Why do people still want to live in California? (San Diego: camping, high income)

[Thaitea]

I still live here because I was born here. My job and license does not exist in other states so I am “trapped” unless I go back to school which I don’t really have money for. Most likely I will move in 25 years when I can retire. I would really like to move in 5-10 years, but it won’t happen for lots of reasons.

[Bill the Butcher]

Originally Posted by Tulemutt

Toodles ... you will be missed ... like a sinus headache.

Lol.

[GoodHombre]

Honestly, the only big problem California has is affordability.

If you can afford it, California is still the best place to live in America. Living in a nicer place is a luxury, you have to pay to play.

If Texas is a honda civic, California must be a Lexus LS. Honda Civic owners can argue that Lexus LS isn't worth the price tag, but you know which one is better.

[GoodHombre]

Originally Posted by BostonBornMassMade

Do poeple in Califronia not realize that a lot fo other states really suck? And dont have beaches, mountains, economic hubs, diversity or good weather...

Diversity is something a lot of people on C-D want to avoid, lol.

[mcp86]

Originally Posted by emotiioo

I'm hopeful we can get some more thoughtful answers on this subject. So far we have:

Weather. Which I find debatable but ok.
Jobs. Sure but there's other healthy markets.
Family and friends are there. Valid.
Proximity to Asia. Valid. But I would also point out that other west coast states offer that as well
Too difficult to leave. Okay.
Food? That's very subjective. There's definitely other places where there are vibrant and diverse food scenes. And if you like Mexican 8 happen to think New Mexico wins this particular category but again, subjective.
Biodiversity. Hmmm. With mountain lions and other native animals squeezed out by the population, redwoods burning and droughts i don't know if that's one we should count.

Anything else?

Many have told about outdoor activities, I can share my thoughts,

Weather - I have lived in Oklahoma, NYC, Texas and visited many other places. Places which I didn't visit, have seen how it is from friends and internet. I am quite sure CA has the best weather comparatively for whole yr in whole USA.

Jobs - From tech perspective, for jobs CA > Seattle > NYC. No other state comes even close to CA. 60% of tech jobs are in CA in the whole USA. Simple linkedIn search will give you the data. Every other place has small number of companies and if you end up with a bad manager you have to stick with that person for a long time since there's no option! In CA I get the freedom to jump to n number of companies.

Food - NYC is the best in whole USA mainly because of varieties of cuisines available and SF comes second for sure. This is because of the diversity in population. I started buying in imperfect food as I though the concept was good and I asked my friend in AZ to check it but it was not available there. This is a small ex but you do get small perks living in places like NY or CA.

When I was about to shift to Bay Area from NYC people here scared me that I could never get 1 bd apt in a good area less than $2500 with all my conditions i.e. close to BART, in-home washer/ dryer, walkable to groceries because I don't own a car. I was able to get everything for $1940 and I see decent apts rented for $1500 too. My company implemented permanent remote work and I researched a lot to shift to Austin or Seattle but overall CA seems to be better in many aspects.

I am new to Bay Area but have lived in LA for 1 yr before nowhere I have seen the kind of bashing CA gets compared to any other state. I really don't understand why there is extreme bashing. I understand the housing cost problem (major compromise to live in CA) and other problems but which place doesn't have a problem or has all comforts you require? Even I thought I can never afford home when I came here before 10 months but now after researching I see there are some pretty decent areas having some what affordable homes.

Every place has some kind of compromise and it depends on each individual to take which compromise they would fall with. Some just calculate $ saved neglecting many other small comforts big cities/ places give. Some look at various aspects of life and not just $. It's individual's choice and I feel CA falls in the latter part.

Cheers!

[MIDAYADA]

Originally Posted by ZeApelido

3 Steps to a Good Troll Job

Step 1. Massively exaggerate all the the downsides of living in Callifornia.

Step 2. Refuse to engage in a thoughtful conversation and instead resort to ad-hominem attacks

Step 3. Say no one has addressed your concerns and are now done talking.

Fair comments from what i've read so far.

[CA4Now]

I merely pointed out that the masses cannot afford to live in CA that currently live there.

Yet for some reason, they stay. Many, many of our kids' friends, coworkers, cousins, neighbors--nearly all of whom are millennials--struggle in some way, financially, here. Certainly far more than our generation did when we were young adults in this state. Many of them who have gone to college or taken jobs outside California return. They double and triple up, postpone marriage and/or children, rent (and don't really care that they don't own). Or they bought fixers during the last housing downturn in 2012-13 and rent rooms out to friends to pay the mortgage. Their professions range from attorney to food service worker. They pay off huge school loans.

But for whatever reason, they don't leave. They like it here. If they're labeled "unable to afford it," they don't care. They have a different metric for happiness.

[pacific2]

Originally Posted by CA4Now

Yet for some reason, they stay. Many, many of our kids' friends, coworkers, cousins, neighbors--nearly all of whom are millennials--struggle in some way, financially, here. Certainly far more than our generation did when we were young adults in this state. Many of them who have gone to college or taken jobs outside California return. They double and triple up, postpone marriage and/or children, rent (and don't really care that they don't own). Or they bought fixers during the last housing downturn in 2012-13 and rent rooms out to friends to pay the mortgage. Their professions range from attorney to food service worker. They pay off huge school loans.

But for whatever reason, they don't leave. They like it here. If they're labeled "unable to afford it," they don't care. They have a different metric for happiness.

[saibot]

Originally Posted by retired happy

like hanging out with the homeless in dtla or steeping around the needles and human waste in SF or driving around the mudslides and fires or paying enormous fees for camping, utility taxes, gas, electricity

or having out with people who wont speak English like in garden grove, alhambra or ducking bullets in south central you mean

Eliminating those few areas still leaves many, many, many other locations. Trust me when I say that nothing you mentioned affects me or most other Californians ever.

Your mention of "enormous fees for camping" strikes me as especially odd. We just made reservations to camp at Joshua Tree later in the fall. A campsite for six people is $25/night. Does this seem unaffordable?

[semispherical]

Originally Posted by retired happy

like hanging out with the homeless in dtla or steeping around the needles and human waste in SF or driving around the mudslides and fires or paying enormous fees for camping, utility taxes, gas, electricity

or having out with people who wont speak English like in garden grove, alhambra or ducking bullets in south central you mean

Please let us know your personal experience with any of these? Or are you just seeing cherry-picked photos/videos from right-wing websites (and I don't even understand why; my area of CA is deep crimson). Bet you don't even live in CA, amirite?

I can find lots of scary videos right now

(https://www.google.com/maps/@41.5837...g%2F11hjjy3f_b)

about TX, MS, MO, IN, IL, AR etc -- how about going on those fora and annoying them?