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how materialistic is San Diego? Is it like LA?

J

jrockondamic

Member
^^ that?

I am a single, working class young guy but I'm a big saver. I have no interest in cars and my POS vehicle reflects that. etc. etc. I was recently offered a 35K a year job in San Diego. I understand that this will put me at the lower end of the spectrum financially in this expensive city, but I'm OK with that (And I'm a grower, too. But I know how flooded SOCAL is so I'm not counting on that income).

Will I have a hard time meeting people with a similar frame of mind in San Diego? I was looking at Ocean Beach, as I had heard that place is more interesting than pure materialism. But alas, I've been to enough liberal places to know that this can just be masked boring snobbery (see: Boulder, CO, etc).

Thoughts on this guys? Thanks
 
statusquo

statusquo

Member
There is plenty of superficial, materialistic douche bags in our fair city. There are the people you are looking for however, but they will be difficult to find. OB is filled with many colorful characters and is kind of far from the freeway depending on how far in towards PL you are. Living anywhere west of the 5, especially with a low salary, is a terrible idea IMO. You can live 1 exit inland of the 5 and save a substantial amount and be less than 10 minutes from the ocean
 
J

jrockondamic

Member
Thanks, status quo. I really appreciate your input.

I'm unfamiliar with the city, so any degree of specificity regarding where that place off the exit might be would be very helpful.

Just in general, do you think I'm making an insane decision moving to san diego on 35k? As I said, I have grown big before and have all my equipment ready to blow up a 5k show in an apartment. I plan on doing so, but I understand it can be difficult to make money in the game in SOCAL these days.

Thanks.
 
Aerohead

Aerohead

space gardener
Veteran
You could survive on 35k a year in OB no problem, rent isn't that bad. Only problem is getting in or out of OB during rush hour, unless you ride a motorcycle like I do.

I found moving inland didn't save any money at all, rent is barely cheaper but you do get more space the further east you go. Living at the beach is much cooler so you don't run A/C, you can also walk everywhere so less wear and tear on the vehicle. Lots of good food and bars at the beach with sweet happy hour prices keep you eating and drinking cheap... If you factor everything in, living at the beach is cheaper in the long run and you never get bored... free entertainment.
 
statusquo

statusquo

Member
OB rent is affordable but its akin to a rat den; the houses are all packed in with a bunch of young (and many poor) hippies/college kids/20 somethings. I have even heard the word 'grimey' used quite often to describe it. They also have a ton of power lines running everywhere that looked like they haven't been worked on in 10+ years. Many other localities in SD seem to be going underground and it makes a huge difference. I am a 20 something but I think that the housing is very ugly and compact in most of OB. PL on the other hand is gorgeous but also more expensive and even further. All that being said there are a lot of awesome things about OB (the farmer's market being one of many) and I love going there and had many friends that live there I just wouldn't want to live there. Also, in my previous post when I used the adjective colorful...this was not meant to be a sarcastic/negative thing. The hippy/colorful vibe is a positive thing in many people but some people do take it to the extreme (thing Santa Cruz chicks that don't shave at all or shower and wear no shoes).

Aerohead is correct that one can find affordable living there (and about the traffic) but I disagree with his assertion about the inland prices not being too much cheaper/inland living being more expensive. I live one exit inland off the five (golden hill) and it's definitely cheaper/more spacious/prettier. Additionally, we don't even own an AC and we are not far from the beaches at all; we get the coastal breeze for sure. The entertainment thing is right in regards to OB (same with PB) in addition to the walking thing. For North Park/Golden Hill these things aren't the case. The late-night dining if you are a stoner is quite limited and the bar scene is non-existent or greatly diminished at least in my experience.

I have lived in Pacific Beach (somewhat a kin to OB but with less hippy aspect and just douches until you go up Mt. Soledad more towards LJ), La Mesa, Golden Hill, Mission Beach and La Jolla (downtown and UTC). Of those areas the best bang for your buck, IMO, would be the golden hill area. North park and golden hill have the best freeway access hands down. You can get to the 5, 94, 8, 15 and the 805 in under 5 minutes. Also downtown is a short drive and only 5+ minutes away and you have a wide selection of beaches that ate all pretty close; when you live in places like PB or OB since it is such a pain to leave and you are already right there, one frequently just remains there. Food, gas and things in general at the beaches, IME, are more expensive since businesses have higher rent to pay. However, as Aero pointed out, if you are savvy and find good happy hour deals and look around there are cheap commodities to be found. Living in PB it took me almost 10 minutes just to get to the freeway - same with downtown LJ. OB can be 3-5 minutes depending on where you live but during traffic leaving the 1 lane each way road Sunset Cliffs Blvd (you learn to take the side parallel streets) is awful.

Edit: Mission Beach/PB have a TON of absolutely gorgeous 20-35 year olds. Golden hill/NP... not so much haha. TONS of dispensaries in OB and fair amount in PB. None really in golden hill but a shit load available with a short drive. Also crime in PB and LJ is rather high; I personally have had my car broken into many times in those areas and I don't drive a valuable car or keep valuables visible. Also, I don't think you are crazy at all. A bachelor making 35K that makes sound financial decisions can do absolutely fine in SD. In fact you could actually have a pretty nice life-style. Not super flashy or anything but ya. For 1 bedroom places for SD in general you are looking at 700-2000. Low end being a really shitty place in the shittiest part of certain localities and the high end being places like La Jolla. I would say you will probably be able to find a decent 1 br. place to rent for about 1100. Decent meaning an 'adult' would find it satisfactory and not lacking the essentials.
 
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187020

fish tacos

fish tacos

eat the fish tacos, and be peace homie

picture.php
 
S

smokefrogg

Active member
Veteran
there's materialistic people everywhere, there's non materialistic people everywhere, hope you find what you're looking for!
 
darkvade420

darkvade420

Active member
id say move to el cajon blv i lived there in the early 90 besides all the drive by shootings and the gangs it wasnt bad and it was affordable as hell.
 
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