Want to move from Hawaii to Southern California (San Diego, Oxnard: apartment, rentals) - (CA) - City-Data Forum

winkosmosis · 12-08-2011, 11:26 PM

I moved from Texas to Maui a year and a half ago for a county job as a GIS tech, but I can't make it with the high cost of living.

I've been applying for jobs in Southern California, because honestly there's no other part of the country where I'd want to live. SoCal happens to have the most similar climate, landscapes, and culture to my favorite parts of Texas and Hawaii, plus a lot of public land, countryside, and beaches to explore and photograph. I'm 27 but I prefer smaller towns to big cities. I like rodeos, not dance clubs.

There also happens to be a decent number of jobs that I qualify for. I haven't gotten offered one yet in a few months of applying, but I think my chances are about as good there as anywhere else... So I'm planning to just keep applying until I get a job.

But I want to figure out the logistics in advance, like how much I can expect to pay for rent in the different towns, what commutes are doable, how much utilities will cost, etc.

Right now I'm wondering about Santa Barbara area. I applied for a job at the fire dept in Santa Ynez that would pay $3880-4730 per month. It's a long shot but you never know. If I got $3880, I think the most I'd want to pay for rent would be about $1000. But judging by Craigslist ads, rentals in Santa Ynez, Santa Barbara, and Goleta are really expensive... very few options below $1000.

Lompoc and Santa Maria are much cheaper. Is it practical to commute from these places to Santa Ynez? I've heard that there's a lot of commuting between towns in California, so would there be rush hour traffic? What are those towns like? Anything I should know?

Also, a lot of jobs pop up in San Diego so I've looked for rentals there too. That region seems to have much lower rental costs than Santa Barbara. Is that right or am I looking in the bad parts of town? Where should I be looking to find an apartment around $1000 or less in commuting distance to San Diego?

Thanks in advance for any input!

Edit: I looked at some threads and apparently the Santa Barbara area isn't SoCal, but is "MidCal". Well, as long as it's not NorCal, which sounds way too much like the PNW for me.

Snort · 12-08-2011, 11:45 PM

Santa Barbara is Southern California.
And it's going to be more expensive there than anywhere else.
For $1000 per month, you're not going to get the best of places. Maybe a decent studio, and that goes for San Diego County as well as Santa Barbara. You might find some less expensive housing in the Santa Ynez Valley. I mean, Buellton for sure would be cheaper. It wouldn't be practical to live in Lompoc and commute to Santa Ynez, but it wouldn't surprise me to hear that people do it. People commute from there to Santa Barbara, so it can be done. Things will make much more sense once you're here on the ground and scoping out the areas. Just remember that from Oxnard on south, it gets really busy. Whenever I go back there, traffic just seems insane. Santa Barbara and parts north still feel more manageable.

Oh, and regarding NorCal, I'm a transplant up here and the weather is not like the PNW (talking about the South Bay area). If you're talking about Eureka, well, that's a different story.

winkosmosis · 12-09-2011, 12:35 PM

I guess if I get that job I should look for housing in Santa Ynez. The gas savings would probably make up for the difference in rent anyway.

sadie123 · 12-09-2011, 10:15 PM

Wink:

As long as you are considering moving. I suggest you look at: Job Search | one search. all jobs. Indeed.com
Search for GIS Tech and see if anything is of interest.

Good luck!

winkosmosis · 12-10-2011, 12:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sadie123

Wink:

As long as you are considering moving. I suggest you look at: Job Search | one search. all jobs. Indeed.com
Search for GIS Tech and see if anything is of interest.

Good luck!

That's where I search for jobs, and also career-advisor.net and gjc.org

The funny thing is if you search for "gis tech", the first result now is a job that's been posted and reposted for at least 3 months. They're paying $11/hr for a job that should pay about $60k... and it's in Orange County.

sadie123 · 12-10-2011, 02:36 AM

I know it is sad. I would search for other states. My daughter and her husband just moved to Germantown, Maryland because they could not find jobs in California. They actually really like the area and are making four times the salary they could make in California. They both have Master's degrees. California is not the place for young people in the next ten years. Sorry.

winkosmosis · 12-10-2011, 03:37 AM

Most jobs I've seen pay a little more than they would in Houston or Austin, and much more than in Hawaii. I don't know about the east coast.

sadie123 · 12-10-2011, 03:50 AM

All I can say is keep an open mind about the east coast. If the job sounds good then consider it. I was really worried about the snow and ice on the roads, but I have heard that it is not as bad as I thought and that locations that are used to snow etc. make arrangements to have the roads clear for work days. Good luck to you whatever you find.

winkosmosis · 12-27-2011, 04:42 PM

I scored #5 highest for the SB County job. They pick people out of the top 10 to interview, but haven't heard from them. Since the job was only open for a week I suspect they already had someone they wanted to give the job to.

Snort · 12-27-2011, 04:46 PM

Being that it's around the holiday season, give it some more time. I just got hired for a job that closed nearly two months ago. I had totally forgotten about it and went about applying for other positions. Then I got called for an interview, and then another one, and the rest is history.