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I see this assertion a lot here so it's nothing personal, but LA and OC for that matter traffic is at least 2x worse than SD. Have you ever driven on the 405, or the 91, or the 22, or the 55, or the 57 or (insert LA or OC freeway here)? They are jammed, both directions, all day. SD traffic has a flow to it. Bad southbound in the morning, then northbound at night. The 805 south in the afternoons can be brutal, but I'd take it any day over the death march that is the 405 through westside LA or the 57 through Orange and Santa Ana.
It depends on what side of the road you are but if you are in it, it sucks. I never used to have to stop going home so long as I left by 3 going North on the 805 and now it routinely jams to a halt.
I see this assertion a lot here so it's nothing personal, but LA and OC for that matter traffic is at least 2x worse than SD. Have you ever driven on the 405, or the 91, or the 22, or the 55, or the 57 or (insert LA or OC freeway here)? They are jammed, both directions, all day. SD traffic has a flow to it. Bad southbound in the morning, then northbound at night. The 805 south in the afternoons can be brutal, but I'd take it any day over the death march that is the 405 through westside LA or the 57 through Orange and Santa Ana.
That's really not the case, because traffic flow in OC, as in most places, varies by day/time/freeway/ construction activity.
I work in the same industry as your husband and am very aware of the low pay in the SD market. Why not move to LA? Depending on his position, his salary could nearly double. I know mine would.
We've considered LA and applied at the stations up there but no interest just yet. He's on-air so even though he has experience and he's good at what he does, if he doesn't have the right hair color or whatever they're looking for, he won't be considered. But you're right, his salary would double. Tons of people try for LA though and its super tough for on-air people.
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Originally Posted by sdlife619
My question is, what professions and careers are people working in that is allowing them to afford the median home in SD? Because the homes are selling very fast, so I wonder who are the people buying them and what do they do for a living? We all know SD companies pay workers less to live here (sunshine tax), so I don’t get it.
I've often wondered the same thing. Every year when our lease is coming up we always check out what other options are out there and when looking through individual properties, I always ask the Property Management companies where the owners live, if they're local and a majority of them say no. That they live out of the country, come to SD and buy properties to rent them out. Never having any intentions of ever living in the home. I'm sure that's not the case for everyone but I was surprised at how many situations like that we came across during our search.
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Originally Posted by CLT4
I grew up in North SD and South OC. Left 5 years ago at 27 years old for a promotion at my former employer's headquarters in North Carolina. It has been a good move for my wife and I.
I've thought about North Carolina. I've never been there but we have a few friends who moved there and they really like it. My husband sent his resume (well, in his line of work he has to send a demo reel of his latest reporting/anchoring) to a few of the TV stations there and he did get interest from WBTV (the CBS affiliate in Charlotte). They didn't have any openings at the moment but the head guy there liked his work and will keep him in mind for future openings.
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Originally Posted by ryanst530
Don't look back, OP, look forward.
Awww, thanks! I needed to hear that! Thank you! I've just been feeling so lost, confused and stressed lately. I have heard the saying, "The hardest part about moving forward is not looking back." Yes, very hard indeed!
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Originally Posted by sfosyd
Would the position in SLC pay more and offer more advancement than San Diego? If so, it might make sense to take it. My take on the local news here is that it is very amateurish and low budget. I'm not familiar with the industry but I'd imagine that it is because it is basically right next to the second largest media market in the country and overshadowed. Salt Lake, on the other hand, is the largest media market, by far, in that region so I'd imagine it would be a step up for your husband.
Yes the position in SLC would pay more but only $5k more the first year and then it goes up each year (they offered him a multi-year contract for a big Anchor job).
SLC is ok - at first we thought ok we'll just go there for a year or two and leave but their offer is pretty serious...they don't him for just a short time, they want him for many years to come. If we accept this offer, then that's the place we will be stuck living for probably many years and I fear that I just won't be happy there. I mean, do we accept our first offer or keep looking for something we're more excited about?
Yeah, I know that you mean about our local SD news...even my husband complains about it and he's in the media! Many of you have probably seen him on TV! The SLC market is pretty much the same as SD. They are similar in market size (SD is market 29 and SLC is market 30) NY is 1, LA is 2, followed by Chicago, Philly, etc. Once you start getting into the top 15 or maybe even top 20, they get better. He would like to be in a bigger market and SLC would actually be moving backwards...even though he would have a higher profile position. This is why we're not super excited about this offer...we want to be in a bigger market.
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Originally Posted by Jdawg8181
If your husband works in TV you really want to be LA or NYC... but LA sucks, IMO. NYC will pay really good money in TV ... the downside to that is it's also very expensive to live there.
We would love LA or NY but those are very competitive markets to get into, especially for on-air talent.
This business is tough - the stations make them sign contracts and you can only leave when they're up but managers practically try to re-sign people many months before their contracts are even up so its like you're trapped. You can't just up and quit when you want or the station will sue you.
Right now my husband has outs in his contract for the next 9 months so we've got this window of time to find something else. The SLC job is offering NO outs, which means we can't leave for several years. I don't like that...makes me feel trapped.
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Originally Posted by expatCA
Left SD and cae back to the IE and left 9 years ago. CVould move abck but do nto want to anymore. Love the weather and beauty, but everything else is a pain. Live in E. TN now and will be living in FL on the Atlantic coast in 1 week. It is very much like Newport beach where I grew up in the 60's. Humidity is a pain until, you get used to it and I love no chapped lips, dry skin and sore throats, plus the ocean breeze cools you down. Avoid South FL for sure.
Growing up I moved from Colorado to Houston...VERY different but I actually adjusted to the humidity of Houston better than I thought I would. I had a harder time adapting to NOT being around again when I moved away than I did adjusting to it. So I would be open to living in a humid place again.
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Originally Posted by broncosilly
Heck, I'm sitting here getting frustrated for you guys as there is no right answer.
Haha! Its so frustrating, right? I feel like we're in a no-win situation. I just want to cry.
That's really not the case, because traffic flow in OC, as in most places, varies by day/time/freeway/ construction activity.
I lived in central and north OC for 10 years and was always amazed at how bad the traffic was compared to home (coastal north county). Normal traffic patterns didn’t matter, as far as I could tell.
I lived in central and north OC for 10 years and was always amazed at how bad the traffic was compared to home (coastal north county). Normal traffic patterns didn’t matter, as far as I could tell.
That perspective does not fit the reality of OC traffic. Some hours are worse than others, and much depends upon the particular freeway and the day of the week.
Obviously, if people are rushing en masse to get to work, or returning at about the same time, there will be more congestion. Hence, the phrase, "rush hour traffic " was coined. This is seen in metro areas around the country.
Right now he has an offer in Salt Lake City. I know the mountains are beautiful there but I'm concerned about the winters/snow driving. I haven't even stepped foot in snow in 15 years so I just don't know if I could do it again.
Snow driving has been improved phenomenally the last decade. Today's quality snow tires are amazing. Get four snow tires, put them on when temps drop below 45 degrees, you'll have no problems.
Snow isn't the deciding factor here. The life you want to lead is.
Take the position if it's a money increase and you can greatly decrease your cost of living. Live cheaply and save furiously. I mean try to save greater than 50% of what you are earning -- you absolutely can do it with no kids, which is fantastic for you, because kids are enormous money sucks and dream killers. Maybe even try to save 75% if you have no debts, i.e. no school loans, no stupidly expensive cars, etc. Do this for a number of years. Maybe a decade.
Put the money into low-cost, safe investment accounts, preferably ones that pay you every month and every quarter. Do this for a while, especially in a low-cost-of-living state, and you'll be putting money away hand-over-fist. If you are diligent, after a while the income from your investments will match, and then exceed, your monthly expenses. When you hit this milestone, you will have independence, freedom and unparalleled optionality.
With diligent saving and investing, you will achieve a life most can only dream about. Doing what you want, when you want. Don't like Salt Lake winters? Jet over to Hawaii for a month or two in winter. Or winter in San Diego if you prefer. Or do whatever it is you want to do. Maybe you want to do absolutely nothing -- a perfectly valid choice. But it's a choice you can make, and follow through on. The overwhelming majority of people on this planet will never be able to do this. Wage slaves to the last.
So, don't be a wage slave forever. Don't allow San Diego "weather" and California's absolutely insane taxes, costs and fees rob you of the one resource that truly matters: time. Set up an inexpensive home base in a low cost-of-living state, preferably with low or no income taxes, and your financial strength and capability will overcome all. Plane tickets and a really nice AirBnB for a month or two are a pittance when compared with a mountain of savings and monthly income distributions rolling in like clockwork because you were diligent, and dedicated, and did what most people are too lazy to do. I assure you, nice weather during your most productive working years -- when you are stuck in an office, not enjoying that sun and weather you are paying for so dearly -- is not worth your financial independence. It's not even close.
I grew up in North SD and South OC. Left 5 years ago at 27 years old for a promotion at my former employer's headquarters in North Carolina. It has been a good move for my wife and I. I'm making more money since I moved to a city with a bigger presence in the industry I work in. While we miss the weather and our friends, we have also embraced the differences and unique things. We love fall and the beautiful changes of the seasons. I had never seen such a beautiful spring with dogwoods, crepe myrtles, magnolias, daffodills blooming, etc... It took about 1.5 years, but now we have very close friends here, are going to weddings, have dinner parties, etc... summer is humid, but I have found it manageable. It is a bonding thing with locals in the summer! haha. Winter is mild here. Colder than SD, but typically 50's during the day for 3 months, with maybe one or two days where it snows and melts by the next day (makes for fun pics of the kids in the snow, but then it goes away!)
On the house front, we are able to live in a trendy part of the city close to nightlife, restaurants, shopping, etc... with good schools and we bought a custom built all brick 4 bedroom house for $330k. My commute is 30 minutes and I'm home by 6PM to go jogging or biking on the trails by my house. When I talk to my friends back in CA who are driving 1 hour plus to get to Temecula and be in their $500k tract house next to an Olive Garden and casino... it reminds me how lucky I am.
Mountains are anywhere from 40 minutes away to 2 hours away to hiking, waterfall exploring, mountain climbing, etc.... in the Blue Ridge. We love hiking and go as a family or with friends around 10 - 15 weekends a year for a day hike. The beach is 3 hours away and we go two weekends a year for an overnight weekend. I wasn't a huge beach person in CA, so this is plenty for me. We also have friends with a boat and I've been considering joining a boat club, but there are two big lakes surrounding the city that are great from May - October for water skiing, tubing, swimming, etc... Right now it is fun to go with our friends, but I think once the kids are older joining a boat club might be worth it to have our own.
I'd highly recommend visiting a place before you move, realize it is different (people don't like to be told how "In California we had WAAAAY more burrito places"), and work to become an outstanding citizen that contributes to your new home being a better place to live. If you are humble and friendly, people will be friendly back. If you are arrogant, complain, and tell everybody you wish their city was like San Diego... don't be surprised if they frown at you.
While I love CA weather, it isn't everything. Many places have a better overall QOL and COL and far less hectic.
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I have heard the saying, "The hardest part about moving forward is not looking back." Yes, very hard indeed!
