I used the word "applying for a job" losely....they've offered me the same job somewhat on going during the past 2 years (as recently as 3 weeks ago). I was reluctant before because I still had 2 kids at home and was reluctant to relocate.... and was already employed. What a difference a year or two can make. I'm 99% certain that this job is mine if I choose. My other option is to sell O.C. home, scale back and retire early.
Thanks again, Craig

Just curious as to where you're planning on scaling back to? $500K doesn't buy much anymore, particularly if you need a yard to house all of those animals. And with the stock market so shaky, your 401K can disappear overnight. I have a number of friends who now feel that they retired too soon.

Don't think Kali knows anything about Sacramento. Monica's opinion, now that we know she's from the SF-wannabe town of San Jose, is useless. Monica you can't claim to know a town just because you grew up in one of its neighborhoods. You have to live in a place as a grownup (dull or sharp, is up to you) before you really know what a place is all about. The thing about growing up in a palce that has changed as much as Sacramento has over the past 20 years, is that the natives never leave their little enclaves, thus leading Kali to believe they are like him/her and his/her friends-inbred.

Craig
I've lived in Sacramento for the past thirty years and watched the city grow up. Its changed pretty dramatically in that time. Like a lot of cities, Sacramento has a lot going for it and a few things against it. For one thing, it has is a lot of affordable housing. You'll be able to find a great home in the $500-600 thousand dollar range. Sacramento also has a modicum of cultural activities. There isn't any major kind of nightlife, but there are several cultural venues. The community center has regular theater performances, the Music Circus operates in the summer and there is a reasonably good ballet company. The Mondavi Performing Arts center is opening up in Davis, just a couple of miles away, that is going to be a world class arts center. For sports, we have the Kings and one of the nicest triple A baseball parks in the country. The weather isn't that bad. It does get hot in the summer, frequently in the 90s and a couple of weeks in the 100s, but generally the Delta breezes cool off the area in the evenings making them especially pleasant. Its also a very dry heat, so the humidity is almost never a problem. The winters are generally mild with only an occasional frost. With the heat of the summers, one thing the city does have going for it is lots of trees. The city's location is great. Lake Tahoe is only 2 hours aways for winter and summer activities, plus gambling if you're into that. Its about 90 minutes to SF and about an hour to the wine country. Perhaps the worst problems for Sacramento are the traffic and smog, although if you are from southern California, it won't seem that bad. There isn't any major crime problem in Sacramento, except in a few small areas of town, which you are unlikely to have any contact with on a regular basis. When it comes to selecting housing, it makes the most sense to locate somewhere near where you work. If its downtown, you might look into the older areas like the fabulous 40s, old Land Park and or Curtis Park. If its elsewhere, you might want to check in that particular area. As I said, there will be many very lovely homes in your price range.

Craig may be interested in other areas around Sacramento as the neighborhoods do vary.

Davis is getting expensive and they have lots of restrictions but the homes are nice.

ElDorado Hills is very nice but the CC&R's are very restrictive. They're running out of water but they continue to allow building.

Placer County, which includes the cities of Rocklin and Roseville and the community of Granite Bay, are fairly well-planned communities with lots of new building going on. They'll be filled up pretty soon.

Elk Grove and Laguna, south of Sacramento, are being built up so quickly that the infrastructure, like schools and parks, can not keep up.

Craig, you probably need to check out the various areas before you think about moving and see what the commute, if any, would be like. It sounds like you're not employed by the state so it's likely that the location of your business would not be downtown. Going downtown from the east is not the only problematic commute. Going east along Highway 50 in the am and west in the pm has started to get messy too.

Thanks Tony,
You mentioned smog...Although So. Calif is notorious for smog, where I live the air is actually very clean (about 7 miles from the Pacific, in Orange County). Is smog in Sacramento anything like the terrible smog in say LA, Ontario, Riverside (if you're at all familiar with So. Cal)?? Thanks, Craig

I grew up in a suburb of Sac (Rancho Cordova) and now live in Colorado. The one thing I really miss about Sac and Northern Cal in general is the WATER! You have the American River for rafting, the Sacramento River for water skiing and Folsom Lake for picnics, beaches and more water skiing. Many people have backyard pools as well. I never thought I'd miss the water so much until I moved to a place with a hot, dry summer and no water in sight. *sigh* Nothing beats water sports on a hot day.

What part of town is your employer located in? If I were to move back to the Sac area today, I'd look in the Folsom, El Dorado Hills, Shingle Springs, Cameron Park areas, or even further up the hill on highway 50. Maybe even Auburn/Grass Valley on highway 80. The commute can be grim, but hey, you live in OC so you know what that's like.

Born in San Francisco, lived there for a bit, moved down to San Diego county and lived in Carlsbad, now living in Riverside with a husband who works in Orange County and a friend I visit quite often in Sacramento, Carmichael in fact.
I have to say I LOVE Sacramento!! Prices for houses are NOTHING like OC. It is more laid back and a good place to raise a family but is also diverse and has lots of activities. Picture all the great things, shopping, dining sports and so forth of OC without all the SNOBS!!! Best of both worlds IMO. Close to Tahoe, the City, close enough to the beach but a bit less congested then So Cal. Worth a serious consideration IMO.

X,

You say that San Jose is a "wanna be SF town". No city would want to be like that sorry excuse for a homeless encampment you call SF. San Jose has much better weather than San Jose, has plenty of culture, restuarants, shopping, and nightlife, as well as great parks, and is close to the Monterey Bay and surrounded by picturesque mountains. No need to go to SF for anything unless you are homeless, a drug addict, or like foggy weather in the summer.

Craig
The smog is bad sometimes in the summer, but its not like LA where you can see it. Generally, the valley breezes blow a lot of it into the foothills to the east of Sacramento which end up having a worse smog problem than Sacramento. Except for the summer, the rest of the year really isn't a problem. As this is probably the worst time of the year, you really ought to fly up and spend a few days here and see what you think.

Definitely come up and spend a few days. After all, one person's paradise is another person's armpit.