What I don’t get is that you can still rent a small place near the beach for under a grand a month if you’re lucky. Drive a cheap, paid-off used car or even a motorbike. Food is cheaper than on the East Coast or in the inland West. No tolls on most freeways. Free beach access, no use fees in summer.
Really the 1000-lb gorilla in the room is health insurance, which is covered if you have a job that provides it, and will become a lot cheaper for freelancers under Obamacare.
Living in SD can be surprisingly cheap if you’re single or a couple w/o kids, especially given that the natural beauty of the area that isn’t replicated in a lot of parts of the US.
