Aussie thinking about buying real estate in USA

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moparspares

moparspares

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Scarborough, Qld
I currently live in Australia but my wife and I have always tossed the idea around of buying a modest property in the USA. I am sick of the Aussie harsh humid summers and it plays havoc with my health. It would be nice to escape to your winter for 3 months of the year.

The place my wife and I really liked is the West Coast of California especially a little town called Paso Robles which is east of Cambria on the coast. We went there for the day and loved the rolling green hills as we drove in and the town was really quite nice. I also like the idea of being relatively close for a drive to the beach.

Any members that live in this area that can give me pros and cons or any advice of any other towns around this area that would suit. This is only a pipe dream at the moment but we do often talk about the idea.
 
Think about this California gets LESS Vintage Car friendly with each passing day. Just my opinion.
Move a little further inland you can still take a drive over to the coast, Besides Arizona may have its own coastline soon.
 
You need to decide if you want to buy property in America, or in commiefornia

The two are mutually exclusive
 
moparspares said:
I currently live in Australia but my wife and I have always tossed the idea around of buying a modest property in the USA. I am sick of the Aussie harsh humid summers and it plays havoc with my health. It would be nice to escape to your winter for 3 months of the year.

The place my wife and I really liked is the West Coast of California especially a little town called Paso Robles which is east of Cambria on the coast. We went there for the day and loved the rolling green hills as we drove in and the town was really quite nice. I also like the idea of being relatively close for a drive to the beach.

Any members that live in this area that can give me pros and cons or any advice of any other towns around this area that would suit. This is only a pipe dream at the moment but we do often talk about the idea.
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Contact @Mopar Tim. He lives in Vista CA and can probably give you the best perspective.

People who actually live there know the realities...people who don’t are just biased by their personal prejudice against what they think they know is reality.
 
moparspares said:
I currently live in Australia but my wife and I have always tossed the idea around of buying a modest property in the USA. I am sick of the Aussie harsh humid summers and it plays havoc with my health. It would be nice to escape to your winter for 3 months of the year.

The place my wife and I really liked is the West Coast of California especially a little town called Paso Robles which is east of Cambria on the coast. We went there for the day and loved the rolling green hills as we drove in and the town was really quite nice. I also like the idea of being relatively close for a drive to the beach.

Any members that live in this area that can give me pros and cons or any advice of any other towns around this area that would suit. This is only a pipe dream at the moment but we do often talk about the idea.
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Wrong coast!
My old Southern most, Easternmost corner of Georgia, ON THE VERY COAST itself is paradise. Zip codes: 31548, 31547, 31558

Hurricanes don’t hit that dimple into the east coast with ANY significance in recorded history.

Mid-September until as late as May typically have 55-75 degree weather (cool dips at night, around 72 degrees Fahrenheit in the day (22.2222 degrees centigrade).

It is paradise for cruising for 6 months.

No Snow. Humid when it rains. Great fishing-the rivers here are the largest breeding grounds for most Atlantic sharks.
Lots of big game fishing.

Theme parks in Florida are 3-4 hours away.
The Florida side doesn’t have state income tax I believe.

2nd week in February has a cool spell across the U.S., it might get as cold as 49 at night.

The junkyards in rural Georgia still have 1970’s Mopars (from the bumper up usually)

1/4 the COST OF LIVING than California or better. I sold a 4 bedroom house for $160,000 dollars last March. 3 bedroom homes go for around $120K and land out in the country is usually less than 5K an acre, especially once you break past 10 acres or so.

Very affordable! Unregrettable !
 
My daughter went to Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo. Beautiful area. Pass Robles has a huge car show, in the summer, I think. You’re three or so hours from the SF Bay Area and closer to LA. Beaches and mountains within a drive, too. Huge brewer, Firestone Brewery, in Paso Robles, as are lots of wineries.
Geographically and culturally, weather wise, it is hard to find a better place to live.

However...

Properties are expensive. Taxes are high, probably one of the top three highest states in the U.S. The politics are horrible. A liberal government anxious to redistribute the citizens wealth is deeply entrenched, and freely welcoming and protecting illegal immigrants. The citizens too stupid to figure it out and keep voting them to stay in office.

Traffic sucks and statewide, the freeways suck. I don’t think traffic is a big issue in Paso Robles, however.

We sometimes have droughts. Awful fires last year (sorry Aussie brothers and sisters about your fires this season). Mr. Sinister is correct, the law is leaning toward cracking down on our hobby, but for now, we are able to enjoy it.

I have lived in California for almost 60 years and getting close to retirement. The wife and I are considering other places to move: Arizona, Nevada, Oregon,... But for now, we feel the pros outweigh the cons to stay in California.

Ask me next year, we might have changed our minds.
 
Paso Robles winters, let's see. Been very mild this year, but also very dry, scary dry. There are usually a few winter mornings well below freezing 15°F range, many mornings right at freezing or just above. Daytime temps in winter are generally pretty mild. The ocean north of Pt Concepcion in Santa Barbara County just to the south of Paso Robles never gets much over 60°. Lots of grape farmers in that area which has led to a scarcity of ground water for those on wells. I myself was raised in the Mojave Desert in southeast California. After moving to this area and spending time in the Atascadero and Paso Robles areas the weather pretty much parallels the deserts in southern California with a small amount more rain in the winters. That little bit of extra rain does keep those beautiful oak trees in the hills happy. Happy oak trees leads to tasty BBQs :D. I have only seen snow there once in the 40 years I've lived in Santa Barbara County.
 
kursplat said:
as long as you go around portland and seattle :rolleyes:
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as far as big cities they're not bad but definitely know where I would recommend someone to retire at. But so many beautiful little towns up and down the coast that are quiet and very retirement friendly... I wouldn't suggest anyone looking to retire in a nice quiet beautiful area to move to Portland or Seattle or any big city for that matter...
 
j par said:
as far as big cities they're not bad but definitely know where I would recommend someone to retire at. But so many beautiful little towns up and down the coast that are quiet and very retirement friendly... I wouldn't suggest anyone looking to retire in a nice quiet beautiful area to move to Portland or Seattle or any big city for that matter...
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I hear Medford is nice, what you say?
 
clifftt said:
I hear Medford is nice, what you say?
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I don't recall ever being there but I haven't heard any bad things about it.. if I was to retire at the coast it would be just outside one of the very coastal cities.. there's so many great properties along the coast there just a mile or two down the road from a city to get groceries and maybe go to a movie or something or go out to dinner that yet relatively remote feeling..
 
Don't move to California! Everyone I have met from there came out without anything except money ! Lots of money !
(And good tans...). Lol
 
clifftt said:
I hear Medford is nice, what you say?
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Cousin is a cop (now a detective) in Methford. Same poison has infiltrated the population there too.. Its Hot in the summer also. Wife used to go to see the cousins but stopped going when the cousin started getting tattoos and piercings, an her baby is a little ****. Cambria was nice, but if your traveling here in US Winter, its friggin damp 24/7 there. like London Fog off the 55 degree ocean and the coast is rocky. US summer time its nice but too posh. I Dont thing they permit fast food establishments besides pizza shops. (Ok by me) Man, I wish USA would buy Baja California...miles upon miles of sand beaches and very few people. Used to be a great place to spend a weekend before heads were getting sawed off and put on poles from the Cartels. Anything south of Malibu is just one city after another on the coast until the Mexican border. Laguna is very nice, very artsy, very liberal. 7 million dollar houses on the cliffs over the beach...got that kind of dough? Kobe lived in Newport Coast, another high roller enclave, strange...no homeless there? But they are EVERYWHERE ELSE! F'n Cali politics. Worst thing about CA bar none.
 
Californian here. South bay area. (About 2 hours north of where you are looking)
My first concern would be cost. Its very expensive. taxes on new homes, utilities ect.

Traffic!!
Not sure about down there but its bad here.

Did i mention expensive?

But you get California, THE best state as far as range and beauty in terrain.

We have beaches (not crowded if you just look), surfing, mountians, rivers, fishing, hunting. It is a beautiful place to live.

Im not sure if you have ever been but i live on HWY 17 out side of Santa Cruz, Ca.
Im in the mountains, can walk to a huge lake, dont have to lock my door and be at the beach in 15 minutes or in the city in just a few more. It may be an area worth looking into.

I would take a good look at Felton Ca. Or anywhere in that area. Its nice and rual but close to everything.
 
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Living immediately off of the coast makes the hot, not so hot; the cold not as cold.

California has very steady temperatures as well, with less rain. I haven’t been to California since 2005 but it was comparable.

You need to garage your vehicles, and wax them against UV and salty (akaline PH) rain-not bad, but hard on paint.

Two kinds of vehicles in these areas have a little bit more leniency when ‘exhibiting speed,” old pick up trucks and muscle cars.
I would say the opposite of Australian police and car culture.
 
Cope said:
Californian here. South bay area. (About 2 hours north of where you are looking)
My first concern would be cost. Its very expensive. taxes on new homes, utilities ect.

Traffic!!
Not sure about down there but its bad here.

Did i mention expensive?

But you get California, THE best state as far as range and beauty in terrain.

We have beaches (not crowded if you just look), surfing, mountians, rivers, fishing, hunting. It is a beautiful place to live.

Im not sure if you have ever been but i live on HWY 17 out side of Santa Cruz, Ca.
Im in the mountains, can walk to a huge lake, dont have to lock my door and be at the beach in 15 minutes or in the city in just a few more. It may be an area worth looking into.

I would take a good look at Felton Ca. Or anywhere in that area. Its nice and rual but close to everything.
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You really need to get up here to the Great Northwest...
 
I have been up there a few times and its beauty is stunning but its cold!
If i wanted to live in the snow i would still live in Lake Tahoe. Also verry beautiful but very cold and way to much snow..
 
Ddaddy said:
Contact @Mopar Tim. He lives in Vista CA and can probably give you the best perspective.

People who actually live there know the realities...people who don’t are just biased by their personal prejudice against what they think they know is reality.
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Not necessarily.
The state is beautiful, the weather is great but the politics suck. The cost of living is high. Too many jerkoff politicians trying to reach into your pockets. Every voting cycle we get idiots voting for more taxes and less freedom.
 
moparspares said:
I currently live in Australia but my wife and I have always tossed the idea around of buying a modest property in the USA. I am sick of the Aussie harsh humid summers and it plays havoc with my health. It would be nice to escape to your winter for 3 months of the year.

The place my wife and I really liked is the West Coast of California especially a little town called Paso Robles which is east of Cambria on the coast. We went there for the day and loved the rolling green hills as we drove in and the town was really quite nice. I also like the idea of being relatively close for a drive to the beach.

Any members that live in this area that can give me pros and cons or any advice of any other towns around this area that would suit. This is only a pipe dream at the moment but we do often talk about the idea.
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Just be courteous to the locals.
 
@pishta
Infiltrated Medford ? That's where Meth started !
They (Government) should have left cocaine alone ... It was was nothing compared to meth.
Methford ...that is funny ! Never heard that one.
 
Thanks for all the input and the common thread is stay away from Ca. I did look at real estate in some of the other mentioned places and yes I see that Ca is a lot more expensive in comparison. I was taken with Georgia mentioned by Greymouser. Could get a real nice house close to the coast (brunswick) for 200k - 300k. I discounted the East coast as I thought it would be to cold in winter but those day time temps seem ok to me. Have visited the USA plenty of times and the places I took to were that CA coast. We also did like the black hills in SD but it would get cold there Id say. South Carolina looks pretty whenever I see TV programs showing the coastal towns however real estate looks expensive there.
 
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