Hey guys I am taking a new job in San Diego. I have lived in Washington all my life and am trying to figure out what the cost of living is there.

I guess what I am curious to know is what do you single guys living in say an apartment pay in utilities a month?

What percentage of your checks are straight taxes? Is the actual sales tax pretty high there? Its about 8.5% here.


I am just curious as this is going to be a large move for me and I want to make sure I am not going to be broke all the time.

Also are there any places near San Diego that have nice, newer apartments or housing for rent that are generally cheaper?


Another thing I am worried about is weapons. I have a concealed weapons license here and I wonder if I am going to be able to get one there. Also I have heard many assault weapons are banned there, would I get in trouble just for having them there even if I bought them in washington?

Thanks for the help guys.

 

Well the price is going to vary depending on which area you choose to live in. I'm looking for a place right now and I've been using backpage.com(click on San Diego). I've lived in SD most of my life and its not cheap. Finding a roomate will save you some money plus get you a bigger a place. I'm trying to rent a place in the downtown area which is going to cost a bit more. Anyway, so far all the places I've looked at are going to be about $1,500+ loft/studio style 780-900 sq ft. I hope that helps.

 

Thanks for the reply.

Thats about what I am finding too for the cost of a place. I am not 100% sure where my job site will be yet so hopefully it is a little outside the city and I can get a cheap place close to it.

I am moving up there by myself and then my fiance is going to join me midsummer after she has graduated, so a roomate option is kinda out, although she'll pick up the slack a bit when she moves. Its just survivin on my own for a few months that might be a bit tough.

 

I'm in the same boat too. I'm heading down this weekend for a job interview. Cost of living will be the deal-breaker.

 

I moved from Portland to Orange County. Cost of living is about 30% higher here...but you get paid more so things kinda even out. But everything is more expensive.

 

I heard gas is very expensive down there. I better get a Honda beater for a DD.

 

Look to spend around $1500 (like posted above) for most "nice" areas. Of course its all what you want/need. I NEED a 2/2.5 car garage and it has to be north of the 8 freeway. Hahaha.

 

Oh yeah, SD=$$$$
Good luck on your interviews!!

 

Yeah, the above mentioned is about right. I dont know where in your life you are, but to me the best deal up to a few years ago was to rent a 4 bedroom house with my buddies...that worked well for about 3 years, then we all went our own seperate paths, now i rent a 2b apartment, it's way more expensive this way. but I like it, cause i'm over the whole multiple roomate thing.
If you want, i wouldnt mind showing you around a bit, if you dont already know the area.

 

Can't help you with any rent issues but can with the gun issues.
CA is a hard place to get a CCW, but it depends on the County you live
in, politics there, etc. Check into some of the California CCW boards.
As far as assault guns go, good luck. Do a LOT of research before bringing
anything into the state first. AR-15s, AKs, H&Ks etc for the most part
are not allowed. Suggest you check the CA DOJ firearms listing. Of course
you are free to bring them into the State, but if you get stopped with them
you will probably become a headline- "350Z stopped with arsenal of illegal assault rifles and ammo" or someother crap like that. Another reference
would be a gun store in the San Diego area. Good luck with your interview,
CA is a great place to live, it just has some messed up laws, and is somewhat more expensive. Lived in Fort Lewis for a while and loved it....

CaliRN

 

LOL, the funny thing is I am wanting to buy an AK before I go because my dad's buddy died and he has a whole crap load of AK ammo in the ammo tins just sitting there. So yeah it literally would read "350z stopped with ak and about 1000 rounds" lol.

As far as the CCW, it would really be dumb if I couldnt get one, ive had one here, i have a perfect record but I dont know the laws down there.

Just curious though, will I run into problems with my pistol carrying more than 10 rounds? I heard that was illegal in cali too.

 

I have been doin that for years and am definitely done with that after getting sued on the last house because my roomate didnt clean anything out, and we had to pay for damages left by previous tenants...


I am lookin at a 1br apartment right now, but I need to find out if maybe the company gets any deals with any apartment companies since they are a major construction company and they employ tons of people who move around a lot.

 

^ There is a NICE complex across from me (condo style APTs) with one car garage, I think they are around 1600-1800 or so.

 

is that figure considered median rent price in SD? that's more than double the rent here...

 

That would be a little on the high side.

 

How can you conceal an AK?

 

Aw come on man, you saw off that stock and hide it under your coat!

 

I'm moving down there around the same time as well.

From the research I've done, the SD sales tax is a little lower than us, but we don't pay state income tax. And I think their property tax and gas is higher too. Costs about $45-50 to fill up our Z's up here. Our house prices (excluding Bellevue/Belltown) is about $350-400K, and theirs is $600K and up. Apparently if you make less than $60K, your only choice is to rent for life.

There's a really good site about cost-of-living in SD... http://www.city-data.com/forum/san-diego/

 

I should point out, we already have too many people here. HAHAHA.

 

and I heard there's 4 Z's at every intersection at any one time... I heard the roads are super 'grooved' so our ride would be as loud as hell... sort of like tire feathering....