Originally Posted by Glasgow Girl

On the ISA if it is held in cash, bonds or individual shares then you have no concerns other than the fact that you will have to pay federal and state taxes on any income the ISA receives while you are over here since the US won’t recognize the tax free wrapper. If invested in any kind of mutual fund like an ETF, unit trust, OEIC, investment trust, etc then you want to sell those prior to arriving in the USA to avoid complex reporting requirements and punitive taxation rates. It is important to sell those type of investments before you leave the UK, the day you set foot in the US on your visa is too late. If you are only going to be here for a couple of years then I would sell and reinvest in whatever else your ISA offers that is not a mutual fund, cash if need be, to retain the tax free status when you return to the UK.

On the rental income, the US will only tax the profit made after deducting the expenses and depreciation allowed under US laws. Because of depreciation which allows you to annually deduct 1/30 of an overseas property cost (minus land cost) from your income, plus mortgage interest and almost all other expense, there may be very little US tax to pay and so likely the UK tax bill be higher resulting in zero additional tax. If you end up staying here and sold your property then both US and UK capital gains taxes would apply, so something to keep at the back of your mind.

Originally Posted by Pierre_Tete

I see some folks have pointed out the potential cost of living issues in LA. $230k should be fine. My income is around that number but comes from salary, pension, dividends, capital gains and interest but mostly from salary (I am not taking withdrawals from my IRA at this time).

My wife and I can live comfortably on that. We spend about $300 a week on groceries and wine at Trader Joe's.

Originally Posted by joto

We are out of LA, in the Inland Empire. One of the nicer bits admittedly. Rents aren't so high as in the city, and there are likely newer rentals. Plenty highways to get you into LA, although they are pretty busy most of the time, and there are trains fairly nearby, as well as a couple of smaller/medium sized airports, but you would need to go to LAX if you needed to get back to the UK. Plenty of cycle lanes next to our local roads, and walking trails if that is your thing.

Originally Posted by Glasgow Girl

I just don’t think it will be a luxurious lifestyle

Originally Posted by joto

We are out of LA, in the Inland Empire. One of the nicer bits admittedly. Rents aren't so high as in the city, and there are likely newer rentals. Plenty highways to get you into LA, although they are pretty busy most of the time, and there are trains fairly nearby, as well as a couple of smaller/medium sized airports, but you would need to go to LAX if you needed to get back to the UK. Plenty of cycle lanes next to our local roads, and walking trails if that is your thing.

Originally Posted by S Folinsky

The “Inland Empire” is a huge area which is bigger than many states. Yes, there are nice areas, but some are the pits and much in between.

Originally Posted by S Folinsky

The “Inland Empire” is a huge area which is bigger than many states. Yes, there are nice areas, but some are the pits and much in between.

Originally Posted by HDWill

Are places like Barstow and the vast Mojave region considered part of the "Inland Empire"? I'm not familiar with California-speak, but combining those places with the densely populated parts of eastern Greater LA (Riverside and San Bernardino) into one "region" seems kind of pointless.

Originally Posted by Pulaski

The definition seems flexible - generally "Inland Empire" is used for the densely populated areas of NW Riverside County and SW San Bernardino County (the largely flat area west of the San Bernardino mountains, and east of LA County).

Originally Posted by Pulaski

The definition seems flexible - generally "Inland Empire" is used for the densely populated areas of NW Riverside County and SW San Bernardino County, (the largely flat area west of the San Bernardino mountains, and east of LA County), but sometimes the whole of the two counties are referred to as the Inland Empire. The term seems to have originated in the early 20th century, used by developers to promote new tracts of housing developments that were significantly Inland from LA County and the coast.

Originally Posted by Pierre_Tete

If you include Perris, Murrieta etc you have roughly the definition used in the 'Inland Empire' weather forecasts in LA.

The lovely towns of Barstow, Victorville et al are in the 'High Desert' forecast. My CA friends have a less than complimentary description for those places.... I can't confirm.

Originally Posted by S Folinsky

The definition can be a tad amorphous. Cajon Pass leads to Barstow which I personally consider the edge of the Inland Empire. Victorville & Adelanto? Maybe. Baker and Zzyzx? Although San Bernardino County, not Inland Empire. Proceeding west through San Grigornio Pass, I would say that Palm Springs and Rancho Mirage are Inland Empire (friends who live out that way say “The Desert.”) Pomona is the eastern edge of L.A. County but is often considered part of the I.E.

Whatever, it is a large area.