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Hello everyone. Just wanted to ask if any of you have relocated from California,and if you are glad you did. We'll be coming out to Warwick this summer, and are planning on relocating. We are sick of the crime, taxes, graffiti, poor schools, ect. When you go on the CA boards.... there are a lot of people who moved out to places like Texas, Washington, and they all want to move back to CA because they hated it. Hope that doesn't happen to us. Any one from Los Angeles who now resides in the lower Hudson, and is glad they made the move??? Thanks to all.
I am from "The oc"...lol..moved due to marriage...what area are you from specifically in LA....If you are looking for cheaper housing, I would say that you must know that NYC and suburbs is a major metro and there housing reflects it.
Warwick is kind of like...hmmnnn I WANT to say perhaps Corona, Or Diamond Bar---10 years ago.....very quiet farmland...sort of out of the way, an hour+ commute to the city.....decent schools yada yada yada.
you may be in for a culture shock....I am still not used to the cold..and while you may not care for it now....the hudson valley area isnt as "shopping friendly" as LA..and No, I am not a shopaholic..but you do need to realize that there is usually ONE mall in EVERY county. Can you imagine if there was on one mall in LA County or Orange county. Sometimes to travel to big box drug store can take (depending on where you live) 10-15 minutes. IE, closest CVS is 15 minutes away.
Aside from weather, that is the biggest thing that can become a challenge...the commercial industry doesnt catch up to the amount of people that live here..and it has nothing to do with materialism or shopping..its just regular things that you may need.
If I were you, stick to the more mainstream areas closer to the tappan zee bridge....at least you wont feel so "out in the boonies"....
OH and depending on what you are looking for the taxes are not any better..in fact warwicks are rather high....I have seen homes go up to 16k in my area...and that is 60 minutes north of the city....warwick is west of the city.
Yes, I think that is the one thing that Californians are shocked by when they relocate - the property taxes are much higher elsewhere. We have been spoiled by decades of living under Prop. 13 laws and our 1% or so property taxes. So while housing may be less expensive, the whopping property tax bills can make up for it. Actually, NY state is not as bad as other East Coast states like NJ, NH, and MA. People are relocating from those states just because of taxes alone. I've heard people justify it by saying you are getting something for your tax money in the form of good public schools, and other public services, but then again, not all counties have a great school systems, yet they still have high taxes. You just really have to do your homework, and weigh things like home values, property and other muncipal/county taxes, the school system, etc.
Just want to add my two cents. I am a native Californian. I was born in San Francisco and lived in San Francisco and San Mateo counties for 26 years. I then married a Frenchman and moved to France. Anyway, I returned to the Bay Area every summer and after a few years and three children started to realize how great raising kids in France was (compared to California) for all of the reasons that you mentioned above. Well, unexpectedly my husband was transferred to New York. We arrived in September and I have to say that I've really been pleasantly surprised about how much more family-oriented it is here. The schools are great (I'm in Westchester county) the shopping is about the same as in the Bay Area and I'm enjoying the seasons. Also, I have a son who's a junior and there are so many terrific colleges nearby....
Good luck to you.
*I count my blessings every day that my husband wasn't transferred to California.
Again, its really not all all "cheaper"..I do have to stress that. I would say that northen cal is would be more appealing to those who are used to the citylife.
So cal is just different in nature..not good/not bad....its just different, Kind of like people over here think NY consists of NYC and the suburbs, when there is a beautiful complete state that remains untapped!
That being said..its culture, I am not going to lie...the same old things that people complain about in LA, People complain out here in NY. I have to say one major difference that I noticed is the cuisine is rather different. So Cals cuisine (at least when I was in oc) is more health friendly (or maybe I just like my salads! LOL)..but people still give me funny looks when I mention penguins frozen yogurt and how yummy it is..they dont get it.
Or how I am loving my smoothies. There is more of a mom and pop cuisine culture here and the food is great...so be prepared to gain "New York 15" while you are here.
I dont get out as much because of weather and I miss that. You really cannot compare the east and west...its just two different animals..I would suggest that for comparisons sake, at least look into other states that interest you, you may be surprised that you can still have good weather and decent cost of living.
OH BEFORE I forget...and who could the HUMIDITY....There is NO humidity in OC.....unless global warming did that that (lol)..and here in the summers...walk the door and BOOM...you will have brow sweat...and the allergies that come with it.
A physician told me that the the west coast doesnt have allergies because there is no humidity and the all that stuff just "burns" off the environment..but because the hudson valley, well is a valley with the river running threw it..all the pollen, ragweed, mold and dander literally hover and linger over these months.
I lived in upstate NY and my mother had terrible allergies to ragweed. However, I now live in the greater Sacramento valley, and this is one of the worst areas in the nation, supposedly, for asthma and allergies. I am allergic to something here and it is bad a few times a year. It gets very hot in the summer, and it is a dry heat, never humid, and we still have allergies so I don't know about this theory regarding the pollen burning off or out of the environment.
My father was transferred to Rockland county when I was in 8th grade. The schools in Rockland were so much better than the schools in the San Fernando Valley!! It was a great experience for me. Sadly, most of my family didn't adjust as well as I did and we returned to LA the following year.
As far as property taxes are concerned, although CA's 1% of selling price is cheaper in theory, in practice, a 2-bdrm home in my area sells for over 500K. My taxes in LA would be very close to those of the areas I've looked at in NY. The school issue is really important too. In many areas of LA, the schools are terrible, so one could easily spend 5K per year on property taxes (in aforementioned 2-bdrm) and then need another $600+ per month for private school.
I'll second looking4home's comment about allergies -- here in So. Cal, it's been getting increasingly worse every Spring and Fall. Also, humidity levels have been on the rise, especially in the last 5 or so years.
Good luck with your move! I'm relocating to the Rochester area in June from LA for the reasons you mentioned in your post.
I was born in California, and moved out in 1956, ending up in NY in 1958. I've spent most of the time since 1958 in NY, and have lived in the hudson valley since 1974 (Peekskill, Kingston, and now Rhinebeck). I also spent about 5 college years in Troy.
I'm glad my family moved east, and have no desire to ever move back to California.
I grew up in California, but I spent most of my adult life in Eastern Canada (Montreal and Toronto). I am now looking to move to the northeast. There seems to be a big movement in that direction from California (although we are moving all over the US!). I have been back here for 2 years (San Francisco). I cannot afford to buy anything, and the rent on my 2-bedroom apartment is $2550. per month. The climate is great, but the allergies here are horrible, and the cost of living makes no sense at all (I am used to a very high cost of living, but this is rediculous). But it is a beautiful city...
By the way, I grew up in Sacramento, and it is one of the worst places in the country for allergies (year round). Springtime lasts from end of January to end of May (there are always lots of plants blooming).
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