Why are all these california people moving to philly?

[soulsurv]

Originally Posted by Shino306

In general, I think a small majority of the people leaving CA are really coming to Philly. From talking to my mother and friends, who live there, a lot are moving to other Western states (WA, NV, CO, OR) or TX.
We've just seen a preponderance of people from CA asking questions on this forum lately.
And I agree with @Generic Bicoastal Liberal...most true born and bred Californians aren't moving here and if they are, they won't stay for long. The weather will be enough of a deterent for them and the pace of life/culture/etc in the Northeast, especially Philly is also vastly different and I'm assuming a lot of them wouldn't adapt to it very well. (I'm generalizing this based on comments I get when I visit my mother in SoCal from her friends and people she works with and people I know there).

I agree, Shino; we're talking about major culture shock. I would think the Research Triangle, particularly the weather there, would be more to the taste of Californians looking for an opportune move.

[G Goo]

Originally Posted by ScottyG

Philadelphians take way too much pride in how tough, rude, blighted, and inhumane the city can be. Yo, in my neighborhood you can't even walk outside after dark without getting robbed or shot (being said behind a grin of pride and stupidity)! People here value rudeness and obnoxious behavior, and manners and being polite is a sign of weakness. There is way too much of prison mentality amongst way too many people in this area. Until that and the weather changes, not too many sane Californians will choose Philly over Cali. By the way, most of the time I do love it here, but I am baffled by the behavior of so many of the native Philadelphians.

Native Philadelphian here.....one whose residence is actually in the city, who works in the city, spends a majority of his time in the city with Philadelphians. On a daily basis I am struck by the generosity of my neighbors in NW Philly (and my former neighbors in Mayfair), the friendliness of residents in Center City towards tourists (I work near Independence Hall, tourists galore), the amazing conversations I've engaged in in local taprooms, the fun I've had with fellow phillies fans at CBP. Although I've lived in this city for most of my life, I've lived around this country (I served active duty Air Force) and I returned to Philly BECAUSE of the people....their pragmatism, complexity, forthrightness, kindness and generosity. So am I delusional? Are you basing your assessment on how you view Eagles fans? Also, I have never been a victim of a crime, shot robbed or otherwise.....I suppose I'm just lucky, huh? The view from Media is much different than the view from Mt Airy isn't it?

By the way, my neighborhood (Mt Airy) is loaded with former Californians who love this city.

[solibs]

Originally Posted by soulsurv

I agree, Shino; we're talking about major culture shock. I would think the Research Triangle, particularly the weather there, would be more to the taste of Californians looking for an opportune move.

California, particularly the central valley, has some of the worst unemployment rates in the country - even worse than most of Michigan.
Raleigh and the Philadelphia metros both have the same unemployment rate - 8.6%

In the 90s a lot of people from California moved to Atlanta. I don't know if many of them stayed there but it was a definite trend written about in newspapers and magazines.

Whether or not one enjoys the weather in Atlanta (or in Raleigh) really depends on what part of CA they're coming from.

I think the biggest adjustment, if you're moving from SoCal to Raleigh, would be the culture and the size of the place. Raleigh is 30 miles x 30 miles of sprawl and still not a very big city and nearby Durham is even smaller. The next closest "city" is Greensboro at over an hour away.

Just sayin', big city people are usually looking for big city amenities when they move even if they don't want to live right next to it anymore . . . and given the cost of housing in NYC, Boston and DC - Philadelphia becomes a logical option.