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We pay $1070 a month, plus electricity and phone; water and trash are covered. We live in one of the cheapest complexes in this city so that we can afford to stay in a nice area with good schools; but the thought of moving somewhere cheaper where we can actually afford to live is very appealing, and I've been looking into it a great deal. We never dreamed we would be in this predicament while earning such a decent wage. It was a huge shock to us to find out that making so much can only get us so little here; it's disheartening.
That honestly is a good price for rent in a safe neighboorhood in CA. The landlord pays some utilities too? How big is that apartment? I am supprised the rents in CA are as cheap as FL, yet to buy in CA is much more expensive than in FL! How do the landlords even break even with only $1070 rent? I cant find a 2/2 condo for less than $1000 here in south FL without it being in a high crime area. Most 2/2 condos in fact cost $1200-1500 to rent. Dont you think if your paying the same to rent in FL vs. CA that the obvious choice would be to live in CA because the same job pays much higher and plus CA is just a better location
Before you decide to relocate, you must consider the cut in salary. Yes renting is like throwing money away but if you take a big hit in salary when relocating, you wont be any better off. I was thinking maybe you could stay in CA if your salary warrants the fact your stuck renting because there is plenty left over due to cheap rent to save away for retirement then you can relocate as you retire and live the rest of your life off the retirement money
Location: Monterey Bay, California -- watching the sea lions, whales and otters! :D
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California -- go for it!
I think you could/should do it. If you really want to be here, and it sounds like you don't have a family yet, then do so.
I know it may sound dorky, but I believe that if you are really drawn to a place, and you feel that passionate about it, then do it. I've lived in places that people discouraged me from living in because it was "too expensive," "you won't get a job," "you won't find a place to live," yada yada yada. But I did, and things worked out quite well.
Now, 12 years ago, I moved to California (!) with a 6-year-old child, no job, no savings, and stayed with a friend's mother. (In retrospect, I think I must have been crazy to do so.) Again, people discouraged me, etc., and here I am 12 years later, with a government job, I OWN a home (in an area of North Central California where you can actually get something for $300,000 -- which is typical here). My daughter was raised in California and will be graduating high school from here next year.
She often thanks me for raising her here (instead of the cold northeast where we could have stayed). I only make $50,000/year, and I pay my mortgage alone (I'm divorced). I don't have a new car, but I also have a kid to support and they're expensive!
My point is that "where there's a will, there's a way." It sounds simplistic, but usually when I move to a new place and people have been discouraging me, I just say "There's got to be one more apartment, one more job, and one more place for me." And there is.
If California is your passion, then do it. Sometimes that very passion can serendipitously lead you to people you wouldn't normally meet, a chance encounter that leads to a great job or place to live, all kinds of things. There are millions of people living in California and they are not all millionaires.
So, you don't get as glamorous a house as you might someplace else -- you can always fix it up, you may be in an area where you'll spend more time outdoors anyway, and you might just luck into a job, or place, or entrepreneurial situation that brings you more than what you have now. You may meet more people of like mind who help you to realize your dream.
I'm just speaking from my own personal experience, and I truly do believe that if you feel so strongly about something, like living in California, then you ought to go for it. What's the worse that can happen? You don't get a great job, or you pay more for the cost of living and you decide to return from where you came or go someplace else.
See it as an adventure. If you don't try, you'll never know! Good luck to you!!
I think a salary of 100k for a single guy would suffice. My husband is the only breadwinner in our family and he makes about 40k less than that and we are doing just fine. But then again....we bought our home at the right time so that has made a big difference. We currently live in the Temecula valley area of southern california and our mortgage is what some folks are now paying for rent...and that's for a small apartment.
But honestly, alot of what makes living in California so expensive from what I see is not so much the day to day neccesities as it is this California attitude of "keeping up with the Jones'".
I think alot of young working class families get caught up in trying to fulfill their own sterotypes of what kind of lifestyle they think the typical family has to have. Here on my street practically every family has three cars and at least two of those aren't yet paid for. Then half the families go in to debt to have a pool...and not just a nice afforable pool that we all loved as kids...but these ugly fake boulders surrounding and rock slides and those overpriced straw umbrellas.
Many of the tract homes are so huge they require two air conditioners. This past summer there were articles in the paper about families getting electricity bills ranging from $300-$1000. No joke!
It's standard now that the typical family has a TV, a PC, and a cell phone for every member of the family. Ten year olds with cell phones and MySpace accounts...and the ones who don't have these are accused of having strict parents. The real point is it all adds up folks.
Yes,it costs more money to live in California then in other states, especially if your pursuit of happiness is based on gaining things you can't really afford.
So yeah, I think that $100k can afford you a decent quality of life here in the Golden State - but only if you are rich enough to own the virtue of contentment.
That honestly is a good price for rent in a safe neighboorhood in CA. The landlord pays some utilities too? How big is that apartment? I am supprised the rents in CA are as cheap as FL, yet to buy in CA is much more expensive than in FL! How do the landlords even break even with only $1070 rent? I cant find a 2/2 condo for less than $1000 here in south FL without it being in a high crime area. Most 2/2 condos in fact cost $1200-1500 to rent. Dont you think if your paying the same to rent in FL vs. CA that the obvious choice would be to live in CA because the same job pays much higher and plus CA is just a better location
Before you decide to relocate, you must consider the cut in salary. Yes renting is like throwing money away but if you take a big hit in salary when relocating, you wont be any better off. I was thinking maybe you could stay in CA if your salary warrants the fact your stuck renting because there is plenty left over due to cheap rent to save away for retirement then you can relocate as you retire and live the rest of your life off the retirement money
We may be paying what seems like a decent rate, but believe me there's a reason for it. This complex has so many things wrong with it , I wouldn't even know where to begin; and I'd be way too embarrassed to even try. Just up the street from us are many nicer complexes where rents go for anywhere from $500-$1000 more per month for the same number of bedrooms and square feet (approx. 900 sq ft).
The hit in money we would take to relocate is precisely what keeps us here, because it does cost so much to make that kind of move. Plus, we have all our family/friends here. If and when we move, it will be to a state that isn't coastal, somewhere in the midwest most likely, as I love the open plains. It would be much cheaper somewhere like that for sure, but then again salary would be less. We figure, though, that if my husband's salary takes a 50% cut, but we could by a house for 1/5 the price as here, we'll still come out ahead. At least that's the hope! Honestly, we'll probably wind up staying here to be by family, finding a decent condo to settle into in about 5 year's time; who knows.
To the poster making $50k a year and living in northern interior CA, if you bought that house several years ago, it may have only cost like $125k to $150k. Ask yourself if you could afford it at over $300k today. Nope.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bkeast
We may be paying what seems like a decent rate, but believe me there's a reason for it. This complex has so many things wrong with it , I wouldn't even know where to begin; and I'd be way too embarrassed to even try. Just up the street from us are many nicer complexes where rents go for anywhere from $500-$1000 more per month for the same number of bedrooms and square feet (approx. 900 sq ft).
The hit in money we would take to relocate is precisely what keeps us here, because it does cost so much to make that kind of move. Plus, we have all our family/friends here. If and when we move, it will be to a state that isn't coastal, somewhere in the midwest most likely, as I love the open plains. It would be much cheaper somewhere like that for sure, but then again salary would be less. We figure, though, that if my husband's salary takes a 50% cut, but we could by a house for 1/5 the price as here, we'll still come out ahead. At least that's the hope! Honestly, we'll probably wind up staying here to be by family, finding a decent condo to settle into in about 5 year's time; who knows.
I guess the adherge of "you get what you pay for" rings ever true. I have some guesses of what problems your condo may have but ill keep it private. Do you feel the $1070 a month is a "good deal" despite the problems? I would think so, id be willing to deal with almost any problem that isnt a health or safety problem. If its a structrual problem, that I can deal with.
I stood correct when I mentioned you may take a hit in salary if you relocate. What city in CA are you in? Maybe real estate prices will drop enough for you to afford a condo. I hope your salaries also go up to further help things. Are you going to be happy living in a 900 square feet condo instead of a huge 5 bedroom detached house elsewhere?
Whatever you decide to do, I wish you luck. I am in a similar situation here in south FL. But I dont have the problem since im self employed. I hate south FL so im leaving that and probably leaving FL alltogether. My parents live in south FL but theres no reason they can easily relocate to a better location and live near me. Even north FL is much better(see my thread on it) but id need to be rich because even a starter house is $200k and bigger, nicer houses of course cost more. Those prices make me shudder in comparsion to the same house I can get in the northeast for as much as 4x cheaper!
When we first moved to this apartment complex, we thought, "Man, what a deal! A 2-bd, 2-bath in Rancho Cucamonga for only $1000!" The longer we live here, though, the more desperate we become to get out (we've been here 3 years). Without delving into too much detail, the problems we've encountered here are more than just structural, I'm sorry to say. Because of these reasons, we're now more in a hurry to find a better place to live than ever before.
Unfortunately, my husband's construction job just belly flopped due to a slowing trend in the housing market, so he just got another job making less money, which leaves us no way out for the time being. We really thought we were making the right choice by taking the lesser apartment over a nicer one for more money; we've since realized that some things are just worth the extra money.
My husband and I have been renting ever since we moved in together, out of our parents' houses, over 11 years ago. We are so ready to be done with having neighbors on our bedroom wall, on top of us, below us, etc, etc. We're so ready to be done with parking issues, detached garages, small living spaces, stupid rules and regs (my son isn't even allowed to ride his bicycle here, and he's only 6!) and no back/front yards. I can't even tell you what it would mean to us to have a house of our own; it would be our biggest dream come true. So, no, I won't be content with a condo instead of a 5-bedroom house somewhere else.
The problem is, my husband is very close with his family and doesn't want to walk away as badly as I do. I have only one close relative left here in California, so for me it's not as big a deal. That's why we were looking into Texas, because it wouldn't be so far away as many other places. But, we've been finding that Texas has a lot of issues as well, so who knows what we'll do. I wish there were easy decisions with easy answers, but I guess that's just not how life works.
I wish you a lot of luck in finding a place outside of FL. Hopefully both of us will stumble upon what we've been waiting for, and our quality of life will finally be able to improve. Best wishes in your pursuit of a better place to call home.
Location: Monterey Bay, California -- watching the sea lions, whales and otters! :D
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Central California on $50,000
Quote:
To the poster making $50k a year and living in northern interior CA, if you bought that house several years ago, it may have only cost like $125k to $150k. Ask yourself if you could afford it at over $300k today. Nope.
Hi. Actually, I bought my house on a lesser salary for $245,000 and pay $1400/month for mortgage -- which is the same that rent is going for condos here!! I live in the Santa Cruz area only 6 miles from the beach!
You see, my philosophy is that things CAN happen. I do believe a lot of it is attitude -- yes, I know, having a good income helps, and all of that. I have a higher education and I actually could have a job paying more but because I'm a single mom, I stayed in my lower-paying job because it affords me flexibility with time and allows me to bring my child to work with me, when I need to.
Yes, most prices are crazy....but look all over the country...it's the same! In Western New York where I'm from originally, I just checked housing costs, and those houses are going up, up, up. Sure, to a Californian, a Victorian for $180,000 seems like a steal -- but when you factor in at least 3% for property taxes, then you are paying as much for that $180,000 house in property taxes as a $540,000 house here! There are many factors to moving. In addition, I had to borrow money from a friend to have in place for the loan, but paid it back with my income tax return -- I do not have any family money or other money to fall back on. I am also very careful about budgeting, but I do not believe I deprive myself or my daughter.
I found a place in a more rural area, but still only a few miles from the coast. Most people here in this county would rather pay $700,000 for a home to be near the beach. I don't care if I have to drive 20 minutes to get there.
As CantWait2BeThere said, many people ARE trying to outdo the Jones's. I have family like that, too, although I don't fit into that category.
I think that many people have lost sight of simple pleasures. In my household we do have cable television, which we got a few years ago after ALL the tv channels were gone -- we're higher in elevation, and eventually we got no reception. We just last month broke down and got high speed internet -- my daughter needs it for high school, and we could no longer wait 20 minutes for a page to load because of graphics.
We both do not have a "real" cell phone -- she has a pay-as-you-go phone, which we put on the minimum of $15/month. We don't have a pool -- there are plenty of beautiful hiking places within 10 minutes of our house, a lake with paddle boating for only $5 for two hours down the street; we have horse stables nearby with hiking trails, the beach and boardwalk are only 6 miles away....you don't need that much money, except for rent/mortgage. We don't have an air conditioner, we have a fan. We shop at Trader Joe's, Grocery Outlet and Ross.
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So yeah, I think that $100k can afford you a decent quality of life here in the Golden State - but only if you are rich enough to own the virtue of contentment.
I second that quote above. We have neighbors across the street who owned several houses around town (the husband was a contractor), and they just HAD to move by the beach...so they moved without selling their home, and now the home is in foreclosure....no one in their family would go out and get a job and help pay the mortgage so they wouldn't lose the house. I was stunned. They bought the house by the beach, and just got lazy, and let the house be taken over by the bank. They have kids in their early twenties who live off them, and the wife doesn't work....I just was amazed that no one pitched in (and the contractor is also a surfer dude, so I don't think he cared too much either). So, they have their house by the beach but another house in foreclosure....
My daughter spent the last semester abroad as a foreign exchange student. Normally, that's a pursuit that "rich" people have for their kids -- we worked for 5 long months to get her scholarships to have that experience. People who don't know about the scholarships, would think that we shelled out a lot of money, but we didn't. Sometimes it takes work, and inspiration, and belief and that contentment in simple pleasures to make it happen.
Yes, housing is expensive, but when you factor in property taxes, low salaries, and other taxes in other states, you'll see how a lot of it balances out. It is expensive all over the country. I truly believe that if a person really desires to be in a certain place, that they should go and live there. It may just be that it is the place for them, and there is some internal drive that is pulling them to that place. I have seen many amazing things in my lifetime, and I do believe that "where there's a will, there's a way." I have seen it happen over and over again.
I don't know if it's the media that has influenced people to such a point that they spend way too much, and feel like they don't have enough, or what.
I do think too much materialism is ruining a lot of folks. I have a huge yard in the redwoods, and in the summer it is so beautiful. I love to just go outside, sit and enjoy a nice cup of tea, watch the bluejays play, and enjoy the soft breezes. Maybe I sound like a simpleton, however, I really do get pleasure from those things. I have had so many people say that they wished that they lived where I do....only they make no efforts to do so. I do not live an extravagant life; it is a humble life, but I am also acutely aware that any material things I have will not go with me when I die, so I am tuned into the beauty and simple pleasures around me. I may seem like a dolt or fool to many people who are pursuing the proverbial golden coin, but for me it works, and I know many others for whom it works.
In other threads there are people who have lived overseas and proclaim the wonders of America -- and it is true. I, personally, believe too many are reaching too far, instead of enjoying what's in their own backyards. Sometimes happiness really is a state of mind.
Location: Monterey Bay, California -- watching the sea lions, whales and otters! :D
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Now I understand....
Quote:
And you could make $0 on the job when the company lays you off for any reason. Ill take $5k over $0 anyday.
Need_Affordable_Home....from the "Don't work for silly low wages" thread. I remember now...you're the kid in Florida who is trying to make it with your computer....I recall now. And I also recall that you received some very good advice (in particular I remember Dullnboring from this thread, too, giving you good tips).
I understand now why you're asking some of these questions and making these remarks. I've noticed that you seem a bit uninformed...but now I realize you're the young person who has the professional parents. So, I guess my responses are more for those who are seeking regular employment, and have been out there on their own for a longer period of time. I was a bit confused by your statements, so I double-checked, and now it clears it up. Thanks.
I hope my replies help others, though, who are seeking to relocate.
Your post is the best one I have read on this site in a long while. I believe too that where there is a will there is a way and that often times in life we are drawn to that which we are supposed to have.
For the original poster, I have to let you know that although I was born in CA my family did not have a lot of money and had nothing to give me via tons of cash for a home.
Despite this, I was able to buy a condo while in grad school and did this on about $1500 a month! Seriously! Over time, I was able to build up a pretty impressive resume that landed me better and better jobs. Today I own property in multiple states including CA and I'm about to buy a bigger home in a very nice area of San Diego.
Point here -- jump in and do it. Don't go overboard with a purchase but have faith that you can do it and the cash you need will continue to come your way. I hope you will love CA as much as some of us here and grow in much prosperity.
When we first moved to this apartment complex, we thought, "Man, what a deal! A 2-bd, 2-bath in Rancho Cucamonga for only $1000!" The longer we live here, though, the more desperate we become to get out (we've been here 3 years). Without delving into too much detail, the problems we've encountered here are more than just structural, I'm sorry to say. Because of these reasons, we're now more in a hurry to find a better place to live than ever before.
Unfortunately, my husband's construction job just belly flopped due to a slowing trend in the housing market, so he just got another job making less money, which leaves us no way out for the time being. We really thought we were making the right choice by taking the lesser apartment over a nicer one for more money; we've since realized that some things are just worth the extra money.
My husband and I have been renting ever since we moved in together, out of our parents' houses, over 11 years ago. We are so ready to be done with having neighbors on our bedroom wall, on top of us, below us, etc, etc. We're so ready to be done with parking issues, detached garages, small living spaces, stupid rules and regs (my son isn't even allowed to ride his bicycle here, and he's only 6!) and no back/front yards. I can't even tell you what it would mean to us to have a house of our own; it would be our biggest dream come true. So, no, I won't be content with a condo instead of a 5-bedroom house somewhere else.
The problem is, my husband is very close with his family and doesn't want to walk away as badly as I do. I have only one close relative left here in California, so for me it's not as big a deal. That's why we were looking into Texas, because it wouldn't be so far away as many other places. But, we've been finding that Texas has a lot of issues as well, so who knows what we'll do. I wish there were easy decisions with easy answers, but I guess that's just not how life works.
I wish you a lot of luck in finding a place outside of FL. Hopefully both of us will stumble upon what we've been waiting for, and our quality of life will finally be able to improve. Best wishes in your pursuit of a better place to call home.
Did you ever get the chance to buy a house before the house bubble? Were houses too expensive even in the past so you were forced to rent? My dad told me he checked out CA 27 years ago and even way back a nice middle class house cost a quarter million. So he decided not to even bother settling down in CA and chose south FL and got his first house for $67k. Now south FL is unaffordable and frankly im sick and tired of all the negative changes south FL has gone.
A house is the american dream and also I know renting would be a mistake because id be throwing money away while houses get even more expensive. I am not buying for investment but to call home and will be living in my house for many years. What about Texas are you unhappy with? Surely it cant be worse than the life you are leading now. I think you will be very happy with a nice big 4 or 5 bedroom Texas house for $150k-$200k or even a medium house for $100k if thats your limit.
Wisteria, I am an adult who still lives with parents as many others do because they can not afford Florida. Theres very few good jobs here and also the jobs dont pay enough to keep you above poverty. Plus I have sent my resume to a few companies and none are interested, they would rather hire those willing to work for $10 an hour. I will soon be making $40k to $50k with my home business, I am still learning how. Once I make enough, I am out of here and unless Florida becomes alot more affordable(if so, north FL for me, south FL sucks) ill be relocating to the northeast where you dont have to live paycheck to paycheck just to afford a starter house.
$1400 a month for a $245k house is a good mortgage rate. Interest rates used to be as low as 1% thats why, now they are about 6.5% and may go up. Also I may not even qualify for a mortgage or if I do, they will want like 9% interest because I dont use credit cards. I will just buy a house with what cash I have sitting around and upgrade when I have alot more money. Will save mucho money on the mortgage interest plus I can invest what I earn. Your property taxes are just 1%, right? Also your insurance is very low? I am probably going to self insure, its cheaper that way. Property taxes will be like 3% but since houses are so cheap ill only be paying around $1500 a year in prop. taxes.
$700k is truly insanely expensive, I am not supprised why they are ending up foreclosed. The rule is spend about 25% of your gross annual income on housing, not 75%!
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California -- go for it!
Now I understand....
