'Stupid' questions here concerning Sacramento (San Francisco, Fresno: condos, home, neighborhoods)

[zen_klown]

Here are educational attainment levels for four regions; SF, Sacramento, Stockton and Phx. If you open up these links in different windows and compare them, what you will notice, is first that all of these areas are getting better educated over time.

If you were to rank the four areas on the number of people who have less than a 9th grade education, Stockton would come first, followed by SF, followed by Phx and than Sacramento. If you were to rank the four areas on the number of people who have a graduate degree, SF would rank first, then Phx and Sacramento right behind and than Stockton. But if you ranked people by the number of people with bachelor's degrees and more, then it would be SF, Sac, Phx and Stockton.

In SF you have the smallest middle class. In Stockton, the population is overall less educated and the poorest. Of all of the regions, Sacramento is the most middle class. You have the fewest very poor people and but not as many highly educated folks as SF or Phx.

CensusScope -- Education Statistics

CensusScope -- Education Statistics

CensusScope -- Education Statistics

CensusScope -- Education Statistics

[ArizonaBear]

Originally Posted by zen_klown

Here are educational attainment levels for four regions; SF, Sacramento, Stockton and Phx. If you open up these links in different windows and compare them, what you will notice, is first that all of these areas are getting better educated over time.

If you were to rank the four areas on the number of people who have less than a 9th grade education, Stockton would come first, followed by SF, followed by Phx and than Sacramento. If you were to rank the four areas on the number of people who have a graduate degree, SF would rank first, then Phx and Sacramento right behind and than Stockton. But if you ranked people by the number of people with bachelor's degrees and more, then it would be SF, Sac, Phx and Stockton.

In SF you have the smallest middle class. In Stockton, the population is overall less educated and the poorest. Of all of the regions, Sacramento is the most middle class. You have the fewest very poor people and but not as many highly educated folks as SF or Phx.

CensusScope -- Education Statistics

CensusScope -- Education Statistics

CensusScope -- Education Statistics

CensusScope -- Education Statistics

I am a HS grad with one year of college who is an auto alignment technician by trade.

Again; it is fast sounding like Sac would be my 'best fit'. I tend towards being Liberal (with the notable exceptions of being anti illegal immigration and gun control).

[edwardius]

You don't have a high degree of political purity in Sacramento. Despite being the state capitol, politically the place isn't that polarized.

[RandomU]

Originally Posted by ArizonaBear

I am a HS grad with one year of college who is an auto alignment technician by trade.

Again; it is fast sounding like Sac would be my 'best fit'. I tend towards being Liberal (with the notable exceptions of being anti illegal immigration and gun control).

Hey A.B.

As far as politics go I find Sacramento to be all over the place. You can find solid Left leaning coffee house areas (Downtown), Gay Bars (2-3 in Down Town), The Crest Theater, plays "liberal" art films(In Down Town), Davis which is Famous for being left leaning/Environmental is only 20 minutes from Down Town Sac.

Several local Free Papers with a very liberal bent. The Biggest being News and Reviews. It can run upwards of, I believe, 150 pages. It is a weekly.

Sacramento News & Review > Home

Cal State University Sacramento also, as most Universities, tends to run on the Liberal side.

We have a food Co-op, Vitamin/ Health food Stores, alternative Medicine and I know of at least 3 New Age book Stores.

Mind you there are plenty of conservative groups also, but you should have NO problem finding like minded people.

As far as Blues goes.
Sacramento Blues Society | SacBlues.com | The Source For Sacramento Blues

Guns will be bit of a problem. California has some VERY strict gun laws. But assuming your guns are legal for the state there are several open ranges to shoot at.

Likewise a fair number of illegals appear to be here.

As others have mentioned what you don't find here is probably within an hour or two drive. Likewise much of the bad mouthing of Sacramento in my opinion is due to the fact that it is close to Frisco and thus fails in many areas by comparison.

Feel free to Email me if you have other questions.

Random

[PapaDoc313]

"Several local Free Papers with a very liberal bent. The Biggest being News and Reviews. It can run upwards of, I believe, 150 pages."

I've never seen a Sac N&R with more than maybe 50 pages at most. Which is still a lot, but I'd be surprised if it ever got up over 100. That being said, I don't read it that often, so I could be wrong. You're right about the liberal slant it has though. Completely left.

As far as guns I don't think it is terribly difficult if you're record is clean. It may take a little longer to be issued a license but I'm sure you'd be able to get one. I know people with handguns and rifles, which I assume are both legal. Not sure though, I've never been too into guns.

And illegals, you'll definitely find them here. Not like you would in So Cal but you'll be hard pressed to find any California city without a fairly large to large number of illegals. I'd say it's probably the same for Phoenix, too. In Sac, it's not like illegals will really bother you in any way so unless you are completely against any illegal immigrants (or a decent amount, because they are here) being in the same town as you Sac should be fine. [Something to consider. They say by 2012 half of California's population will be Hispanic, a census that will include the estimated number of Mexican illegals here. Right now, according to CityData, Sacramento is 21% Hispanic. According to Wikipedia, California is 36%.]

[wburg]

One thing that Stockton has that Sacramento doesn't is a private four-year university (University of the Pacific.) UOP has a very good reputation, but I don't think too many graduates stay in Stockton. Sacramento has Sac State, nearby UC Davis, and a number of small law schools and professional schools, and I'd reckon that a lot of graduates stay in town, especially because there are some very good public policy/public administration programs in town, and lots of government administrative jobs nearby.

ArizonaBear, yay for us pro-gun liberals! There are a couple of good ranges near Sacramento, but none in town: the Gun Room in Elk Grove, Cordova Shooting Center in Rancho Cordova, and the Sacramento Valley Shooting Center in Sloughhouse. There are some decent gun stores too, but not as many as there used to be. There are occasional gun shows at Cal Expo and the Convention Center, but like most CA gun shows they're mostly T-shirt, militaria, beef jerky and dream catcher shows with a few guns and gun parts for sale here and there.

Definitely look into California firearms laws: there are some fairly strict rules about pistols and some very broad "assault weapon" laws. Basically if you own anything semi-auto that even looks military, there's a good chance it is considered a CA assault weapon and is a felony to bring into the state. Pistols have to be approved by a state board in order to be sold in the state, and you need a state-issued "Handgun Safety Certificate" to buy pistols (basically like a driver's license.)

[erwinrfletcher]

Hey ArizonaBear,

Take it from someone who moved up here to the Sac area from Phoenix just over six months ago (and before another infernal hellacious summer in Phoenix), you will love it up here. I was born and raised in the Bay Area, moved to Tucson for school (go UofA!), then moved up to Phoenix for work after graduation and spent 10 years there. My parents still live just south of SF, so the proximity to the Bay from here is great, while the cost of rent and (currently) houses are far lower.

[melina386]

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[bigdave01]

wburg has so much knowledge of history in this area. It is very impressive, I always love reading what he has to say.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by ArizonaBear

I have driven through Sacramento 4 times back in 1990 along I-5 so my knowledge is sketchy at best.

I have lived in the Wash DC area, SF Bay area, SoCal and am presently in the Phx, Az. area............how would Sacramento compare to the previous 4 cities? I am referring to overall vibes, cost of housing, etc.

My impressions of Sacto by just listening to the radio stations back in 1990 was quite favorable.

I tend towards being 'Liberal' with the notable exceptions of being extremely anti illegal immigration (no matter the race/ethnicity of said lawbreakers) and pro gun ownership.

Any thoughts; good, bad or indifferent?

Certainly it is less expensive than living in So Ca, SF or DC for starters. The city is probably on the liberal side, but not like SFO, but the burbs are a mixture like any mid sized or large community. I don't think of Sac as being terribly political period, especially when you consider it is the state capitol.

It has a homey feeling about it, not a busy place, but not boring.

If I were to move back to CA, Sac would be my first choice; maybe not Sac itself but the burbs...

Nita