Acreage near larger cities (Los Angeles, San Diego: loans, how much, lawyer)

[tangodoodles]

I live in Bakersfield and I grew up raising animals for 4-H. I'm finishing up with college and going off to law school soon but I wanted to get some input for afterwards. I want to practice law in one of the following cites (I have more but they're out of California):

Los Angeles
Sacramento
San Diego
San Francisco
San Jose
Santa Barbara

Eventually, I'd like to buy some acreage zoned to allow farm animals. My only request is that the area is within a 30-minute commute of any of these cities. Any suggestions for areas like this would be much appreciated. Thank you for your time.

[NYSD1995]

Originally Posted by tangodoodles

Los Angeles
Sacramento
San Diego
San Francisco
San Jose
Santa Barbara

Eventually, I'd like to buy some acreage zoned to allow farm animals. My only request is that the area is within a 30-minute commute of any of these cities. Any suggestions for areas like this would be much appreciated. Thank you for your time.

Not gonna happen. 30 minutes means 5 miles in traffic. Oh, and you didn't mention how many millions you have. Best bet will be Sacto or possibly some areas in Eastern San Diego county. Desert is probably the most realistic and you are looking at 90 minute+ commutes.

[Ultrarunner]

Don't forget the Santa Cruz mountains just outside of San Jose'

[sonarrat]

Or even San Jose itself.. there is a lot of farmland along Hale Avenue, as you go south from the IBM facility at Bailey Road.

[DMenscha]

Sacramento will work, there's plenty of acreage south and north of there. Even a ways to the south east toward Amador County.

[tangodoodles]

Originally Posted by Sassberto

Not gonna happen. 30 minutes means 5 miles in traffic. Oh, and you didn't mention how many millions you have. Best bet will be Sacto or possibly some areas in Eastern San Diego county. Desert is probably the most realistic and you are looking at 90 minute+ commutes.

Okay, then let's say forty-five minutes. Or, to make it easier, within 30 MILES (and I'll deal with the time I guess). As I lawyer, I'm expecting to pull in $165,000 just to start. Depending on whether I'm going into personal injury or litigation I could have millions by the time I'm thirty and I won't be buying land until I can afford it of course.

[tangodoodles]

Originally Posted by DMenscha

Sacramento will work, there's plenty of acreage south and north of there. Even a ways to the south east toward Amador County.

Is Davis to Sac a reasonable commute? And is there acreage in Davis itself?

[Inthesierras]

Its really hard to pinpoint land anymore in the Sacramento area. Try realtor dot com for pricing.

[goozer]

Originally Posted by tangodoodles

I'm finishing up with college and going off to law school soon but I wanted to get some input for afterwards.

Originally Posted by tangodoodles

As I lawyer, I'm expecting to pull in $165,000 just to start. Depending on whether I'm going into personal injury or litigation I could have millions by the time I'm thirty and I won't be buying land until I can afford it of course.

Tangodoodles--it appears you have not started law school yet, but you should know that the vast majority of lawyers graduating law school do NOT make the $165k salary you mention. While it is true that the top law firms in major markets (who only hire top candidates, i.e., Ivy League law grads, and if you went to a lower tier school, you better graduate in the top 10%) pay $165k to start, this is only in places like LA, SF, NYC, and DC. You will not garner that same high salary in many other large markets, including Seattle, Denver, and other similar sized cities. A very sizeable portion of law grads find themselves making $60k to $90k. I say this only so that you can have realistic expectations on salary and so you can gauge whether it will be worth it to take on any loans you will need for school. The other piece of advice I would give you is to be careful with telling people you are a lawyer and then throwing around how much money you make or expect to make. Enough people despise lawyers without having to fan the fire in this manner.

Good luck with law school.

[tangodoodles]

Originally Posted by goozer

Tangodoodles--it appears you have not started law school yet, but you should know that the vast majority of lawyers graduating law school do NOT make the $165k salary you mention. While it is true that the top law firms in major markets (who only hire top candidates, i.e., Ivy League law grads, and if you went to a lower tier school, you better graduate in the top 10%) pay $165k to start, this is only in places like LA, SF, NYC, and DC. You will not garner that same high salary in many other large markets, including Seattle, Denver, and other similar sized cities. A very sizeable portion of law grads find themselves making $60k to $90k. I say this only so that you can have realistic expectations on salary and so you can gauge whether it will be worth it to take on any loans you will need for school. The other piece of advice I would give you is to be careful with telling people you are a lawyer and then throwing around how much money you make or expect to make. Enough people despise lawyers without having to fan the fire in this manner.

Good luck with law school.

The starting salary for most associates at a corporate law firm in LA, New York, or SF is $165,000 and you can expect salary bonuses at some point. Criminal attorneys obviously make less. My parents are both lawyers and are paying my tuition so I'm not worried about affording law school. And since my GPA is in the range necessary to be accepted at a school like UC Berkeley or University of Chicago, I'd be more likely to get a high-paying corporate job. SF and LA were both on my list of cities. I wasn't being a jerk about money. I'm being honest. The other poster asked how much money I had or expected to make and I'm giving an honest answer based on experience from my parents and their many friends who are lawyers. Thanks for your input, though.