Teacher looking to move to California (Sacramento, Pasadena: rental, low crime, house)

[Chris265]

I am writing this for my good friend Katie who lives in Madison, WI.

Katie is a History teacher in a public school in Wisconsin however she wants to relocate to California. She is looking for a family friendly neighborhood with low crime for $400k to $450k. Any recommendations on towns/cities would be appreciated.

She can basically move anywhere in the state due to her job and she hopes to move within the next 18 months.

[MooseRiverView]

She can buy my house . As far as a job? Good luck, I just lost mine as a teacher of 13 years. Thanks Arnold. I am ready to leave the area and move up north.

I live in Rocklin which is east of Sacramento about 1/2 hour. Nice area.

[uptown_urbanist]

Tell her not to move, at least not without a job. She can't move anywhere in the state due to her job because there aren't many jobs now. The schools are laying off teachers, and from the little poking around that I've done it seems that history teachers have an even tougher time.

A better way to do it might be to search for jobs, see what's available, and THEN research the community to see if it's worth the application. I know that sounds a little backwards, but realistically in this economy (and it is a lot worse in CA than in WI) that might be the way to go.

Why does she want to move to CA? There are family-friendly communities in WI where you can buy a great place for that budget. The reason I'm asking is because the state is huge and has a broad range of types of towns and cities and environments, everything from mountains to deserts to high plain to beach (and more), and has everything from major cities to very remote small towns. There's also parts of the state that get a lot of snow. In other words, the more specific she could be about what exactly she wants out of a place the more targeted people's suggestions could be, although again, that doesn't mean there will a job available anytime soon in any of those locations.

[Chris265]

Well from what she told me she hates the Wisconsin winters and just wants a change. I actually recommended that she stays in Wisconsin but I think she has set her heart on California.

Thanks for your help I'm sure she will appreciate this.

[FresnoFacts]

Before she can look for a job, she needs to read this State of California web page for out-of-state teachers who want a California credential. It will tell her what she has to do (including any additional preparation that may be needed) before she can teach here.
California Commission on Teacher Credentialing

[City Boy]

Just curious but how can she afford a 400-450k house as a teacher?

[uptown_urbanist]

I'm from MN, and can understand the desire for a nicer climate and for a change. There are other states with warm weather that might be worth considering, too.

Assuming she wants CA and only CA, she should seriously consider renting, not buying. It would expand her options, as you can often get far better deals renting than buying. We could have not afforded to buy our wonderful rental house in South Pasadena (in the LA area, and a wonderful family-friendly community), but we could afford to rent there.

One other thing, which I'm sure she realizes, is that by leaving her current job and moving to a new place she's going to run into seniority issues; the California economy is hurting right now, worse than in WI, and as a new teacher to the district she's going to be at greater risk (if she can find a job) of being one of the first to get laid off. Given that there are not a lot of other jobs out there right now as backup, it would be a big gamble to move right now. Another reason to rent at the beginning and not buy, just in case. I know there's been talk about teacher shortages, but I don't think that's true for history teachers. There are probably more openings in city schools, but those are also the places where she's not going to be able to easily find a house for $400,000.

Not trying to be negative here; I wish her the best of luck, but this is a rough year for moving to California, and she should know what she's getting into.

[eureka1]

Eureka City Schools is laying off 36 people,mostly teachers. Our Adult Ed program has been decimated. Similar stories all over the State. Your friend should stay put for a year or two until things get better.

[Kalika]

Originally Posted by City Boy

Just curious but how can she afford a 400-450k house as a teacher?

Husband's job, family money. Quite honestly, it's no one else's business.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by Chris265

Well from what she told me she hates the Wisconsin winters and just wants a change. I actually recommended that she stays in Wisconsin but I think she has set her heart on California.

Thanks for your help I'm sure she will appreciate this.

Setting her heart on California is one thing, not having a job is quite another. I agree with what others are saying, now or next year will not be the time for anyone to move to California. As for teaching, not only California, but Texas, NM and AR for starters have more teachers than positions for them. It isn't the guaranteed job field it used to be. Between budget cuts, people having fewer children, home schooling and too many going into the profession jobs are few and far between except for specialty teachers like special ed, etc.

Nita