Job market in San Diego - is it really that bad? (Sacramento: real estate, rent)

[AADAD]

The flavor and temp of SF and SD are quite different. It is less expensive in SD however the culture is more conservative and generic than in SF. Foodies have it good in both places though the Asian influence in SF is better. Size wise SF is tiny compared to SD. Hillcrest is astutely more SF than anywhere else in SD County and the acceptance factor is way higher in SF than SD save the Hillcrest area. SD is superior academically though many will disagree with me especially in the medical arena. If you can make it here on one salary and give yourselves time, you may end up liking it. Car(s) are essential here while not so much in SF.

The job market is uber competitive as many many people want to live here. Credentials experience and something else I have not been able to define make the grade here. That said I know nothing about your partners area of work. My family settled here and in the Bay Area. The biggest difference is the vibe to us. Much more eclectic in the SF area and much more centrist here in SD.

Finally there is no comparison to the weather here. It is almost boring in it's wonderfulness.

[Pedro2000]

Originally Posted by AADAD

The flavor and temp of SF and SD are quite different. It is less expensive in SD however the culture is more conservative and generic than in SF. Foodies have it good in both places though the Asian influence in SF is better. Size wise SF is tiny compared to SD. Hillcrest is astutely more SF than anywhere else in SD County and the acceptance factor is way higher in SF than SD save the Hillcrest area. SD is superior academically though many will disagree with me especially in the medical arena. If you can make it here on one salary and give yourselves time, you may end up liking it. Car(s) are essential here while not so much in SF.

The job market is uber competitive as many many people want to live here. Credentials experience and something else I have not been able to define make the grade here. That said I know nothing about your partners area of work. My family settled here and in the Bay Area. The biggest difference is the vibe to us. Much more eclectic in the SF area and much more centrist here in SD.

Finally there is no comparison to the weather here. It is almost boring in it's wonderfulness.

Academically San Diego really has UCSD that's great, the other schools aren't in any top 10 discussion really. SDSU was in the top party schools for a period of time. Nobody on the west coast really compares to Stanford and the success that school has in various industries. Berkeley has been known for a long long time. You have some art schools in San Fran. And there are a bunch of other colleges all over the place. At the end of the day if you had a choice between any school in San diego or Stanford, you most likely go to Stanford.

SD is small compared to SF as a city. SF is really a big city in many ways and SD really has a small downtown. People just look at San Diego as one big "city" but include Downtown and Chula Vista up to Oceanside and out to Ramona. If you did that for SF, you'd go out to the East bay all the way down to San Jose and out to Half Moon bay and so on.

Bart, CalTrain, etc are far superior up in SF. SD has more of a touristy trolley feel than one most people use on a daily basis. And SF and the bay area have far more successful companies and career choices. People just see it as Tech, but it's far more than that.

But it really depends on what you want to do in life. If you want a more laid back beach lifestyle, not many places beat SD around the world. It'll be cheaper than SF, but it also depends on your salary and where you want to live. If you want a nice big place near the beach in SD, you'll be spending just as much as you would in many places in SF.

Hillcrest isn't as pricey as SF for the most part, but it's not cheap either. There are many people who live in Hillcrest who are doctors and lawyers and professionals who make well into the $250K+ per year range. Live in many of the nice buildings with nicer amenities and you could easily spend $3K per month for some 2 bedroom. But there are smaller, not as nice, places that are far cheaper.

The other thing about places like Hillcrest, North Park these days, Mission Hills, etc is that any place that's nice and affordable usually get scooped up quick. Whether that's for sale or rent. You might see some new rental or house/condo for sale today and think it's a great deal. But you wait and tomorrow the signs and ads are gone. Somebody snatched it up. Once you're in a place, who cares, but being you are new, it might take some time to figure out what you love and don't love about different areas of SD.

That is the one thing people never realize about SD. Many little communities are so different that you might love Hillcrest but hate North Park and vice versa. Or you might like University Heights better or maybe you get tired of that area altogether and move to OB or something. Or to North County. It really is a place where people fall into their areas and those areas have a certain uniqueness and culture to themselves. Whereas up in SF and the Bay Area, it's all becoming tech central yuppies and people are getting pissed.

[Olive.green]

Does anyone know if I relocate from WA to CA for a job, would my husband be eligible for unemployment in WA under the impractical commute clause? I am not being transferred, but I am taking a job with better pay.

[moved]

Originally Posted by Olive.green

Does anyone know if I relocate from WA to CA for a job, would my husband be eligible for unemployment in WA under the impractical commute clause? I am not being transferred, but I am taking a job with better pay.

If you post your question on the unemployment forum, someone should be able to give you an answer .

[oddstray]

Originally Posted by Olive.green

Does anyone know if I relocate from WA to CA for a job, would my husband be eligible for unemployment in WA under the impractical commute clause? I am not being transferred, but I am taking a job with better pay.

Someone in the WA forum might know.

[Pedro2000]

Originally Posted by Olive.green

Does anyone know if I relocate from WA to CA for a job, would my husband be eligible for unemployment in WA under the impractical commute clause? I am not being transferred, but I am taking a job with better pay.

Depends on how he lost his job. It doesn't really matter where you live in a sense as long as he can claim he is looking for a job in his related field or transitioning to a new one. Whether or not he moves because of you doesn't matter. It becomes more of what he tells the government.

If he goes about it as if "he's moving because his wife took a better job" I'm not sure what the government would say, but they probably wouldn't be sold on just accepting that as his story. It comes down to him finding a new job and is he working to find one. The struggle comes if they ask him to come into a local office and he's in San diego.

[Wilson502]

Jus curious OP, besides having a higher paying job offer in San Diego, why are you wanting to relocate there? Is it because of the climate? Seattle as far as I can tell has a healthier job market than SD does right now. CA income tax starts becoming quite significant if you make over 60k/yr

[Pedro2000]

Originally Posted by Wilson502

Jus curious OP, besides having a higher paying job offer in San Diego, why are you wanting to relocate there? Is it because of the climate? Seattle as far as I can tell has a healthier job market than SD does right now. CA income tax starts becoming quite significant if you make over 60k/yr

Being WA state has no state income tax, it becomes a big difference.

[Olive.green]

I am wanting to move because I have very bad seasonal depression and summer lasts about 2.5 months here. The rest of the time it is rainy and grey. I also enjoy the ocean.

[mandasand]

There are a lot of ad firms and companies with in house marketing depts so I'm sure he could get a job as a traffic coord somewhere eventually. It may not be trafficking media ads, but print. I'm not sure what his education and job history is, but I was doing traffic coord in Sacramento 10 years ago...I now manage an entire marketing communications department....traffic coord did not pay well but I got my foot in the door, went back and got my MBA in marketing, and worked my way up. I started at Tower Records coordinating all their ad spots. I think I made $11 an hour! Anyway, Petco is always hiring in their marketing dept it seems! Have him look at indeed.com.