For those wanting to move out of California, or for those that already have (San Diego: 2015, how much)

[CentralCoastAdvisor]

Hey SedonaAZ,

Is Sedona still super new age where most everything closes down at 6pm? I was there for a week while my parents baught land about 15 years ago. Gosh, time flies by. I'm sure it has grown a lot since then...With all do respect I just remember all the crystals and a lot of spacy hippies. I'm sure it is much more posh now. I remember we ate at the Prickly Pear. Is that still there?

[kukla1]

For those of youl ooking into Wyoming, Laramie is a great place. Like the rest of the state, the winters are severe. However, the university is there, and this brings in quite a bit of culture; opera, ballet, concerts, etc. The town is lovely. We spend several weeks in Laramie every summer...I said SUMMER!!!!!! It beautiful! I love the period of time every summer when we get spectacular lightening/rain storms every afternoon. Then the sun comes out and it's gorgeous.

If you are thinking of Wyoming at all, forget the Casper area - very bleak, even in summer. Can you imagine it in the winter? Aye-yi-yi!

[killer2021]

I'll be moving out to Texas, preferably Dallas/Forth Worth area.
Reasons:
1)Cheap homes
2)Fair tax system
3)Decent amount of jobs

That is about it. Everything else about the area sucks. You gotta sacrifice something to make it in this world!

[GoodbyeBrownSky]

Jdavid, dude, you said it my friend, HAH! You said it all, much better than I could have put it. Thank you for that, truly.

[educationbound2006]

I am from Florida, which is where I'm moving back to. California is too liberal and the people are, as my mom says, "out for themselves." I miss the friendly and warm atmosphere of the Florida sun.

[Capt. Dan]

Left San Luis Obispo for west Tennessee. I sold my average 3 bedroom house for 298,000 in California and bought a new 2 bedroom modular home on 18 acres of mostly trees on a beautiful lake for 49,000. Most of all its nice to be back home in a place where the children still say yes maam or yes sir. neighbors still know and care about each other. But its also nice to be in a state that hasnt ruled and regulated itself to death!

[candidarlee]

We want out of California, it's gotten too much for us. Any advice of place in the Southeast? Georgia, N & S Carolina and Florida is where we are looking. I HATE snow, and husband can not do places like Seattle. Any thoughts / suggestions would be fantastic!

[Capt. Dan]

Originally Posted by candidarlee

We want out of California, it's gotten too much for us. Any advice of place in the Southeast? Georgia, N & S Carolina and Florida is where we are looking. I HATE snow, and husband can not do places like Seattle. Any thoughts / suggestions would be fantastic!

If I had to do it again i would include Myrtle Beach SC in my places to consider. But you really cant beat the cost of living here in West Tennessee!

[Charles]

Originally Posted by candidarlee

We want out of California, it's gotten too much for us. Any advice of place in the Southeast? Georgia, N & S Carolina and Florida is where we are looking. I HATE snow, and husband can not do places like Seattle. Any thoughts / suggestions would be fantastic!

Depends on his work situation. What line of work is he in? Or, is he retired?

If he happens to be in technology, I strongly recommend Huntsville, AL. Lots of jobs, no traffic, beautiful homes at $75- $100/sqft, excellent schools, very low taxes. But, winters (like much of the US) can be rainy, cloudy, and cold. Summers are warm and sometimes humid but not that bad (winters are worse). People are really (genuinely) friendly and relaxed. Great place for families.

[Pilotprincess]

Originally Posted by jdavid93225

Although I will not be leaving for good any time soon, I do plan to retire out of California. I am staying put because I am firmly planted in my career and am more than half way through, and have a very good retirement plan that I intend to take full advantage of. By the time I do leave, I should also be able to take a very favorable capital gain from the sale of my home here.

Financially, retiring out of California looks much more favorable than staying here. I already have property in Wyoming, which is one of several states that does not have any income tax. In addition, property taxes and sales taxes are much more favorable than California.

The main reason I am planning to leave California, is that it has become far too crowded for me, and is getting worse all the time. In areas where I used to be able to get across town in about twenty minutes, it now regularly takes forty five minutes. Some places it's even worse than that. In places where I used to be able to drive safely down the street, there are so many people living in apartments that both sides of the street are jammed full of parked cars, creating a hazard when people don't park close enough to the curb, or when the open the door or dodge out from between the parked cars. The parked cars also prevent people from pulling to the side of the street when stopping or preparing to turn, causing more congestion. The streets are really too narrow to allow for parking on both sides, and often leave too little room for two cars to pass each other safely in the remaining space. This condition is no longer the exception, but has become the norm in many areas.

The other major reason I am planning to leave is the political climate in California. It is a state where you are judged more harshly because you are a legal gun owner than if you are a criminal. The taxes are high, and continue to increase supposedly to pay for improvements to the infrastructure, such as schools, hospitals, police and fire services, roads, and so on. The problem is many of these systems are failing miserably, and the politicians keep saying it's because they don't have enough money. It is a vicious cycle that has not been kept in check. There seems to be no accountability on the part of the various agencies to keep within their budgets and to provide the service they are supposed to provide. With all the money I've paid in gas taxes over the years, and knowing that there are about 35 million other people in California, many of which contribute gas taxes, our roads here are about the worst I've seen anywhere in the nation. Part of the reason is that some of the roads are so crowded that they become nearly impossible to shut down to allow resurfacing. Another part of the reason is that the gas taxes that are collected to provide highway maintenance funds have been redirected to the general fund, which has been used to finance many other things besides roads.

The freedoms of Californians have been in jeopardy for many years, and are continually being eroded in the name of "public safety," "biological diversity," "environmental sensitivity," or "ethnic diversity." While each of these causes has a noble and honorable intent at the core, each of them has been used, and continues to be used, to whittle away the freedoms that Californians used to enjoy. At the rate at which these changes are happening, it won't be long until everyone is told where to live and work, how many children they can have, what to think, and where and when they can go on vacation, and so on. People will not be able to think or act independently, because that would be contrary to the "public good." To me this sounds like a scary science fiction novel, but it is quickly becoming the reality here. If you don't conform to the mold, you are labeled intolerant, racist, supremacist, bigot, chauvinist, homophobe, anti-so-and-so, or something similar. In some instances, the label fits, but often it is just a slur that is thrown at someone to discredit them and keep them from voicing their opinion.

I have seen the wonderful state of California diminished from one of the greatest places to live to becoming one of the worst. For the reasons mentioned above, I will be glad to get out of here when I have the chance.

This man is a genius! He said it all and quite well too. I am in the same place as him and want to leave so bad.