Russia girls are amazing!

[Satellite 1]

Talking about other states,yes cost of living might be cheaper,but what about tornadoes?even idea of it freaks me out...but mortgage of 200 000 is quite tempting i would say:)Lucky you:)))

Who said anything about Tornadoes; you can keep those in Oklahoma. You can have that $200,000 mortgage right here in California. From Sacramento to Bakersfield, the entire central valley has dropped dramatically. Many homes are on the market below $200,000.

[visaveteran1 33]

Talking about other states,yes cost of living might be cheaper,but what about tornadoes?even idea of it freaks me out...but mortgage of 200 000 is quite tempting i would say:)Lucky you:)))

Who said anything about Tornadoes; you can keep those in Oklahoma. You can have that $200,000 mortgage right here in California. From Sacramento to Bakersfield, the entire central valley has dropped dramatically. Many homes are on the market below $200,000.

What about state income and real estate taxes, sales tax, gasoline prices, etc? And there are those nasty earthquakes, fires and mud slides...maybe not where you mention...but the whole state has to absorb those costs...so your pockets are picked like everyone else. Yes?

[mox 298]

What about state income and real estate taxes, sales tax, gasoline prices, etc? And there are those nasty earthquakes, fires and mud slides...maybe not where you mention...but the whole state has to absorb those costs...so your pockets are picked like everyone else. Yes?

Mercury must be in retrograde because once again we agree. The cost of living in California, no matter where you live, is much higher than most of the rest of the country. To me it's worth it because of the quality of life, but the costs nonetheless exist.

Frankly I'm surprised that Sat lives in SF. I'd have thought he'd bought some cheap waterfront property in New Orleans by now. (I dig because I know Sat can take it.)

[Satellite 1]

What about state income and real estate taxes, sales tax, gasoline prices, etc? And there are those nasty earthquakes, fires and mud slides...maybe not where you mention...but the whole state has to absorb those costs...so your pockets are picked like everyone else. Yes?

State income taxes can be deducted from your Federal Return, so no problem there. Not sure how much lower property tax is in other states. But assuming it is the same and we are both talking about $200,000 mortgages, the difference should be minimal. Fires are certainly a concern. Not sure if hurricane or tornado insurance costs any more than fire insurance. Gasoline costs less in the central valley then in San Francisco. But yes, you do pay on average $0.25 more a gallon then the national price. Disasters in California actually effect the entire nation. Last year we had a record freeze in the winter and the price of oranges sky rocketed by $1.00 or so a pound. I can see pluses and minuses of living in California or somewhere else. It's really a personal choice and a comfort level thing. As others have mentioned we are a mobile society, we can get up and move. Edited April 9, 2008 by Satellite

[Satellite 1]

Frankly I'm surprised that Sat lives in SF. I'd have thought he'd bought some cheap waterfront property in New Orleans by now. (I dig because I know Sat can take it.)

We moved out of the City back in October. My wife got accepted to UC Davis and I was wrapping up law school. We were in the city simply because my school was there. Now we are back to the simple life. But like you, I like all the other things that go with California, so no Louisiana for me.

And like I said before, I'd rather spend my money "living" in California then on a taxi ride from SVO2 to SVO1

Edited April 9, 2008 by Satellite

[Bobalouie 0]

Talking about other states,yes cost of living might be cheaper,but what about tornadoes?even idea of it freaks me out...but mortgage of 200 000 is quite tempting i would say:)Lucky you:)))

Who said anything about Tornadoes; you can keep those in Oklahoma. You can have that $200,000 mortgage right here in California. From Sacramento to Bakersfield, the entire central valley has dropped dramatically. Many homes are on the market below $200,000.

Ok Sat, since you seem to be hung up on numbers, I looked up some houses in Bakersfield, and I will put it to you another way. My house in Oklahoma City, built to order, cost me $83/sq ft. The houses in Bakersfield are going for $126-$172/sq ft. I hope that clears up my point.

[Bobalouie 0]

What about state income and real estate taxes, sales tax, gasoline prices, etc? And there are those nasty earthquakes, fires and mud slides...maybe not where you mention...but the whole state has to absorb those costs...so your pockets are picked like everyone else. Yes?

State income taxes can be deducted from your Federal Return, so no problem there. Not sure how much lower property tax is in other states. But assuming it is the same and we are both talking about $200,000 mortgages, the difference should be minimal. Fires are certainly a concern. Not sure if hurricane or tornado insurance costs any more than fire insurance. Gasoline costs less in the central valley then in San Francisco. But yes, you do pay on average $0.25 more a gallon then the national price. Disasters in California actually effect the entire nation. Last year we had a record freeze in the winter and the price of oranges sky rocketed by $1.00 or so a pound. I can see pluses and minuses of living in California or somewhere else. It's really a personal choice and a comfort level thing. As others have mentioned we are a mobile society, we can get up and move.

No such thing as tornado insurance. And my $185K house insurance is $749/yr. House taxes (no personal property) here in my area are among the highest in the state, and cost $2400/yr. Oklahoma is about $.25 less than the national average on gas.

Edited April 9, 2008 by Bobalouie

[Satellite 1]

Ok Sat, since you seem to be hung up on numbers, I looked up some houses in Bakersfield, and I will put it to you another way. My house in Oklahoma City, built to order, cost me $83/sq ft. The houses in Bakersfield are going for $126-$172/sq ft. I hope that clears up my point.

How recent is your data? Prices have fallen dramatically in the last 6 months. I don't think anyone's record's at this point can keep pace.

[Bobalouie 0]

Ok Sat, since you seem to be hung up on numbers, I looked up some houses in Bakersfield, and I will put it to you another way. My house in Oklahoma City, built to order, cost me $83/sq ft. The houses in Bakersfield are going for $126-$172/sq ft. I hope that clears up my point.

How recent is your data? Prices have fallen dramatically in the last 6 months. I don't think anyone's record's at this point can keep pace.

How accurate are the MLS listings for realtors in Bakersfield? I think they are pretty up to date (I looked them up right before I posted), and I didnt look at only one entry, that was how I came up with the range and searched for houses that have similar amenities as mine. I didnt want to be quoting prices for Bakersfield for houses with crazy custom woodwork or marble counters, since my house doesnt have that kind of stuff. There are a lot of houses that are in the $170K range, but they are all for 1200 sq/ft houses which do not compare.

And I will admit, I got a hell of a deal on my house, but most houses in my area (fastest growing, hence more expensive) are in the $90-95/sq ft range. You might pay $100-110/sq ft for a 3500 sqft house here if you did the granite/marble with custom cabinets and all the trimmings. But it would be a dream house. I have a friend who lives in a 3300 ft house with all the trimmings and he bought it 2 years ago for $91/sq ft.

Edited April 9, 2008 by Bobalouie

[CarolynRitesh 0]

Wow Bobalouie, tell me more!! I would never have thought of Oklahoma City as a place to be, but one of the job possibilities for Ritesh is in Oklahoma City, and that housing market alone is appealing! (Plus, it is a centralized jumping off point from which to explore the US!)

[Corey-Mariya 14]

And like I said before, I'd rather spend my money "living" in California then on a taxi ride from SVO2 to SVO1

Just had to take that joyful taxi ride last sunday

[Gaby&Talbert 1]

Any midwest city will be less expensive than California to live. Northwest Arkansas is even less expensive than Oklahoma City. A big factor to consider is when you have children, what type of environment do you want them to grow up in? Big cities in the midwest will have some problems. I guess if you are from a large city and like that type of environment then you probably would not be happy in a small city. If you are concerned about cost of living I would not choose the Gulf Coast areas because insurance will kill you.

[slim 1,533]

I actually have some friends who immigrated to Connecticut (Stamford) from Russia about a year ago who are about to go back because they can't stand it here. I really hope that Ira will be happy here with me. This country has so many problems that I'm not often happy here (but, then again, I also watch way too much news and get way too involved in political discourse).

If Ira loves you she will be happy to be here with you. However, she will also let you know (sometimes numerous times a day!) how unhappy she is to be in the U.S.A. Yet, she'll stay.

As far as changing the country, good luck. I'm under the impression now that the die is cast. We're going to be blissfully unaware all the way up until the very end and then we're going to collectively asked "what happened?" (Only it'll be in Chinese or something.)

My father married a ukrainian woman 21 years his junior about 8 years ago. Although she came to the states on a K1 visa, she can't understand why I would want to marry a Turkish man (or any man) who didn't make atleast $100,000 a year.

If they've made it 8 years, they're obviously both getting exactly what they want from the relationship. Hats off to them! (Even if she did marry him for the money and her married her for the, ah, well, what did her marry her for? Oh. That's right... who cares, she's 21 years his junior! Way to go old guy!)

[JULIAFERNO 0]

If they've made it 8 years, they're obviously both getting exactly what they want from the relationship. Hats off to them! (Even if she did marry him for the money and her married her for the, ah, well, what did her marry her for? Oh. That's right... who cares, she's 21 years his junior! Way to go old guy!)

Hahaha! Very true. She could easily be my sister!

I do have an adorable baby brother and 4 year old sister now! I CAN'T complain about that!

Amazingly, my brother is married to a first generation Turk. I guess cross-cultural marriages are just in our genes.

Edited April 9, 2008 by JULIAFERNO

[slim 1,533]

Amazingly, my brother is married to a first generation Turk. I guess cross-cultural marriages are just in our genes.

It's always intriguing, but then when it's acceptable, even encouraged, it's hard not to!