Moving to california from new jersey. Suggestions? (Los Angeles, San Diego: apartments, rental)

[Wazz]

Hey everyone, new here so not sure of any rules or if there's something similar to this already asked. But I currently live in northern nj and hate it. From the weather, to the amount of crime that goes on in my city, to the people , pretty much everything. I have a girlfriend of 3 years right now and she'd willing to try out a move to the west coast as well.

My questions revolve around me being unfamiliar with california. I am 20 years old and I currently make around 45k a year WITH only my guarenteed job which I can transfer with. I do personal training on the side so I will not include that salary for the fact it is not guarenteed

I am looking to live kinda of beach side, where there's a nice culture of people that engage in getting along with one another. Genuinely a great place to live and explore. Don't have to live in a huge house but something manageable that doesn't look like a garbage can.
I know prices can be high but currently a 500sq ft apartment where I live is around $1000 a month so I'm already managing to pay that for no reason since I rarely go to the city

Any thoughts , advice, or information you can toss my way I would greatly appreciate it.

Thank you.

Cliffs
-20
-looking for a house by the beach
-safe as well as nice area
-somewhere sports friendly
- semi populated area
-moderate pricing
- somewhere to explore and enjoy life away from my miserable city I call home

[Wazz]

Hm. Bump ? : )

[Fran66]

Yes, I do have a thought: are you considering moving to San Diego or some pipe dream you have? :-)

[Wazz]

Originally Posted by Fran66

Yes, I do have a thought: are you considering moving to San Diego or some pipe dream you have? :-)

I'm considering any rational place that meets my preferences . I don't have a set location nor am I imagining anything other than something which can be achievable and is realistic. I'm not expecting paradise but I'm expecting to experience a different culture of living and if I'm going to do so I would want to live somewhere that meets most of my standards of living.

[2sleepy]

Originally Posted by Wazz

Hey everyone, new here so not sure of any rules or if there's something similar to this already asked. But I currently live in northern nj and hate it. From the weather, to the amount of crime that goes on in my city, to the people , pretty much everything. I have a girlfriend of 3 years right now and she'd willing to try out a move to the west coast as well.

My questions revolve around me being unfamiliar with california. I am 20 years old and I currently make around 45k a year WITH only my guarenteed job which I can transfer with. I do personal training on the side so I will not include that salary for the fact it is not guarenteed

I am looking to live kinda of beach side, where there's a nice culture of people that engage in getting along with one another. Genuinely a great place to live and explore. Don't have to live in a huge house but something manageable that doesn't look like a garbage can.
I know prices can be high but currently a 500sq ft apartment where I live is around $1000 a month so I'm already managing to pay that for no reason since I rarely go to the city

Any thoughts , advice, or information you can toss my way I would greatly appreciate it.

Thank you.

Cliffs
-20
-looking for a house by the beach
-safe as well as nice area
-somewhere sports friendly
- semi populated area
-moderate pricing
- somewhere to explore and enjoy life away from my miserable city I call home

you might be able to find a rental for $1000 way up on the North Coast, maybe Crescent City but I don't think it fits your idea of a beach town, and it's a small town not a lot of night life or exciting things to do for a 20 year old. It might be helpful if you mentioned the areas which you can transfer to.

[nightlysparrow]

Maybe Oxnard. Cliffs nearby. Has the rest

[Wazz]

Originally Posted by 2sleepy

you might be able to find a rental for $1000 way up on the North Coast, maybe Crescent City but I don't think it fits your idea of a beach town, and it's a small town not a lot of night life or exciting things to do for a 20 year old. It might be helpful if you mentioned the areas which you can transfer to.

Sorry I didn't mention cities because my.company is located all over california . San Diego , San fran, tustin, la , hollywood, bakerstown, and the list goes on so location for work wasn't really the problem . As for moving the company assists with the location I choose.

I will be making around 55k by the time I move there so I have some money to play with.
I'm looking to pay anywhere from 1200 -1600 a month.
And by the look of what most people have mentioned socal seams to be a bit more appealing for what I'm looking for. But no one has mentioned any specific cities or the pros and cons of them. I have researched multiple places Santa Monica , orange, hutchington beach , westwood and more but the Internet can only take you so far and nothing beats the real experience of being there. That's why I came here for assistance. Thanks again to everyone who has replied so far.

[Christopher777]

The standard of living in California is a function of your financial means. Generally, the closer you get to the ocean the more expensive it is to live. There are crime issues in California and being able to live away from that depends on financial means as well. Cities have a tendency to have "good" sections and "bad" sections. There is gang activity around the state and clashes between ethnic groups. Excerpt from a report on gang activity below.


A recently released CDC report studied five cities with high rates of gang murders.
Three of them were in California – Oakland, Long Beach and Los Angeles.
The report looked at the rate of gang-related homicides to non gang-related homicides. Researchers report gang murders are declining around the country. But young, minority males are still the main victims.
The CDC report found in L.A. 61 percent of the homicides for 15-24-years-old stemmed from gang violence. In Long Beach it was almost 70 percent.


On the other hand, I read that Newark, NJ has one of the highest homicide rates in the U.S. Crime is everywhere and in California the best way to stay away from it is location, location, location. Check out the surrounding area of any place you are thinking of living in California.


It sounds like you would prefer southern California especially if you want warmer beaches. Southern California is expensive to live but I understand that New Jersey is also pricey. Do some comparisons on the Internet on the renting of property which would be your greatest expense. I think auto insurance is about the same cost between the two states.

You will like the weather if you want to get away from the cold and snow. California can be hot depending on where you live. Just a little ways inland from the ocean can be quite warm in the summer.

California has Yosemite National Park, Ansel Adams Wilderness Area, etc. up in the mountains that is fabulous. If you like the outdoors these would be attractive to you. Great hiking in Yosemite. I have backpacked in the Ansel Adams Wilderness Area and it is really cool.

Maybe this gave you some helpful information.

[Wazz]

Originally Posted by Christopher777

The standard of living in California is a function of your financial means. Generally, the closer you get to the ocean the more expensive it is to live. There are crime issues in California and being able to live away from that depends on financial means as well. Cities have a tendency to have "good" sections and "bad" sections. There is gang activity around the state and clashes between ethnic groups. Excerpt from a report on gang activity below.


A recently released CDC report studied five cities with high rates of gang murders.
Three of them were in California – Oakland, Long Beach and Los Angeles.
The report looked at the rate of gang-related homicides to non gang-related homicides. Researchers report gang murders are declining around the country. But young, minority males are still the main victims.
The CDC report found in L.A. 61 percent of the homicides for 15-24-years-old stemmed from gang violence. In Long Beach it was almost 70 percent.


On the other hand, I read that Newark, NJ has one of the highest homicide rates in the U.S. Crime is everywhere and in California the best way to stay away from it is location, location, location. Check out the surrounding area of any place you are thinking of living in California.


It sounds like you would prefer southern California especially if you want warmer beaches. Southern California is expensive to live but I understand that New Jersey is also pricey. Do some comparisons on the Internet on the renting of property which would be your greatest expense. I think auto insurance is about the same cost between the two states.

You will like the weather if you want to get away from the cold and snow. California can be hot depending on where you live. Just a little ways inland from the ocean can be quite warm in the summer.

California has Yosemite National Park, Ansel Adams Wilderness Area, etc. up in the mountains that is fabulous. If you like the outdoors these would be attractive to you. Great hiking in Yosemite. I have backpacked in the Ansel Adams Wilderness Area and it is really cool.

Maybe this gave you some helpful information.

Absolutely and I greatly appreciate it. And yes Newark is right next to me so can't get much worse , I have to travel there at least 3x a week it's just normal to me to be around that stuff unfortunately.

I was looking at Santa Monica but from the apartments I researched you get very little for a lot of money. I think the cheapest apartment I found over there was 1600 a month for like a 600sqft apartment. I'm not too concerned about the size of the apartment as I am it's surroundings.
Am willing the I live in something tiny for the I the reason I am only one person and will not plan on throwing parties or nothing .

A simple living room kitchen bedroom bathroom is fine with me. But yes my mind seems to aiming towards santa monica . Location seems perfect and from what I hear it is a great place to live. If anyone has any input or think other wise I'm all ears ! Thanks everyone

[NoMoreSnowForMe]

I don't know southern CA, so I'll just mention a couple places farther north, in case you want that info.

The Santa Cruz/Capitola or Monterey areas might fit the bill. Pricey, but might be possible.

Next, I'd think you'd have to go up to Eureka/Arcata. Definitely colder, but lots of young people because of the university.

I love living in Crescent City, but there isn't much to do here for young people, really. And it's much colder - you don't see people hanging around in bikinis here. Definitely affordable.

I'm thinking you'd like Santa Cruz and Capitola best of the above options. Young people play volleyball on the beach there, and there is a big surf culture. It's also just a 30 minute drive over the mountain to San Jose and lots of sports stuff. Wasn't sure if by sports you meant to go watch professional sports. But, if you meant hiking, biking, surfing, etc., that's all to be found in Santa Cruz, too.

So, of northern CA options, I think you should check out Santa Cruz. You also won't get a very big apartment for your budget, but the weather is so great, you'll be outside most of the time, anyway.