Choosing between Austin, TX and San Diego, CA (map, salary, compared)
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My employer just gave me the choice of relocating to either Austin, TX or San Diego, CA.
How do these two cities compare? Pros and cons of both? What do they have in common?
I am mostly interested in:
Quality of life
Purchasing power
Entertainment
Food
I actually just finished about 7 years of living between San Diego and Austin, and seriously considered relocating (including a family) from SD to Austin (ultimately, I moved my company back to SD instead) so I've got a pretty good feel for both places. Here's my take.
QoL - SD weather allows for pretty much a year round outdoor life. Austin is also rated highly in this regard but summers can be brutal and there is some winter weather that you wouldn't see in SD. So I'd say Austin is good compared to most of the country but SD is the best of the best in terms of outdoor living. Other aspects of QoL are pretty subjective. SD has better traffic (that might be surprising) though both have 'rush hours' versus the 24 hour traffic messes in some cities.
Purchasing power - Austin is likely better but not by as much as you'd think. Our analysis of replicating our SD home (both house and neighborhood and schools) was that it would be a wash when it came to home ownership. Property taxes are very high in Austin, as is the local sales tax. On the other hand, there's no state income tax in Texas. Energy is cheaper in Austin but you use a lot more of it for heating and A/C.
Entertainment - Austin has a great live music scene. I believe the 'club' scene in SD is better (though I'm no expert). Austin is (in)famous for it's drinking scene. SD has a much better theater scene as well as classical music, opera, etc, Depends what you like. Might be good to go to the entertainment websites for both cities and see how they match your interests. A lot of the entertainment venues in Austin are dominated by college students, given UT. That can be a plus or minus depending on your age.
Food - I'm a foodie and I'd rate them as equal but different. Austin has many great BBQ restaurants and a young and quirky food scene. SD seems to have more varied ethnic food across the board, especially Asian. SD is also renowned for it's 'farm-to-table' restaurants. Both have great brewing with an edge to SD in terms of number and variety. Neither has good wineries close by, though from SD you can get to Santa Barbara County in a few hours. SD has much better fresh produce year round as well as a plethora of specialty farms locally. Seafood better in SD.
Hope that helps! Happy to answer more specific questions.
For the people asking for the salary. I would be adjusted slightly. I would receive around 75k in Austin and 80k in San Diego.
I would think 75K goes a longer way in Austin than 80K in SD. We relocated some key employees from Austin to SD and we gave more like 15% increases for CoL adjustment.
For the people asking for the salary. I would be adjusted slightly. I would receive around 75k in Austin and 80k in San Diego.
Austin.. ..definitely... I wouldnt even consider San Diego making south of $140k. $75k is at the beginning of the threshold to live decently in Austin depending on previous debts, expenses, and what you're willing to compromise for a house.
Quote:
Originally Posted by sprez33
Purchasing power - Austin is likely better but not by as much as you'd think. Our analysis of replicating our SD home (both house and neighborhood and schools) was that it would be a wash when it came to home ownership. Property taxes are very high in Austin, as is the local sales tax. On the other hand, there's no state income tax in Texas. Energy is cheaper in Austin but you use a lot more of it for heating and A/C.
This part is very true and alot of California relocatees are blindsided by this. You may end up getting a $600k home in Austin that comparably would have costed $900k in California, but when you add the $10,000 property tax tag ontop of that then within the life of a 30 year mortgage you will spend $300,000 - or literally the difference in cost between the value of your home in Austin vs the value of your home in California. Texas just has ways of sneaking in the remaining costs, especially when you factor in toll roads when commuting. California is just more upfront about their costs.
Since you didn't say where you were moving from, please be aware that the differences in weather can be staggering, especially in the summer. Average monthly temperature comparison:
Austin averages 78 days per year with highs above 90, and 15 days over 100. San Diego has zero days over 90. Austin has had 19 days over 90 so far this year.
Austin is also not a dry heat, so even days in the 80s can often be very uncomfortable outdoors if not used to it. Outdoor recreation is very difficult in Austin throughout the summer months.
To me hands down San Diego when compared to Austin.
So obviously people are weighing the pros and cons in that Austin v. San Diego poll. And it's clear that people choose San Diego, despite its higher costs. The notion that Austin beats San Diego in every category (not just the ones the OP listed) other than weather/beaches is simply untrue.
Austin may offer more entertainment (live music/bands)--it's known for that at least. Generally speaking, I don't think there is a significant difference regarding entertainment.
As for food, there is really only one cuisine that Austin beats San Diego in (BBQ). Anything Asian or latin, San Diego is ahead by miles. Maybe Austin has a better "food scene", but to me that just means whitewashed and/or overpriced stylish food. Sorry, I don't need $6 artisan tacos when I can get them for $1 on Taco Tuesdays in San Diego. Plus, San Diego is right next to TJ and LA, which have great food scenes all around.
My advice to the OP is choose Austin. There's no reason to move to San Diego and pay $$ more than Austin based on these criteria.
I feel like Austin wins easily for nightlife in general, live music being a major component of that but not the only reason. Austin's population is more heavily weighted towards 20s and 30s, and San Diego has a big military population which can be felt when you go out there... Austin is also very centralized from a nightlife perspective, whereas San Diego has some nightlife distributed throughout a large metro. That could be a pro or con, but if you are living in central Austin you have much more access to nightlife than living anywhere in San Diego.
Both cities have great Mexican food in different styles. I would call that a push.
Honestly though It's hard to even imagine what San Diego would look like "without the weather and beaches", as that is a completely different city. Were I to live in San Diego it would be 100% for the weather and beaches. That's nothing against San Diego, but having beautiful weather almost every day is a pretty significant perk. Austin simulates that somewhat with places like Barton Springs, Lake Travis, the Barton Creek Greenbelt, San Marcos river, etc, and that's a lot of why people choose Austin over the other cities in Texas. San Diego obviously takes it to another level.
No income tax in Texas. Your money goes much further in Austin. So, how important is having a nice apt or house to you?
The difference in salary more than makes up the difference in California Income Tax. Using the tax calculator for an 80K salary in SD, the CA taxes are $4186, a 5k salary difference takes care of that. As was said earlier, cost of heating and cooling in SD is probably close to zero, while a/c will be running constantly in Austin. Housing may cost 30-50% more in San Diego, but even at the higher price property taxes may be half that of Austin. From a budget standpoint, cost between the cities may end up being comparable when all is said and done, its just that money will be going to different places.
No income tax in Texas. Your money goes much further in Austin. So, how important is having a nice apt or house to you?
Yeah.. TBH I probably wouldn't consider either metro at those salaries. If you want a decent house in Austin you need to be pulling about $90k atleast if you're single or have a HHI of atleast $90k. Austin isnt California prices yet but the average cost of a house here is almost $400k.
$75k would work for an apartment but I just dont see the point of relocating for an apartment.
Quote:
Originally Posted by RocketSci
The difference in salary more than makes up the difference in California Income Tax. Using the tax calculator for an 80K salary in SD, the CA taxes are $4186, a 5k salary difference takes care of that. As was said earlier, cost of heating and cooling in SD is probably close to zero, while a/c will be running constantly in Austin. Housing may cost 30-50% more in San Diego, but even at the higher price property taxes may be half that of Austin. From a budget standpoint, cost between the cities may end up being comparable when all is said and done, its just that money will be going to different places.
Not exactly no. The avg price of a home is about $660k in SD and about $400k in Austin. It does come comparable but not at a $5k difference in salary. It becomes comparable after you've been a home owner long enough to eat the difference in taxes vs cost of housing between the two. Between a 400k home and a 660k home the difference is met about 20 years into the mortgage.
I wouldnt even dream of moving to San Diego at only $80k. I've had offers paying $110k and higher that I turned down as well.
Also energy is dirt cheap in Austin. Running my AC on all day in an 1800 Sqft house only costs me $100 per month.
Last edited by Need4Camaro; 05-29-2020 at 03:42 PM..
OP was very generic in preferences, but I would say, all else being equal, that SD is better for people with kids and Austin for the young and single. There are simply way more things to do on the weekends with kids in SD than in Austin, and better day trip options. Conversely you're likely to run into more single young people from all over the country in Austin.
Agree with the other poster that $5,000 per year pay difference is not enough to cover the COL difference. You'll probably need to be paid 20% more for the same QOL.
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