Any SoCal natives? Life happens...

So life happens and you either deal with it or crawl into a hole.  That's my free life lesson for the day. 

But basically I'm getting divorced (we are still good friends). Odds of my current employment lasting are quickly diminishing. Most likely by the end of the year I'll be out of work and there isn't a plethora of work available here. 

So here lies the issue. I love where I live but it's a great place to retire or if you work in the medical field. Since I'm not either,  to get a good paying job I'll most likely have to commute to San Antonio and I really just don't want to do that and I will not move there. 

I should be able to rent out my current house and easily cover the cost of it. I refuse to sell this,  because one day I'd like to retire back here and the property value only climbs here and it's on 5 acres. 

Now, words I never thought that would come out of my mouth, I'm thinking of moving to SoCal if I get a decent job offer. I'd have to have a job offer before I could move there and I have a friend in San Diego I could probably crash at for a short time in needed. 

So let's go over pros and cons. 

Pros are nice weather and lane splitting and higher paying and more job opportunities.  Imagine a larger car and motorcycle culture. 

Cons are it's CA, so many priuses, and obviously higher cost of living. 

I'd probably sell off some of my fleet before going there. But I'd probably dd the Anglia on rainy days and ride a motorcycle rest of the time.  Probably sell off the bucket truck,  dump truck,  and sequoia. 

Probably keep the jeep in the back shed I just built along with other garage crap I'd have to wait to move.  The sheds on the back of the property and I'd just have it locked and in the lease agreement that they can't use it. 

Financially sadly that seems the most logical approach. Have a property management deal with my house and let a tenant pay my mortgage for me.  Get a simple place and a decent job and I'd still be ahead. I just don't know if I can bring myself to live in CA. 

Anyone live there that's not trying to leave? I'm open to more pros and cons,  I got atleast 6 months before I'm out of work and I'm working on a side gig here right now. If that pans out it might make me enough to be able to stay but that's a big if. 

I tend to make big moves when I move. Went from MI to TN then TN to TX. It would be nice to have more people in my age bracket (mid 30s) there aren't alot here. 

I'm planning on going out to visit San Diego in the next few months. I've only been to the Fairfax area, I did drive through other parts but didn't spend any real time anywhere. 

Am I crazy for thinking of going there? Trust me,  it's almost impossible to offend me so be honest. 

Also if anyone has a an extra beater motorcycle I'd love to go riding when I visit. I've always wanted to do lane splitting. 

In reply to bigfranks84 :

Sorry to hear about your situation. Though if you’re going to move to SoCal I’d say the time to do so is when you’re single & still young enough to enjoy it. 

San Diego is a big place ,  but there are a lot of freeways so that helps , and a lot of cars to fill the freeways.

You really need to spend a couple weeks and explore ,  mid summer is best as you can see how hot and dry the inland valleys are and how cool and wet it can be in the morning at the beaches .

San Diego is very much not LA, and I mean that in the best way possible. Get a burrito there. The local style is my favorite. I also hear great things about the carne asada fries. I stopped eating meat before I started going down there so I never got to try them. 

Pacific Beach (PB to locals) is one of the more affordable places to live, if things haven't changed too much. It's also lousy with college kids as a result. Whether that's good or bad is up to you 

Be aware that there is effectively Coastal California (what most people think of) and Inland California (which is a lot more like Arizona/desert in the southern part). The San Diego area is a good example of this.  The coastal areas of course is a much milder climate and can be massively more expensive.

The homeless problem can be extensive in some areas (and they are only just starting to do much about it), so pay attention to that in potential living location.

There may be a glimmer of hope recently, they actually just FAILED to pass a tax increase in LA.... and it was "for the children"... that's new.

I keep telling folks that Palm Spring/Palm Desert/Indio are kinda southern California's last inexpensive city. Unlike coastal areas that are developed from coast to mountain range, the Coachella Valley has room to grow. It's by no mean going to be Mid-West Cheap or without a fair amount of traffic, but it won't be like living in LA or making the Escondido/El Cajon Commute to San Diego. 

I grew up in San Diego.  I love it there.  I live in Denver as I simply couldn't afford where I wanted to live in San Diego, which was one of the beach communities or close to one. 

As someone else remarked above, once you get out of the ocean inversion layer, its a totally different ball game.  It's HOT, like desert HOT.  I'd leave my parents house in La Jolla and it'd be low 80's, get to my friends house in Mira Mesa and it was pushing 100.  Mira Mesa was maybe 20-25 minutes away, so not far.

You need to take into account the complete cost of living there and weigh it against the offer.  In most cases a higher offer there won't offset the increased cost of living...

I live in North San Diego county and I like it here. I'm not a native though. The reason SoCal is expensive and crowded is because a lot of people want to be here. That means there is a higher dynamic going on. More creativity, stronger economy, et cetera. Having grown up in the middle of nowhere Oregon I prefer a dynamic environment over a sleepy, stagnant environment.

Yes the stereotype of SoCal can be found if you look. There ARE a crap ton of Prii. There are also a crap ton of Broplows and their redneck drivers. And everything in between - because of the aforementioned higher dynamic.

OP - I too am freshly divorced. I have a spare room to rent if you need one. Room to park cars and work on them. Swimming pool. And so on...

and if you lived in Indio or Palm Springs / Palm Desert or Thermal, you could work at the BMW Performance Center West or Thermal Club, both in Thermal CA.

What is your profession?  i know a guy at BMW...

My son lived in Irvine for 5 years - if I could afford it I would love to live here.  

Probably gone pro, made millions, living in a big old mansion, soaking it up in a hot tub with my soul mate. 

Real CHiPS below.

Costco parking lot near Irvine.  It feels like a nose thumb when you build a Japanese MGB (better) and use the BRG color.

just feels like the right thing to do.

In reply to AngryCorvair :

I have one of those college degrees. BBA with an automotive technology minor. Graduated in the middle of the 08 crash. Basically done retail management and now sales at Fastenal, also pretty decent at inventory control. 

Haven't worked in a shop since college, just work on my own junk. 

But I'd really like to get into something I would actually enjoy more.  Wouldn't mind getting into the automotive or motorcycle industry somehow.  

In reply to Sparkydog :

I'm going shoot you a email.  But at the minimum I'd like to swing by when I come visit this fall.  

AngryCorvair said:

and if you lived in Indio or Palm Springs / Palm Desert or Thermal, you could work at the BMW Performance Center West or Thermal Club, both in Thermal CA.

What is your profession?  i know a guy at BMW...

Hey I'm available. :)

I've spent a lot of time in Southern California for my current job as of late and started a thread about possibly moving there as well. The cost of living in LA and San Diego is almost unfathomable compare to Central Florida. San Diego is much less crowded than LA and has a much more chill vibe. Lots of homeless around though. People aren't kidding with the temperature disparities from the coastal towns to the valleys. Even in the winter. I've only visited for days at a time or road tripping but it's a beautiful state. 

From my research and from the help of others in my thread, it seems like to have the same standard of living I currently have, I would need to almost double my salary to keep that in LA, maybe 1.8 times my current salary in San Diego. I've received offers from some large fortune 100 companies out there and they can barely offer me 5% more than what I make now and they wonder why they can't fill critical positions to ensure the stability and growth of their programs. 

What part of texas are you in? I live in San Antonio and could be looking for a house to rent after my divorce. 

Also, I moved here from southern california. Huge culture difference but other than $ and traffic it's basically what you make of it. San Diego is my favorite part of southern california though.

If you find a job in the San Diego area I could hook you up with my friend who usually has a room or two for rent on the east side of San Diego. But I'd have to meet you before I could vouch for you. 

There is a reason so many people live here in Southern California.  And because there are so many, the prices go up. 

There is also a reason so many people leave.  

If you can can afford to pay for the weather and variety of geographies around here (beach, mountain, desert, snow, etc) and you can tolerate the overcrowding, it’s cool. 

There are definitely places near la and sd that are less crowded, but you’d have to commute into the crowded areas.  Busses and trains here work well if you want to and can use them

Thanks for all the responses guys. 

I'm still not sure what exactly I want to do. Crazy what can change in a single conversation. 

Yupididit, I live in Kerrville on 5 acres about a mile from Comanche Trace outside of city limits. 

Other option I've been looking into on and off for years is getting my cdl and doing OTR. Honestly I think that was lifestyle would be right up my alley. I have no issues with being alone and having minimal interaction with people. I know rookie drivers don't get paid great but I luckily don't have a big Mortgage or alot of debt. I'm can easily get by on 40k a year especially if I rent out the house. 

I have a small guest house on the property and if I decide to rent I'll just put it in the lease of the house that there is a tenant that lives in the guest house but isn't around much.  I can access it from the back gate and not have to go near the house, so I don't really see that being an issue. 

Really all this will depend on if by some miracle they keep my store open. And then it depends on where I can get work,  easiest and quickest will be cdl. 

It's all kinda up in the air, started to update the old resume and apply to jobs here and there that look appealing. Just going with the flow at this point. 

In reply to bigfranks84 :

Going with the flow is a good approach.  

So, I'm not really sure what you're looking for, but I think I can give you some simplified advice about SoCal. If you have a trade, you can live comfortably enough and be in an incredible area, but you'll give up some luxuries to gain others. If you're working in retail, which it sounds like you are, you're going to have a tough time getting by. If left leaning politics bother you, stick to Orange County.

I had the time of my life living there on very little money, but I was content to live just about anywhere and I was stuck living paycheck to paycheck.

In reply to white_fly :

Yeah,  if it makes you feel better I also don't really know what I'm looking for.  Been trying to get out of retail for the last 12 years and this may finally be the push to get. If anyone knows someone looking to hire an reliable employee let me know.  

Here's a quick version of my background. I  did construction/remodeling, on the side, since I was a kid with my dad.  Though that's never been on paper anywhere. Did landscaping  during college, that was fun using the zero turn mowers, dump trucks,  backhoe, etc. Got an internship during college at Walgreens in 07 and with the crash of 08 I wasn't able to find anything else. Did the Asst Mgr thing there for 6 years.  Got an offer to be a a store mgr at a convenience store and did that before being promoted to oversee the operations of the small chain of convenience stores. I ended up at Fastenal for the last 4 years, were I'm the psuedo mgr. 

I'm one of those crazy people that actually show up to work every day. Only take sick days when I'm actually sick but I always take my vaca days. Honestly I typically work harder than most people do in my roles. 

If I rent out my place here that would easily cover my mortgage and taxes and insurance for it. So that makes certain aspects easier and I'm pretty cheap so I don't need a ton of money to get by.

With the  curve balls this year, I'm just trying to figure things out. Atempting to come up with a few options by the end of the year. 

In reply to bigfranks84 :

Eek Kerrville would make my commute 1hour. Ouch!  Good luck on your journey and hit me up if you ever need anything.