Orange County, Ca to OR?

[furyu]

Originally Posted by snb3

Any OC transplants to Or? I grew up in OC and now live in metro LA. It is my opinion that OC is not what it used to be in the late 70s & 80s. Much more crowded and even more expensive. Only place I'd consider would be south OC but would need @ least $700k for a decent house.
I would appreciate any feedback from transplants from here who ended up there. Specifically, does anyone have any thoughts of returning?

thanks

Lived in San Clemente seven years; San Diego (rural) for ten. Hated the climate almost immediately. If you like warm/hot, mostly sunny, dry weather, you'll most likely not enjoy Oregon unless you live in the eastern area... Bend, maybe. Bend is probably as close to "OC" living as you'll find in Oregon.

Real estate prices are ridiculous in SoCal, and even worse in NoCal. Real estate values have increased here too, and frankly I think the ratio is about the same based on wages in Oregon vs. California (if your a middle-class working individual), or close anyway. But for 700K here, you can buy a really nice home with a nice distant view of the ocean. Close ocean views and ocean fronts hover around $1.1 million now, and that's for roughly 2500 square feet. The average house in Brookings is now selling around $400-600K, depending on size, age and amenities.

I moved to south coastal Oregon to retire. I'd done the NYC, SF, SoCal-metro living since I was a kid and now in my 50s, knew I wouldn't miss it. Or at least not much. There are times when I wish there was a really good mall to shop at, without having to drive two, three hours one way. I wish we had a nice modern multiplex movie theater for those rare occasions I actually like to watch a movie at a theater. And better restaurants--that I definitely miss about metro-areas. The restaurants in Brookings and along the south coast in general, are horrible.

So, I bought a plasma big screen TV and lots of DVDs, I've refined my own cooking skills and actually enjoy eating at home more than going out now. I shop the internet for just about anything I need, and then make the occasional trips to "The City" (Portland or Eugene).

I wouldn't live anywhere else. In my opinion, it's the most beautiful place in the U.S. (I can't say "the world" because I haven't travelled the world.)

My husband still travels back to SoCal on a monthly basis for work (he's semi-retired). Once there, he can't wait to return to "paradise." The traffic, the pollution, the chaos! He returns and goes fly-fishing in the numerous rivers up and down the coast... we beach walk on a daily basis all year long, and toil in our yards and gardens, where flowers bloom nine months out of the year. We sit in the evenings on our deck and watch the seagulls and pelicans, and listen to the sea lions barking. The summer sun setting below the ocean's horizon rival any sunsets I've seen in Maui in their colorful splendor of pinks, purples and golds...

This area is not suited for most people and with a lot of luck, it may stay that way for a little while. But the developers have moved in and major housing developments are in the planning stages as I type. Such is life. Such are misplaced priorities.

You pave Paradise and put up a parking lot... why can't most humans figure things out?

But I know that's easy for me to say, now that I sit here in my nice home with its white water ocean view, surrounded by beauty and peace. I can't blame others for wanting the same as I now have. I'm sure there are some 'locals' who resent MY being here!

[zagyzebra]

I grew up split between San Diego and La Habra Heights. I hated Orange County then (with the exception of the south coast beach towns) and hate it now. Couldn't wait to move to the big city: L.A. I may be the only ex-Californian who moved to Oregon that still loves the sun-kissed state and -- yes -- even Los Angeles. I truly miss walking out into my yard (or my neighbor's) and plucking oranges, lemons, limes, grapefruits and avocados...and then there's apricots, kumquats, cherimoyas -- even prickly pears! And yes, I miss the Mexican fruit vendors on the streets in the San Fernando Valley and near downtown L.A. I don't hear anyone else missing these things. Am I the only one??!!! And I truly, truly miss the ocean. Yes, we have an amazingly beautiful coastline, but it is chillllly! And I miss the diversity and culture. To me, not everyone and everything in L.A. is vacuous and superficial. To me, on the contrary, it is a wildly diversified place that is the hotbed of modern culture. This is the honest truth. I'm in my early 50s, and I've been in Oregon for about 6 years. I like it here, too. I think both places have advantages and disadvantages. No place is perfect. But I guess I'm one of the few people on this board who had a wonderful life in So Cal and have fond memories of the place. Traffic? Changed my lifestyle so I didn't have to deal with it so much. Crime? Surrounded my property with beautiful flowering bouganvilla vines. Ever try to climb over a bouganvilla bush? Pollution? Absolutely fricken' hated it, and that's one of the best things about Oregon. It's not nearly as polluted. But, I gotta tell you, living in Southern Oregon, there are plenty of days I head in toward Medford and see that familiar brown haze hanging along the base of the mountains. Like everyone else, I love the nature and greenery here. One night I had a dream that I had moved back to Cali (Santa Barbara, to be exact), and in my dream I missed the animals. Yes, I love looking out at horses and cows. And I dig the goats and love listening to the roosters in the morning and seeing the chickens waddle along the road. We have wild turkeys where I take my dog walking everyday, not to mention deer. These are the kinds of things I love about Oregon. Heck! I love BOTH Oregon and California. And, nunca, nunca have I ever encountered one bit of anti-California sentiment here. And I whip out my CA drivers license (still own a house there) every time I use my credit card. Matter of fact, most everyone here is from Cali. Well it seems that way sometimes. And, I, too, thought the weather was dreadfully boring in So Cal and appreciate the changes in season here. But make no mistake, winters are long and dreary and nothing is nicer than stepping out of the plane and feeling those glorious rays of sunshine on your vitamin-D deprived skin in -- oh, say, January. Got to take the good with the bad, though, in either location, and dig them both.

[Larry Caldwell]

Originally Posted by freedom

I respect your position, but in my opinion we have too strict of building codes, and this makes housing costs inflated beyond the ability of young families to afford. So they end up moving away.

Oregon has thee toughest zoning laws in the nation. Thanks to Gov. McCall. and the dense city concepts.

And we all know how unrestricted urban sprawl has made real estate so affordable in Southern California. If you think butchering Oregon is going to help working class people, you are sadly mistaken.

[freedom]

Actually urban sprawl is what made it possible for families to afford homes in So. CA... If the sprawl did not happen then homes would be even more expensive.

I remember in the 80's when San Bernadino, and Riverside counties were the only first time homebuyers chance of owning a home. Many of my friends and family moved out there in order to get into an affordable home. It needs to continue or the housing will be off the map with all of the people migrating there. Supply and Demand. Thats the way it works.

The i've got mine club in Oregon is sealing its own fate, because those that move here don't need high taxes to support local and state Gov. They are predominately retired and ready to keep all thier hard earned dollars, and I don't blame them a bit.

The only way to generate the needed revenue for Gov. services is through growth.
That won't happen so well, when there is no where to grow to. Lighten up the zoning laws and this state will flourish. Everything must grow, and move. Stagnation brings dispair and destruction.

[Larry Caldwell]

Originally Posted by freedom

Actually urban sprawl is what made it possible for families to afford homes in So. CA... If the sprawl did not happen then homes would be even more expensive.

I remember in the 80's when San Bernadino, and Riverside counties were the only first time homebuyers chance of owning a home. Many of my friends and family moved out there in order to get into an affordable home. It needs to continue or the housing will be off the map with all of the people migrating there. Supply and Demand. Thats the way it works.

The i've got mine club in Oregon is sealing its own fate, because those that move here don't need high taxes to support local and state Gov. They are predominately retired and ready to keep all thier hard earned dollars, and I don't blame them a bit.

The only way to generate the needed revenue for Gov. services is through growth.
That won't happen so well, when there is no where to grow to. Lighten up the zoning laws and this state will flourish. Everything must grow, and move. Stagnation brings dispair and destruction.

If you want to ruin a state, why don't you pick one where there is nothing worth saving, like North Dakota? There are lessons galore in California demonstrating the futility of trying to build your way out of congestion and high housing prices.

One of the most frustrating things about rural living is that people in cities don't seem to realize that they have an environment to take care of. The main reason so many people want to move to Oregon is that they ruined the place they live, and want to get away from it. They don't even see that they have any responsibility for the mess they made, they just blame it on everyone else and move on. When they get to Oregon, they want to keep right on wrecking the land like they did in California.

Not every value system comes with a dollar sign. There should be things in life you are not willing to sell.

[freedom]

California is not ruined. Most of the state is not even developed. Its mostly farmland and forests.

Now if you want to say that the bay area, LA basin and inland empire are congested with 30 million people that obviously think its worth the hassles, then I'd agree.
Though I don't see a mass exodus. If there was that in mind, this board would be jammed with people.

Oregon will not become like CA , ever.

The topography and politics are against it, and too many people have rain issues.

We have 3.5 Million in the whole state, give or take a few thousand. Not in your great, great, grandchildrens lifetimes will you see anything close to the CA. densities. And that is if nuclear war doesn't take us all first.

So give people their right to happiness, and allow property rights to be given back to those that pay the bills of this grand state, and you will see social issues, crime and poverty diminish substantially.
Since the housing boom, busted, crime in our area has increased. Hmmm. surprising. So has abuse of spouses, and drug abuse.
People have to have hope of a future, or they just get stupid. Since the enviros over regulated, building and developing is the only industry left for the blue collar man. Can't cut a tree, can't catch a fish, can't build industry, coom-bi-ya, no growth mentality.

freedom "to build a future"

[bettydane48]

Hello. I grew up in Huntington Beach (elementary school) and I still do love the beach very much. But...I have to say I will never permanently move back. Even if I had a ton of money, I would rather spend it on a great place here in Oregon. I have lived various towns in Oregon, and have my favorite spots. I do agree somewhat that Californians moving here is causing it to become MUCH more crowded (construction has quadrupled), however, it is good for our economy and creates more opportunities for all different types of people. I may move around a bit in Oregon throughout my life, but I have seen enough of it to never want to leave the state. There is soo much range. If you like rural living, big city life, ocean, rivers, lakes, mountains, sunshine, rain, its all here!

[The French Maid]

I was born in Los Angeles and raised in Anaheim California. I moved to Arizona in 1993 and then moved to Portland, OR in 2000.

I HATE Orange County. Its a giant overcrowded, overpriced, smog hell to me.

My dad lives in Dana Point which I guess is ok as far as OC goes but you still couldn't pay me to live there either. When I visit him, I count the days and hours till I return back to Portland.

The thing I don't understand is people that STILL live in OC (like many of my friends) think its the Alpha and Omega of places to live. My thinking is they just haven't seen anything else which they haven't

I say they can keep LA and Orange County. Bleah!

[furyu]

Originally Posted by The French Maid

... My dad lives in Dana Point which I guess is ok as far as OC goes but you still couldn't pay me to live there either. ....

The thing I don't understand is people that STILL live in OC (like many of my friends) think its the Alpha and Omega of places to live. My thinking is they just haven't seen anything else which they haven't

I say they can keep LA and Orange County. Bleah!

I agree! I lived just up the 'street' from the "Capistrano" area of Dana Point, which IS very nice for Orange County, in San Clemente. I used to go to "Pines Park" there in Capistrano to walk my dogs, and look at the ocean and the Dana Point harbor.

People love the area because of the weather. If you're lucky enough to live near the ocean, for the most part the weather is perfect: always warm, sunny with very little rain. That's what most people consider "perfect" but for me, it was quite boring. Having grown up on the east coast, I guess I got used to seasonal changes of weather.

But the traffic, the congestion and the artificiality of the environment is what makes OC unappealing to me.

I'm glad so many people like that area though... better they be there than here!

[AnaheimDude07]

I currently live in Anaheim Hills. I've lived here for over a year and have not liked it at all. Although I live near the Santa Ana River it's not a true river. Sure it's got water, if you want to call it that, but it smells and you tend to see things floating downstream that you shouldn't see. Rent out here is outrageous. 1295.00 per month for a one bedroom apartment that was built when Nixon was president, no moderm amenities, only one simple wall unit a/c that only cools down the living room but the bedroom remains 30 degrees warmer, forcing us to sleep in the living room during the summer. It's so expensive here that you regularly see 2-3 families sharing a one bedroom apartment in a space meant for 2 people. Kids running around all day now that school is out. You can't use the pool because there are always screaming, running , out of control kids with NO parental supervision and they invite their friends or other family members so we end up with a pool that we can't use. Then you have the train, roaring by and blasting it's insanely loud horns at least once an hour, even all night. They are so close to the apartments they shake everything as though you were having a very small earthquake.

The traffic is horrendous. You can expect heavy traffic starting as early as 4 am untill about 10am and then for the commute home the traffic starts at 2PM and goes on untill 7 PM. Insurance is insane for your vehicles. I have a clean record yet still have to pay over 2000 per year for insurance.

Housing in southern CA has become so expensive and unaffordable that you cannot find a decent place to live for under 500K. So unless you are making over 100K per year don't plan on ever owning a home here.

Even though I was born and raised here I'm very much looking forward to moving to Oregon. From what I've read and seen it looks like paradise and a great place to raise a family. I'm 33 right now and I'm ready to get my REAL life started.

So long OC......not gonna miss a thing.