Sunny SD

[Chateau Vin]

After a dozen years in the midwest, routinely battling cold, flu and harsh winters, its time to move on...

Moving to San Diego by the end of this summer and ready call it home...Wondering if there any fellow BWErs in the area. Also, does anyone know best place for wine storage, especially in north san diego area?

[AKR]

Be careful if you are choosing to live in City of SD proper. There are chances for service cuts and/or tax increases of enormous proportions.

[Chateau Vin]

Be careful if you are choosing to live in City of SD proper. There are chances for service cuts and/or tax increases of enormous proportions.

Seems like SD is a spread out city. When you say SD proper, do you mean downtown area? We will be moving to northern part of SD. Although it is SD, it is Poway school district. North of La Jolla and east of Solana Beach...

[AKR]

Poway is going to get destroyed by some bonds they sold.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/17/busin ... .html?_r=0

You can do some google searching as that's been a high profile problem down there.

That's one region of CA where one has to be particularly careful of where they live.

The property taxes one 'sees' today don't have much bearing on what the real cost is, which will eventually show up, either in formal taxes, or more user fees, or service cuts.

Its actually kind of weird to hear of productive citizenry moving here. Most of the time productive folks move out, and the reverse move in.

[Chateau Vin]

Thanks AKR... Well, another one to navigate...

[AKR]

We bought in Northern California somewhat recently, and I did some research on these local issues. One reason we chose a place where we pay into the county rather our city. We also have muni electric, rather than a corporate electric provider. Still between income, property, and sales taxes there is a lot of govt to be supported here.

Its one reason why those who don't need much from the state, rationally, move out.

But for those on that coastal strip between say SF and SD, the weather is fabulous all year round. Don't really need a/c or too much heating. We're in the capital area where it gets hot and stays hot between may and sep.

[AlohaArtakaHoundsong]

I had to laugh at this. Of course it is all well-intentioned but as a disinterested third-party it almost reads like a Monty Python sketch. And CV, you have my prayers.

I was interested in this thread, the title at least, because I'll be in SD in about 10 days for an outrigger canoe race. Thought I might look you up unfortunately no.

As a sideline I did a cursory virtual drive-by/research of some of the beach locales northside and also Santa Barbara way in the past year just to see if they might have some appeal to us in the next act of our lives. Being mindful as well of some of the things ARV says I can say it really didn't hit too many buttons; the lure of course is proximity to ocean and the climate, which of course is very high up there if you like that kind of climate, but the ocean is too cold and you need a wet suit too surf so for me it's poor value considering the prices. I am, admittedly, a QPR guy in most things.

Instead we've bought a place in Hawaii just north of Hilo and at the best surf spot on the island and hope to move there within the year, preferably more like months but I'm not quite rid of Colorado yet.

[Blanquito]

Art, you're back in CO? Wine tasting next Thursday in Denver if you want to join in, informal gathering of 5-6 wine guys.

[Chateau Vin]

I have lived in bay area before and has always loved CA. Although IMO, CA is the best place to live in terms of weather, activities, and the quality of life it can offer, etc. the situation has become untenable due to wrong choices of the politicians and the citizens alike...

I mean, here is a state in the Union, that is #1 in agriculture, #1 in high-tech industry, #1 in media/entertainment, #2 in tourism, #1 in wine industry, not to mention leader in biotech industry, etc. etc. Still, how can you mess up the financial situation so badly other than mismanagement, unnecessary welfare doleouts and bad choices? Even if you discount medicaid or migration issues in CA, it does not fully account for the financial mess that the state is in...If state like IN, that has nothing but corn can balance its budget and have surplus even during the financial crisis, then its a shame for CA not able to stay afloat let alone balance the budget...

Its sad that it has become the target of exploitation for others. Historically, the places/countries that are rich in natural resources are exploited by other nations/peoples. Like african, asian, latin american and middleeast nations that are rich in natural resources have always fallen victims to others, leaving the residents with nothing but misery and financial burden, to say the least. CA is rich in resources and also gifted in the areas mentioned above and has become a target for exploitation whether its energy crisis exploitation or financial exploitation by wall street. But unlike poor nations that could not defend themselves, CA has wherewithall to fend off these transgressions. IMO, the reason for current state of affairs in CA is mostly due to bad choices by citizenry, welfare and not to mention the politicians... CA and this country does not good politicians, they need good book keepers who understand the value of balancing the finances...

Having said that, I am not a beach person although I would like to live in sunny land. The reason we are on the move is that we want to live close to the family. My wife's sisters live in SD and as immigrants from other country that's all we have as a family...But as an immigrant who made US as HOME, and whose kids are born here, I have a vested interest for this country to do not just well, but exceptionally well. And that's the cause of my frustration when I see the financial debauchery both at state level and at federal level...

Sorry for my long post, but needed to vent out...

[AlohaArtakaHoundsong]

I have been nothing but impressed by my few visits to California, which have been restricted to SF, SD and Tahoe (notably not LA). Just go around SF and it is obvious to me any person coming to that land in practically any era (pre-contact, gold rush, whatever) would look upon it as the "broad, sunlight uplands" or paradise or whatever. But I can also see that in modern times it can be a better place to visit than perhaps reside in and deal with the BS 24-7, for some of the reasons mentioned.

[AlohaArtakaHoundsong]

BTW, Hawaii is not a model for anything when it comes to governance and finance.

[AlohaArtakaHoundsong]

Thanks, Patrick but not this time. I will be around a few months at least and we will def. get together. I cashed in my chips in Salida and moved them over to Hawaii. Now I just have to get this albatross formerly known as Shangri-La off my neck and I will have my life's Also Sprach Zarathustra moment.

[AKR]

Hawaii isn't in great shape either. HECO is probably the most incompetent of the utility co's, although it has some competition from Puerto Rico.

Coastal CA and HI are both places that I think its nice to 'rent' for 6m a year, and keep a home base somewhere else.

It's so cheap to fly to HI from my city (direct flights to maui) that living there, and getting rock fever, and having wine shipping problems has never appealed to me.

It's funny though, we both miss hard scrabble Vermont. We've still got a place there, sort of by Okemo. Icy cold wine cellar!

[AlohaArtakaHoundsong]

We've got brand new solar. The electric's about $20. I think HECO was just purchased by some d-bags in Florida. I think they want to stop letting people add to the grid or something. We rented for two years, $4k a month for a house if you want to walk to the beach. Get a studio in someone else's house ("ohana style!") for $1.2k a month. That's Kailua though. I had also thought about just getting someplace nice for a month each year on the North Shore. Even if it's $10k for the month it compares favorably to $1mm ++ to own (not that I could swing that anyway) something to maintain in that environment. You could easily pay $1k/s.f. and it wouldn't be brand spanking new. It's funky. But I've got dogs too so...

[stefan]

Only $4K a month, Art? On the other side of Kona it runs $9K a week.

[AlohaArtakaHoundsong]

This is Kailua, Oahu. There was a house two streets down asking 10K a month, not sure why they thought they would get that although it was more updated and maybe 3,000 sf. But not beach front or next house or even next-next house. My house was actually a tear-down to be for the new owners who were going to put up sommething new they figured would appraise in the ~$3.5-$4.5mm range.

In Kona, or really anywhere nice, you could certainly pay $9k a month for a place, but I'm not sure those are often long-term residential. Many times they are TVUs and that is quoted for the month although it will rent at that rate (same as month) illegally for a week or two, up to a month. It is the same with my house. I can get the same per month renting it for 6 months or a year as I could for a week. I would assume from living behind a TVU that generally you get about a week a month, maybe two weeks in certain vacation times, so it comes out the same.

[stefan]

Oh, Oahu. In Kona through something like vrbo it is $9K/week, including tax, for a nice large beach front vacation home during a holiday period; more for the really swanky places. I have no idea how much such places cost to buy.

[AlohaArtakaHoundsong]

That sounds about right.

[AKR]

We've been staying at condos in Maui, that my wife's family has been going for like 20-30 years to the same place. Kihei is pretty cheap, but admittedly it feels kind of downmarket. I have finally convinced her that in the future we should pay a little more, and find something in Wailea.

VRBO 10-15 years ago used to be better in my mind for finding places. Nowadays there is certainly more 'inventory' but the deals feel like they are gone, in the the admittedly minuscule sampling I've done, across different regions/times.

[AlohaArtakaHoundsong]

Certainly if you don't need a home and grounds or the "family compound" you can find reasonably priced, nice clean accommodations at or near beaches. There are many timeshares available to rent. The Marriot in Lihue on Kalapaki Beach for example, which is convenient, a great point of departure for day-tripping around Kauai and not a bad place to plop down in it's own right. Koloa on the south side is the same way there are several big mixed hotel/residenital/timeshare properties to choose from. I also like Maui, Wailea of course is really nice, upscale and quiet, great beaches, and a lot of shark attacks including several fatal ones in the past couple of years just out in the prime snorkeling zones.

[Jay Winton]

We just got back from Kona where we rented a condo for less than 1,000 for the week I think. It was a bit run down but right on the ocean and a good location. Nice pool with a grill but close to plenty of restaurants. Whale watching was spectacular.

[AKR]

We just got back from Kona where we rented a condo for less than 1,000 for the week I think. It was a bit run down but right on the ocean and a good location. Nice pool with a grill but close to plenty of restaurants. Whale watching was spectacular.

If Japan ever resurrects itself -- Nikkei poking above 20000 now -- Hawaii will be a very willing recipient of all that money they have to spend.

So perhaps these deals will be looked at one day in wonder, the way we look at old sticker prices on wines we are now reluctant to replace....

[AlohaArtakaHoundsong]

Trust me on this. On Oahu in particular, no decent property at any price point goes off without at least one foreign offeror in the mix or so it seems. Chinese are big currently, there are many realtors fresh from China there marketing back to Chinese buyers. But also Japanese, I don't think they have ever subsided as buyers, Canadians, Russians, pretty much everybody. Not that it is especially new. Any place that is decent has five offers day after first showing. I thought 3.5 30-year fixed had something to do with it, probably does but I was surprised at so many all-cash offers. Then I read something in the journal about brokerage houses pushing portfolio loans heavily for a while. Not that many people wouldn't have a million or more bucks lying around and allocated to no particular purpose, but when you can get a loan against a portfolio in 36 hours that explained a lot to me.

Kona, we looked around there a bit. Nice but not my style, but it looks to me like half the properties all the way mauka are vacation homes, or investment rental properties, a lot of them too owned by absentee/foreign. It's an interesting market dynamic there and you can probably make some good deals.

[AlohaArtakaHoundsong]

Another fatal shark attack on Maui's west coast.

http://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/story/2893 ... h-closures

I stayed at the Makena a couple of years ago; snorkled there. It's just below Wailea. That whole stretch form Kihei down has been very sharky for a while.

[AKR]

veritable sharknado

[AlohaArtakaHoundsong]

The comments include a link to a tiger-shark tracking project. It's very cool, the plots. Nothing on the windward sides at all. There are only a few attacks a year, less than 10 I'd say. Still, not a nice thing to happen on your honeymoon or anniversary!