now that I am here I will give you my impressions of Jacksonville after 3 and 1/2 months: (Oh yeah, I too am a single male who is 26 just to give you my perspective)
The weather is good, although not as warm as I expected for the winter months
The beach is cool of course
The pace of life is slow....adding years to my life I think
My apartment is cheap 745 a month for a 1 br and my utility bills are cheap too....about 80 a month for electric/water/sewer/trash. (not like NYSEG ripping you off every month!)
Water is close: good for fishing, kayaking, etc.
Great place to raise kids and have a family until they get old enough to go to high school then you might want to hit the road (I have heard some sketchy stories about the high schools here from the locals)
Living at the beach seems cool for young people. They ride bikes to food and restaurants and bars.
And now for some of the cons:
Very suburban: strip malls and housing developments (with cookie cutter modern housing )cover most of the excessively sprawled out landscape.
You will drive a lot because of the super sprawl that has developed here
Due to the suburban landscape it becomes very difficult to meet people our age, you really need an urban area where lots of young people are clustered together to have opportunities to meet randomly. That just does not exist here....you will need to join an organization in order to make friends here.
The liveable urban areas are not very well populated, especially on the weekends. These areas are Riverside, San Marco, and Downtown. Riverside is decent, probably the best neighborhood for young professionals in an urban setting here, but it is still quite small. San Marco is a trendy place where young professionals are sparsely scattered among the rich. Urbanish environment, but again not very densely populated. And downtown would be awesome, but there are basically no restaurants/grocery stores or anything open except during business hours M-F. The place is almost a ghost town on the weekends.
There is a lack of ethnic diversity here. Surprising for a place with 700000 people, but I guess that is the south for ya. I can't even find an Italian deli worthy of my business here.
Sometimes the southern accent is like nails on a chalkboard.
Just a quick stat. I think only about 23% of the people here have a bachelor's degree or higher. Compare to Morristown, NJ (where I lived before) which has over 40% of the population with a bachelor's degree or higher. I have found this stat to be noticeable.
So that is a very honest and long post. I hope it helps you out. I am sorry if I offended any of the locals with the list of cons, but I don't want the guy to move here if he is not going to like it.
And in my humble opinion, I would strongly consider San Diego. For a young person like yourself, you need a place with life and energy. Jacksonville is not that type of place. Even though San Diego and the northeast are expensive, there is a good reason for it, they are very desireable places to live. I would say give San Diego a shot and when you are married and ready to start a family, come to Jacksonville. Don't worry about the money, your social life is more important. You can have all the money in the world, but without friends/wife it is not worth it. You have 40 more years to earn money. Take advantage of your social life now.
Fucillo is HUUUUUGGGGGGE! All the best in your choice!
Have you considered Austin? It has many young professionals and a neat culture. It has nice weather and it is cheaper than San Diego (but pricier than Jax.) There are also a decent amount of IT/telco jobs available because of UT and Dell feeder companies. There is also plenty to do with the hill country and the lakes. Great music scene.
I've lived in San Diego (well, Coronado and Del Mar) and I loved most of it, and I used to do business in Austin frequently. I may be moving to Jax because of my wife getting a promotion. I'm still not completely sure what to expect with Jax, but I would think Austin would be a nice compromise between the two. It actually might have the best features of both...
Just don't venture outside of Austin too far...the rest of Texas scares me
I'll chime in here. I'm 32 and from Northern California (the Bay Area). I love San Diego. It's one of the nicest spots to live in the entire United States. The weather is perfect year round (or nearly so). There is a newly vibrant downtown with lots of stuff to do. The nearby beach towns are really relaxed and fun. There is a lot of diversity, with obviously a lot of Mexican influence. If that's not enough, LA is about 1.5-2 hours away.
The only con would be the price to live there. It's more expensive than Jacksonville to get a place to live. To buy a place, I'd say a very rough rule of thumb would be to add about $400,000 to any price you see here in Jacksonville. That being said, SD housing prices were in a huge bubble and things should be falling alot. The congestion isn't fun either. There can be a lot of traffic, but you get used to it. There's a reason everyone wants to live there.
I've been in Jacksonville for only 2.5 years now, but I've just signed a contract to be here for another year. This was solely due to the fact that I met someone here and we are now engaged. Otherwise, I'd be back to California.
Jacksonville is not bad, but it's not a place for a single guy. There are some places to go out, like the beaches and some spots downtown. However, it's a less diverse population and less sophisticated. You have a very widely diverse group of people in California/SD. Here in Jax, the young people are often not college educated. That being said, I have had fun here going out. There are some spots to go if you look for them. It's just not as fun.
Food. Jacksonville is a mecca for chain food. It's taken me a long time to find some decent spots to eat here. In California, I had several choices for many different kinds of food. With the help of city-data and yelp.com though, I've managed to find some good places to quench my cravings.
I'd say, if you have a job in Cali, go there.
Jacksonville is not a great spot for being single and 20. It wasn't a great spot for being single and 30 that's for sure. I just got lucky...but my fiance is from Jersey, not Jax.
We will be leaving in a year.
Hope this helps. Lemme know if you have more questions.
You have gotten good advice from the previous posters. Jax will never be confused with Calf. It is a nice place to live though.
Overall, its good advice to come down for a weekend and get a feel for the city if you have not been here. You might like the southern living and being able to go outside every day.
Have you considered Austin? It has many young professionals and a neat culture. It has nice weather and it is cheaper than San Diego (but pricier than Jax.)
Just to set the record straight, the cost of living in Austin is considerably less expensive than it is here in Jacksonville. Property taxes are somewhat higher in Austin, but everything else is much, much less expensive. I can't speak about Syracuse or San Diego because I have only visited and not lived in either place.
Just to set the record straight, the cost of living in Austin is considerably less expensive than it is here in Jacksonville. Property taxes are somewhat higher in Austin, but everything else is much, much less expensive. I can't speak about Syracuse or San Diego because I have only visited and not lived in either place.
I definitely would have agreed with you a few years ago, David, but Austin prices have continued to rise since then...
Most online cost-of-living comparisons show that it is about 2.5% cheaper to live in Austin than in Jacksonville, but they are also using slightly older data (last years, for example.) My company just had a cost-of-living study completed by a leading relocation firm this month and it suggests that Jacksonville is cheaper now overall, primarily due to housing prices. (Jacksonville has experienced more of a market correction in housing prices than Austin and, going forward, that trend is expected to continue.)
I would say the two are more comparable than anything...neither is dramatically cheaper than the other. San Diego is definitely the outlier, with dramatically more expensive real estate. I think Austin has more job opportunities for the original poster than Jacksonville...and a slightly more diverse cultural landscape.
If the original poster would be making $45-50K+ in his first job, I would recommend San Diego in a heartbeat. It really is great. I'm just not sure how much fun he would have there on $30K or so...unless he got roommates and really allocated his funds wisely. Not only are the apartments there pricier, they also tend to be smaller.
Last edited by tianchris; 01-14-2008 at 08:51 PM..
Its a shame sometimes we have to choose places that are more expensive because the lower cost places just don't really fit our needs. I think you would be better off in San Diego, I have heard way too many people especially your age become bored with Jacksonville extremely fast. There has too be something in how fast their boredom materialized for there not to be something about the place that was not desirable to them. I also think Jacksonville is not nearly as cheap as one would think, I would hardly call $745 for a 1 bedroom in that town as cheap, it just does not feel like a city that could or should get that much rent for a 1 bed unless the tenant got the utilities with that price. If your decision is too move to Florida I would look at the Tampa St Pete areas rather than Jacksonville.
I definitely would have agreed with you a few years ago, David, but Austin prices have continued to rise since then...
Most online cost-of-living comparisons show that it is about 2.5% cheaper to live in Austin than in Jacksonville, but they are also using slightly older data (last years, for example.) My company just had a cost-of-living study completed by a leading relocation firm this month and it suggests that Jacksonville is cheaper now overall, primarily due to housing prices. (Jacksonville has experienced more of a market correction in housing prices than Austin and, going forward, that trend is expected to continue.)
I know that this is getting off topic now, but this may be a good discussion for the OP and others considering moving.
Be very careful when using online calculators and cost-of-living studies. The online calculators use published numbers that may or may not be correct and cost of living studies often use generalities that are hard to compare without seeing things in person. I will give you my story as an example. I moved to Jacksonville from Dallas exactly two years ago. The online calculators at the time showed that the cost of living in Jacksonville was 10-15% lower than in Dallas. I purchased up to date cost-of-living information that was considered "dead accurate" through my attorney when I was in negotiations with my current company that showed the cost of living in Jacksonville to be 10% less. When I moved here and actually started living in an environment that numbers, medians, means and generalities couldn't describe I found out that the cost of living was 25% higher in Jacksonville with the exception of housing. Housing was twice as expensive. I quickly found that the reason for these differences was that cost-of-living calculators are completely quantitative and not at all qualitative. Sure, the median home in one city may cost a certain percentage when compared to another city. But no studies actually show an apples to apples comparison in price of the actual home you want. I also found that Jacksonville is a very large area and that statisticians crack and pack salary numbers to skew then in favor of one area or another. Example: The Times Union and Jacksonville Magazine publish the median family income in the Jacksonville Metropolitan area $59k. The actual number is around $47k. These skewed numbers often find their way into these calculators and calculations.
So, my suggestion is to actually put your feet on the ground in any city where you are planning to move. Don’t look at medians, means and averages. Compare your current home and neighborhood to a similar one in the other city. Go grocery shopping, buy gas, etc. in a city you are planning to live in before you actually pick up and go.
With this in mind, I have twelve family members and four childhood friends in Austin ranging in age from 1-65 and living in various parts of the city. I am there a lot and they are here a lot. The cost of living is definitely much, much lower in Austin, Texas than Jacksonville, Florida on January 15th, 2008. Yes home prices have dropped more here. But, when you make an apples to apples comparison on homes and neighborhoods it isn’t even close. Remember that means and medians mean nothing when the homes and neighborhoods are completely different. And groceries, utilities, goods & services, etc. also cost much less due to deregulation and increased competition. Property taxes are much higher there though and insurance (for some reason that I can’t understand at all) is not really that much lower.
Just for our information, what does the study say the median household and family incomes are for Jacksonville right now? I’m always curious to see how these numbers compare to the actual numbers.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
