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Hope that helps! Happy to answer more specific questions.
Thank you very much for your reply. this definitely helps in my choices. I would like to have input on how you compared home prices. Did you choose a suburb in Austin and San Diego or both cities proper? Also can you elaborate how much worse Austin is in traffic compared to San Diego?
Additional question for the thread: How are the politics in each area? Are they comparable?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Need4Camaro
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.
California also has property taxes so I think the cost would take longer to catch up. Also how much house do you get with 600k in Austin compared to a 900k house in San Diego? It could be justified for a bigger property.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mkwensky
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.
To be more specific then. I do tend to like more artsy music acts (think psych rock, free-jazz, and indie singer-songwriter) so I think Austin would be a much better fit. Thanks for the input on families, I am definitely planning on planting roots wherever I move so that is very important.
To all the posters arguing over the salary. Yes I have looked at how far my salary would go in both places and Austin seems to take the cake. Apparently SoCal is infamous for the poor salary/CoL ratio most companies pay.
I am planning on renting a 1 bedroom 1 bath apartment. The amenities I have found in Austin apartments are much better compared to the San Diego ones even with a $500-800 difference. Quite staggering.
Last edited by Movver123; 05-29-2020 at 04:33 PM..
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.
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.
Yes, that being said, if you make 200k a year, California will tax you at 10%. 20 x 30 = 600k
To be more specific then. I do tend to like more artsy music acts (think psych rock, free-jazz, and indie singer-songwriter) so I think Austin would be a much better fit. Thanks for the input on families, I am definitely planning on planting roots wherever I move so that is very important.
This is the sort of thing where I feel like Austin wins by large margin... I just think that people who are into these sorts of things in Southern California tend to live in LA, not San Diego. Whereas in Texas (and really the entire South) Austin is the place to be for this. Where I envy San Diego is the climate and outdoor activities.
Do you get COL adjustments and/or a different glass ceiling depending on the location? Also, do you have more people or closer friends and family in one location versus the other?
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.
Local micro-climates are something to keep in mind about San Diego. These temperature readings are probably taken at a station (such as the major airport?) within a few miles of the ocean. In the suburbs further inland, summer daytime temperatures can be considerably higher, although dry and not quite as hot as Austin on average. Much of the metro area where typical housing prices aren't astronomically high has a lot more than zero 90-degree days per year.
Local micro-climates are something to keep in mind about San Diego. These temperature readings are probably taken at a station (such as the major airport?) within a few miles of the ocean. In the suburbs further inland, summer daytime temperatures can be considerably higher, although dry and not quite as hot as Austin on average. Much of the metro area where typical housing prices aren't astronomically high has a lot more than zero 90-degree days per year.
Inland Southern California will get hot but it tends to be only for an hour or two at mid afternoon. Big difference between that and Austin which is hot from 10 am to 10 pm.
Inland Southern California will get hot but it tends to be only for an hour or two at mid afternoon. Big difference between that and Austin which is hot from 10 am to 10 am.
Thank you very much for your reply. this definitely helps in my choices. I would like to have input on how you compared home prices. Did you choose a suburb in Austin and San Diego or both cities proper? Also can you elaborate how much worse Austin is in traffic compared to San Diego?
Additional question for the thread: How are the politics in each area? Are they comparable?
California also has property taxes so I think the cost would take longer to catch up. Also how much house do you get with 600k in Austin compared to a 900k house in San Diego? It could be justified for a bigger property.
To be more specific then. I do tend to like more artsy music acts (think psych rock, free-jazz, and indie singer-songwriter) so I think Austin would be a much better fit. Thanks for the input on families, I am definitely planning on planting roots wherever I move so that is very important.
To all the posters arguing over the salary. Yes I have looked at how far my salary would go in both places and Austin seems to take the cake. Apparently SoCal is infamous for the poor salary/CoL ratio most companies pay.
I am planning on renting a 1 bedroom 1 bath apartment. The amenities I have found in Austin apartments are much better compared to the San Diego ones even with a $500-800 difference. Quite staggering.
Politics: Austin is the more liberal city, San Diego is in the more liberal state. 600k would get you a very nice house in the Austin burbs, but I think 900k would get you a nice house in the SD burbs. I will say if your salary is 80k, your house should be around 300k. Music wise, hard to compete with Austin, for any city.
I never got why people in San Diego boast about being close to Tijuana. Other than being in Mexico there is nothing special about Tijuana. Talk about Tijuana to a Mexican and it's certainly not their idea of a nice place to vacation. Even by Mexican standards it's extremely dodgy, overrun by cartels, and has the highest homicide rate in the world. Tijuana doesn't have much in the way of charming historical architecture. And have fun with those abysmally long times to drive back into the US when you're at immigrations and customs. I think San Diegans are unique in thinking that any Mexican city, even one of the dodgiest ones, is automatically worth visiting.
I don't know that people in El Paso, for instance, are excited to go to Ciudad Juarez for fun.
Don't get me wrong, I think San Diego is unbeatable in terms of a safe, clean place to live with good schools, diversity, and beaches, and no natural disasters other than extremely infrequent fires and earthquakes, but being close to Tijuana is not an added bonus for me.
Thank you very much for your reply. this definitely helps in my choices. I would like to have input on how you compared home prices. Did you choose a suburb in Austin and San Diego or both cities proper? Also can you elaborate how much worse Austin is in traffic compared to San Diego?
Additional question for the thread: How are the politics in each area? Are they comparable?
California also has property taxes so I think the cost would take longer to catch up. Also how much house do you get with 600k in Austin compared to a 900k house in San Diego? It could be justified for a bigger property.
To be more specific then. I do tend to like more artsy music acts (think psych rock, free-jazz, and indie singer-songwriter) so I think Austin would be a much better fit. Thanks for the input on families, I am definitely planning on planting roots wherever I move so that is very important.
To all the posters arguing over the salary. Yes I have looked at how far my salary would go in both places and Austin seems to take the cake. Apparently SoCal is infamous for the poor salary/CoL ratio most companies pay.
I am planning on renting a 1 bedroom 1 bath apartment. The amenities I have found in Austin apartments are much better compared to the San Diego ones even with a $500-800 difference. Quite staggering.
San Diego has a well developed and efficient freeway system and thus, traffic hotspots are pretty much limited to rush hour traffic jams in the major commuter corridors. You rarely need to worry about traffic outside the rush hours. Much of Austin is similar in this regard with the exception of the I-35. Check a map of Austin and you'll see that I-35 is the major North-South route through the city. It's a traffic disaster from Round Rock to well south of the city. It also has a funky design just North of downtown where the express lanes are on the outside and the local lanes on the inside. (The joke is that an Aggie designed it as a prank on Austin; IDK if it's true or not). The main effect is that traffic on I-35 is very bad and traffic issues extend beyond the typical rush hours. The other issue is that fixing the I-35 will likely require 5 years of real pain before it can get better.
It seems like from other responses and your input that Austin may be the better choice for you (though I'd still encourage a visit to both places before making a decision, if possible). If so, if and when you relocate, consider the I-35 in your commuting plans and do your best to avoid.
In terms of politics, Austin is called the "blueberry in the tomato soup". A very liberal (and proud of it) city in a mostly conservative state. SD is the opposite. A relatively conservative city in a very liberal state. The main impact is that taxes are higher in SD, on the whole.
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