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To be honest, LA to Houston/Phoenix/Dallas/Atlanta/Miami would be easier transitions for your wife. Lots of people I know have made the move to NC from LA and most (if not all) hated it. A state that has the same population as LA county can be quite boring and a huge culture shock.
My family literally just made the move from LA County/Pasadena to NC. My wife did not want to make the move at all either and she fought me tooth and nail, but I sat down with her and did the budget for her to see it then she agreed with me. We moved last month in time for the holidays.
We also were in a 2 bedroom apt in Pasadena, and we are now in a 4 bed room house all the while paying less in rent. I got a job making the same amount of what I was making in Pasadena here in NC. I have a 4 kids so it was choking us as well. Now my kids are playing hide and seek and actually hiding in the house.
What nationality are y'all if you don't mind me asking? My wife is Filipino and loved being in SoCal due to all the other Filipinos. If I were you then look in to the Triad area for you to live. Just be advised that NC does have 4 seasons and right now it is COLD. But the Spring, summer, and fall is great. Also don't forget it actually rains here in NC.
My family literally just made the move from LA County/Pasadena to NC. My wife did not want to make the move at all either and she fought me tooth and nail, but I sat down with her and did the budget for her to see it then she agreed with me. We moved last month in time for the holidays.
We also were in a 2 bedroom apt in Pasadena, and we are now in a 4 bed room house all the while paying less in rent. I got a job making the same amount of what I was making in Pasadena here in NC. I have a 4 kids so it was choking us as well. Now my kids are playing hide and seek and actually hiding in the house.
What nationality are y'all if you don't mind me asking? My wife is Filipino and loved being in SoCal due to all the other Filipinos. If I were you then look in to the Triad area for you to live. Just be advised that NC does have 4 seasons and right now it is COLD. But the Spring, summer, and fall is great. Also don't forget it actually rains here in NC.
You were fortunate.
We once lived in Los Angeles and understand the difference quite well. We could pick from 2 SCRTD buses for a cheap, direct trip to Santa Monica in 45 minutes.
This area has almost no rail and you must travel on stupidly designed roads, also unlit, to get to many areas.
Now, LA weather is no longer as good and prices are quite high. This may prompt you to consider moving, but do not leave LA unless the place you consider is really a step up.
You need to decide if an over sprawled area with rising prices is what you want. The losers now coming here will raise taxes and prices. Also, the quality of new construction leaves a lot to be desired. When a new home starts bleeding repairs, your bargain may become a budget breaking money pit.
Don't leave LA because of its problems unless the new location is really a benefit.
Someone mentioned Atlanta. That is a big city that should help minimize the shock of leaving LA. Went to college in Atlanta and it’s a great place however coming from LA ... the easier transition would be Portland, Phoenix, or Denver.
If I were you I would look at the Houston or Dallas areas. They are both very international areas with people from all over the world. Cost of living will be less than California. Your wife would enjoy the urban life and if you live on the outskirts you can enjoy the quiet life. Also, good schools are easy to find and afford.
Raleigh is super suburban and family friendly. I lived in Los Angeles. It's extremely boring in comparison. However, Cameron Village and North Hills has some shopping options. Some cool nightlife, so maybe she'll meet some friends. People are not as friendly here I have discovered. They are nice and polite, just not friendly until they warm up to you. It can take awhile. There's meet up groups maybe she can scroll over in the area to see if any interest her. There's outdoor things to do with the kids here. the cultural scene is almost none and it's not very diverse. That's just my observation. I'm here for family temporarily.
We once lived in Los Angeles and understand the difference quite well. We could pick from 2 SCRTD buses for a cheap, direct trip to Santa Monica in 45 minutes.
This area has almost no rail and you must travel on stupidly designed roads, also unlit, to get to many areas.
Now, LA weather is no longer as good and prices are quite high. This may prompt you to consider moving, but do not leave LA unless the place you consider is really a step up.
You need to decide if an over sprawled area with rising prices is what you want. The losers now coming here will raise taxes and prices. Also, the quality of new construction leaves a lot to be desired. When a new home starts bleeding repairs, your bargain may become a budget breaking money pit.
Don't leave LA because of its problems unless the new location is really a benefit.
Good luck.
Glad to see you're still playing your greatest hits into the start of 2018. Now, for the real facts about living in North Carolina, at least in the Triangle, there are plenty of neighborhoods that are easy to travel by foot or bicycle if you don't have a car. Many of them are accessible and affordable to downtown areas in Durham, Morrisville, Apex, Hillsborough and so on. True, it's getting pretty pricy to live downtown in Raleigh or Chapel Hill in comparison, but not as bad as much of LA is right now in any respect.
The roads getting to and from places could have better lighting, true, but they're not "stupidly designed" unless you insist all roads should go directly from point A to point B. It's hilly in the Piedmont, so you have to plan roads accordingly.
As for the new home construction quality comments, I can only add this:
First, understand that your biggest problem is not where you live... it’s who you’re married to and coming to an agreement (ie compromise) on what is important to you in a new place to live. Affordable housing, job availability, quality of schools, traffic, crime, shopping, weather, etc....
6 months ago I moved my family from SoCal to Raleigh. My kid loves it here, my wife hates it here, and I’m indifferent (I love the southeast, but I don’t care for Raleigh). Here’s a few things you were probably told, like me, that just aren’t true:
Affordability- unless you want a ridiculous commute, houses out here aren’t a bargain if you want to live in a decent neighborhood. Prices are going up every day.
Traffic- driving on winding 2-lane roads with a 35/45mph speed limit has its issues, esp when there’s an accident. The infrastructure here hasn’t kept up with the population. There’s a lot of bad drivers here, which says a lot coming from CA. Along that line, my car insurance rates didn’t go down very much by moving here and gas prices aren’t much cheaper.
Weather- biggest change was the summer rain and humidity, but this cold winter weather was a surprise, esp if you’re used to the dry LA climate
Shopping- high end shopping doesn’t exist here. Flashy cars, expensive handbags, etc are rare to see. Most things are very plain. If that’s not you or your wife, it will be a tough move.
Jobs- people here seem to really be into their degrees. Seems like a Masters here is equivalent to a Bachelors everywhere else.
I’d suggest you have your meeting of the minds with the Mrs and figure out where you want to be. Moving all the way across the country is no small task, and would be a huge waste of time and money if your expectations are too high.
Glad to see you're still playing your greatest hits into the start of 2018. Now, for the real facts about living in North Carolina, at least in the Triangle, there are plenty of neighborhoods that are easy to travel by foot or bicycle if you don't have a car. Many of them are accessible and affordable to downtown areas in Durham, Morrisville, Apex, Hillsborough and so on. True, it's getting pretty pricy to live downtown in Raleigh or Chapel Hill in comparison, but not as bad as much of LA is right now in any respect.
The roads getting to and from places could have better lighting, true, but they're not "stupidly designed" unless you insist all roads should go directly from point A to point B. It's hilly in the Piedmont, so you have to plan roads accordingly.
As for the new home construction quality comments, I can only add this:
Very stupid design. If you want to use the right lane, many roads have right lines that suddenly appear then disappear. What causes it is dumb ways to resolve problems by gerrymandered solutions.
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