East Coast vs. West Coast Lifestyles (Los Angeles, San Diego: houses, job transfer, neighborhoods)

[family first]

Need some opinions on the two coasts as a possible opportunity may present itself on having the choice between "New England" and California. I would really like to hear from any of you who have experienced living on both coasts and what is your general overview of the two. The move would be based on job transfer. Family with 3 small kids under 10 years. Some of the questions would involve: sense of community, weather, cost of Living (housing), state politics, kids fitting in with schools, acceptance of new family to new state...etc. If you have been there and done that, what cities and towns are you comparing on each coast. Thanks for any input.

[CAVA1990]

Hard to answer if you don't get more specific on your lifestyle preferences. Would I be guessing correctly that your politics are somewhat right of center? If so, you probably need to go further South on either coast to find what you're looking for. In the East you'd do well to stay South of the Rappahannock River, nowhere near New England. On the West Coast, Southern California, outside of the metro L.A. area. Those are the generally more "right wing friendly" places.

[Curmudgeon]

My family was from New England -- New York, Connecticutt and Massachusetts. I was born and mostly raised in California. Having spent a lot of time in both areas I find them very different.

Obviously, the weather will be harsher in most area of New England with snow and cold during the winter, humidity during the summer. Spring and Fall are delightful. It's hard to characterize California's weather because it's a vast state with numerous micro-climates. But for the mountains and deserts, most of them are moderate and you can usually drive from one to another in a matter of a few hours.

I think New England has more of a sense of history and tradition than does CA which has a very diverse, mobile and ever-increasing population. Education is probably generally better in the East but depending upon where you end up and the size of the village, town or city in which you settle, becoming accepted will likely take longer. Acceptance usually comes fairly readily in CA just due to it's more laid-back culture.

Culturally, the East is more formal than the West but offers a great deal of history. It's easy to travel from one state to another or down to Washington, DC and beyond to the South, the outer banks and other adventures. Food is different as you travel from state-to-state. Of course, California is cutting-edge in the culinary arts and the freshness and variety of the produce is unequaled.

Again, depending upon where, housing could be a wash although anywhere on or near the CA coast is very expensive. Some parts of New England are more affordable. Some of the more affordable parts of CA you'd probably want to avoid. Politically there's something for everyone on both coasts. However, CA's government is somewhat more intrusive in absolute shambles, and has been for years.

I know this is all very general. Given my experiences in both places and if I had it to do over again, if I was still young and raising children I'd opt for the East Coast rather than the Left Coast.

As always, just one man's opinion and you can expect plenty of comments to the contrary of everything I've written. It's the nature of the beast!

Good luck!

[Charles]

Originally Posted by family first

Some of the questions would involve: sense of community, weather, cost of Living (housing), state politics, kids fitting in with schools, acceptance of new family to new state...etc.

If you're buying into the same income tax bracket in both areas, there won't be a huge difference in "people". People of similar economic levels tend to have similar community behaviors, values, interests and pursuits of amenities.

Traffic is bad in both places.
Good schools in both places.
Good medical in both places.
Taxes? Not sure. Taxachusetts - Wikiality, the Truthiness Encyclopedia

The weather will be the biggest difference. Lifestyles: You are more likely to be "stuck" inside in new england. You are more likely to be able to enjoy outdoor activities and allow your kids to de-energize on a daily basis in California.

There are houses in all price ranges in both regions and sub-regions of both regions. Where is your job in California? What is your budget? Ask the forum for recommendations - probably fine tuned for a family (good schools, parks, etc.)


California in January (image documented to be free to distribute by Steven W. Belcher)



new england in January (public domain photo)
Lakers defeat Boston on Kobe Bryant's shot with 7.3 seconds left | Lakers Blog | Los Angeles Times

[NYSD1995]

Weather obviously is different. Lifestyle in much the west tends to be more driven around recreation as opposed to cultural activites. People tend to less concerned about your provenance, education levels, and are more apt to take you at face value in the West.

The biggest difference you will find culturally is that the western states have a much larger underclass and a widely accepted drug culture and counter-culture that pervades everyday life. You will see grown men who dress like teenagers, vagrants, crackheads, drunks, and bums much more than you would see in a place like New England.

You will also find a lot more people here who are not able to take care care of themselves and are highly dependent on various social programs, whereas you really will only see this in the deepest inner-city of a major northeastern city. You will not find the hardy, take-care-of-your-own work ethic of the Northeast here. New England in particular but most of the Northeast is also a much more middle class place, with vast swaths of stable neighborhoods, whereas California is constantly bifurcating into low-grade social warfare. The middle class is stuck between gentrification by the ultra-wealthy and destruction of their neighborhoods by the welfare state. Many formerly middle and working class neighborhoods are declining in California.

[Fontucky]

Originally Posted by Sassberto

You will see grown men who dress like teenagers...

Glad to see someone else has noticed that ridiculous behavior.

Originally Posted by Sassberto

You will also find a lot more people here who are not able to take care care of themselves and are highly dependent on various social programs...

The weather attracts the non-productive sector as well.

[Jonotastic]

Originally Posted by family first

Need some opinions on the two coasts as a possible opportunity may present itself on having the choice between "New England" and California. I would really like to hear from any of you who have experienced living on both coasts and what is your general overview of the two. The move would be based on job transfer. Family with 3 small kids under 10 years. Some of the questions would involve: sense of community, weather, cost of Living (housing), state politics, kids fitting in with schools, acceptance of new family to new state...etc. If you have been there and done that, what cities and towns are you comparing on each coast. Thanks for any input.

It depends WHERE on each coast and WHERE in each state. I lived in Seattle, San Francisco and a few cities in Florida. The things you mentioned are completely different in New England vs Florida and Washington vs California. To even go further for ex, San Francisco vs Los Angeles is completely different in every way including weather. You have to be more specific if you want a useful answer.

[Gentoo]

Lots of good comments here and I agree with just about everything. Just to reiterate I guess; if you lean right of center, stay away from just about all of the major west coast cities except perhaps San Diego which is currently about 50/50, but this may not last. Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle are out of the question. That's if we are right in assuming this. New Englad as mentioned is also not really an option if you're more right leaning. Remember all but one state that voted to legalize gay marriage are in New England.

Another cultural difference is the way people in the northeast, New England in particular relate to others. New Yorkers are know for being rather blunt and loud. New Englanders are more in your face type personalities. This can cause a lot of people to be taken aback by them. They are very straight forward but are generally harmless and are actually quite caring people. People on the west coast are often quite friendly but at the same time can come across as rather reserved or introverted. Seattle in particular has this stigma. There are several rather subtle differences between each west coast city but it takes time spent in them to see these differences.

The weather anywhere on the west coast will be better than the weather anywhere on the east coast for the most part. You take your pick of various mild climates; mild and wet (Seattle) to mild and dry (San Diego). Of course are mentioned micro-climates prevail even in Oregon and Washington. The climates start to become much more varied once you go inland away from the coast. Unlike most places in the country where the climate is the same for hundreds of miles around, a drive of anywhere from 30 minutes to a couple of hours can take you into another climate entirely.

I won't repeat the taxes and government parts as others have explained that much better than I ever could.

[CAVA1990]

Adults who dress like teens:

Originally Posted by Fontucky

Glad to see someone else has noticed that ridiculous behavior.

I thought that was true everywhere nowadays. Glad to hear Fon that you're one of the last holdouts of the cardigan sweater/plaid sport shirt/hush puppies crowd.

[Fontucky]

She did say New England. That kinda narrows things down a bit.