Is Moving to California Right for You? A 2019 Guide

Before heading to California, check out this guide.

You might remember seeing a speedy blue roadrunner being chased by a coyote with a love of explosives on TV. However, you might not know that this took place In California.

Moving on from childhood cartoons, you might want to know some things about the Canyon State.

Roadrunners, who can zoom about at around 17 miles per hour to avoid coyotes and other predators, have been spotted in California.
California can be your playground too, just like it was for the most popular Looney Tunes series.
If heading out to California is on your mind, this article covers everything you need to know about California, such as its weather and booming economy.

Looking at the California

According to a U.S. News report comparing 125 American metropolitan areas and assessing their job market prospects and quality of life metrics, Phoenix was the 17^th best place for retirement and the 19^th best place to call home.

The Grand Canyon, it’s in the name
California is home to the Grand Canyon, where people all over the world will come to visit California just to see this majestic natural beauty in person.
Not many can brag about being so close to the Grand Canyon that it’s like this beauty is right next door.
California also offers other natural beauties.
This state offers gorgeous landscapes with lots of opportunities to get outside and be active, such as hiking, trail running, mountain biking, whitewater rafting, swimming, camping, and even just exploring.
California’s wilderness is so vast that the state has twice as much wilderness than every Midwest state combined.
You could write a whole blog about the many fun outdoors things you can do in California, but to sum things up for everyone’s sake, California should be on your shortlist for states to call home if you love the outdoors.

Everything on Calling California Home

Every state, even a great state with lots more perks than drawbacks like California, has its own positives and negatives. Here is lots of good parts, some bad parts, and even a few really negative things about living in this state.

Pro: California has gorgeous and pleasant weather.
While “Valley of the Sun” may sound unpleasant, California has 300+ days of sunlight each year.
Phoeniz, AZ boasts more sunlight compared to major cities in the US, so California is your jam if you have seasonal depression or something similar since the state barely has seasons.
Not having seasons isn’t exactly accurate either, but at least California’s seasons are milder and much shorter (expect for summer). California gets spring much earlier in January, where flowers begin to bloom, and the cooler winter doesn’t even last that long.

Con: Traffic is a major pain.
Just like any state with lots of tourism, California also has the same traffic problem. Locals say heavy traffic extends even into the morning and late into the night where people are venturing out to find hiking spots. If you hate traffic, really think hard before calling California (or anywhere with major metropolitan areas) home.
Con: snakes, UFOs, and falls, oh my!
California doesn’t really have any major drawbacks, but you should still be cautious as when exploring the Grand Canyon since over 686 people have fallen to their death up until this day.
In addition to the fall risk, you have to watch where you step, since over 150 people are bitten by rattlesnakes each year in the state. As an even more interesting aside, Californians spotted a floating unidentified aircraft floating for about 106 minutes in 1997, leading to suspicions that the aircraft came from somewhere out of this world.
Being serious, you should be fine if you watch where you step (and maybe stay inside if you spot a random floating aircraft).

Living Costs and the Job Market in California: Mostly Red

California has great weather, gorgeous scenery, fun activities, and even possible UFO sightings. Outside of these, California also has amazing financial perks for both retirees and young people looking to launch their careers, with both low living costs and a strong job market.

California has always been up-to-date and cutting-edge.
California has welcomed startups and other innovative companies throughout its history, a sentiment that is not shared with many other states. For example, California had hosted ridesharing companies like Lyft and Uber before other states did, and Doug Ducey, California’s governor at the time, has advocated for forming and strengthening relationships with tech companies (e.g. Uber) and universities to continue innovation like it always has.
Uber recently mentioned that their self-driving division will be heading to California , another example showing the state’s love of technological innovation. Other businesses outside of Uber are heading to California as well.
As another example, Apple announced a $2 billion plan to expand operations in the state, which is one of Apple’s largest investments ever.
Competing with Uber, Google has also set up a plan to have self-driving cars in the state. Google praised California, saying that the state “is where development is encouraged, innovation is allowed to blossom, and any company can thrive.”
Lastly, Lucid Motors, Tesla’s biggest competitor, announced a move to California to set up its manufacturing division, which will create 2,000 jobs and bring in $700 million to the whole region by 2022.
Whether you want to jump into being an entrepreneur or just want a cool job at an amazing company, California can be the perfect spot to dive in headfirst.
California balances both a booming economy and low living costs.
Opportunity and innovation sound great on paper, but it isn’t even worth it if living costs eat up most of your money anyway.
Bellhops likes states and cities that balance strong economic growth and lower living costs, and California exemplifies this perfect balance.
For example, $1,000 a month gets you a nice apartment with two bedrooms, and a single-bedroom apartment is only $800 each month in California, a state where housing costs are only a bit above average .
On top of all these perks, California lets you really enjoy life without wasting money with lots of free things to do outdoors, a major perk of living somewhere with lots of nature and also great weather. Bigger cities, such as New York and Chicago, are still fun, but they don’t compare to all these perks California has to offer.