# Best state to move to



## JB_eng_upg (May 6, 2013)

Hi...
I want to move to USA, but i don't know which state to move to. All help will be appreciated.


----------



## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Unless you have some other "in" for a visa, the "best" state is the one in which you have a job and a sponsor for your visa.
Cheers,
Bev


----------



## JohnSoCal (Sep 2, 2007)

It is impossible to tell you the best state. The US is a huge country with a lot of variety. I have lived in 5 different states from coast to coast and have spent time in 42 of the states. My favorite by far is California but there are others that will disagree. In fact you will probably get opinions based on the state the person lives in

We need to know a lot more about what your preferences are, etc.

However, as Bev said, getting a job and a visa is your first concern.


----------



## jsharbuck (Jul 26, 2012)

Absolutely stay away from Philadelphia Pennsylvania. Very high crime ridden, unsafe and you are not accepted unless you are from there. I haves lived in 20 States and overseas and it was the worst year I ever spent anywhere.


----------



## tully (Jan 5, 2012)

jsharbuck said:


> Absolutely stay away from Philadelphia Pennsylvania. Very high crime ridden, unsafe and you are not accepted unless you are from there. I haves lived in 20 States and overseas and it was the worst year I ever spent anywhere.


I can't agree. We cannot have felt more welcomed in Philadelphia. Everyone so friendly, endless dinner invitations. The crime is marginal and overblown. If you have the money to live in Center City the place is amazing. Absolutely BEST expat experience I have ever had.


----------



## jsharbuck (Jul 26, 2012)

Glad that you had better experience. We lived in Blue Bell , maybe Center city was different. During the time we lived there a lot of crime including roving gangs of kids attacking tourists, pulling people off bikes and seriously injuring them. We had a couple bashed in the head after going to the symphony. We had a young man beaten and killed in front of Independence Hall with his girl friend watching. That doesnt include the armed home invasions, executions of small store owners due to robberies or the rape in the school stair well of a 8 yr old girl by 3 school mates. There may not be crime right there In Center City but it does exist. A toxic place


----------



## gairloch (Jun 24, 2011)

Any place can be the best place or the worst place -you have ever lived. 
The US is BIG as in:
Landmass: About 3.8M SQM (about 9.8M sqkm)
Distance coast-to-coast: 2092 miles or 3347km (in a straight line)
City size: mega cities to ghost towns.
Crime: everything from none (effectively) to AK-47 wannabe warlords in the streets.
People: Someone from everywhere on the planet lives somewhere in the US., though if you look for it you can find towns racially undiverse.
Where to live: As Bev said, depends on your job, most people live where their job is...


----------



## AringofEndlessLight (Jun 2, 2013)

Hi, is weather something you are concerned about? I know my family loves California because the temperature is never too extreme and it is almost always sunny. So if you don't care which state it is maybe you can start figuring out what kind of climate and terrain you like to live around.


----------



## octaviojhm (Jul 27, 2012)

Texas !!! Houston to be more specific 

Endless opportunities here and hundreds of jobs being added daily, plus Houston is a very diverse city, yes it has problems but just like any other city this size, 
Good luck !


----------



## EVHB (Feb 11, 2008)

@AringofEndlessLight: I suggest do to some reading about the (diverse) climate in California.

@Octaviojhm: I've never been in Texas myself, but I know a couple of people who moved to Houston and Austin, and they love it.
Read this earlier this week: BBC News - 10 reasons why so many people are moving to Texas


----------



## jsharbuck (Jul 26, 2012)

California has a high cost of living including 14% State tax. this is one reason people and corporations are leaving. There are stars like Oregon and Montana and Texas that have zero. The average is 8 to 9%. This is on top of Federal, social Security and Medicare taxed.


----------



## JohnSoCal (Sep 2, 2007)

EVHB said:


> @AringofEndlessLight: I suggest do to some reading about the (diverse) climate in California.
> 
> @Octaviojhm: I've never been in Texas myself, but I know a couple of people who moved to Houston and Austin, and they love it.
> Read this earlier this week: BBC News - 10 reasons why so many people are moving to Texas


I believe he is referring to Coastal California which most people associate with the state. It truly is very temperate and mostly sunny. However it is true that the climate is very diverse in California. We don't get the extreme cold nor the dismal weather of the Pacific Northwest but we certainly do get extremely hot weather in the inland deserts, i.e. Palm Springs. We also get snow in the mountains.


----------



## JohnSoCal (Sep 2, 2007)

jsharbuck said:


> California has a high cost of living including 14% State tax. this is one reason people and corporations are leaving. There are stars like Oregon and Montana and Texas that have zero. The average is 8 to 9%. This is on top of Federal, social Security and Medicare taxed.


What is this 14% tax you are referring to? Oregon had a much higher income tax than California for the middle class. Texas has very high property taxes.

Yes, California, for the most part, does have a high cost of living. Living in paradise doesn't come cheap.


----------



## jsharbuck (Jul 26, 2012)

It was just passed a few months ago. Sorry should have clarified on the sales tax . I'm sure Calif has it. Oregon doesn't and state tax is 9%. If you buy a car in Oregon , no tax but in Calif or Wash you would


----------



## octaviojhm (Jul 27, 2012)

Texas may have higher property tax but still it won't compare to overall taxation in California, plus 40-50cent tax on Gasoline and several cities in California being near Bankruptcy, sad but true


----------



## JohnSoCal (Sep 2, 2007)

jsharbuck said:


> It was just passed a few months ago. Sorry should have clarified on the sales tax . I'm sure Calif has it. Oregon doesn't and state tax is 9%. If you buy a car in Oregon , no tax but in Calif or Wash you would


The top marginal state income tax rate in California is 10.3 and that only affects single tax payers earning over $1 million taxable income or $2 million for married.

California Income Tax Rates and Tax Brackets, 2012-2013

Yes, California does have a sales tax. The rates vary for different locations. The sales tax rate where I live is 8.0% with food, services, rent, medicine, etc. exempted.

You are quoting marginal rates that cannot be compared with out looking at what incomes they kick in.

For example, I am retired but have a pretty substantial income. However, I don't pay any California state income tax because of the source of my income. For example Social Security is not taxed in California.

Actually Oregon has a very high state income tax for the lower to upper middle income earner.


----------



## JohnSoCal (Sep 2, 2007)

octaviojhm said:


> Texas may have higher property tax but still it won't compare to overall taxation in California, plus 40-50cent tax on Gasoline and several cities in California being near Bankruptcy, sad but true


You cannot make a blanket statement like that, it all depends on your individual situation.

In my case, my overall taxes would be much higher in Texas. This would also be true for most retirees that own a home where I live. I looked into this very thoroughly 3 years ago because our son and family lived in Texas and we considered moving there to be close to our grandchildren.

In California, I pay little or no state income tax even though I have a pretty high retirement income. That is because Social Security ( $38,000 in my case ) is not taxed as well some of my other income. Itemized deductions pretty well take care of the rest. Our state sales tax where I live is 8.0%. The property tax on our home is $3,400 /year.

In Texas, I would have to pay the same price for my home as I do here. However the property tax rate would be $7,000-9,000 or $4,600-6,600 more than I pay. The sales tax in Texas is also higher. The difference in property tax dwarfs all other taxes that I have in California.

Let me be perfectly clear. This applies to people in the same situation as we are. If you are high income wage earner and rent than your taxes would be much higher in California. It also varies by location. We live in an area where housing is not expensive and is comparable in price for an equivalent home in most parts of Texas. If you live in the high cost areas, then property taxes would be high because of the high cost of housing. There are also a lot of other factors that affect the taxes.

One has to research how the state taxation affects them for each state. 

By the was, our son and family moved to Monterey California 2 years ago so it all academic now.


----------



## Alizoo (Jun 6, 2013)

octaviojhm said:


> Texas !!! Houston to be more specific
> 
> Endless opportunities here and hundreds of jobs being added daily, plus Houston is a very diverse city, yes it has problems but just like any other city this size,
> Good luck !


Hello, this is my first post on the forum, and I was excited to see you say Houston as my husband has just been offered a job there! I would love to hear more about your experience there and some of your opinions on what to do/where to live!


----------



## rucharg (May 14, 2013)

*California*

I have been living in California for the last 3 years and totally in love with this state. Its a general quote in USA which says" California spoils its residents". Its true there is lots of opportunity in California, amazing weather and lots of places to travel too. But yes of course the downside, heavy taxes, expensive housing ... its definitely one of the most expensive places to be living in the usa. It also depends on your profession Cal might be great of engineers but not too good for finance and marketing guys who would prefer east coats or New York.

Let me know if you need more details on moving to uSA


----------



## bellakem (May 20, 2012)

JohnSoCal is right. You definitely need to assess your own situation as it can vary widely. We lived in Hollywood, so the cost of housing was much higher, as was the property tax. When we moved to Houston, we got roughly the same size house at 1/3 the cost. The property tax however is the same as we were paying in California. The good thing is that there is no state income tax in Texas, so for us..it worked out more than fine.


----------



## Montana Ranches (Feb 2, 2017)

jsharbuck said:


> California has a high cost of living including 14% State tax. this is one reason people and corporations are leaving. There are stars like Oregon and Montana and Texas that have zero. The average is 8 to 9%. This is on top of Federal, social Security and Medicare taxed.


I have lived in Texas and live in Montana now. I would highly recommend both. Texas has no state income tax but can be very hot. 

Montana has state income tax(I hate)and is beautiful but it has a full winter and can be brutally cold. 

That is 2 states for you. I would suggest road trip and see the country before deciding.


----------



## katzgar (Feb 3, 2017)

you need to give more info about what you are looking for in both work and lifestyle. Some good info here but there about as many people moving out of Texas in to California as are moving the other way. Some states have better education and some are better for fishing and so. Best you give some info about your likes and dislikes.


----------



## Addie_Furnishr (Feb 7, 2017)

Personally, I am a fan of New York. I have lived here all my life, so I guess I am a little too biased to answer. I love living in one of the most diverse and accepting cities!


----------



## thepaleguy1 (Feb 14, 2017)

After visiting over 30 States I would say: 

Lifestyle: California, (but terrible cost of living),
Nature and peace: Alaska,
Costa of living: Indiana

maybe check city-data.com


----------



## StephCo (Mar 6, 2017)

Massachusetts was just named the best state...just throwing that out there. 

I'm still new so I can't post a link just yet, but check out USAtoday or google it!


----------



## annaatasova (Mar 8, 2017)

The city/state to move to in the US depends on your occupation and climate preference.
If you like seasons and have finance/engineering/tech background than NY would be a good place to start. NY is a melting pot and there are a lot of opportunities for new comers.

If you prefer a more stable weather than California would be a good place, the state has a lot of tech startups, so if you can code, design or market products than that would be a good place.

On the colder side I would also recommend Chicago, Illionois. It has come a long way and quite inexpensive in terms of rents and overall cost of living, so if you are concerned about your budget Chicago would be another beautiful city I would recommend.

Good luck!


----------



## DiverSailor123 (Sep 17, 2016)

I laugh everytime I read some one posting that California is shrinking.. Interestingly enough the truth is.... California Bounces Back As Worldâ€™s 7th Largest Economy, Larger Than Brazil Â« CBS San Francisco So many people and companies are leaving California that they have a larger economy than Most Nations ...


jsharbuck said:


> California has a high cost of living including 14% State tax. this is_ one reason people and corporations are leaving_. There are stars like Oregon and Montana and Texas that have zero. The average is 8 to 9%. This is on top of Federal, social Security and Medicare taxed.


----------



## Mogirl09 (Apr 9, 2017)

Northern California is very expensive to live in, but washington is too and the weather is amazing in California. I lived in San Jose and I was 45 minutes from San Francisco..45 minutes to Oakland and 45 minutes to Santa Cruz. There is a lot of money up in that area because of Silicon Valley. The reason that the taxes are so high is that they have expanded medi-cal and will work on a universal health care package for it's citizens, there is also a free college thing for kids coming from middle class to poor. They have their own delegation in which they go to Climate Change symposiums.. Oakland has the activist vibe to it.. San Francisco has changed quite a bit, but omg Pride in SF is the best. Thing to happen all year in California. It's some place that you can charge your car while at walgreens etc. Democrats also have a Supermajority in the state government and Kamala Harris and Diane Feinstein are the senators (California has had two female senators for a very long time) and Nancy Pelosi the in Minority Leader in the house. Also some of the best STATE colleges you could ask for. If I wasn't trying to get out of the US I'd be back there --in three years I never had air conditioner nor did I turn on my heat so that would be my recommendation. 


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


----------

