Life in Sacramento (Los Angeles, San Francisco, Napa: house, unemployment, restaurant)

[baltybart]

Just curious though, what's the life in sacramento right now? Any inputs will do. Were planning to move from Md.

[Majin]

It's a big party 24/7 where everybody gets wasted every night and collects welfare checks.

[wburg]

Kind of interesting, but not necessarily in a good way. The central city has been on an upswing over the past decade or so, but recent changes in the economy have had a strong negative effect--especially the 15% pay cut for state employees, as Sacramento is very much a government town and their lack of spending money has hurt local retail and restaurant business very badly.

Sacramento was off the radar for a long time, overshadowed by more exciting or economically active cities. We're on the radar now, and that brings attention for good or ill. People are starting to fight over their perceived territory. The new mayor is proposing a developer-backed initiative to give his office unprecedented power, that is causing a lot of consternation because this effort conflicts with some of his supporters who are not developers.

The suburbs around Sacramento took off like rockets during the boom, now they're descending like rockets that have run out of fuel in the crash. A couple of the surrounding communities are shaping up to be the winners while others may turn into ghost cities.

In general, life in Sacramento is like California's equivalent of the Midwest. We're still a city in the middle of a massive agricultural breadbasket, even if much of the adjacent farmland now sprouts no plants except for the lawns of new suburbs. We're a lot more real than the big-reputation cities like Los Angeles or San Francisco--for some that's a bad thing, for others it's good.

I have heard one or two people compare Sacramento to Baltimore (although we're smaller, cleaner and less dense) but I'm not sure how far to stretch that analogy as I haven't been to Baltimore. But, think of how New Yorkers or Bostonians think of Baltimore and you have a good sense of how San Franciscans or Angelenos think of Sacramento--poorly, or not at all.

[Majin]

Originally Posted by wburg

The new mayor is proposing a developer-backed initiative to give his office unprecedented power, that is causing a lot of consternation because this effort conflicts with some of his supporters who are not developers.

Geez man give it a rest already. Would you rather have status-quo Fargo in office? At least KJ is bought off by developers, Fargo was bought off by NIMBYs, which would your rather have?

I for one welcome my new developer overlords.

Originally Posted by wburg

A couple of the surrounding communities are shaping up to be the winners while others may turn into ghost cities.

That sounds like Stockon, where in Sacramento have places become ghost towns?[/quote]

[victoriaR]

I am also from MD and have been here about 7 years. I miss some things from MD, and others not so much. I would say Sac isn't really like Baltimore. Not NEARLY as much to do. I would say in ways of things to do it's like Frederick without the old civil war-era charm. . It's a safe, relatively sleepy city. There are a lot of outdoorsy things to do and a nice place to raise a family. The thing REALLY nice about CA is the weather. Dry, no humidity (no, there really isn't. I hear people complain about it and think they're crazy) and very few mosqitos and bugs. You are also in a nice location for going to other places in CA. All in all I am pretty happy here, but do miss so many things about MD. (however, I really would not like to move back there. I am more small towny, stay outdoors kinda gal so a Sac environment appeals to me more. I would prefer a small town back East, like towns around Charlotte, NC or some suburb of IL or something) AFA housing, well, I don't know what people are talking about. I think the winter will be pretty telling, but so far we have had bidding wars, waiting lists, etc and our own house sold within 3 days of putting it on the market. However we are in the mid-300's range which imo has been the most competitive.

[NewToCA]

I've spent quite a bit of time in the Baltimore area, and don't think Sacramento is much of a comp to Baltimore. I can't think of a major east coast city similar to Sacramento, the closest comp I can come up with is something on the order of a larger version of Harrisburg, PA.

[x15]

The local economy has really been hit hard by the collapse of the housing bubble with unemployment up by about 5% in the past year.

Layoffs ease but jobless rate up - Sacramento Business, Housing Market News | Sacramento Bee

If you didn't have a job lined up, I wouldn't be moving here. I would be looking some place else with a better local economy.

But if you do have secure employment, I think this isn't a bad time to move. Housing prices have dropped by half in the past 4 years. Napa Valley, Tahoe and SF are still less than a 100 miles away. The local climate hasn't changed.

Climate Information for Sacramento*-*California*-*West*-*United States*-*Climate Zone