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Old 05-06-2014, 09:16 AM
 
Location: New England
1,000 posts, read 1,806,067 times
Reputation: 820

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HI All,

Wife and mother-in-law (MIL) have been wanting to move to California for a long time. I have a job interview in Monterey. Has anyone on this board from to Monterey from coastal Connecticut? I am worried about the price of real estate, schools for our 4 year old, and problems with gangs. I used to live in Los Angeles in the late 90's when I was single, and enjoyed it, but felt it was very expensive even back then (but I made lots less money then). My income will probably be around $175K per year, and my wife will probably look for work, she works for a local university here in CT. MIL will probably be able to afford her own condo, and will want to move to be near her grandson, and she loves California. Any advice, or input would be great.

blakesq
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Old 05-06-2014, 12:32 PM
 
Location: New England
1,000 posts, read 1,806,067 times
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Anyone? Bueler?
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Old 05-06-2014, 01:05 PM
 
242 posts, read 493,560 times
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In your income range, you will probably be easily avoiding the areas with gangs. Depending on where you are in CT, housing prices might be the same. The Monterey area is not as expensive as the nearby Bay Area.

The local universities are not that big/good, so I would not expect them to be hiring, but it depends on the job.
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Old 05-06-2014, 04:45 PM
 
49 posts, read 69,826 times
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The local universities are very good and internationally known. Maybe they are not on the top of the Forbes or US News @ World Report college lists, but they are very good. As the parent of young adults, I have looked into all of them. Personally, I would consider working at everything from the local community colleges in Salinas (Hartnell) or Monterey Peninsula College. CSU Monterey Bay, Monterey Institute for International Studies, Naval Post Graduate School, Defense Language School. What kind of job? If she works "non-commute" hours she could even work at UC Santa Cruz. or at Cabrillo Community College in Aptos. There are several "marine" based research facilities in the area also. Even Stanford has a facility. It might take a while for your wife to find a job, but on your income, she can look until she finds something. UC Santa Cruz just posted a bunch of jobs on craigslist on 5/2/2014. There are lots of comments on this site about schools for kids. I think most folks will guide you towards the Carmel school system. There is an excellent job search organization I am aware of that your wife can look into. Private message me for details.

Last edited by SiliconWriter; 05-06-2014 at 04:47 PM.. Reason: clarification
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Old 05-06-2014, 05:35 PM
 
Location: Vancouver, WA
8,214 posts, read 16,700,075 times
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Gangs won't be an issue if you live in the nicer areas such as Carmel, Pacific Grove, Monterey, Corral De Tierra, Indian Springs, Toro Park, etc... I recommend leasing first for those new to the area. Otherwise if you are buying without local knowledge and experience you may not like what you end up with or it may be overpriced. Many older, dilapidated homes are way overpriced IMO. They are filled with asbestos, lead paint, termites, mold, bad plumbing and a whole host of other problems = money pits. So you are basically paying for the land. The CA RE market is very risky IMO and as such we prefer to lease after selling our home in CO. But if you get to know it more and count the cost it may be worth the cost of admission for you.

The real challenge for families in the area are schools for their children. Carmel and PG have the best schools. From Elementary through middle school Hwy 68 communities are good such as Toro Park, Corral De Tierra, Spreckles, Las Palmas, etc... But once in High School they have to go to Salinas High. So then you are back to PG and Carmel for decent public schools. But many families choose other options such as private or homeschooling. We homeschool our kids and so these school district issues are not a real problem for us. But they definitely are for our friends who public school their kids. With only one 4 y/o it will not be as big of an issue initially. But longer term you will have to weigh all your options.

Derek

Last edited by MtnSurfer; 05-06-2014 at 05:46 PM..
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Old 05-07-2014, 01:37 PM
 
643 posts, read 917,967 times
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Dude 175K a year!? Thats a **** ton of money. You can live in the best areas here no problem, why you tripping?!
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Old 05-07-2014, 03:26 PM
 
Location: New England
1,000 posts, read 1,806,067 times
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Well...we want to save for retirement, save for son's college, enjoy life. And that could be hard if our mortgage was 4ka a month.


Quote:
Originally Posted by California831 View Post
Dude 175K a year!? Thats a **** ton of money. You can live in the best areas here no problem, why you tripping?!
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Old 05-07-2014, 04:01 PM
 
643 posts, read 917,967 times
Reputation: 600
Quote:
Originally Posted by blakesq View Post
Well...we want to save for retirement, save for son's college, enjoy life. And that could be hard if our mortgage was 4ka a month.
Well if I was you, I would live in Carmel Valley. That place is tight and sunny. Here in Old Monterey its a daily battle against drug addicts and transients. Although I like it here, If i was older with family, I would probably want to leave.
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Old 05-07-2014, 06:17 PM
 
Location: Salinas, CA
353 posts, read 427,072 times
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Country life? City life?

Buying? Renting?

The usual questions...

Gang life, not an issue. Anyways they only start recruiting at 6 years old It is secluded to the East side of Salinas and does venture outside into the Northern and even some Southern parts of Salinas every once in a blue moon; however, at an income of $175k you won't find yourself living in Salinas so moot point.
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Old 05-07-2014, 08:30 PM
 
Location: New England
1,000 posts, read 1,806,067 times
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We would like to buy, hopefully the market is not overinflated and about to crash. ON the other hand, if having a rent a lot lower than a mortgage means we can save more for retirement, college for our child, and have more spending money, we would consider renting. we own here in CT.


Quote:
Originally Posted by TwistedGray View Post
Country life? City life?

Buying? Renting?

The usual questions...

Gang life, not an issue. Anyways they only start recruiting at 6 years old It is secluded to the East side of Salinas and does venture outside into the Northern and even some Southern parts of Salinas every once in a blue moon; however, at an income of $175k you won't find yourself living in Salinas so moot point.
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