Mic1

Hi all,

Been a while since i last posted. Things have moved on pretty quickly for us, all being well my employer will be in a position to put me forward for an L1A in 7-8 month. Those who may have read my previous may recall that both our home and business bases will be in southern California. We spent 10 days over there in August and took a look around the cities of Temecula and Murrieta and whilst they appeared to be very livable places, they felt a little cut off for my wife's liking so we're now targeting Corona, Chino or maybe even the outskirts of Anahiem. You don't get as much bang for the buck in there places as you do in Temecula or Murrieta but the needless to say, the family needs to be content with wherever we decide to pitch our tent.
We'll rent for the forseeable future, rent generated from our place in Surrey would comfortably cover the cost of a 2500-3000 sq ft home in those areas and once and if we feel settled, we'll look to buy. We have a small mortgage but the lender has said that they are happy for us to rent it out.
I'm looking at expected monthly expenditure to make sure i'm not worrying too much about unexpected bills, etc. Needless to say, SoCal doesn't come cheap but much of that is centered around property prices so we're in a reasonably fortunate position. We have quotes for vehicle leasing, vehicle insurance and health insurance....health insurance was an eye opener with quotes coming in from $1400 to $1800 per month still with plenty of deductibles and some co share. Ultimately my employer will foot the bill this but any advice as to whether this amount is paid in salary or paid direct to the insurance company would be appreciated.
Therefore, if anyone living in SoCal would kind enough to give me a rough breakdown of what their monthly outgoing are for a family of 4 (kids aged 7 and 9), that would be marvelous. I have seen breakdowns like this before when scanning the site but can never find them when i need them!
Many thanks in advance,
Mic

tom169

Why is the health insurance so much? Is this a new business that you're setting up in the USA?

Typically the employer contributes some amount and you contribute some amount via a payroll deduction. This deduction doesn't count towards taxable income.

Leasing is also usually the most expensive form of financing a car.

scrubbedexpat099

Employer should pay for Health, well most of it.

I filled up yesterday at $2.53 a galon, what is it in CA?

Mic1

Thanks Tom,

This is a new US subsidiary of a Spanish based company. To be fair, our health insurance quotes did vary quite dramatically. We spoke to several different brokers, it was roughly three tiers of cover, bronze, silver and gold varying from around $900 for a middle of the road bronze cover to a pretty comprehensive gold policy of $1800 with a $3000 deductible and relatively low co share. My employers are very fair and will cover he whole amount, be it added to my salary. Obviously there will be tax burden but they prefer to do it this way and give me the freedom to place my cover wherever i want.

With regards to leasing, my car is a company car but we contract hire my wife's car, VW Touareg at around £500 per month over three years. However, with the inclusion of maintenance, tax, etc, it makes budgeting very easy. As you say though, it can prove quite expensive compared to other options.

Mic1

When we were in and around LA a couple of months ago, it was $4.00, give or take.

Giantaxe

Yeah, whatever they pay you will end up as taxable income for both federal and state at your highest marginal rate. It sounds like they then want you to go out and get an ACA policy. Unless your income is below four times the federal poverty level, you'll get no subsidy. And, as an employee, you won't be able to deduct the whole cost of insurance from your income for tax purposes, but only - iirc - the portion that is over 10% of your adjusted gross income. Otoh, if your employer paid for the health insurance it would be deductible to them as a business expense. In other words, what they are proposing is overall very inefficient from a tax standpoint.

Also, if your employer has more than 50 employees, they're required to provide insurance.

joto

I would say about $2500-$3500 for rent, depending if it's an apartment or a house you will rent. That might include hot water and heat, but it might not, depending on the property. There are plenty new houses and apartments going up in the Chino and Chino Hills areas, and the Chino Valley School District seems to be very good, but you have to look at the individual schools in the area. Our electric costs are very low, because we have solar, but it averages out about $500 per year, but there is just two of us in the house. Gas is around the same. Gas/petrol is about $3.35 gallon at Costco, but about $3.75 and up at regular gas stations. I would have a look at real estate agents in the areas you are planning to move to and see if they have anywhere to rent on their books.

Mic1

Thanks Giantaxe, as you clearly and kindly point out, progressing on this basis isn't particularly sensible. Around 97% of all my discussions with them are based around the new business as opposed to the finer details of the immigration. I have no doubt that as we get closer to the date where we set up in the USA and we appoint an accountant, he/she/they will steer us in the right direction.

Mic1

Thanks Joto,

You're pretty much bang on with your prices for rental properties. Corona is has a little more value for money, averaging $3000 for a 2500 sq ft home in an area that has more than respectable school ratings. Would you agree that i right in saying that the landlord and not the tenant is responsible for the property tax? At a rough guess, without your solar, what do you think your electric would be?

tom169

Landlord is the one responsible, but the price will end up just being passed on to the occupant.

Mic1

Of course. If it's tied into the rent though, it's just a little less to worry about. Thanks Tom.

Mic1

I can see from some previous posts/threads, mobile phone contracts and internet charges can come as a surprise. Car insurance was another one that appeared to catch people off guard. Also, family of 4, grocery bill for the average month, $1200 ?

joto

robin1234

Sounds reasonable. I'd say, $800 - $1500, depending on the type of food you buy.

sherbert

@Mic1: Fresh food is *incredibly* expensive in California. A 'fresh' baguette in a supermarket will cost upwards of $5 as will a gallon of milk. California is one of the world's biggest food producers which makes the price of fresh fruit and veg hard to bear. However, you can seek out more reasonably priced supplies in the Mexican supermarket chains and 'bargain' chains like Grocery Outlet. I believe Lidl has opened several shops in SoCal too. I spend at least 150 a week on groceries for two adults, one of whom eats mostly at work. Basically EVERYTHING is more expensive in California with the exception of petrol and clothing (and not in a good way: cheap crap imported from China that falls apart after one wash).