Why do people still want to live in California? (Sacramento: big house, tornadoes)

[BGS91762]

Originally Posted by Racer46

There are also changes that are not good. Yes a person moving from a crowded city to a crowded one in CA may not see much of a difference. But for many the commute is atrocious and when from another State, even if they have never been to CA before they agree it is not good.



Then the higher costs make a difference even to a new resident. Check gas prices in CA VS say TN. State income tax, Registration, Electric charges (except to some extent by the coast) ad more. Yes if a native they have gone up a lot over the years, but moving from a State with no State Income tax, etc., it is not appealing.


CA has a tremendous amount of things that are nice and enjoyable, but it now has a lot of things that are not. New residents will see that as much as older residents.


This is happening everywhere, just more so in CA due to the population size and government decisions..

Check how much you will spend for AC and heat in TN compared to CA. Will probably make up for some of the higher expenses in CA.

[goolsbyjazz]

Originally Posted by GuyInSD

That's pretty much it for me.
If I could find another place outside of California (in the U.S.) that has a near-identical climate as coastal San Diego (with lower housing cost), then I'd seriously consider moving - but I have a feeling such a place doesn't exist.

It doesn't or we'd have heard about it already...and, it would probably be crowded!

[1AngryTaxPayer]

Originally Posted by BGS91762

Check how much you will spend for AC and heat in TN compared to CA. Will probably make up for some of the higher expenses in CA.

Actually, since we have the highest or some of the highest utility rates in the U.S. from what I've seen not even close. My BIL's place in N Carolina has two houses. One 1600 the other 2400. Last month his total bill for both was less than 150 bucks for both units. Here in E County it will run near a grand for a single house in the summer unless you have solar but that is another part of the spread sheet.

[1AngryTaxPayer]

Originally Posted by 18Montclair

Because Im impossible to please in the first place, and I dont find one red state remotely desirable anymore. I question the mental stability of any state that votes for Donald Trump.

What is Anthropomorphism for 100.

[Nut4sweets]

Originally Posted by Igor Blevin

Let's pretend it is 40 years into the future, and California 2060 is shockingly conservative, has cut all taxes and services, and has elected a former neo-Nazi for governor who wants to end all welfare and all services to the poor and to undocumented aliens, who oppressess gays and minority to the exent federal law allows, and has made possessing marijuana a felony crime, has ended all government spending for the arts, and allows everybody who wants to carry a concealed gun with no permit and no training.

Let throw in that governor would allow fracking and rolling back all the tough measures for good air and water quality, and also suppress the free press and rights for women, people of color and LGBTQ. That, my friend, is a little China in the Great USA!

I'm not worried that California will turn that way. There're still a majority of Californians who love the State as it is not to allow that to happen.

[evening sun]

Originally Posted by 1AngryTaxPayer

Actually, since we have the highest or some of the highest utility rates in the U.S. from what I've seen not even close. My BIL's place in N Carolina has two houses. One 1600 the other 2400. Last month his total bill for both was less than 150 bucks for both units. Here in E County it will run near a grand for a single house in the summer unless you have solar but that is another part of the spread sheet.

Our electric bill has never been anywhere near that amount. During summer, we run it often, as the days are in triple digits, but never that expensive. Anyone who has a thousand $ electric bill, is doing something wrong.

[TacoSoup]

Originally Posted by 1AngryTaxPayer

Actually, since we have the highest or some of the highest utility rates in the U.S. from what I've seen not even close. My BIL's place in N Carolina has two houses. One 1600 the other 2400. Last month his total bill for both was less than 150 bucks for both units. Here in E County it will run near a grand for a single house in the summer unless you have solar but that is another part of the spread sheet.

What are you talking about? I just got my bill emailed to me this morning and it was $156. I did see we got a $58 credit, but my bill is usually in that $150-$175 range for a few months in summer and winter, and right around $100, usually just under, most months. It’s a 1500 square foot ranch for context. To have a $1,000 bill you’d have to have vaulted ceilings and keep your thermostat to meat locker temps 24/7. My bill is certainly more than it was when I lived right off the coast, but I also have a washer/dryer, and more square footage now.

[Igor Blevin]

Originally Posted by Racer46

There are also changes that are not good. Yes a person moving from a crowded city to a crowded one in CA may not see much of a difference. But for many the commute is atrocious and when from another State, even if they have never been to CA before they agree it is not good.



Then the higher costs make a difference even to a new resident. Check gas prices in CA VS say TN. State income tax, Registration, Electric charges (except to some extent by the coast) ad more. Yes if a native they have gone up a lot over the years, but moving from a State with no State Income tax, etc., it is not appealing.


CA has a tremendous amount of things that are nice and enjoyable, but it now has a lot of things that are not. New residents will see that as much as older residents.


This is happening everywhere, just more so in CA due to the population size and government decisions..

Spot on correct.

And it is not just one problem. It is many problems.

For some, one problem is a deal breaker. If you can't afford to live, you can't afford to stay. Although California's very generous welfare and handouts pretty much allow anybody to live here, even albeit poorly.

For others, a combination of problems is just to much to endure. One or two of those problems may be sufferable, but the combination is overwhelming.

And all different people have different needs, so my reason for leaving won't always be the same as anothers.

The thing is, where people are flooding to a state that is rapidly growing, theres is always a genuine reason for it. It is not just happenstance. When your state is in the top 10 states people are leaving, it is not coincidence. There are always genuine reasons for it.

[Igor Blevin]

Originally Posted by CA4Now

Yet one could say that about any state. The Welcome Wagon, childhood games of Kick the Can in the streets, moms leaning over backyard fences with their cup of coffee to chat with each other, or zipping along any freeway unimpeded are probably gone in most states in this country.



When I was in my 20s, I knew plenty of people within that age group who had moved to southern California from N.J., N.Y., Chicago and Denver. Mostly for jobs or to get away from the area in which they grew up. They're still here.

If you read the CA forums, you see many threads from younger people who move here from other states and who aren't happy with their choice. They fault the area (many from the Westside), the snobby people, the lack of ability to meet others, the expensive housing.

I just don't agree that it's length of time as a resident that affects people's happiness here.

Woah! I was mentioning one factor in response to a post. I never said nor tried to imply that duration of living in a place is the ONLY reason people leave. Not by a long shot.

There are boat loads of people who move to sunny Florida because they loved vacationing there and are sucked in by the lack of state taxes, and weeks into summer they begin to hate it and leave ASAP.

There are big city people who decide, "Honey, lets move to Wyoming where we are free and not packed in with other people." The first snow and windstorm, they hate it there and move out ASAP.

I never meant to imply that recent residents can't have a reason to move. I was only trying to convey that it can be an important factor. For some of us, seeing a state move in a direction we don't want over a long period of time, can be a major reason to leave the state. It is more about what the state has become and less about the time it took. But the point is, a person staying longer will have seen much more decline, where they see decline.

That was my only point.

[Igor Blevin]

Originally Posted by BGS91762

Check how much you will spend for AC and heat in TN compared to CA. Will probably make up for some of the higher expenses in CA.

If I moved from Sacramento to Tennesssee today, I would save over $8,000 in California state taxes, or $650/month. I am not particularly rich. I don't have 2 incomes like most married people do.

It is my impression $650/month buys a lot of AC, and I am under the impression you don't even need AC during Spring or fall.

Meanwhile, I am paying $200/month for AC here in Sacramento during the 3 hottest summer months.

I am going to go out on a limb and say a few hundred more for summer AC and winter heat in Tennesse is not going to put a big dent in that $8,000 annual savings I get not paying California state income taxes anymore.

Don't even get me started how AC and heat are both getting more expensive in California due to insane environmental/green nanny-state commie requirements that 20% of all of our energy has to come from solar and wind. The entire reason we are now having rolling blackouts is because our utility companies can't go out and buy natural gas on the public market to meet peak demand becuase it would violate the 20% arbitrary green energy requirement out fantasy world dictators have imposed upon us.

And that is just for starters. Never mind lower house prices and a generally lower cost of living.

Oh, but sales tax is 7%. Yeah, same as here in Calfornia.