why California ?

[jadinolf]

I've been here since 1960.

Pretty hard to pack up and leave at this point in my life.

 

[dquan97]

Originally posted by: rh71
What about when it comes time for you guys (non-homeowners) to buy your own place ? Will you do everything in your power to stay there or is it an "I'm not paying $500k for a shack" mentality ?

Do all the listed pros outweigh the cons ?

I just bought a condo for $225K last year and will probably stay until something extraordinary is offered elsewhere. I enjoy the weather and the proximity of SF, LA, Tahoe

 

[deejayshakur]

the food

 

[ThisIsMatt]

I love being on the coast. I really can't explain it, I just don't like being in, say, the middle of Nebraska. I like the terrain (mountain biking is one of my biggest hobbies). I love the weather.

 

[Spike]

Originally posted by: Anubis

Originally posted by: Trey22
Summer weather w/out the humidity.
Ocean/coast.
Mountains.

you just described Maine and NH

Lol, you don't have mountains over there, those are freaking hills. Every morning I look over and see Mt Rainer (well, the mornings that it's not all rainy) in all it's 14,000 ft+ glory. Now THATS a mountain

And to all the cali people complaining about those out of staters settling down... well, Washington will take ours back if you take back all the liberal stoners that left cali for here. And I garuntee you that you will be getting back way more than you send up.

-spike

 

[MrDingleDangle]

I came out here for school and have been in Los Angeles for 4+ years now (with 6 months in Houston in the middle), I grew up outside of NYC and went to undergrad in Baltimore.

Of the places I have lived all have their positives, I love NYC but have never lived in the city,

Baltimore I like, but there are a lot of negatives about it, but my family now lives in the suburbs of Annapolis and its beautiful there...Houston is too hot in the summer, but besides that I like it.

The things like like about Southern Cali are the weather which is perfect year round, the social life, the food selection is better then any other place I have lived and the ability to have ocean and mtns. so close to each other

I love that 5 hours away is San Fran and napa and the redwoods, 4 hours is Vegas, 2 hours is San Diego, 3 hours is Roseritto...and each place is has great things to do that are different from each other

BUT i am still in school and renting an apartment, we will see how much I love it when it comes to buying a house...I love it now, but that doesnt mean I will stay here for good.

 

[zoiks]

I live in Sunnyvale and even though rent/cost of living is high here, I wouldn't wanna be anywhere else.

I love the outdoors and I love California for it. Living in the bay area, jobs are plentiful, weather is great and the surroundings are astoundingly beautiful. Ski slopes are a couple of hours drive away and so are parks such as Yosemite.

I'm a fisherman by hobby and I've explored pretty much all the beaches near where I live. I've driven up to Crescent city, CA and down to San Diego all along the coast and I've explored all the fishing piers and multitudes of rocky shores along the way.
Last time I was out fishing in Big Sur, a Gray whale came 50 yards of me. I saw pods of dolphins and a few sea otters floating on their backs trying to open crab shells with rocks using their hands. And this was all in one day there. Granted all days are not like this but each day has its own experience. I love the salty air, the sound of the water.

Thats just a few things. Its no doubt the place to be.

 

[cHeeZeFacTory]

Just had a relative that moved here from florida. He says it's the weather.

If you can afford it, the weather, cultural diversity are definitely reasons to stay in So Cal.

Downside: I'll never be able to afford property at my current salary.

 

[rh71]

Which is worse... Harlem or Compton ?

 

[Ricochet]

Originally posted by: Spike

Originally posted by: Anubis

Originally posted by: Trey22
Summer weather w/out the humidity.
Ocean/coast.
Mountains.

you just described Maine and NH

Lol, you don't have mountains over there, those are freaking hills. Every morning I look over and see Mt Rainer (well, the mornings that it's not all rainy) in all it's 14,000 ft+ glory. Now THATS a mountain

And to all the cali people complaining about those out of staters settling down... well, Washington will take ours back if you take back all the liberal stoners that left cali for here. And I garuntee you that you will be getting back way more than you send up.

-spike

My friend in Redondo Beach is heading back to Seattle to work for Boeing again. My sister's friend went back to Seattle after 5 years in LA. She's tired of the SoCal traffic and shallow people.

I, after living in LA for one year, have moved on as well. There's definitely a lot of things to do in SoCal so I can see why people love it there.

However, these are the reasons why I would never reside permanently in SoCal:
1) Real Estate cost. It is hard to justify paying 500k - 1mil for a sub-standard 3 br house.
2) Overpopulation/traffic. There are too many goddamn people. Anywhere you go, you're either stuck in line or stuck in traffic.
3) The weather. Unless you're living near the beach, I find the summer heat unbearable. Give me 60-80 weather anyday.
4) Smog. Some of you natives have been living there too long if you don't notice it. Sometimes I can barely see the moutains.
5) Attitude. Some of you are like the New Yorkers and the Texans. In your minds, you seem to think that everyone in the world wants to be in California. Just because you live there doesn't mean you are the sh!tz.

 

[PHiuR]

Originally posted by: Baked
The slutty OC chicks, duh.

:laugh:

 

[Queasy]

California doesn't have weather. It has climate.

 

[NikPreviousAcct]

Evil is like the T1000 in liquid form. Little pieces naturally move toward each other and glop together to grow and look for other pieces to merge with.

California is the biggest piece of evil in the entire world.

 

[MBentz]

Originally posted by: neovan
LA is a large state from top (anything above SF is nonexistant) to bottom (SD). I think a major part of the reason people move here is because of the weather. The majority of our weather includes sunshine which means beaches are more fun to go to and the reason why we have so many beaches. The weather also allows us to dress a little bit more casual during the evening hours which means that nightlife is filled with girls with skimpy clothing.
The location is perfect because its close to near everything. The beaches are >1hr away, the mountains are >2.5 hrs away (Big Bear) or >1.5hrs (Mt. High) and you got Las Vegas which completely owns Atlantic City is ~3hrs away.
I don't want to experience all 4 seasons if one of them includes shovelling snow out of my driveway at 6AM.

My only complaint is the traffic. 1.5 hours for 12 miles is unacceptable! :|

Sacramento is nonexistant? Interesting thought.

I've been to Oregon, Idaho, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Chicago, Virginia and Maryland. All those states are nice, but I love NorCal. Snow to my right, beach to my left. What more do you want?

 

[Dragnov]

People who were born in California, generally stay in California. Why? Because what other state has MORE to offer? There is more cultural diversity here. Theres access to the beach or the mountains within hours. Various types of cities. National Parks. Jobs. Weather. Blah blah.

If there is something you do not like (such as the traffic, the lack of distinct seasons, costs, politics, etc.), I'm sure you can find somewhere that can fit your needs WITHIN California, and still have access to everything else.

 

[BrokenVisage]

Screw Cali, I'll take Florida over it any day of the week.

 

[her209]

Why California? Because if California seceded from the US, we'd still kick ass economically.

 

[phreakah]

i love LA.. the weather, the vibe, culture, diversity, everything. i can't picture myself ever leaving LA for any place else in the us. to me the pros def outweigh the cons. cost of living, traffic, crowdedness, smog.... dont even notice these things anymore

 

[OdiN]

Originally posted by: RaDragon
It's really difficult to explain. I live in the South Bay. We moved from Redondo Beach (renting) to Torrance (bought a home) because we wanted to be close to the beach, but still be able to afford the mortgage. The house is a measley 3-bedroom, 1750 sq. feet and two years ago, it cost us about $360K. I recently heard that it's worth over $500K. Living "close" the beach means that we don't use air conditioning during the summertime (albeit it does get hot! but not as hot as the Valley), we run along the coast, and just really enjoy all-year-round cool weather.

In general, I like the mutli-ethnic culture of Los Angeles County. For me, it's a more laid back and welcoming place than Boston or NYC (of course, I've only lived 6 weeks total in those two other cities)... It's also nice to live close to the beach communities (Manhattan, Hermosa and Redondo Beach) 'cuz of the different stuff that you can do from day to night.

So do you live in the South Bay or do you live in Torrance? Torrance is down in nasty LA. The South Bay is ya know...San Francisco...at least that's what everyone else I know in this state thinks of when you say "South Bay"

 

[OdiN]

I have lived here in CA all my life and I cannot wait to get out of this hellhole. Yes...the state/national parks are great and I love em, but the weather here in the valley sucks...there is NO snow here. I hate that. I love winter and would be at home in Colorado or something. Central Cali doesn't even HAVE winter as far as I'm concerned. We have Spring, Summer and Fall.

Northern Cali is much more enjoyable...but I'm stuck in the valley here and jobs are hard to come by so I'm staying where I have got some job security. I know too many people around here that if I ever needed a job I could easily get SOMETHING....

 

[faZZter]

My wife and I recently sold our house on the central coast of CA and moved to Idaho. Part of the reason is to get away from the high costs associated with living in CA. Also we wanted 4 seasons but not too harsh (we live outside of Boise a little ways). We couldn't be happier here so far. Hot summers, cold winters, just like it should be.

Yeah Ill admit I will miss the beach some, and people I knew in CA, some places I am familiar with, but hey, I can always go visit.

 

[MagicConch]

I moved to coastal San Diego b/c of weather + casual attitude here. I can go to the four seasons (which is just down the street) in ripped jeans and flip flops here and it looks normal. Good fruit and vegetable stands dot the side of the road, large flower fields, endless trails, outdoor malls, surfing, & virtually no humidity, mosquitos, or flying pests. People here are healthy and energetic for the most part. There is always some flowers blooming I have noticed, and I can feed hummingbirds nectar right from my hand while I sit outside and read a book in my backyard. Even the wildlife seems more casual. I don't think I'd want to live anywhere else.

 

[Rickten]

I love all the people in cali saying, oooohh my house has doubled in value in the past three years. You may think your house is worth 1million but nobody is going to buy it for that price UNLESS you are in San Fran or LA area. I would say for San Fran and LA including the surrounding suburbs up to say 60 miles out in all directions there really is no housing bubble. The prices will never drop, they may slow down but they are not coming back down.

 

[Skunkwourk]

Originally posted by: Rickten
I love all the people in cali saying, oooohh my house has doubled in value in the past three years. You may think your house is worth 1million but nobody is going to buy it for that price UNLESS you are in San Fran or LA area. I would say for San Fran and LA including the surrounding suburbs up to say 60 miles out in all directions there really is no housing bubble. The prices will never drop, they may slow down but they are not coming back down.

Actually, the houses in my neighborhood are going for around 1 million but no one is biting. Hell I don't even think the house Im living in is worth anything near that. Maybe the only thing that will lower housing costs is another recession like we had about a decade ago. Housing prices dropped maybe something like 30%?

 

[LongCoolMother]

diversity. industry. and great public universities.

AND, we have coastline, mountains within our easy reach. california baby, thats what im talking about.