Thread regarding Cisco Systems Inc. layoffs

I say this as a California native who left 3 years ago: CA is no longer a place to live. There is a reason it's so expensive to book a move out of the state. It is a place to visit, not to live. It is a place of great weather and beautiful natural wonders populated by people who are bat sh*t crazy.

I've lived in the San Francisco Bay Area since 1980 and started at Cisco in 1995. As with anywhere you live, there are pros and cons. The pros of living in CA are the weather and its natural beauty outside of city life. From just about anywhere you can get to a beach or the mountains in a relatively short period of time, and Highway 1 along the Pacific Coast, which stretches the length of CA, is the most beautiful drive in the nation. The rest are cons: We are in a severe drought and are running out of water and there are massive water restrictions in place. Wildfires (or wildfire season) has become a real problem statewide destroying thousands of homes, even entire towns, and now CA residents face skyrocketing homeowners insurance premiums as a result of all those losses. Earthquakes (which you can feel) are infrequent but a big jolt or feeling the ground rolling and watching everything around you sway can be very scary. The cost of living is the highest in the country (next to NYC) and is extremely painful. Housing & gasoline prices are through the roof and buying a home has become completely unaffordable and rents are insane ($3.700/month for a 1 bedroom apt). Property taxes go up every year. Utility prices and gasoline taxes go up frequently; state taxes and income taxes are painful. The cost of food has skyrocketed. Traffic is horrendous and rush hour lasts from 5:00-9:00AM and 3:00-7:00PM. Homelessness is out of control even though the state has thrown billions$ at the problem. San Francisco is a complete toilet w/ homeless and dr-g addicts shooting up and defecating on the streets in broad daylight. Homelessness is even worse down in L.A. (i.e., Skid Row) and its outlying areas, which is over running homeowners and businesses. A co-worker told me recently that he sees he---n needles outside his front door every day down in SoCal. And somehow woke politicians have enabled massive shoplifting sprees as an acceptable crime w/o any consequences. 'The Golden State' used to be the best place to live decades ago but hasn't been for a very long time, and people are leaving en masse for all the reasons I've listed. Unless you can afford a multi-million dollar home in a quaint neighborhood and tolerate all the problems this state faces, I'd stay away.

Do you honestly think Silicon Valley executives care about politics? Texas and North Carolina can rant about conservative issues, California can rant about woke liberal issues. At the same time, the corporations are quietly outsourcing the jobs to India and China.

Neither political party cares about keeping jobs in America.

@vpl+1gBxg7ut The natural disasters in NC are worse than CA. But I know you’re trolling because no one at Cisco is stupid enough to believe in god.

Lots of earthquakes in CA, none in NC. I wonder why? Decadent behavior in CA??
The wrath of the Almighty is indeed true. I would rather make $10/hr in NC, than $100/hr in CA just to avoid those punishing earthquakes.

@wdf+1gBxg7ut In fact we pay you to stay away. Blue states are the rich ones that find all the welfare queens that are red states.

@azu+1gBxg7ut You couldn’t pay me to live next to the wokies in CA.

We cannot tell your friend definitively. There are many variables to consider. Such as the difference in pay from moving. The exact location in CA they are moving into. Tax bracket. And future plans. But I can give some high-level suggestions on what to consider.

It sounds like your friend will have a higher salary in CA than in NC. This is likely to be true. But you need to consider the additional costs proportional to those salary gains and determine if you find yourself progressing ahead or falling behind financially.

Again, I don’t know where in CA your friend plans to locate. But that’s fine. I’ll just pick San Francisco to demonstrate my point. And SF isn’t too off-base here of an assumption, for it is the hottest location for tech in the state.

First, consider the fact that the average rent in SF is $3,306 where as in Durham, NC it is only $1,810. That is a $17,952/yr price difference alone.

Second, consider income taxes. CA is #1 at 7.75%. NC is 5.25%. Since you mentioned TX, it is 0% — something to keep in mind.

Third, consider capital gains tax. Predictably, again, CA is #1 at 13.3%. NC at 5.25%. TX at 0%.

Fifth, consider home ownership. Average cost of a home in SF is $1.61 million. The rest of the Bay Area is no too far off from this price. Durham, NC is at $398K and Austin, TX at $676K.

Sixth, consider federal tax bracket. If your pay increases, you may move into a new tax bracket. The jump from one bracket to the next can be significant.

So, given these numbers, I’d hope your friend gets a nice pay bump from the move. Else, I am afraid, the numbers don’t work out too well in their favor.

You also need to consider politics. The Bay Area is the country’s most Democratic metropolitan enclave. Progressivism is the prevailing ideological strain. The electorate is a Democratic super majority. Your friend has to be fine with this if they want to fit in.

You also need to consider the homelessness. It’s prolific. Doesn’t matter now if you are in SF, San Diego, LA, or any other major city at this point in CA. But this can be balanced with other positives from the state, such as its amazing natural beauty.

Hope this helps you out with your decision making.

California is a great state if you already own a home, unless you are a Director at Cisco forget about the Bay Area.

California is the pits. Hate it.

My buddy had the same thoughts. He lasted nearly a year. It’s the same treadmill with a higher buy in. Another buddy 3 years in shares 1 Toyota Corolla and a 3 bedroom house with 4 roommates. He’s hoping for a promotion but,,,, eh it ain’t happened yet with 60-70 hours weeks thus far. Heck, a couple years ago my wife and I met a group of people at a restaurant waiting line and it turned out they were all teachers in the same school who moved Midwest so they could finally buy a house and have some pocket money. They were all homeowners now. If you can afford it some folks love it there, others want more from life than a gamble and favorable weather.

No. Never.