Earn around 250k base per year, wife is stay at home with our toddler, and looking to move to California for the sunshine / work remote. Is there anywhere even remotely affordable that isn't dangerous or the middle of the desert? Thx
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I like Encinitas and San Clemente.
That's all 1.5mm
https://www.redfin.com/city/16690/CA/San-Clemente/filter/min-price=800k…
https://www.redfin.com/city/5844/CA/Encinitas/filter/min-price=800k,max…
Not that nice tbh.
Not sure what your max price is, but in Oceanside you might get a better bang for your buck. These are $1M - $1.2M. I would rather live in a smaller place in Encinitas though.
https://www.redfin.com/city/13753/CA/Oceanside/filter/min-price=1M,max-…
Calabasas
1.5mm
Maybe like Camarillo if you are looking for something affordable. It won’t be as nice as LA or Encinitas but safe, affordable, and cheap
You might consider looking at SLO county. Northern end would be more affordable (Paso Robles, Templeton, Atascadero) but Southern end (City of SLO, Cal Poly, etc.) is a bit more lively. It has easy access to beaches and a pretty mellow crowd. Very safe and chill - good place to raise a family but definitely has a different vibe from Northern and Southern CA.
I just was in SLO this past weekend. Pretty chill area. Stayed at Pismo Beach. My nephew just graduated Cal Poly and we partied hard. Good times.
Love going to Pismo, such a great drive up the coast. Went to Santa Barbara and you really can’t beat that part of the country. Just gorgeous.
My 2 cents I’d suggest anywhere in the north part of Ventura county. Close to SB, great beaches and hiking, close enough to LA if you need, and you’re not too far from Solvang and all the wineries in the Santa Ynez valley.
I met tons of kids from Cal Poly and surprisingly the job placement rate seemed exceptional. Every kid I met had a job lined up post graduation including my nephew. I was definitely impressed by the school after not knowing a lot about it prior to visiting.
Affordable and nice are both relative and wife not working is shooting yourself in the foot a bit.
That said, there are a ton of really nice places in Irvine and other parts of Orange County that fit within the 30%-34% of income on rent threshold for someone making $250k.
You wouldn’t be able to afford to buy those houses right now, because the mortgage would be double what rent is, but that just means it’s a renter market anyhow.
My wife has cancer
Sorry to hear that, brother. Hope she recovers soon.
Might complicate matters due to the cost of care, but without that factored in IMO you would be able to live in a nice area of California. With it, due to how healthcare works in this country, I can't say.
In NorCal / SF Bay Area, check out Santa Rosa / Rohnert Park, it’s in wine country and not too far from the big city. You can get a nice home for $800K. I have no idea about the schools. Do some research on wildfire risk and insurance. The proximity to Bay Area gives you and wife employment options, if you one day needed it.
No you can't live off 250k in CA somewhere "nice" lmao
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