Considering CA for retirement - wha are the real costs? (Los Angeles: sales, rental)

[Tranmkp]

Live in Texas - I can no longer take it - I'm not going to explain why - all my life here - Im sick of it.

I have friends in Ca and my kids live there - looking into Santa Barbara as I went to school there.

I've asked around and as far as I can see it looks like a wash compared to Texas.

Ca Tax us 1% My Texas tac 2.4%

Ca sales tax is 7.25% My Texas sale tax is 8%

I pay 200-350 a month for air condition/electricty

water is 80 to 120 in Texas - don't know what it is in santa Barbara

I suspect car registranion is a bit more and gas is more expensive in Ca - that is not a big deal - I do have the means.

Slip fees as I have a sailboat are about 10% more

Also use of the use tax if I bring sailboat.

Don't eat a lot of bad stuff so its cheap for us

so what am i missing here? Our house is about 1.4 million - about mid level for santa barbara - I know Ill get less house for sure but god - its santa barbara - you only sleep in the house - your out all day - Houston is cheaper as to housing but its a rathole

thank you

[nightlysparrow]

California has high income taxes; pensions are fully taxed in CA. Special high tax rates for high-income people.

Get earthquake insurance (not normally a part of homeowner's policies). Buy a house away from a fire zone; SB has been plagued with wildfires almost every year.

Fair-to-middling health care available. Friends there have had to drive the 95+ miles one-way to Los Angeles for certain treatments. Same for wanting to fly anywhere, it's a trip down to Los Angeles.

Even $1.4 million only gets you the basic house unless you want to live on the fringes. Be very careful if it's more than a few decades old as many are not tied to the foundations there.

SB has changed a lot in the last 20 years. Bad mentally-ill homeless population (almost no mental health treatment in town), high unemployment, increased crime (not violent, but a huge problem with property crimes), many of the businesses on State Street are empty. Weather has altered with drought, much less greenery.

[wac_432]

The only thing you need to be prepared for is the hatred and jealousy from other states. TLDR: SB is amazing and affordable for someone in your position. You are probably going to find what you are looking for.

Housing is the only hurdle, and you've cleared it. Since you're moving laterally or upsizing, now is a good time, since the market is up but volume is low. It's a neutral-to-somewhat buyer's market for the wealthy who are changing houses. (It's a terrible time for first-time-homebuyers).
1.4 million puts you in the newer 2000-square foot range in a nice neighborhood with maybe a view in SB. In Ventura, it would get you a (similar or slightly bigger/newer) hillside home with a spectacular view.

Everything else really is peanuts.
As you noted, you will have lower property taxes and electrical bills. Water bill: Your gallons per day is slightly les than your bi-monthly bill. So 200 gallons per day < 200 dollars every 2 months.
Food is very cheap (and tasty), since we grow it all here. Cheap from the farmer's markets, and ridiculously cheap from the 99c store and if you watch for what's in season at supermarkets, discount stores, and mexican groceries.
For instance, I won't pay more than $1 for 1lb of organic strawberries. Brussel sprouts, grapes, caulifower, asparagus, etc. get as low as $0.60/lb. Calrose rice is the lowest arsenic rice in the USA (stay away from the texas and southern stuff!) and it's very cheap and safe here.

You will have an income tax, which will take a non-insignificant bite compared to no-tax Texas. However, if you're on a modest fixed income, it won't be bad. My CA income tax rate is about 2.5%, much lower than my SS witholding, which is 5.5%.
House insurance, even in a fire zone, is an insignificant expense--and it covers wildfires. You will only really need to worry about fire if you live up in the hills. You do need to be prepared to evacuate. If you want earthquake insurance (I wouldn't bother) it's double the house insurance.

Bring your sailboat! Sailing to the channel islands from SB (get an experienced sailor to help you before attempting it--you cross busy sea lanes and there are strong currents/rapid weather changes) is an amazing experience! The channel islands, themselves, are just spectacular, as is all the marine life inbetween them and the mainland. You may need to keep your boat in Ventura or another harbor, as the SB marina is chock-full.

Cottage Hospital in SB is the best in the region, only surpassed by the biggest LA hospitals. There are tons of excellent (and wealthy) doctors and plastic surgeons who have made SB their home, for the same reasons you are looking.

All the coastal towns have vagrant problems and high property crime. There's very little violence, but lots of theft in the worse areas of town. SB does a good job of protecting its tourist spots, but you will see a few vagrants every day (if you're out and about) and be asked for spare change on occasion. Get a good bike lock and use it religiously.

SB is a world-class tourist destination, on par with Santorini and other coastal cities. State street, the parks, the surrounding city grid are all very lively and swanky. The waterfront side of town on the beach side of the 101 has evolved into the wine/burbon/tapas/boutique/boutique hotel/open-air market capital of Southern California. It is truly a wonderful place. Many days we drive up to SB and see gleaming white cruise ships anchored offshore with loads of wealthy tourists patronizing the plethora of wine bars. We visit the new and innovative museums, watch hydro-kitsurfers or other esotheric watersports innovators, listen to the sounds of a concert or game at the amplitheater/game fields. Also zoo, wharf, and great beach.
I am very jealous of SB. Ventura and points south are great, but they don't have the confluence of wealth, livlieness, and great weather of SB.

In the last 10 years, the entire area has radically gentrified, and the pace is only increasing. The under-50K income crowd is moving out of (coastal) California due to affordability, while the millionairs are moving in due to desirability. I can't give you any reason to buck this trend. If you were a 20-something blue-collar worker without much innovativeness or ambition, I'd say stay away, aim for a place where you can build some wealth and afford to live. For those who are already wealthy, successful, or who are driven and brilliant innovators, I strongly recommend California and the amazing lifestyle here. I've lived in the Midwest, East Coast, Deep South, and Asia, and I'm quite happy to have grabbed my piece of the California dream.

[Tranmkp]

wow - the alpha and omega answers! Thank you both - I know SB well. Went to school out there in the 70's. The grad work in the early 80's. Go there at least 3 times a year. To be honest, while I see some changes (stupid wine bars - I see they are for the weekenders) its not horribly changed. There are still cool little places on upper State by the curve - Milpas and Salinas still have a good vibe. Trout Club and Painted Cave if your brave and don't mind frequent brake pad replacement. There some great values in the grey zone between SB and Goleta. More manly left to buy a slip in the Marina - (its a greedy practice )

This original question was really CA specific and not so much about SB. I do have to agree with WAC - there is something magical about CA - all of it - the high the low the cold the heat and the wet - it is all there and so close. Just got back from a trip to OR. It was wonderful and beautiful - but its not the same.

[Tranmkp]

Oye Las Flores

Kids are already there - got a nice rental on the Riveria - small but perfect - good family owns and good neighbors.

kids were in Austin - so the drive is longer that than going to LA. We fly into LA - and take the SB shuttle - or uber to train station and take the train to SB

Likewise take the train to LA

its perfect

[wac_432]

Sounds like you already know the answer: Move here!

In your position, since you're not wedded to SB, I'd go north to the Central Coast--assuming you like cooler wetter windier weather. I'd go to Pismo Beach and the Tri-Cities area, then use SLO airport to get out to big hubs. But I'd check out the scene there before buying. SB is in a class all it's own, though, so you might not like the sleepier towns like Pismo or Ventura.

[CA4Now]

Originally Posted by wac_432

The only thing you need to be prepared for is the hatred and jealousy from other states.

There is no hatred and jealousy. (That appears to exist only on some of these forums.) I have never seen so many anti-California or anti-Texas posts as I have here.

If you once lived in Santa Barbara, you certainly know the pros and cons. Hope it works out for you!

[Winston Smith]

Originally Posted by CA4Now

There is no hatred and jealousy. (That appears to exist only on some of these forums.) I have never seen so many anti-California or anti-Texas posts as I have here.

I tend to agree, unless I'm missing the point. Mostly Californians don't care what out-of-staters think of California, and with 50 percent of the state's population born either abroad or in another US state, well, in short, who cares? Live and let live.

[ExNooYawk2]

What about the pros and cons of moving from Southern Oregon to Port Hueneme? We lived in T.O. for a few years and moved up here after retirement. It's lovely here, only the ocean is not very accessible and VERY cold. I'm thinking of moving to a coastal area and PH seems more affordable than others. Thoughts?

[DKM]

PH itself has limited options since its surrounded by Oxnard. The area is pretty comparable to Medford or K-falls, so if you are comfortable with that you'll be fine with PH/Oxnard. There are some nice areas there for sure but also some gritty areas. In some parts you have to be comfortable with seeing and dealing with transients on a daily basis.

The water is warmer than in Oregon but not by that much outside of summer. They get a lot of foggy and/or windy days.