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First off, I am from a very small town in Ohio. I only have an associate's degree in the Medical field but here in Bryan, Ohio I make a descent living.
The problem is I'm tired of these dreary Ohio days. I also would like to be a realtor but around here there is no money in it because the cost of living is SO low. So one day I did research on southern California and like many Americans who dream of going to Cali I looked up jobs too. The jobs in the medical field there pay more, but of course the cost of living is WAY more.
So my concerns are:
How does a small town girl (with children) make a move so far away? And is it just dreaming or could it be a reality?
What are the good and bad points of living in a PLANNED COMMUNITY?
Does anyone know if the real estate company FIRST TEAM REALTY is a good one to work for in Orange County?
Is Mission Viejo a good city for a young couple with small children?
Well there ya have it. I'm an east coast girl (Yankee) and dream of moving to the west coast.
First off, I am from a very small town in Ohio. I only have an associate's degree in the Medical field but here in Bryan, Ohio I make a descent living.
The problem is I'm tired of these dreary Ohio days. I also would like to be a realtor but around here there is no money in it because the cost of living is SO low. So one day I did research on southern California and like many Americans who dream of going to Cali I looked up jobs too. The jobs in the medical field there pay more, but of course the cost of living is WAY more.
So my concerns are:
1. How does a small town girl (with children) make a move so far away? And is it just dreaming or could it be a reality?
2. What are the good and bad points of living in a PLANNED COMMUNITY?
3. Does anyone know if the real estate company FIRST TEAM REALTY is a good one to work for in Orange County?
4. Is Mission Viejo a good city for a young couple with small children?
5. Well there ya have it. I'm an east coast girl (Yankee) and dream of moving to the west coast.
I numbered your questions, and my responses.
1. She saves tons of money to get established, and for a cushion against the unexpected (and expected) things that can happen when a family moves.
2. Good: They are usually safe, good schools, family oriented, etc. Bad: They can be sterile, boring, "too perfect", etc.
3. Beats me, perhaps someone else here knows.
4. Yes.
5. Most CA'ians would probably think "New York baseball team" before they thought "northerner" when they hear the word "Yankee", CA isn't the South. So are you originally from NW Ohio, or somewhere else (I wasn't thinking "East Coast" when you said Bryan, OH)?
First off, I am from a very small town in Ohio. I only have an associate's degree in the Medical field but here in Bryan, Ohio I make a descent living.
The problem is I'm tired of these dreary Ohio days. I also would like to be a realtor but around here there is no money in it because the cost of living is SO low. So one day I did research on southern California and like many Americans who dream of going to Cali I looked up jobs too. The jobs in the medical field there pay more, but of course the cost of living is WAY more.
So my concerns are:
How does a small town girl (with children) make a move so far away? And is it just dreaming or could it be a reality?
What are the good and bad points of living in a PLANNED COMMUNITY?
Does anyone know if the real estate company FIRST TEAM REALTY is a good one to work for in Orange County?
Is Mission Viejo a good city for a young couple with small children?
Well there ya have it. I'm an east coast girl (Yankee) and dream of moving to the west coast.
you say you have an associate degree in the "medical field"...what specifically do you do??
I would NOT hope to make a living out here in the Real Estate field..esp as a newbie...not much is selling..
the rest of your ?? are pretty much not important if you can not afford to live here..sounds like you cannot
save..get more "medical" education..and come back for more advice
I'm a Buckeye who left dreary Ohio and lived in Mission Viejo for several years. Honestly? I suggest you look for sunshine in a more affordable state that has more job opportunities. Our family members have left Ohio and lived happily in New Mexico, Arizona, South Carolina & Florida. Several of us lived in southern CA for awhile, but most have left for better jobs/housing in one of the other sunny states.
How does a small town girl (with children) make a move so far away? And is it just dreaming or could it be a reality?
It can be done with careful planning. You need to find a job first. Be prepared to spent your whole life working and kidding. Accept that you will probably never own a house and give up eating out, going to movies and the like, but there are lots of fun free things to do. Be careful where you live, lots of bad schools.
If you are dreaming of making big bucks selling real estate forget it. The market is dead right now. OC is filled with thousands of unemployed and underemployed real estate brokers and agents. For the foreseeable future this is one of the worst options fpr emploment
What are the good and bad points of living in a PLANNED COMMUNITY?
IMO Planned Community is an oxymoron. The plan all of the community out of the place. The downsides are drudgery every house is essentially the same. The people are essentially the same. The HOA restrictions will wear you down if you are a free spirit. It is a simple bland dull and unchallenging lifestyle. On the plus side it is clean safe calm and you know what to expect.
Does anyone know if the real estate company FIRST TEAM REALTY is a good one to work for in Orange County?
It is a huge chain. Good or bad depends on whom you work for, not the company. They have pretty typcial compensation and benefits.
Is Mission Viejo a good city for a young couple with small children?
Yes. As long as you like conformity. It is as good or bad as any number of basically identical south county cities. You might like Aliso Viejo better, it is a newer sea of conformity and has more young people.
Well there ya have it. I'm an east coast girl (Yankee) and dream of moving to the west coast. Get in line there are millions like you trying to do the same thing.
[quote=Coldjensens;21085185]How does a small town girl (with children) make a move so far away? And is it just dreaming or could it be a reality?
What are the good and bad points of living in a PLANNED COMMUNITY?
IMO Planned Community is an oxymoron. The plan all of the community out of the place. The downsides are drudgery every house is essentially the same. The people are essentially the same.
Wow my friend... Different strokes for different folks ya? Personally, I'm not fond of the way the many of the tract houses look myself around South OC. (I like the character of older neighborhoods) but it's a pretty nice place overall and in my experience living in the general area for quite some time have known many different types of people. Yeah, there is probably a general type that's attracted to this place... lots of middle class families obviously. BTW there are also some pockets of lower income and working class here as well. Hubby and I are in a low rent place saving money, and we are just one couple of a cast of characters in our immediate little alcove. We're kind of geeky with a big collection of film music while our immediate neighbors are head bangers who smoke funny cigerettes from time to time. Downstairs we've got some Alabama transplants who constantly entertain with tall tales and brings us batches of gumbo! Yum! We all get along great even if we live very different lives on a daily basis. When I lived with my first husband and was doing the (marginal) soccor mom thing, we had block parties and stuff... hey it was fun! There were also so many people from different parts of the country in our neighborhood and they brought their differences with them. Oh well... I kinda know what you mean, but it actually sounded kinda mean. Mission Viejeans aren't all bad! I'm rather grateful to be "stuck" here for now. Don't be prejudges against us! It's not hell... really!
Yeah, try for the medical field, not real estate if you move out here. Also, be prepared for the possibility that your kids may get lost on the way home from school because all the houses in planned communities look the same, except maybe some come in slightly different shades of beige than the one next to them. :P
Thanks for all the feedback! I've never left this small town here in Ohio so I don't know all the planning that goes into making a move. Especially in a different state.......I imagined just picking a place that was beautiful and safe and make the move!
My degree is called Medical Support and consists of insurance billing, transcription, medical records, and coding. I thought it would be a safe bet in a down economy but around NW Ohio, there are only factory jobs, nursing, and truck driving jobs. I want more for myself and kids than those opportunities.
Real estate is my passion and I don't want to become a realtor around here because the average house is $100,000. Not a big commission. That's why becoming a realtor in Mission Viejo seemed appealing. As for a planned community I think that my husband and I would not want to put up with a Home Owners Association and a sterile environment where the houses look the same......but the safety is a big issue because of having children. I just dreamed of taking our children to the lake or making the drive and show them the ocean. Mission Viejo has plenty of parks and WAY better shopping centers and restaurants than where we are at now.
Overall, Mission Viejo still keeps me dreaming, but I think for now I'll save money and go where the jobs are........like one of the posters put there are other sunny states.......I just need to get out of dreary Ohio.
Thanks for all the feedback! I've never left this small town here in Ohio so I don't know all the planning that goes into making a move. Especially in a different state.......I imagined just picking a place that was beautiful and safe and make the move!
My degree is called Medical Support and consists of insurance billing, transcription, medical records, and coding. I thought it would be a safe bet in a down economy but around NW Ohio, there are only factory jobs, nursing, and truck driving jobs. I want more for myself and kids than those opportunities.
Real estate is my passion and I don't want to become a realtor around here because the average house is $100,000. Not a big commission. That's why becoming a realtor in Mission Viejo seemed appealing. As for a planned community I think that my husband and I would not want to put up with a Home Owners Association and a sterile environment where the houses look the same......but the safety is a big issue because of having children. I just dreamed of taking our children to the lake or making the drive and show them the ocean. Mission Viejo has plenty of parks and WAY better shopping centers and restaurants than where we are at now.
Overall, Mission Viejo still keeps me dreaming, but I think for now I'll save money and go where the jobs are........like one of the posters put there are other sunny states.......I just need to get out of dreary Ohio.
I also have training in medical billing & coding, but cannot break into it because all the want ads I've seen for those openings demand experience, which I totally lack. Do you have the hands-on experience, not just the schooling in it?
Mission Viejo is a great safe area for kids, but much of south Orange County has HOAs. They can be a hassle, but around here, it seems you have to pay a premium for safety, but having lived in areas that turned into the ghetto and not wanting to repeat that experience if I can help it, I think the HOA dues and rules are worth it.
If you have kids - think of them before anything. OC towns are EXPENSIVE. Add childcare on top of housing and you'll be lucky to have food on the table if you don't get a HIGH paying job. As much as I enjoyed Cali (I moved there from upstate NY in '99 and spent two years there with my husband who is a native OC-er), the cost of living there amazed me even back then. We paid over a thousand dollars a month for a ONE bedroom apartment @940 square feet in Costa Mesa, which Mission Viejo was MORE expensive (and probably still is). I agree with the other poster who suggested a move elsewhere. New Mexico is BEAUTIFUL. I live in SC and it is gorgeous here - and NO snow (well - maybe one day out of the whole year and the whole town shuts down - pretty funny considering I'm from Buffalo!). I'm actually only 15 minutes from the border of Charlotte, NC. Country livin' with a city close by (and it's not REALLY country - it's actually pretty hoppin'.). Do yourself a favor (and I'm NOT being mean) - forget about California! Try Florida, New Mexico, the Carolinas or even Arizona like the other poster mentioned.
One note on working for a realtor chain - I worked in the marketing department of realtor at their corporate office while I lived in Cali and the town you sell in, not where you live, dictates how much money you'll make. You'll make good commission selling in a place like Irvine, Rancho Santa Margarita, Mission Viejo, etc... over selling houses in a place like - I don't know - been so long since I lived there, so I'll say Anaheim (unless you sell in Anaheim Hills or something - is that still nice?). I believe when you're selling real estate you're given a "territory". And I think the good territories go to the agents who are top sellers and have been around. The agents in Cali REALLY know their territories. I worked there in the "housing boom" and agents made GREAT money selling in ONE neighborhood because people would buy and sell right away to make money. The agents literally had people say "I want a 2 bedroom townhouse in Pasto Rico. I don't need to see it. Here's what I'll offer and let me know if the seller will accept it." It was AMAZING!
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I've never left this small town here in Ohio so I don't know all the planning that goes into making a move. Especially in a different state.......I imagined just picking a place that was beautiful and safe and make the move! 
