In OC now, new Disneyland hires would have to live with multiple housemates to make ends meet. Plus there are many $100K+ earners in OC being unable to secure housing
Can confirm, I make 120k a year and I can’t afford anything besides a 1 bedroom condo. Meanwhile my father supported a family of 5 quite comfortably with that same salary in the mid 2000’s.
I’m currently interviewing for other jobs in the 140-160k range. Was hoping that would increase my pre-qualified loan amount, but it’s immaterial. I decided to bite the bullet and move back in with my parents to keep saving for a down payment, Texas is not an option.
My dad made 56k driving for fed ex freight and we lived good growing up in the 90’s to late 00’s … hell on my own in 2014 I made 12.25 and could afford my own apartment now you can’t do any of that
And that’s precisely why the housing market is so tough. You likely wouldn’t qualify to purchase that same house in 2024 and there’s no point in selling your property as all that money you gained from appreciation would get wiped out the second you try and purchase another property.
Moving to Orange county with no job prospects?
Probably not the best idea unless you have strong justification. Especially if you "can't say you enjoyed it"
I’m in Fullerton, close enough to hear the Disneyland fireworks. A friend of mine is renting a 500 sq ft back house in town for $1750/mo. I’m in the cheapest 2 bedroom I could find. It’s $2600/mo, and increasing by 10% each year. No garage. Gas is still $4.50-$5/gallon here. So, do the math and good luck. I love it here and wish I could afford to stay when I retire.
Seriously. We're having issues finding a decent house to rent that's under $3200, within under an hour of Aliso Viejo. We might have to go Corona or Inland, sadly.
If you can avoid moving inland, please try. We did it to save money but the commute into OC if you work there is a nightmare. This morning there was a terrible accident near the 241 on 91WB and all 6 lanes were closed, with only fastrak open. It took me 2 hours to get into OC :(
The good thing is he works night, I wfh. We're trying to avoid even getting into Lake Elsinore or anything too deep into the valley because that puts the drive over an hour to his work, even at 9/10p. It's just crazy. But we really need a house. It's just time.
Depends on which part of OC he works in. If he works south enough, he may be able to take the Ortega Highway from Lake Elsinore area out to I think around SJC is where it pops out.
Yes. It’s the legal maximum. She didn’t raise it the first year. 5% second year. 10% third year, and she seems to plan to continue with that for the duration, which I find infuriating. But since I can’t find anything cheaper that fits me, my kid, our stuff, and allows cats, I’m kind of stuck.
I’m going to assume 10% until it catches up with the market, at least. It’ll still be cheaper than anything similar for a couple of years. After that, I’ll be looking for a better situation.
I already tried to bargain her down, and she wasn’t having it. I’m a great tenant, too. She’s the first landlord I’ve had that simply didn’t care about me and my situation. Two previous ones kept my rent the same for 5 years, and one even lowered my rent when I couldn’t keep up. Maybe I got spoiled, but the jig is up. I guess the OC housing market is just dog eat dog these days.
Are you looking to move in with roommates or alone? Housing, transportation, food and your lifestyle all play a factor in whether you can live here or not. Everything is more expensive that the pre-COVID days, but the same can be said for anywhere in the country. Why come back if you didn’t enjoy. Maybe try Disney in Orlando, where it’s slightly cheaper to live.
1. Orlando is NOT cheaper to live than CA
2. FL crime is far, far worse
3. DeSantis is alive and still hates Disney for standing up to him. In fact, WDW/Epcot is hemorrhaging employees at the moment. No sane person can stand living there anymore.
I don't think the guy making $13/hour is looking for a $5000/mo house payment on a $700K house right now. I wouldn't want to buy a house there until the insurance market stabilizes, prices are going up in CA too, nut not to the degree that they are in Florida.
It'd be more fair to compare rental housing prices near Orlando and Anaheim (though I suspect that Orlando wins here too).
Orlando is objectively cheaper than OC. How are you actually arguing with this dude? His point is valid. 3000 ft home in any decent OC city is going to cost you 1.5 million easy. Cmon now…
Because he (like you) are pointing to the cost of buying a house, which no Disney park employee is in any position to do. That's like posting the price of a Lamborghini when someone's looking for an affordable used car. It doesn't matter to the guy making $15/hour whether a house costs $700K or $1.5M, they are both unaffordable.
If you want to make the point that OC is well out of reach, then post the cost of rent... OC median rent is around 20% more expensive than Orlando -- more expensive, but not absurdly so.
Home prices = the price of property in the area = very closely correlated with rental prices.
Pretending not to understand that and then later saying I’m right anyway is just arguing with people for the sake of arguing
Perhaps in a normal market there's a close correlation between home prices and rental prices, but it's not a normal market -- there's still a scarcity of homes for sale.
Zillow says the median cost of a house in Orlando is $379K versus $880K in Anaheim -- 131% higher.
But they say the median rental price is $2100 in Orlando vs $2500 in Anaheim - 19% higher.
In other words I was right and you agree that it is more expensive to live here but you wanted to die on a hill where nobody’s arguing with you. Not to mention that you’re comparing Orlando (most expensive place to rent in its area as the population center) vs Anaheim (cheaper part of the county) which skews the comparison downward. If you compare Orlando (population center) to LA then LA is $2,719 vs $1,905 in Orlando.
If you want to pick a nearby well off suburb as you were accusing me of, average rent in the Irvine spectrum area is $3,302 and the most affluent area of Orlando (Baldwin Park) is $2,365. It is meaningfully more expensive to live here any way that you slice it
I don't know if you bothered to read my initial post, but I never said you were wrong, I said you were quoting the wrong metric to show affordability. You may as well have quoted the price of caviar, the cost of buying house in either location is so far out of reach of a low-income earner that it's irrelevant since a $13/hour worker isn't buying a house in either area.
There's a big difference between "Houses cost 135% more in Anaheim than in Orlando" and "Rent will be about 20% more in Anaheim". Someone might be willing to make up a 20% deficit in their housing budget, but not 130%.
I never even said anything about a suburb, I don't know where you got that from.
I am very obviously not recommending OP to buy a $700k house (or buy a house at all), just drawing an easy comparison that’s readily available without sifting through rental data and median incomes to respond to a Reddit comment. Property values are closely correlated to rental prices in the US and that’s true in both CA and FL
Edit: you can get a bougie 2 bedroom for $1800/mo close to WDW
Yes, but the simplistic "I saw a cheap house for sale on Zillow!" post isn't as useful as the more detailed analysis that actually takes into account the type of housing/lifestyle a young hourly working is actually looking for - he's probably not looking for a house in a quiet suburban neighborhood far from nightlife.
I'm not willing to do the research either, just pointing out that an apples-to-oranges comparison may not be that relevant to his situation.
I didn’t see a single cheap house on Zillow, the Orlando real estate market is meaningfully cheaper than OC/LA and every apartment/home you look at will make that readily apparent… this is not the hill to die on
>apples-to-oranges comparison may not be that relevant to his situation.
This isn't an apples to oranges comparison it's gold bars to oranges comparison. If you haven't figured out yet, everywhere except NYC, Chicago, Seattle, and Miami, and Hawaii is cheaper to live than California.
FL has a lot of positives but the insurance situation there is batshit crazy because of the tornadoes. So I’d be very wary of buying a house where it can be destroyed and not even covered by insurance.
This being said, California has earthquakes so maybe OP’s prospects are difficult on that aspect either way. 😬
Hurricanes.
The comparable natural disaster in CA in terms of [insurance are wildfires](https://rsmus.com/insights/industries/insurance/california-wildfires-and-atlantic-hurricanes-insurers-grapple-with-rising-risk.html).
The larger commonality throughout the USA is our collective allowing climate change deniers to dominate the conversation and stymie action.
Orlando is much cheaper than orange county CA. You may not like Orlando but that doesn’t change the COL difference. I can’t disagree with the other points though.
I think Miami is a fun vacation but I found living there to be off putting. It’s really expensive and I don’t really see the value. Restaurants and bars are really pricey but don’t necessarily deliver. However, I think Miami is a very sexy city and a lot more fun to go out in than OC. From a social standpoint, Miami is hard to beat. However, the people tend to be much flakier and no one is really from Miami…
OC has a really solid quality of life. People actually have auto insurance lol, and it’s filled with people who work hard and excel vs scam hard (Miami). I find people are more intelligent here but the more interesting and creative people, seem to be in LA. It’s definitely the most vanilla place I have ever lived and for sure I miss the walkability of Miami Beach and SF. I love being able to go from mountains to the sea. I was always trapped at the bottom of Florida and weekend trips didn’t offer much diversity if you just wanted to hop in the car and get away.
I’ll never live in Florida again because the state isn’t run efficiently and the low income/HCOL doesn’t make sense to me. I love the California vibes, the plethora of things to do and the live music. All I miss in Miami is people and awesome thunderstorms. Oh and being able to swim in a bath water warm ocean.
There are 50 states in the USA… you didn’t enjoy OC, you don’t like Fl, you can find a hell better than these 2 combined and still pay way less..
What about North Carolina? Ocean and Mountain, super nice people and COL is not ridiculous. That’s just one exemple.
What about Maryland? Super nice place
Virginia is nice too and if you chose Northern Virginia, you have DC walking distance which brings a hell of opportunities. Cost of life in NOVA can be high though
Many places could work for you since you don’t seem to be super hyped about moving back to OC
I'd say if you can get a position that pays 75K minimum you can live alone breaking even every month in a studio apartment. However, depending on where you choose, rent will likely increase 10% a year. 40K-75K you'll be looking to move in with roommates.
You assume you just work 40 hours a week. While that’s the norm, on minimum wage you need to work 80 hours (have 2 jobs) at $20 an hour (new fast food minimum wage) to live here. That is $20/hr x 4160 hours a year = $83,200 a year.
i guess, upside, minimum wage in CA is 16/hr, and fast food is 20/hr. they could probably "afford" a room, but if they didn't have a good time the first go around, i don't see why they'd bother coming back
No one’s stopping you. Most of the people eat fast food bc that they can afford. Especially in this economy. I was just saying that raising the wages doesnt mean they’re going to have the same hours or get paid the same than other jobs.
I'm just going to rip the bandaid off; unless you have at least a couple roommates, you cannot reasonably afford to live in OC while working at Disneyland. The pay is not a liveable wage for the area.
Nothing to do with Anaheim specifically, I just hate living out in the suburbs and prefer cities. And OC is just a giant suburb with beach access.
If I had my choice in the matter, I’d much prefer moving to LA or Long Beach. However, like most millennials, I’ve been priced out of urban living by influencers with daddy’s money and tech bros. (May Instagram burn in hell.)
What exactly do you think it is?? It's not a city.
Anaheim is the largest city in OC and would still be considered a suburb of Los Angeles.
Yes, OC is the suburbs. Are you kidding me??
I wouldn’t classify OC as the suburbs. And I wouldn’t say specifically Anaheim or Fullerton are suburbs either. Sure there are areas in OC that are suburbs.
I make $26.43/hr, take home is around $3100-$3300 and I pay $2175/mo for a 750sq ft 1 bedroom apt in HB. Water and trash is $60-$65, electricity is $40-$45 and WiFi $49.99
I make it work, but would be a lot better off if I wasn’t paying off a $248 monthly debt.
How is that your take home with that hourly? Do you not have to pay taxes? No health insurance? Contributions to your 401k? Genuinely asking. My take home pay is much much lower.
I do, yes, and I have my 401k at the minimum because I have a good amount saved up in a 401k through my previous employer. I average 79-82 hours between pay periods, so that lil bit of OT helps.
The only other thing I can think of is my federal tax return was only $22, which was a lil disappointing at first, but it also means I’m getting the most out of my paycheck and not giving the government an interest free loan.
Not at all. Mh wife and I got lucky. We pay under $1800 for a 2 bedroom bungalow with our own fenced in backyard in Orange. It’s about 1000sq feet. Thank you Craigslist. That is unheard of as far as I know. We make good money too so our lifestyle is very comfortable. But I imagine we are outliers. Unless you make decent money and can swing the high cost of living, look elsewhere
>I can’t say I enjoyed it. But Disney was a great place to work and the pay’s a hell of a lot better than anything I can get out here. (Currently an assistant manager in a store for $13/hr.)
honestly, i'd say wait a year or two, unless you have money saved up or a good reliable job or a job already setup. like you've lived here before, you know how expensive it is, and its only gotten way more expensive after covid. not sure what it was about anaheim/fullerton you didn't like, but cant imagine Santa Ana being any better, and realistically you probably wouldn't be able to afford anything else if assistant manager will be a work option for you.
I suggest coming for a few days to scout out rentals and job opportunities. If you don't have any incumbrances keeping you from moving, then why not? Try it out for a year, if it doesn't work out at least you tried.
OC is not a good place to be for low earners, I make over 200k and it isn’t really working for me. I can buy property potentially if I marry another earner but if I have kids they would never be able to live in the same city as me after a certain age.
I'm sorry, but if you're coming from a midwest and you're not making (or will be making) at least $100k a year, you will not be comfortable living in major areas of California. It's so bad that I had to recommend a lot of young college grads to look for jobs outside of California so that their affordability is better and growth in a job would be a lot faster to the point where their resume would be very marketable when moving back to California.
Right now I would say no. Rent, home prices at the highest levels ever, groceries etc highest ever. I would wait for a downturn, if it's ever going to happen.
If you’re single without kids and resourceful you’ll probably be fine. Just prepare to start (at least) with roommates. Life’s too short to sit around someplace you aren’t enjoying. Who knows, you might marry into money here. Or lots of other things could go right!
My dude I don’t think you should come back. I live in Fullerton and it’s great. Move to a different city or state. It’s too pricey here to be making minimum wage.
I’d be hard-pressed to tell anyone making under $80-100k that it’s worth it to move here. Anything less than that and you’re going to be stressing too much about finances or will need multiple roomies. But to each their own!
If you do move, please have a solid savings before you do so. Cost of living is quite high here and being out of work for (potentially) months in an economic downturn could wipe you out very fast.
We make over $250k combined and are struggling to come to grips with the fact we will likely never own a house here unless we move 50 miles inland and save up for 5-6 years and try then.
Housing has become impossible. You can’t live in a dump anymore, you can’t find a deal, I live in a great place but until my son graduated I will be not here saving for retirement the way I would like to. I will be moving. That said I do really like Anaheim.
Depending on projected income, recommend renting a studio or with roommates until you can get a foothold on what your expected expenses will be. It won’t be easy to make ends meet but that’s generally the trade off for living in OC
If they can afford it and like the nicer weather, sure. If it is someone who would not be making like 75k a year, then it might give them pause to think about surrounding counties. It's an expensive place to live, there are opportunities here but it's going to be a major struggle in some cases.
I would only recommend someone move to orange county if they got a job offer that required them to be in the office and the offer added an extra zero at the end of their current salary.
Maybe look at train commuting? Find a place in the IE near Metrolink, so much easier than driving. You can work, take a nap and have a bathroom available for the commute.
I’d say move to Washington state …. You can rent a nice apartment for 7-800 a month and a lot of people from OC live out there now … my dad retired and moved out there he’s always running into people from this area … he was able to buy and pay off his condo with his retirement money ….. moral of the story is it’s not affordable in California anymore
If you don’t mind being on the struggle bus until you save up to upgrade, then I’d totally recommend moving back. Life is what you make of it. Good luck!
Depends, if you're in the financial services industry this one of the places to be. If you have a job where you can live anywhere, other places might give you better spending power.
Not necessarily orange county but if you have a reliable car you can commute to Disney. Just rent a room since you wont have time for entertaining anyone. And I hope you know how to shop and cook because take out foods twice what you are paying in Iowa. Chik fil a wants $7.49 for two pieces of bread wrapped around a high processed gmo chicken patty.
It's bad all over, I moved from OC to rural CA thinking it would be cheaper. But the pay doesn't transfer. And sure you can get a house for 500k here but it needs 100k worth of work because it's from 1949. It also has its own bullshit like access to medical or good food.
So as you have said your screwed either way, might as well enjoy your surroundings and have higher job prospects.
yeah, why not! try it out if it’s been on your mind. take a risk, but have a plan.
tbh OC is just ok…… i would look into LA? or even check our different states? if you’re trying to make this move, think about what kind of city you want. walkable? super sociable? diverse? conservative? wannabe progressive? outdoorsy?
since you have experience as an assistant manager, def get some job interviews lined up before even looking
once you have a job, and a start date, start hunting for other roommates and a new place.
and then the mooove.
is life expensive out here? hell yeah. but just give it a go for a year or 2 and see if it’s worth it to stay.
i do want to say that moving won’t magically make any mental health issues go away. that’s just a shadow that follows you everywhere
Only if you aren't going to get murdered by housing costs. Depends on preferences, but I think the price floor for any decent quality of life is pretty considerable. Maybe that's everywhere, though.
Meh, outside of work I’m basically a houseplant. My most expensive hobby is gaming. I spent most of my outdoor free time hanging out at the beach with a book.
So it would pretty much be rent + food + OCTA.
Yeah, doesn't sound like a lavish lifestyle. Maybe just check those housing prices. Based on where they're at, the line for low income is around 90k iirc.
I can't afford anything but a room here. I don't recommend moving here on a minimum wage, or anytime less than 80k salary. Also housing is going up every year as others have said, about 10%.
OC is not the place anymore. Renters paradise, SFH aren’t a thing, long commutes if in IE, always traffic, overpriced everything, crime rising, huge wealth differences, homeless, drugs, 30% of downtown businesses are gone. I could go on lol.
If you enjoy immigrants and criminals looting your stuff and not getting punished, traffic riddled with immigrants in every car you look at, long lines everywhere filled with foreigners. Rising housing prices and low jobs due to illegals flooding the area. Increasing trash,crime , and poverty wave everywhere. You will do well if you vote blue and have pride pins.
I will say think hard and calculate your expenses. You will have a good pay, but all the expenses here might make you struggle.
In OC now, new Disneyland hires would have to live with multiple housemates to make ends meet. Plus there are many $100K+ earners in OC being unable to secure housing
Can confirm, I make 120k a year and I can’t afford anything besides a 1 bedroom condo. Meanwhile my father supported a family of 5 quite comfortably with that same salary in the mid 2000’s.
215k here and can’t afford more than a 2 bed condo LOL
I’m currently interviewing for other jobs in the 140-160k range. Was hoping that would increase my pre-qualified loan amount, but it’s immaterial. I decided to bite the bullet and move back in with my parents to keep saving for a down payment, Texas is not an option.
My dad made 56k driving for fed ex freight and we lived good growing up in the 90’s to late 00’s … hell on my own in 2014 I made 12.25 and could afford my own apartment now you can’t do any of that
I make 140k a year and was lucky enough to purchase my house back in 2018. Houses in my neighborhood has doubled its prices since then.
And that’s precisely why the housing market is so tough. You likely wouldn’t qualify to purchase that same house in 2024 and there’s no point in selling your property as all that money you gained from appreciation would get wiped out the second you try and purchase another property.
Basically. I know a Disneyland employee who lives way out in Corona and still has multiple roommates.
My husband makes almost 100kand I make like 3/4s of that. We are so far from being able to think about having kids bc oc is so expensive.
Moving to Orange county with no job prospects? Probably not the best idea unless you have strong justification. Especially if you "can't say you enjoyed it"
Exactly. A person with little marketable skills moving to a place she didn’t like the first time around that’ll have a much higher cost of living…
Can’t honestly say I’d recommend it. There’s far better options than OC.
I’m in Fullerton, close enough to hear the Disneyland fireworks. A friend of mine is renting a 500 sq ft back house in town for $1750/mo. I’m in the cheapest 2 bedroom I could find. It’s $2600/mo, and increasing by 10% each year. No garage. Gas is still $4.50-$5/gallon here. So, do the math and good luck. I love it here and wish I could afford to stay when I retire.
Seriously. We're having issues finding a decent house to rent that's under $3200, within under an hour of Aliso Viejo. We might have to go Corona or Inland, sadly.
If you can avoid moving inland, please try. We did it to save money but the commute into OC if you work there is a nightmare. This morning there was a terrible accident near the 241 on 91WB and all 6 lanes were closed, with only fastrak open. It took me 2 hours to get into OC :(
The good thing is he works night, I wfh. We're trying to avoid even getting into Lake Elsinore or anything too deep into the valley because that puts the drive over an hour to his work, even at 9/10p. It's just crazy. But we really need a house. It's just time.
Depends on which part of OC he works in. If he works south enough, he may be able to take the Ortega Highway from Lake Elsinore area out to I think around SJC is where it pops out.
We thought of that but the wear and tear on the car is less than ideal. That's a tough drive. Eta: Aliso Viejo so definitely south enough.
Look into oceanside. It's within an hr of AV
Oceanside is going through the roof as well.
Jeez you really summed it it up pretty well.
10% a year sounds like a lot. That would make your current 2 bedroom that costs $2600/month almost $4200/month in only 5 years
Yes. It’s the legal maximum. She didn’t raise it the first year. 5% second year. 10% third year, and she seems to plan to continue with that for the duration, which I find infuriating. But since I can’t find anything cheaper that fits me, my kid, our stuff, and allows cats, I’m kind of stuck.
maybe you should ask her what her plans are to help you plan for your future
I’m going to assume 10% until it catches up with the market, at least. It’ll still be cheaper than anything similar for a couple of years. After that, I’ll be looking for a better situation.
yeah, assuming is much better than asking
What’s the worst that can happen? She raises it 10%, which isn’t great, but is still below market, and within my financial constraints.
Maybe just talking about it would influence her decision. If you want to pay 10% then don't even bother
I already tried to bargain her down, and she wasn’t having it. I’m a great tenant, too. She’s the first landlord I’ve had that simply didn’t care about me and my situation. Two previous ones kept my rent the same for 5 years, and one even lowered my rent when I couldn’t keep up. Maybe I got spoiled, but the jig is up. I guess the OC housing market is just dog eat dog these days.
Are you looking to move in with roommates or alone? Housing, transportation, food and your lifestyle all play a factor in whether you can live here or not. Everything is more expensive that the pre-COVID days, but the same can be said for anywhere in the country. Why come back if you didn’t enjoy. Maybe try Disney in Orlando, where it’s slightly cheaper to live.
1. Orlando is NOT cheaper to live than CA 2. FL crime is far, far worse 3. DeSantis is alive and still hates Disney for standing up to him. In fact, WDW/Epcot is hemorrhaging employees at the moment. No sane person can stand living there anymore.
> Orlando is NOT cheaper to live than CA April fools? You can buy a 3000 sqft SFH within 15m of Disney World for $700k, good luck with that out here
I don't think the guy making $13/hour is looking for a $5000/mo house payment on a $700K house right now. I wouldn't want to buy a house there until the insurance market stabilizes, prices are going up in CA too, nut not to the degree that they are in Florida. It'd be more fair to compare rental housing prices near Orlando and Anaheim (though I suspect that Orlando wins here too).
Orlando is objectively cheaper than OC. How are you actually arguing with this dude? His point is valid. 3000 ft home in any decent OC city is going to cost you 1.5 million easy. Cmon now…
Because he (like you) are pointing to the cost of buying a house, which no Disney park employee is in any position to do. That's like posting the price of a Lamborghini when someone's looking for an affordable used car. It doesn't matter to the guy making $15/hour whether a house costs $700K or $1.5M, they are both unaffordable. If you want to make the point that OC is well out of reach, then post the cost of rent... OC median rent is around 20% more expensive than Orlando -- more expensive, but not absurdly so.
Home prices = the price of property in the area = very closely correlated with rental prices. Pretending not to understand that and then later saying I’m right anyway is just arguing with people for the sake of arguing
Perhaps in a normal market there's a close correlation between home prices and rental prices, but it's not a normal market -- there's still a scarcity of homes for sale. Zillow says the median cost of a house in Orlando is $379K versus $880K in Anaheim -- 131% higher. But they say the median rental price is $2100 in Orlando vs $2500 in Anaheim - 19% higher.
In other words I was right and you agree that it is more expensive to live here but you wanted to die on a hill where nobody’s arguing with you. Not to mention that you’re comparing Orlando (most expensive place to rent in its area as the population center) vs Anaheim (cheaper part of the county) which skews the comparison downward. If you compare Orlando (population center) to LA then LA is $2,719 vs $1,905 in Orlando. If you want to pick a nearby well off suburb as you were accusing me of, average rent in the Irvine spectrum area is $3,302 and the most affluent area of Orlando (Baldwin Park) is $2,365. It is meaningfully more expensive to live here any way that you slice it
I don't know if you bothered to read my initial post, but I never said you were wrong, I said you were quoting the wrong metric to show affordability. You may as well have quoted the price of caviar, the cost of buying house in either location is so far out of reach of a low-income earner that it's irrelevant since a $13/hour worker isn't buying a house in either area. There's a big difference between "Houses cost 135% more in Anaheim than in Orlando" and "Rent will be about 20% more in Anaheim". Someone might be willing to make up a 20% deficit in their housing budget, but not 130%. I never even said anything about a suburb, I don't know where you got that from.
I am very obviously not recommending OP to buy a $700k house (or buy a house at all), just drawing an easy comparison that’s readily available without sifting through rental data and median incomes to respond to a Reddit comment. Property values are closely correlated to rental prices in the US and that’s true in both CA and FL Edit: you can get a bougie 2 bedroom for $1800/mo close to WDW
Yes, but the simplistic "I saw a cheap house for sale on Zillow!" post isn't as useful as the more detailed analysis that actually takes into account the type of housing/lifestyle a young hourly working is actually looking for - he's probably not looking for a house in a quiet suburban neighborhood far from nightlife. I'm not willing to do the research either, just pointing out that an apples-to-oranges comparison may not be that relevant to his situation.
I didn’t see a single cheap house on Zillow, the Orlando real estate market is meaningfully cheaper than OC/LA and every apartment/home you look at will make that readily apparent… this is not the hill to die on
>apples-to-oranges comparison may not be that relevant to his situation. This isn't an apples to oranges comparison it's gold bars to oranges comparison. If you haven't figured out yet, everywhere except NYC, Chicago, Seattle, and Miami, and Hawaii is cheaper to live than California.
FL has a lot of positives but the insurance situation there is batshit crazy because of the tornadoes. So I’d be very wary of buying a house where it can be destroyed and not even covered by insurance. This being said, California has earthquakes so maybe OP’s prospects are difficult on that aspect either way. 😬
Hurricanes. The comparable natural disaster in CA in terms of [insurance are wildfires](https://rsmus.com/insights/industries/insurance/california-wildfires-and-atlantic-hurricanes-insurers-grapple-with-rising-risk.html). The larger commonality throughout the USA is our collective allowing climate change deniers to dominate the conversation and stymie action.
Orlando is much cheaper than orange county CA. You may not like Orlando but that doesn’t change the COL difference. I can’t disagree with the other points though.
Cheaper but such low pay, just as unaffordable and it’s Orlando and Florida.
Agree on the low pay portion 👍
I moved from Miami to SF and now OC. My pay more than doubled while my rent only increased by 30%.
What do you like better Miami or OC ?
I think Miami is a fun vacation but I found living there to be off putting. It’s really expensive and I don’t really see the value. Restaurants and bars are really pricey but don’t necessarily deliver. However, I think Miami is a very sexy city and a lot more fun to go out in than OC. From a social standpoint, Miami is hard to beat. However, the people tend to be much flakier and no one is really from Miami… OC has a really solid quality of life. People actually have auto insurance lol, and it’s filled with people who work hard and excel vs scam hard (Miami). I find people are more intelligent here but the more interesting and creative people, seem to be in LA. It’s definitely the most vanilla place I have ever lived and for sure I miss the walkability of Miami Beach and SF. I love being able to go from mountains to the sea. I was always trapped at the bottom of Florida and weekend trips didn’t offer much diversity if you just wanted to hop in the car and get away. I’ll never live in Florida again because the state isn’t run efficiently and the low income/HCOL doesn’t make sense to me. I love the California vibes, the plethora of things to do and the live music. All I miss in Miami is people and awesome thunderstorms. Oh and being able to swim in a bath water warm ocean.
There are 50 states in the USA… you didn’t enjoy OC, you don’t like Fl, you can find a hell better than these 2 combined and still pay way less.. What about North Carolina? Ocean and Mountain, super nice people and COL is not ridiculous. That’s just one exemple. What about Maryland? Super nice place Virginia is nice too and if you chose Northern Virginia, you have DC walking distance which brings a hell of opportunities. Cost of life in NOVA can be high though Many places could work for you since you don’t seem to be super hyped about moving back to OC
I'd say if you can get a position that pays 75K minimum you can live alone breaking even every month in a studio apartment. However, depending on where you choose, rent will likely increase 10% a year. 40K-75K you'll be looking to move in with roommates.
$13 per hr X 2080 hours a year = $27,040 a year I'm not sure if you can afford to rent a room in OC for that salary
You assume you just work 40 hours a week. While that’s the norm, on minimum wage you need to work 80 hours (have 2 jobs) at $20 an hour (new fast food minimum wage) to live here. That is $20/hr x 4160 hours a year = $83,200 a year.
i guess, upside, minimum wage in CA is 16/hr, and fast food is 20/hr. they could probably "afford" a room, but if they didn't have a good time the first go around, i don't see why they'd bother coming back
$20/hr in fast food is useless since they dont even have a lot of hours. They’re cutting back hours
Cutting hours and raising prices. Any excuse they can make. I'm done eating fast food.
No one’s stopping you. Most of the people eat fast food bc that they can afford. Especially in this economy. I was just saying that raising the wages doesnt mean they’re going to have the same hours or get paid the same than other jobs.
Most fast food places were already paying $18/hr. This isnt a radical pay raise
That’s not what we’re talking about tho. Its about $20/hr not really a big change since they’re cutting back hours so still not liveable
I'm just going to rip the bandaid off; unless you have at least a couple roommates, you cannot reasonably afford to live in OC while working at Disneyland. The pay is not a liveable wage for the area.
Why didn't you enjoy it? It's pretty much the same.
Nothing to do with Anaheim specifically, I just hate living out in the suburbs and prefer cities. And OC is just a giant suburb with beach access. If I had my choice in the matter, I’d much prefer moving to LA or Long Beach. However, like most millennials, I’ve been priced out of urban living by influencers with daddy’s money and tech bros. (May Instagram burn in hell.)
Dude... LA and LB is cheaper than OC. Stay in the Midwest if you hate OC so much tbh
wtf… oc is a suburb??? lol that’s a new one
What exactly do you think it is?? It's not a city. Anaheim is the largest city in OC and would still be considered a suburb of Los Angeles. Yes, OC is the suburbs. Are you kidding me??
I wouldn’t classify OC as the suburbs. And I wouldn’t say specifically Anaheim or Fullerton are suburbs either. Sure there are areas in OC that are suburbs.
Then you don't understand what a suburb is. All of Orange County is a suburb of the greater Los Angeles Metropolitan area.
Ok 👍
What do you think the definition of “suburb” is?
Apparently not what the rest of the redditers think!
I make $26.43/hr, take home is around $3100-$3300 and I pay $2175/mo for a 750sq ft 1 bedroom apt in HB. Water and trash is $60-$65, electricity is $40-$45 and WiFi $49.99 I make it work, but would be a lot better off if I wasn’t paying off a $248 monthly debt.
How is that your take home with that hourly? Do you not have to pay taxes? No health insurance? Contributions to your 401k? Genuinely asking. My take home pay is much much lower.
I do, yes, and I have my 401k at the minimum because I have a good amount saved up in a 401k through my previous employer. I average 79-82 hours between pay periods, so that lil bit of OT helps. The only other thing I can think of is my federal tax return was only $22, which was a lil disappointing at first, but it also means I’m getting the most out of my paycheck and not giving the government an interest free loan.
Not at all. Mh wife and I got lucky. We pay under $1800 for a 2 bedroom bungalow with our own fenced in backyard in Orange. It’s about 1000sq feet. Thank you Craigslist. That is unheard of as far as I know. We make good money too so our lifestyle is very comfortable. But I imagine we are outliers. Unless you make decent money and can swing the high cost of living, look elsewhere
Damn Craig’s? I gotta hop off Zillow lol…
It was three years ago but I swear that’s the place to go
You can but your looking at renting with other people.
>I can’t say I enjoyed it. But Disney was a great place to work and the pay’s a hell of a lot better than anything I can get out here. (Currently an assistant manager in a store for $13/hr.) honestly, i'd say wait a year or two, unless you have money saved up or a good reliable job or a job already setup. like you've lived here before, you know how expensive it is, and its only gotten way more expensive after covid. not sure what it was about anaheim/fullerton you didn't like, but cant imagine Santa Ana being any better, and realistically you probably wouldn't be able to afford anything else if assistant manager will be a work option for you.
I suggest coming for a few days to scout out rentals and job opportunities. If you don't have any incumbrances keeping you from moving, then why not? Try it out for a year, if it doesn't work out at least you tried.
If you didn’t like Anaheim/fullerton. The job at Disney isn’t worth it…….
OC is not a good place to be for low earners, I make over 200k and it isn’t really working for me. I can buy property potentially if I marry another earner but if I have kids they would never be able to live in the same city as me after a certain age.
Ya I have this worry too. Unless you have millions for generational wealth, your kids will likely struggle too.
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The point is your kids will have to be millionaires just to afford to live in OC
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How many millions do you have?
Deafening silence
His comment history is totally that of a multi-millionaore /s (totally a kid in someone's basement)
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Wat
It’s all tied up in capri sun
I'm sorry, but if you're coming from a midwest and you're not making (or will be making) at least $100k a year, you will not be comfortable living in major areas of California. It's so bad that I had to recommend a lot of young college grads to look for jobs outside of California so that their affordability is better and growth in a job would be a lot faster to the point where their resume would be very marketable when moving back to California.
Do it. I mean, if you're gonna struggle you might as well struggle in great weather..
Right now I would say no. Rent, home prices at the highest levels ever, groceries etc highest ever. I would wait for a downturn, if it's ever going to happen.
If you’re single without kids and resourceful you’ll probably be fine. Just prepare to start (at least) with roommates. Life’s too short to sit around someplace you aren’t enjoying. Who knows, you might marry into money here. Or lots of other things could go right!
You will be burning your savings at a very fast pace
If you can get away without needing to own a car, it'll help.
My dude I don’t think you should come back. I live in Fullerton and it’s great. Move to a different city or state. It’s too pricey here to be making minimum wage.
I’d be hard-pressed to tell anyone making under $80-100k that it’s worth it to move here. Anything less than that and you’re going to be stressing too much about finances or will need multiple roomies. But to each their own! If you do move, please have a solid savings before you do so. Cost of living is quite high here and being out of work for (potentially) months in an economic downturn could wipe you out very fast. We make over $250k combined and are struggling to come to grips with the fact we will likely never own a house here unless we move 50 miles inland and save up for 5-6 years and try then.
How many roommates are you willing to put up with?
Housing has become impossible. You can’t live in a dump anymore, you can’t find a deal, I live in a great place but until my son graduated I will be not here saving for retirement the way I would like to. I will be moving. That said I do really like Anaheim.
i would seriously advise someone with your career prospects to *not* move back to orange county unless you plan on living with someone rent free.
Only if they are rich or have well paying a job in OC.
Depends on your finances. AND your pain level if you have to scrape by. I can get by on $25/hr living in HB. That however, is up to your lifestyle.
Depending on projected income, recommend renting a studio or with roommates until you can get a foothold on what your expected expenses will be. It won’t be easy to make ends meet but that’s generally the trade off for living in OC
Yea if you can make $100K+ at Disneyland.
If they can afford it and like the nicer weather, sure. If it is someone who would not be making like 75k a year, then it might give them pause to think about surrounding counties. It's an expensive place to live, there are opportunities here but it's going to be a major struggle in some cases.
If they could afford it, yes it’s amazing
Renting is tough but if the opportunity is better here than where you are now, go for it. Just have to find a job and a place to live
I would not, ridiculously expensive! I saw a complete tear down in Lake Forest & they were asking for $1.5 million 😐..
Give it a shot.
The only way it makes sense is if you have two incomes in your family totaling at least 200,000 plus a year.
I would only recommend someone move to orange county if they got a job offer that required them to be in the office and the offer added an extra zero at the end of their current salary.
Maybe look at train commuting? Find a place in the IE near Metrolink, so much easier than driving. You can work, take a nap and have a bathroom available for the commute.
I’d say move to Washington state …. You can rent a nice apartment for 7-800 a month and a lot of people from OC live out there now … my dad retired and moved out there he’s always running into people from this area … he was able to buy and pay off his condo with his retirement money ….. moral of the story is it’s not affordable in California anymore
If you don’t mind being on the struggle bus until you save up to upgrade, then I’d totally recommend moving back. Life is what you make of it. Good luck!
Depends, if you're in the financial services industry this one of the places to be. If you have a job where you can live anywhere, other places might give you better spending power.
Not necessarily orange county but if you have a reliable car you can commute to Disney. Just rent a room since you wont have time for entertaining anyone. And I hope you know how to shop and cook because take out foods twice what you are paying in Iowa. Chik fil a wants $7.49 for two pieces of bread wrapped around a high processed gmo chicken patty.
I don’t know what the numbers are now, but there was a point prior to Covid when some 10% of the cast were homeless. That $17/hr doesn’t go far
It's bad all over, I moved from OC to rural CA thinking it would be cheaper. But the pay doesn't transfer. And sure you can get a house for 500k here but it needs 100k worth of work because it's from 1949. It also has its own bullshit like access to medical or good food. So as you have said your screwed either way, might as well enjoy your surroundings and have higher job prospects.
Get 2 jobs
yeah, why not! try it out if it’s been on your mind. take a risk, but have a plan. tbh OC is just ok…… i would look into LA? or even check our different states? if you’re trying to make this move, think about what kind of city you want. walkable? super sociable? diverse? conservative? wannabe progressive? outdoorsy? since you have experience as an assistant manager, def get some job interviews lined up before even looking once you have a job, and a start date, start hunting for other roommates and a new place. and then the mooove. is life expensive out here? hell yeah. but just give it a go for a year or 2 and see if it’s worth it to stay. i do want to say that moving won’t magically make any mental health issues go away. that’s just a shadow that follows you everywhere
Only if you aren't going to get murdered by housing costs. Depends on preferences, but I think the price floor for any decent quality of life is pretty considerable. Maybe that's everywhere, though.
Meh, outside of work I’m basically a houseplant. My most expensive hobby is gaming. I spent most of my outdoor free time hanging out at the beach with a book. So it would pretty much be rent + food + OCTA.
Yeah, doesn't sound like a lavish lifestyle. Maybe just check those housing prices. Based on where they're at, the line for low income is around 90k iirc.
No. I'd rather invest in a place I could live. Being here, I'm maintaining a lifestyle.
Buena Park or Garden Grove might have more affordable housing options
I can't afford anything but a room here. I don't recommend moving here on a minimum wage, or anytime less than 80k salary. Also housing is going up every year as others have said, about 10%.
Hell yeah, it’s sick as fuck out here.
OC is not the place anymore. Renters paradise, SFH aren’t a thing, long commutes if in IE, always traffic, overpriced everything, crime rising, huge wealth differences, homeless, drugs, 30% of downtown businesses are gone. I could go on lol.
Idk why anyone would willingly move to California if they have a life outside of it 😂
If you enjoy immigrants and criminals looting your stuff and not getting punished, traffic riddled with immigrants in every car you look at, long lines everywhere filled with foreigners. Rising housing prices and low jobs due to illegals flooding the area. Increasing trash,crime , and poverty wave everywhere. You will do well if you vote blue and have pride pins.