Moved to the Bay for 1 year from out of state, moved back. My review of it. (Los Angeles: live, move)

[TR95]

Originally Posted by 18Montclair

Thousand Oaks reminds me of Concord as well.

Thousand Oaks is way nicer than Concord. Sure there are nice parts in both places, but on average Thousand Oaks blows doors off Concord. I don't see any $2-$3M homes in Concord. Maybe Simi Valley is a better comparison. Or Woodland Hills, Reseda for that matter.

[TR95]

Originally Posted by jkbatca

This made me almost spit out my coffee! Wow, just wow. "Thousand Oaks, Calabassas, Westlake Village or Agoura Hills" affordable? Seriously? If you're a Kardashian, um sure, but for the average person? It was affordable about, oh say, 40 years ago. Not now.

Hint: Just because these areas are 1/3 less cost than the Bay area, does NOT, I repeat, NOT make it "affordable"... And I don't care if _you_ can afford it (good for you!!!), I'm talking the middle of the bell curve.

Yeah, I thought the same thing. Don't think anyone on here has spent anytime in these areas. All those listed are almost or as expensive as Walnut Creek, Lafayette, Danville, and you have a much worse commute to DTLA or Century City.

[TheGreatCurve]

Originally Posted by boulder2015

Nobody is denying you a house. You just dont make enough to buy where you wanna live. Suck it up, buttercup, and move to somewhere cheap or make more money. "But waaaaa... i want the bay area...." lol.

No, you ARE denying me a house because there is plenty of land to build new houses on but since you already have a house you are denying developers from building more houses so that others can also have a house. It's the - "I've got mine so the h*ll with everyone else syndrome."

And it has absolutely nothing at all to do with how much money you make. If you made $2 million a year, do you all of a sudden become dumb enough to pay $100,000 for a used 1986 Honda Accord? No, people who make a lot of money are typically a lot smarter than that!

The high prices are artificial and man made and not just the natural free market at work. If it was a totally free market, the developers would be building high-density housing everywhere and there would be no housing shortage and people who work in SV wouldn't be forced to commute 3 hours to get to work. There would also be no Prop 13 and no mortgage interest deduction, both which also contribute to higher housing prices. Get government out of the way and there would be no housing shortage as the developers will then be able to build as much as they want to meet the demand.

[mysticaltyger]

Originally Posted by AZJD

Moved my wife and two kids to the Bay for a work project for a year. We came from Phoenix area Arizona. A polar opposite cost of living change. I'm young and in my 30's, own my own house and a rental, am used to living in safe and nice areas, and next to top schools.

I'm not in tech so I don't make a huge salary, but I do ok for myself. We are just a normal middle class family and enjoy normal middle class things like going out to eat on weekends and a vacation here and there.

Spent a year in the East Bay. Housing even in Concord was 2X I was used to paying for my mortgage in Phoenix, for 1/2 the house and 50 years older, and in a questionable area. A huge downside in my opinion. Schools where we lived were ranked 2/10. And this to rent a home...needing $100,000 year salary yet all the other houses in the neighborhood are occupied by low income families but who have been there since 1970 so they really have little housing expense. Think about that...it took me $100,000 to live in a community full of high crime, awful housing, and neighbors where you have nothing in common for work and lifestyle. Just a weird dynamic.

The people I met in California all are the same. I'm specifically talking about middle class people. They are all literally broke because they spend all their income to RENT and have little savings. If they need new tires on their car, they are calling family members for help. Everyone I met seems to be ok with that. They just understand this is what it takes to live in CA. I just don't understand this mindset of being so financially unprepared for life. California is amazing yes, but not worth it if you struggle.

And don't get me wrong. California is amazing. The weather, the scenery, absolutely endless things to do and see. San Francisco is one of the best cities in the world.

Living there for the last year has made me want to be there more than anything.

But not like what it takes to be there. I would rather retire there. I am a 90 min flight to SF or Oakland right now. I would spend 90 min driving from SF to outer east Bay. It is just not sustainable to move A FAMILY there AND have a good home and normal middle class quality of life unless your family brings in $175k-$200k or more.

I know that Neutreno guy is gonna come in here and say he shares a bedroom in an apartment and makes $12/HR and therefore the Bay Area is doable, but that thought process does not, at all, represent the majority of families.

We are back in Phoenix now. Enjoying nice warm weather, dirt cheap housing that is 10X nicer than California, in top school districts, next to everything new and nice.

Would love to come back to California one day, but only if we can afford to OWN a decent home.

I'm sort of wondering why you moved here in the first place. You could have come to CD and been told what you found out....that the Bay Area isn't a good place to live for a family unless your income is upwards of $175K.

[mysticaltyger]

Originally Posted by kgbnsf

And therein lies the problem. People who live in the most arid state in the U.S., with limited water resources have cheap water, swimming pools, water the lawns, take long showers and believe that water in the West isn't a rare resource. Incredible!

In Arizonans' defense, this type of attitude is more prevalent in the Phoenix metro than the rest of the state.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by sav858

It might help to look at a map as well Ruth, that fake "waterfront community" is about 10 miles from the ocean and 800 feet above sea level. They'll probably need to drain when they run out of water though.

lol! Thanks. I don't do SoCal, so I had no idea. Where does the water come from, btw?

[sav858]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

lol! Thanks. I don't do SoCal, so I had no idea. Where does the water come from, btw?

Northern CA, where else?

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by sav858

Northern CA, where else?

This is what NorCal water is being sent to SoCal for? Not just private pools, but more or less private lakes? This is what the ag sector is up against? NorCal residents are being nickeled and dimed over drinking water and shower water for this?!

[TR95]

Originally Posted by sav858

Northern CA, where else?

Well partly true. Much of SD comes from the Colorado River as well. Groundwater also plays a role along the coast, but yes, I agree a fair portion comes from the water runoff in NorCal.

[04kL4nD]

Um, NOT a fair portion. It's much, much more significant than that.