need advice on moving to Santa Cruz (San Jose, San Francisco: section 8, coupons)

[jmhunter]

I wouldn't live further north in SC County than Capitola... Aptos/Cap is the way to go.. Scotts Valley is nice/affluent as well.... To some santa cruz is beautiful, those some drink some strange Kool-Aid

[lz64]

[quote=Wisteria;1651295]Okay....I I live in Santa Cruz!! Avoid Watsonville -- too many gangs -- but it's still far from Santa Cruz.

Watsonville has the same amount of crime as Santa Cruz. There is a prejudice here about Watsonville (because of the Latino/farm worker community?). Salinas/Monterey County has more gangs that Watsonville.

As a woman, I am safer walking the streets of Watsonville than Santa Cruz. There was a rash of random violence against females earlier this year, that hasn't stopped completely yet. This is not happening in Watsonville.

White men (not gang members) have beat up random people at home because they thing there are drugs there.

[lz64]

Here's the 2 cents of someone who has lived here for 22 years of her adult life:

I agree with most everything said here, except mikeo1210 from Tennessee. The surfing is world class, which is why the big name surfers come here from around the world.

There are hippies, techies, ghettos, sweet neighborhoods (like La Selva Beach) artists, over-priced new-age classes, gangs, and obviously racists--as some of you have shown your own racism against Latinos here. Not all Latinos are in gangs, and not all gangs are of Latin descent.

Rents are too high (a $1200 2-bedroom apt is a dump or tiny in most instances), the weather is perfect, both the liberals and conservatives are snobs, the traffic is worse than over the hill (local commuters attest to this), and, wow, we're having an earthquake/tremor as I write this--haven't felt one of those in a while! The experts say we're do for a big one again.

But I digress...the bay is ice cold, but beautiful. It's a very expensive paradise. And it has become very crowded, which makes it less of a paradise than it used to be. But if you get to the beach in the morning in off-season, you breathe in the fresh bay air and are grateful to be here.

Many of us, including myself, are being pushed out financially. Landlords can, and do, ask for anything they want. (worst case: $2,750 per month for a mobile home space--you have to buy the coach on top of that!) It's always in the top 7 most expensive places to live.

If you have your heart set on SC, come out for a visit first. It has everything--good and bad.

Good luck to you!

[Wisteria]

Let me just add that I came from a VERY cheap place (Western New York), and by those standards, my standard of living rose quite a bit moving to Santa Cruz.

I think that many people do not do extensive research -- I am an information buff -- and I thoroughly research areas that I live in. That being said, anyone can live in Santa Cruz. Yes, the cost of living is higher, but the wages are much higher than most of the country. All one has to do is go into the County website and look at the wages for most jobs:

Santa Cruz County Government

I came here as a single mom with a 6-year-old daughter -- and I work for the county and have a home in Felton.

I advise ANYONE wanting to relocate to anyplace in the country to go and visit the place, stay for a week (or more), check it out thoroughly. Go to the "cool" places, to the businesses, get a street map and drive all over. Check out apartments/houses, etc.

In comparison to other places in the country, it seems expensive. But I have done it for the past 12 years as a single parent and my daughter is almost 18. I have a great job, great co-workers, and I think that people need to follow their heart. If you truly want to live near the ocean (you may not be able to afford a place within walking distance of the ocean but certainly within a 15-minute drive), then go for it.

I get so tired of people saying things can't be done. I came with very little, and I made it. It truly has to do with the motivation and desire of the individual wanting to relocate. Why discourage so many people? The reality is that they can return from where they came. And, if like me, they make it here, then they will reap the rewards.

I, personally, do not agree with the politics here. However, there are many other amenities that make it a wonderful place to live. Please, come and visit (even [PM me] visit with me), and see what there is here. Yes, it is expensive compared to other places, however, I have still made out better here than someplace else.

If your heart and your soul desires to be in a certain place...then follow that feeling. Some places are meant for us to be in, others are not (I know from experience). If things just work out, flow for you, and you are happy, then you are meant to be in that place.

Come and visit. If you want me to spend a day taking you around and seeing the sights nearby, let me know. The reality is, there is someplace for everyone. You must decide what your heart is telling you. Don't go by all statistics, don't go by some people on City-Data, go by your own evaluation of the place -- that is what counts. What for some people is awful, for others will be great.

Just follow your heart. And if you are young, skilled and motivated, then please, "Go for it!"

Good luck to you!

[mysticaltyger]

Originally Posted by AAPoolServiceLV

So Santa Cruz is Berkley by the sea? I had a friend that lived in Aptos and liked it. That city is close enough to Santa Cruz and I hear its much nicer when it comes to the neighborhoods? I could be wrong.. but usually nicer comes with a higher price too.

In some ways, yes. I lived in Berkeley for 5 months and liked it there, but moved because of a job change. Personally, I think Berkeley has a lot more character than Santa Cruz. It has nice views of the Bay, but no ocean. Fairly similar in climate (although a bit cooler than SC).

Aptos is nicer than Santa Cruz...but I imagine prices are also higher.

And as I and others have said, Santa Cruz County does not have much high paying industry.

[mysticaltyger]

Wisteria, you make some good points in your post. I make a modest salary in Silicon Valley but have done quite well financially because I'm a diligent planner and saver and am capable of ignoring what everyone else is doing. However, I know I'm not the norm in that regard.

So, you are right, that there are some people who seem to do well anywhere they go and others who just don't get it no matter where they are.

However, I usually aim my posts at what an "average" person would do...and on average, I think it's important that people know the economic odds that they're up against when they move here.

It most definitely takes an above average effort/awareness/level of flexibility to live well here and people need to know that.

[Wisteria]

mysticaltyger: Wisteria, you make some good points in your post. I make a modest salary in Silicon Valley but have done quite well financially because I'm a diligent planner and saver and am capable of ignoring what everyone else is doing. However, I know I'm not the norm in that regard.

So, you are right, that there are some people who seem to do well anywhere they go and others who just don't get it no matter where they are.

However, I usually aim my posts at what an "average" person would do...and on average, I think it's important that people know the economic odds that they're up against when they move here.

It most definitely takes an above average effort/awareness/level of flexibility to live well here and people need to know that.

Thanks. You're absolutely right about the "average" person. If someone visits Santa Cruz and they're taking the drive up West Cliff and see the awesome ocean scenery, the surfers, the wharf, the clear blue skies, they might want to live here....but as you said, it's not that simple.

For the non-average person, the motivated person, and the practical person, they can find a way to make it work. No, one won't have that huge home like in the midwest or from where I came from. Much of your salary is in scenery. And, if someone isn't wise enough to go through the information carefully and scope out rents, costs of buying a house, salaries, etc., then it is their own fault.

I just like to let people know that it can be done, because I often hear many people say to just "forget it." My theory, though, is that there is always room for the extra person -- me.

And, things don't often go well or easily in the beginning in any place. Be prepared for those bumps in the road.

You have pegged it, though -- I am not "average." I am very diligent, I keep to my budget, I take advantage of the many, many free and wonderful natural sights and events that abound here. If I were one to keep up with the Joneses, I wouldn't make it here. But I'm not. And I truly do enjoy taking a great hike in the redwoods, walking along the ocean, browsing in the shops, watching the surfers and sea lions. That gives me great pleasure.

So, to those who are "above average," then you can make it. Average and below, probably won't -- and I mean your motivation and self-discipline. Unless you are a multi-millionaire to begin with, you'll have to figure it out like those of us who are still here have done.

Thanks for making the point that due-diligence necessary to make it here!

[Grumbler]

Originally Posted by Wisteria

If someone visits Santa Cruz and they're taking the drive up West Cliff and see the awesome ocean scenery, the surfers, the wharf, the clear blue skies, they might want to live here....but as you said, it's not that simple.

Used to live in Santa Cruz from 1970-1977 which was well before it became an ex$pen$ive bedroom community for the Silicon Valley. However, gainful employment continued to be a challenge for most of us in that tourist/college town even back then which is why I (and many others) moved out to the Bay Area.

Commuting between Santa Cruz and Fremont got old pretty fast. In fact, we have a friend in South San Jose who commutes to Santa Cruz (she works for the Santa Cruz Metro bus service). All it takes is one accident to create the mother of all traffic jams over the hill unless you're able to get through as a lane-splitting motorcyclist.

One of my longtime friends has lived there all his life, and that's Kent Mohler of Mohler & Sons Vacuum on Soquel Drive at 41st Ave. However, he's planning to move out of Santa Cruz due to the escalating cost of living and congestion. Too many people live there which is why it feels like a suburb of San Jose by the ocean.

Was last in Santa Cruz on August 2006 during a friend's funeral, and have to admit that I wasn't quite expecting that much congestion in and out of Santa Cruz. Wasn't all that easy to get around even on our motorcycles.

However, Wisteria might well be more the exception than the rule as it's easier said than done, and has become exceedingly more difficult as the cost of living in Santa Cruz continues to escalate. The more people that you have to share the cost of housing with, the more problems due to diverse personalities, blah-blub-bub-bub. BTDT, and whose turn was it to do the dishes?

Santa Cruz does have a lot to offer though. It's all a matter of putting it into perspective as each and every community has its fair share of pros and cons.

That said, Arcata/McKinleyville remind me of what Santa Cruz was like back in the late 70s, and cost of housing is 50% less although the climate has about twice as many precip days, and about 90 fewer days of sunshine.

FWIW, we moved out to Boise, ID back in August of 2002.

[agreatlife]

Wow, this is the most fun thread. I lived in SC back in the 60s, and still go back to visit when I come to the Bay Area. It seems to me like it's been caught in a time warp - at least with all the hippies. What one poster said, ...they've legislated themselves to death, seems appropriate. But I still love the beauty of driving along E & W Cliff drive, and watching the surfers (I used to surf the Lane and the Hook). There's just something about the air that I love. Maybe it's just a nostalgia thing. I love going up to Felton, Ben Lomand, all that area too. Surprised to hear it's not as expensive as SC though.

[scarletfire]

We lived in Santa Cruz but left as soon as I got a job in San Jose as I was TERRIFIED to drive on Rt 17. And the skid marks running up and down what few jersey barriers there were did nothing to curb my fears. How do people survive that drive every day? I've heard that the mountain highway was not designed correctly in some way and that is part of why there's so many accidents there but don't really know enough details to speak to that. I mostly have worked in high tech and when we were in Santa Cruz, there were only three decent-sized high tech companies in the area and not a lot of job opportunities.

I wish you luck though. It's an interesting place. We found people very friendly. We lived near Pleasure Point and liked being close to the ocean, although the water was way too darn cold for me to swim in. Although maybe coming from Maine you won't find it so bad! :->