Moving From East to West Coast Questions!

santucci218 · #1 07-09-2010, 05:32 PM

So my friend presented me with this plan to move out of Pittsburgh and to the west coast. He named Seattle first, but that is still up in the air. Pittsburgh appearently is one of the most livable city's in the US so says Forbes magazine, so I am a little scared of prices and such. I found this gem of a tool on the internet...

http://www.bankrate.com/calculators/...alculator.aspx

Seems pretty pricey! Are there any other big city's we should be checking out?

Also, for those of you who have done this type of move before, any advice?

This isn't something I would do without a ton of planning and a few visits to the city I selected first.

THANK YOU

gkbass13 · #2 07-09-2010, 05:37 PM

I am considering and leaning towards a similar move from Upstate NY to Vancouver BC in the next 2-3 years. Definitely looking forward to the info in this thread.

Good luck with everything, Santucci!

Bongolation · #3 07-09-2010, 06:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by santucci218

Pittsburgh appearently is one of the most livable city's in the US so says Forbes magazine...

ALWAYS disregard these nonsensical "Best Cities" lists.

Anyway, stay out of California. It's already full and in a depression.

If you want to go to the Pacific Northwest, be prepared for really awful wet weather.

Selta · #4 07-09-2010, 07:36 PM

Dude, move to Seattle. I moved from Johnstown to out here early 2009 and LOVE it. Don't listen to what people say about the weather... it's a lot like back home, just without the snow, really. PM me if you wanna chat more about it...

JimB52 · #5 07-09-2010, 07:51 PM

Portland is more affordable than Seattle I think.
I used to live in Cali, and I'd move back if I were rich. North of San Diego is great, and South of San Fran is beautiful.

Selta · #6 07-09-2010, 07:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimB52

Portland is more affordable than Seattle I think.
I used to live in Cali, and I'd move back if I were rich. North of San Diego is great, and South of San Fran is beautiful.

If you compare downtown living to downtown living I'm pretty sure that's right. Where I live though (a shade south of Seattle) is cheap. North of Seattle is pretty affordable as well. Outside of Portland is probably crazy cheap... hmmmm now you have me thinking...

bassguppy · #7 07-09-2010, 07:56 PM

I moved from upstate NY in 1999 and lived in Olympia, WA (near Seattle) and now live in the SF Bay Area.

Seattle is a beautiful city, very eclectic, good people, not far from the ocean and you can drive on the beach in some areas (but towns along the coast are REALLY lame). The rains were not as bad as you would think. Yes the skies are overcast but the summers are beautiful and even with the rain it's not a downpour (just a constant drizzle). And don't use an umbrella.

Traffic is hell..I haven't been to Seattle in about 6 years but I-5 is way too antiquated and needs at least 2 extra lanes each way.

As for other cities out west? San Francisco is great but very expensive. Many people live outside of San Francisco and commute because housing is cheaper (not cheap). I'm not a fan of Los Angeles, too congested. Check out San Diego though.

**lowendfriend** · #8 07-09-2010, 07:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bongolation

ALWAYS disregard these nonsensical "Best Cities" lists.

Anyway, stay out of California. It's already full and in a depression.

If you want to go to the Pacific Northwest, be prepared for really awful wet weather.

As a native Pittsburgher, I seem to recall a weather stat that said Pittsburgh has a whopping 80 sunny days per year.

Having spent a little time in the great NW, I can say it ain't a tough adjustment for a Steel City kid.

Paul, Tell Rocco and EJ I said hi!

UncleFluffy · #9 07-09-2010, 07:59 PM

I'm in San Francisco right now and pretty happy with it. However, if I were to rewind and set up my life all over again I'd probably do Santa Cruz.

rosanne · #10 07-09-2010, 08:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimB52

Portland is more affordable than Seattle

I think Portland is very affordable, and friendly. SF area is NOT very affordable.

UncleFluffy · #11 07-09-2010, 08:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rosanne

I think Portland is very affordable, and friendly. SF area is NOT very affordable.

The killer with SF is going to be the rent. Everything else you can shop smart to work around. Check out Craigslist, avoid everything between the 280 and Daly City, see if you can make the numbers come out right. If you can, enjoy SF - you only live once.

bassguppy · #12 07-09-2010, 08:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by UncleFluffy

The killer with SF is going to be the rent. Everything else you can shop smart to work around. Check out Craigslist, avoid everything between the 280 and Daly City, see if you can make the numbers come out right. If you can, enjoy SF - you only live once.

SF Bay area also has the BART system & CalTrain. BART brings you right to downtown SF, Oakland, Concord, etc...
The bus system is top notch also. CalTrain will get you from SF to San Jose and in between.

You could live in the East Bay where rents are a little more reasonable and commute all over. SF parking is not the greatest and you do pay a premium for it.

MJ5150 · #13 07-09-2010, 08:57 PM

Seattle can be expensive if you don't know where to look. The environmentalists get on some peoples nerves. If you're not into being "green" and recycling everything but your spit, don't move to Seattle.

-Mike

sarcastro83 · #14 07-09-2010, 10:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gkbass13

I am considering and leaning towards a similar move from Upstate NY to Vancouver BC in the next 2-3 years. Definitely looking forward to the info in this thread.

Good luck with everything, Santucci!

YMMV, and I absolutely do not wish to burst your bubble, but Vancouver is an INSANELY EXPENSIVE place to live. Worse than Toronto I hear, and Toronto is NUTS.

That being said, if you've got a good job, it's one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen.

I wish you all the best, wherever you decide to call your home.

Pilgrim · #15 07-09-2010, 10:39 PM

Just be aware that it's a change of culture as well as a change of location.

Seattle is lovely, but has bad traffic and is perhaps the greyest place in the winter. Portland is less overcast.

Denver is sunlit all year and right in the middle of all the natural resources you could want.

rosanne · #16 07-09-2010, 11:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pilgrim

Just be aware that it's a change of culture as well as a change of location.

The change in culture might be the biggest change of all.

Bongolation · #17 07-09-2010, 11:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lowendfriend

As a native Pittsburgher, I seem to recall a weather stat that said Pittsburgh has a whopping 80 sunny days per year.

Having spent a little time in the great NW, I can say it ain't a tough adjustment for a Steel City kid.

I dunno. Where I live now, there's (usually) no (0) rain from late April well into October. I've torn the roof off my house to re-do it at a leisurely pace all summer.

Anyway, if you can stand Oregon weather, Portland is supposed to be the new scene. Seattle and San Francisco are pretty hideously expensive. I wouldn't live in LA if they gave it to me. Sacramento is one of the weirdest places in the country (and not in a good way), the epicenter of the US real estate collapse and the most ethnically diverse city in the US. People still move there but I can't understand why.

I lived in SF for about fifteen years and liked it OK, but SF and Seattle have kind of jumped the shark, scene-wise, and cost more money than they're worth.

My buddy just moved back to California after living in Bandon, Oregon for a few years and he says that Oregon is in worse economic shape than California. I'm not sure that's even possible, but be advised that finding even minimum-wage work in either state right now is pretty tough.

gkbass13 · #18 07-10-2010, 01:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sarcastro83

YMMV, and I absolutely do not wish to burst your bubble, but Vancouver is an INSANELY EXPENSIVE place to live. Worse than Toronto I hear, and Toronto is NUTS.

That being said, if you've got a good job, it's one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen.

I wish you all the best, wherever you decide to call your home.

The living situation wouldn't be an issue, and Im building a resume and going to get my master's before moving there...so we shall see. It is absolutely gorgeous, and my girlfriend's family is from there, so the plan is sort of to see how things go and if it is all working out in 2 years, live together in BC.

MadMan118 · #19 07-10-2010, 02:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bongolation

I dunno. Where I live now, there's (usually) no (0) rain from late April well into October.

Sacramento is one of the weirdest places in the country

I don't really count CA except the far north as part of the pacific northwest.
And stay clear of Sacramento the is some thing quite off about the place but I don't quite know what it is.

Jim Nazium · #20 07-10-2010, 07:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rosanne

The change in culture might be the biggest change of all.

Correct. You will have to stop calling people "yunz" and start calling them "dudes". Men, women, indeterminate, it doesn't matter - they're all dudes.

If you move to LA, you will have to identify yourself as either an actor or a screenwriter. It doesn't matter what you actually do to pay the bills; when someone asks what you do, the only answers that will not produce looks of absolute bafflement are "actor" and "screenwriter".

You will want a nice car because (a) you will be spending a lot of time in it and (b) it is the primary symbol of your social status.

HTH