limeynus

I'm in south Orange County, let me know if I can provide you with any info. There's a nice English pub in Fullerton!!

LauraCA

Thanks again folks

The company will also be paying for my EAD, so that's good!

Now we're looking at apartment listings. Are there any hidden fees with renting apartments, or is the monthly rental price quoted usually what you'll pay?

snowbunny

Utilities. Ask for average utilities; you will also have to purchase renter's insurance to cover your belongings. They may also charge extra for, say, covered parking.

If you rent rather than buy, this can affect your credit applications, so GET THE AMEX!

penguinsix

Utilities, as mentioned. Electric, Gas (stove, heat, water), and water are three you might get. Telephone, CableTV, Internet are three you'll likely have to pay for regardless.

Renters insurance, if required (but good idea even if not)

Parking

Credit Check fee (if they run one)

Application fee (if big apartment building)

Expect to pay 1st months rent, a deposit (equal to last months rent). A few ask for last months rent in addition (which sucks) but can be 3 months all at once--a bit of an effort.

nun

Keep your credit cards and UK bank accounts. Once you have a place to live and a couple of pay cheques you can get US accounts and cards. Can your husband's company help with this stuff, ask if they have a Credit Union ( a bank just for employees) where you can get an account.

Orange County, well for apartments I was going to suggest Craigslist.com, but I'm not sure they allow that sort of bohemian thing in the OC......

LauraCA

I'll be sure to ask about those things.

As for getting an AMEX, we've been looking into it and they do two types - the ordinary credit card, and their traditional charge card.
Does it matter which type we get?

snowbunny

Does traditional charge card = pay in full every time, ordinary credit card = allowed to carry a balance?

I'd get the latter.... creditors like to see you pay off over time even if it's a token amount.

veryfunny

Welcome to BE, I think you will love it here, great weather for a start.

veryfunny

Amex cards go a long way in regards to your FICO, I would suggest getting anyone. You should be able to upgrade later on.

Bob

watch out for the realtors finders fee if you went through someone...and as mentioned, the utilities, ask for average in summer for the electric, because you'll probably end up using a lot for AC...definitely check on the parking, and extra parking for guests..

nun

You know your husband's company should be helping you with housing costs etc.
are they providing you with relocation expenses and advice?

It's probably best to stay in a short term place for a month or two while you look around for somewhere you'd like to live. I checked out Craigslist LA and unfortunately the number of listings in the OC is pretty small.

Philgr

You should also ask your husband's company if they have any association with a credit union. The first time I relocated over here the company employees had their own credit union which would give employees and their families credit cards with reasonable credit limits and low interest rates immediately they arrived in the US. They also offered loans/leases for cars etc without having to have a US credit history.

rikkirby

Hi,
We're moving to South OC later this month but have lived there before. A few things from our last experience:

UK Bank - Barclays were happy and able to send statements to our US address and keep our accounts open.

US Bank - We went with Wells Fargo and were able to get unsecured Credit Cards immediately which really helped build credit history. It doesn't take long!

House Rental - The landlord will expect a credit check, get one of the "free" Experian UK credit reports online, print it off and take it with you. They're only looking for your "score" and some proof of it, you'll get a numerical score and a chart going from Bad to Excellent. If you're a home owner over here then taking a mortgage statement might be useful too, I know our apartment complex wanted to see one in lieu of a landlord's reference.

Car Insurance - Expect it to be expensive! Make sure you get proof of any UK no claims discount before you leave, some US insurers will accept it which will make a BIG difference. We found www.progressive.com were quite helpful.

Car Loan - We found it really tough to get an auto loan while on a visa, eventually we were able to get the company to arrange one with it's bank which worked well.

All in all we loved it, spent two years there, moved back here for three and we're now moving back out there. It's a great place to live, but takes some getting used to! It's extremely disorienting when you first turn up, I'd been in the US a lot on business, but to move there.....blimey. For the first month everything is a challenge, and appears more expensive than you expected. Lots of silly things all add up, like standing in a supermarket looking at an aisle of washing liquid not knowing which one to pick. As a one off it would be easy, but when everything you try and do is different it can be a bit draining. Once you get through it, spend some time at the beach etc. then it gets much much better!!

Have fun!!

snowbunny

Absolutely. And these days belonging to a credit union is easier than ever as the rules regarding how tightly you have to be "associated" with them have been loosened.

LauraCA

thanks again for all the tips!

Rikkirby - that info is really handy, thanks a lot! I can easily get a credit reference form and proof of our no claims on our car insurance. I assume I'll only do this for my husband as he'll be the only one with guaranteed income. We're renting out our UK property, so could bring the mortgage statements as well as proof that we're earning rental income.

I'm looking forward to the beach, definitely!