REVIEWS DEALS BIKESHOPS TRAILS

Potential relocation to So Cal

4352 Views 56 Replies 28 Participants Last post by Klurejr, Oct 24, 2021

austin_bike

Discussion Starter · Oct 23, 2021

Born and bred Chicagoan, living in TX for the past 25 years. Retired now and bike every day. Can’t stand TX and it gets worse every day, I need out. It’s not just the heat, it’s the stupidity (politics and religion are out of control).

We started looking at CA and the area from Agoura Hills to Oxnard is where we are currently stalking online.

In my mind Thousand Oaks is the best location for proximity to daily riding (MTB XC, some gravel, some urban singlespeed….) We have a friend in Westlake Village who rides every day so I am getting the daily dump on Strava and it kills me to see the pics and routes she has such close access to for riding.

But in that swath from Agoura Hills to Oxnard, where would you say is the best place to be zeroing in on for possible bases?

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k2rider1964

· #2 · Oct 23, 2021

You don't like Austin's politics and you want to move to CA? That's a new one. There's no doubt that there is some great riding in SoCal but if you're moving to a place for the riding, why are you not looking at places like the Western Slope of CO, Northern AZ, Central Oregon or even Bentonville (though it does have the heat). LA/SoCal traffic can make the I-35 look like a cakewalk. I wouldn't live in LA County for free.

If you must move to SoCal, I'd move somewhere with easy access to Mount Wilson which is probably the best MOUNTAIN biking in SoCal, some decent bike shops and the area has plenty of trendy, overpriced cafes where roadies & gravel riders like to congregate and drink $6 espressos.

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trmn8er

· #3 · Oct 23, 2021

Love California been here all my life. Amazing riding , ocean close, mountains and desert. But hate the political climate. California is way over regulated and feels like a draconian government overreach at every turn.

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austin_bike

Discussion Starter · #4 · Oct 23, 2021

k2rider1964 said:
You don't like Austin's politics and you want to move to CA? That's a new one.

love Austin politics, hate TX politics. Austin is reasonable. We put a mask mandate in our schools. The state outlawed mask mandates in schools even though none of the kids had been vaccinated. We stood up to them. Our governor was literally vaccinated AND boosted and then got Covid, while at the same time trying to outlaw mandates by private companies.

Will check out Mt. Wilson, might bring the squishy bike in the spring when we come out to visit.

Mountain Cycle Shawn

· #5 · Oct 23, 2021

The area around Thousand Oaks, Westlake Village and down to the beach has some of the best MTB riding in the world. You can ride a different trail for months and not have to ride the same one. This area doesn’t have that big city, shitty, dirty, crime ridden vibe to it. It’s not over crowded and again, crime isn’t a problem. If you have a motorcycle, there are hundreds of miles of canyon roads to ride. As far as politics go around her, just ignore it and live your life. It’s the cost of living that will get you. You can’t buy anything for under $800,000 or rent anything for under $4,000 a month. If you live in a place close enough to Mount Wilson to ride everyday, you’re looking at over crowding, way more crime and having to deal with a lot of dirty dumb shits. It’s not a great area to live and ride. Look at it this way: The area around Mount Wilson is Walmart. The area around Thousand Oaks and Westlake is Costco. What store would you rather go in every day?

wayold

· #6 · Oct 23, 2021 (Edited)

I live in T.O. and ride all around here. Mountain Cycle Shawn is right - tons of trails in the area including a new pump track in a local park if you're into that. I'd say pretty much every house in town is wihin a mile of one or another of our trail systems. My local trails in Wildwood Park start 100 yds from my door. Five bike shops in town (including Worlwide Cyclery one town over). When you're not into riding the beach is 20-30 minutes away (and pretty easy to bike to as well).

Main negatives are cost and fire risk (both pretty high).

FWIW Housing costs aren't quite as bad as MCS says (I wish I could get $800K for my house), but figure on $600K minimum for a small house and $500K for a condo. Things are a bit cheaper down in the 'nard (Oxnard) - a more diverse community if that's what you're looking for.

Fire risk is real. We've had several major wildfires around here in the last decade and houses in town have burned. I'd still recommend the area, but be aware of fire and wind patterns when choosing where to live.

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Dan Zulu

· #7 · Oct 23, 2021

I recommend asking a CPA to calculate the difference in your financial situation by moving to CA. Taxes, housing, gas prices, utilities, taxes and taxes make a significant difference. Also consider how frustrating it is to order something online like stickers and have the order cancelled due to Prop 63. The over-regulation is no joke.

Stay out of the Valley and the Basin.

Trails there are great.

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austin_bike

Discussion Starter · #8 · Oct 23, 2021

Dan Zulu said:
I recommend asking a CPA to calculate the difference in your financial situation by moving to CA. Taxes, housing, gas prices, utilities, taxes and taxes make a significant difference. Also consider how frustrating it is to order something online like stickers and have the order cancelled due to Prop 63. The over-regulation is no joke.

Stay out of the Valley and the Basin.

Trails there are great.

We did the math on taxes already. CA, even with state income tax, is lower. We only pay property tax here and it is $22k+ a year. I am retired so income tax is not as much of an issue. House is paid off and we would downsize, swap out so cost of real estate is a non issue as well. Thanks for the tip on prop 63, will need to dig into that.

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ricekrispyota

· #9 · Oct 23, 2021

Nevermind

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wayold

· #10 · Oct 23, 2021

Some folks hate CA. Some folks always will. But if TX politics bothers you then I suspect you're not one of them. Personally I don't find California's regulations onerous (or even noticeable actually). As a retiree my state taxes average less than 4% (less than in a lot of other states) and my property tax is minimal (though much of that is due to the benefits of Prop 13 for longtime residents).

and hey, you can ride 300+ days a year.

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austin_bike

Discussion Starter · #11 · Oct 23, 2021

That sounds like my lifestyle to a T. I think I probably rode 300+ days per year, put more miles on my bikes than my car, especially for running errands. We are getting a lot of Californians coming to tx to “escape” so I think that they line up with tx ideologically and we probably align more with CA, at least if my impression is correct. In the age of Covid a little regulation can be a good thing.

Cary

· #12 · Oct 23, 2021

As someone who grew up in the valley, my suggestion is as close to the westside or Oxnard or Ventura as possible. When it is 115 in Thousand Oaks and only 90 closer to the beach, you will understand why. I wouldn’t choose to move to LA, given the choice I would be looking at Reno or Southern Oregon. Good weather, lower cost of living, and much less traffic.

EatsDirt

· #13 · Oct 23, 2021

I would be looking North of Conejo without question. Approx 150 miles north. Check the quality of life index.

wayold

· #14 · Oct 23, 2021

I've lived in T.O. for 35 years. It's never gotten up to 110 once. We do get a few days over 100 each year, but mid-80s is more the norm in summer. That said, there is a sharp temperature gradient from east to west. The San Fernando Valley 10-15 miles east can hit 115 (and will go over 105 regularly in the summer). The Oxnard Plain (Camarillo, Oxnard, Ventura) with its stronger marine influence is much cooler (usually in the 70s, even in summer), but commensurately grayer and foggier - also a lot flatter and often requiring a drive to get to the good MTB trails. Pick your poison.

BTW. I live in T.O. because I worked there long ago and never got around to moving. I actually think Ventura is a cooler place to live (in all senses of the world). Much more lively scene than the boring bedroom community of T.O. Some decent riding in the local hills (though not as much as T.O.) and close to the big mountains of Ojai and Santa Barbara. If it weren't for the hassle of moving I'd happily trade my little house in T.O. for something on the hillside in Ventura (but the fire danger there is probably even greater - they're still recovering from 2017's Thomas Fire).

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wayold

· #15 · Oct 23, 2021

EatsDirt said:
I would be looking North of Conejo without question. Approx 150 miles north. Check the quality of life index.

No question that the SLO area is gorgeous and has a bunch of great riding (and a very active MTB community). It's a bit more isolated from both the benefits and problems of the big city. This may or may not be what your looking for.

BTW We've looked at moving there as well and home prices are comparable to the Conejo.

boogergreenglen

· #16 · Oct 23, 2021

I live near LAX (90045) and I frequent Agora hills for some nice trails! The Thousand Oaks area offers trails depending on your riding style and trail preference (XC to Enduro) and it's pretty close to other trails in Simi valley, Calabasas, Point Mugu/Malibu and Mount Pinos.

Thousand Oaks is a great location but the only thing is that you will probably have to drive to these trails and the 101 freeway can get hectic during weekdays but not bad compared to downtown LA traffic. Although Thousand Oaks isn't as central to other cities in SoCal, you can also venture to the San Gabriel (Mt. Wilson), Orange county (Aliso/Santiago oaks/Laguna), Santa Monica mountain trails and bike parks near Big Bear.

Mountain Cycle Shawn

· #17 · Oct 23, 2021

austin_bike said:
We did the math on taxes already. CA, even with state income tax, is lower. We only pay property tax here and it is $22k+ a year. I am retired so income tax is not as much of an issue. House is paid off and we would downsize, swap out so cost of real estate is a non issue as well. Thanks for the tip on prop 63, will need to dig into that.

I order a ton of stuff for my hobbies. And basically anything other than food, I order online. I’ve never encountered a problem with prop 63. it’s a nonissue.

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Mountain Cycle Shawn

· #18 · Oct 23, 2021

wayold said:
I've lived in T.O. for 35 years. It's never gotten up to 110 once. We do get a few days over 100 each year, but mid-80s is more the norm in summer. That said, there is a sharp temperature gradient from east to west. The San Fernando Valley 10-15 miles east can hit 115 (and will go over 105 regularly in the summer). The Oxnard Plain (Camarillo, Oxnard, Ventura) with its stronger marine influence is much cooler (usually in the 70s, even in summer), but commensurately grayer and foggier - also a lot flatter and often requiring a drive to get to the good MTB trails. Pick your poison.

BTW. I live in T.O. because I worked there long ago and never got around to moving. I actually think Ventura is a cooler place to live (in all senses of the world). Much more lively scene than the boring bedroom community of T.O. Some decent riding in the local hills (though not as much as T.O.) and close to the big mountains of Ojai and Santa Barbara. If it weren't for the hassle of moving I'd happily trade my little house in T.O. for something on the hillside in Ventura (but the fire danger there is probably even greater - they're still recovering from 2017's Thomas Fire).

To be fair, it hit 115 one day last year. That was supper rare. But yes, there’s not many days 100 or over. And, it’s usually pretty dry.

Jayem

· #19 · Oct 23, 2021

IME, living in CA but mostly flying to SoCal from AZ in small planes, you gotta be pretty close to the coast to get any coastal effects. As said above, once you go inland just a few miles, it gets hot fast in the summer. For this, NorCal at higher elevation or closer to the coat is more my style, there's a little more leeway-bigger distance where you don't have to be right on the coast for mild but not blazing hot weather in the summer.

And that's the thing about CA, so many different areas that are just wildly different in terms of climate, geology and everything else. Most people tend to think there is only LA and the Bay Area...but there is so much more.

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CrozCountry

· #20 · Oct 23, 2021 (Edited)

austin_bike said:
It’s not just the heat, it’s the stupidity (politics and religion are out of control).

There is a mass exodus from CA to Texas, and one of the reasons is that politics and religion are in control. Just a different religion.

As far as heat, you have to be close to the coast. When people say LA they sometimes mean the whole region around the city of LA, which goes far inland and has insane temperatures. Needless to say, the closer you get to the coast, the more you would pay.

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