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Is California or Florida a Better Place to Live? | Forum

Topic location: Forum home » Support » General Questions
Brian Bennett
Brian Bennett Nov 29 '23
 Disney's decision to move about 2,000 jobs from southern California to the Orlando area no doubt will be prompting some tough discussions around dinner tables in the Los Angeles area. Many cast members must decide whether to take Disney's offer to move... or instead to stay where they are and look for another job.

If a cast member has a family, this probably will not be the cast member's decision alone. Spouses, partners, children, and parents may want a say in the family's future. This relocation is a change for The Walt Disney Company, but it's a major disruption in the lives of many affected cast members.

What will cast members decide? One can imagine a wide range of possibilities. If you are just starting your career, maybe you take the move - especially if Disney is not cutting your pay. You probably have a better chance of being able to afford to buy a first home on the outskirts of Orlando than you do anywhere near Burbank or Glendale in California. And the attrition that these types of moves typically cause within a company might give you the chance for a quick promotion. That's useful even if you eventually decide you want to move back to LA.

If you have school-aged children, though, you might be loathe to move to Orlando. Few kids are going to accept any move, but relocating from the Los Angeles area - perhaps the youth culture center of the world - to central Florida is going to be an especially hard sell for a parent. Or to a working spouse whose job lies outside the theme park industry. Families are going to veto a lot of Disney cast members' proposed moves.

But if you are a new "empty nester" who was looking to downsize your home anyway, you might want to jump to accept this move. Moving from California to Florida likely allows you to bank a huge amount of money on your home sale, without taking the Prop 13 property tax hit from moving within the state of California.

Looking beyond the specific decision that many Disney cast members may have to make, I am curious to hear which of these theme park capitals Theme Park Insider readers would prefer to live in. If you had the choice between living in southern California or central Florida, which would you choose? This is more than a Disneyland versus Walt Disney World vote. I'm asking you to consider the entirety of both states and what they offer their residents.

Full disclosure: In running this site, that's exactly the choice I had, and I picked California. And I do not regret that decision for a moment. While I like Florida, I love California. I know that love isn't always 100% rational, but my family have had personal and professional opportunities from living in the Los Angeles area that simply do not exist in Orlando. Yet I also know that every family is different, and the opportunities that each family values can be unique. I likely have a Florida doppelgänger who chose differently.

So let me ask the question: California or Florida? I know that the "neither!" option would be popular, but if you had to live in one of these two states, given all the factors - including location, topography, weather, long-term climate change, economy, cost of living, culture, state politics, local community, education systems, recreation (including theme parks!), and infrastructure - which would you choose?

Readers from outside the United States are invited to vote, too. I am especially interested to hear what you have to say on this.
Alex
Alex Nov 29 '23
The other factor is the worker protections between California and Florida. A very exhaustive subject, but on the whole California law and services are more supportive than in Florida.
Rylee Davenport
Rylee Davenport Nov 29 '23
California offers diverse landscapes, from stunning beaches to breathtaking mountains. It's a hub for tech and entertainment but comes with a higher cost of living. On the other hand, Florida boasts beautiful weather, no state income tax, and a lower cost of living. Consider your lifestyle, job prospects, and climate preferences. Check out this resource for insights on living in California: https://threemovers.com/california/. It might help weigh your options!