Move to San Diego? (Los Angeles, San Francisco: real estate, apartments, rental market) - California (CA) - City-Data Forum

Bransonf · 06-07-2011, 01:02 PM

I'm just curious about moving to San Diego. I have a lot of family there who say people exaggerate on the cost of living. I'm just wondering other than housing what makes San Diego so expensive? From what my family there have told me it's a lot easier to live there than what people say. They have all lived there for as long as I remember. So what exactly do people mean when they say it is so expensive? And if it is so expensive then how can so many people afford to live there?

loveautumn · 06-07-2011, 01:10 PM

COL for people who have lived here a long time (myself included) is kind of like putting the frog in a pot of cold water and slowly turning up the heat...you get used to it if it's done over a period of time. People that move from alot less expensive places get emersed in the "hot water" all at once. Expensive is all relative, depends on where you're coming from and how much $$$ you have.

The reason it's so expensive here...the weather and just because "they can" charge as much as possible and people will pay it to live here (or at least that's been the prevaling thought). Not so sure about that right now because of the difficult economic times were in.

mlarsen23 · 06-07-2011, 02:48 PM

I know many people who moved to San Diego well before the housing bubble. They bought homes for a fraction of what they would be able to sell their homes for even now after the bubble has mostly deflated. If you bought your house for $150K in 1990, you have a low mortgage and low property taxes. For you, San Diego is not very expensive to live in.

But moving here, you might have to pay $650K for an equivalent house. Renting might be cheaper, but not by a whole lot.

I don't know for sure if that your family's situation, but from the way you described it it sounds like it could be.

Other than housing, San Diego is not so expensive, although since you have to drive everywhere you have to own a car, and pay for insurance and gas. And if you want to save money on housing, you have to likely live farther from where you work - which means you will spend even more money owning a car. California taxes are also on the high side. But if you want to send your kids to a good public school, you may well have to live in an expensive neighborhood, or send them to private schools.

Okay, so maybe it is a bit expensive. You will save on air conditioning though. No need for that. If you live close to the coast. Where housing is more expensive. But you can get a cheaper house farther east. But it's hotter (and colder) there, so you may spend more on utilities, in addition to gas driving back to the coast to work.

sav858 · 06-07-2011, 02:58 PM

The wages generally don't match the high cost of living as much as they do in other $$$ areas like DC, Bay Area, etc.. Plus not the best job opportunities overall. That's what probably makes SD expensive to a lot of people.

shmoov_groovzsd · 06-07-2011, 03:38 PM

Everyone here is spot on so +1 for you guys (sorry cant rep anymore).

Clevelandgal · 06-07-2011, 04:53 PM

I agree with the advice. Housing is quite expensive if you are new to this market. We don't plan on buying-in large part b/c all our equity is in a home out of state...plus the rental market is not horrible. Yes, it is less then you get in other places, but the city is safe and you spend so much time outdoors it does not matter. Oh yes and utilities are cheap if you live near the coast. yet plenty of things cost more-mostly things to do with cars which does not impact me much. Food-grocery and dining out does not seem too out of line with other places I have been. I shop at some of the ethnic markets over mainstream grocers though. I think the biggest issue is the cost of living vs wages- The wages are lower here in many fields so the cost of living becomes that much more noticable. Luckily my spouse had a job before we moved here, and the deal was worth it even with the cost of living factored in. Try and get a job before you come or at least a realistic idea of what you will make.

bradleyyo · 06-07-2011, 05:32 PM

I currently reside in San Diego and I am tired of it. The beach areas and the urban areas around the downtown are lovely and laid back/artsy but the rest of the area is too conservative, cookie-cutter, and boring. I was born and raised here. I love San Diego but I dream of the day I can move to Los Angeles. I know you need a car to get around LA but there are still trains and a lot of walkable neighborhoods in LA that I would love.

shmoov_groovzsd · 06-07-2011, 06:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bransonf

I'm just wondering other than housing what makes San Diego so expensive? From what my family there have told me it's a lot easier to live there than what people say.

Branson,

The simple fact is that people cant afford to live here based on what they expect.

For example, someone coming from anywhere else USA, expects for less than 500k, a nice sized house, good schools and safe neighborhood....basically any cookie cutter suburb in just about any part of the country that is within a metro area.

When they see what they can get for said amount its a whole other ball game here. First off, they want ocean and then all of the above. When they realize that becomes less possible with 500k, they are forced to go inland where it gets tricky. Now you have a limited amount of options in terms of the better school system, smaller house etc. Its quite ridiculous actually because ultimately many kids go on to be pretty successful in so called "lower performing" districts etc. Locals AFAIK that I have met, dont really seem to care for this stuff as much.
Now mind you, the inland area here starts about ~10 miles from the ocean, which by any measurable standard is not far.
Then of course comes salaries which everyone else has said here, can be a few percentage points lower for a similar position in say, San Francisco or LA.

Now look at the people that live here or more specifically, migrated within the past 10 years though the housing bubble. For the most part, if they bought a house during the boom, they are underwater or have already lost their homes. A false standard was set in terms of real estate valuations and speculation. Its still out there too and I dont think it will go away. Its part of the psyche now. Most San Diegans (based on averages) dont have the incomes to sustain buying a house in desirable zip codes. But there are plenty of affordable parts of San Diego, just no one wants to accept that it is all they can afford here. There is some justification used why its simply not good enough for them.

Lets just say its far easier to compare Philadelphia to Baltimore than it is to make any comparison with San Diego. Its in its own bubble here in every way.

sdurbanite · 06-07-2011, 06:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bransonf

I'm just curious about moving to San Diego. I have a lot of family there who say people exaggerate on the cost of living. I'm just wondering other than housing what makes San Diego so expensive? From what my family there have told me it's a lot easier to live there than what people say. They have all lived there for as long as I remember. So what exactly do people mean when they say it is so expensive? And if it is so expensive then how can so many people afford to live there?

That's just it, your family has lived here for a long time so of course, it's cheap to them.

It would be expensive if a family looking to buy a house or live in area with good schools for their kids. On the other hand, if two buddies are just looking to move here, there are many of options to find a 2 bedroom apt. for less than a $1,500 a month in a fairly safe neighborhood. Then again, if you are moving here from a place like Kansas City, then you might only have to pay half that for a decent place....so is that make it expensive to live here?

I was just in NYC and visited a friend who lives in Brooklyn. He has 2 roommates and isn't paying $1000's of dollars to live there. Lots of cheap places eats in NYC, too. It just depends on your lifestyle.

Bransonf · 06-07-2011, 06:53 PM

Well thank you for the advice. It sounds like it's basically lower pay higher housing costs. I am 22 and aren't really looking to buy a house. I've found some pretty lower prices apartments in not too bad of an area. About 200 more than what I pay in salt lake. It sounds like if I can find the right price paying job then I should be fine to rent? If I am fine with housing are there any other things that might cause me troubles?
Thanks for everything