Mummy in the foothills

My Dd was already reading and could do basic math in K. Also a January baby. She went into 1st grade at 6.5 year and is now in 2nd grade at 7.5.
Most schools do group children in class according to ability and gear reading groups and math groups this way, so I wouldn't worry about them entering 1st grade in September 2013.
We are in reverse and I worry that moving her back to UK she may not be up to speed, she'll go from 2nd grade here to year 3 when we move (hopefully this school year)
K here is not really like reception class, Pre K or Preschool is more like reception class in our area.

LeavingLondon

Am going to give some realtors a call tomorrow to get a feel for prices now that I've researched the schools/areas. I realise that we'll only be able to get a 3 bed (and a pokey one at that) for a max of $3,200 which frustrates me as we live in a nice large 3 bed in London but i can't compare the prices (and i thought London was expensive!)

MsElui

bear in mind to that you will need to budget for 2 cars plus gas and insurance etc.

also - the house you buy/rent will have a direct bearing on the school your child will be attending - ie subdivisions are predetermined to go to school x. The boundaries can change but they don't like to do it. so if you like a particular school you severely limit the house choices open to you. Its not like England where you can apply to the schools of your choice

LeavingLondon

Having studied the great school website, i've selected about 20 schools i like the look of so hopefully am keeping my options fairly open. Rental prices are crazy though. I hear they come down a bit in the winter. Padmapper is a great site to search for apartments (without realtor fees) - is there a similar one for houses?

In terms of gas, we'd have to pay for that if we were living in the UK or the US so that won't be an additional expense. However, my husband is based from home at the moment and so has no commuter costs. If we moved out to SJ he'd have to potentially drive 20-25 miles a day round trip to work - any idea how i can calculate the approximate cost of his gas per day?

md95065

You will find that your mileage will be a *lot* more in the US than it was in the UK but this should be offset by the lower gas prices in the US.

For budgetary purposes you should probably assume a gas mileage of 25 miles to the gallon and a price of about $4.35 per gallon in the San Jose area.

N1cky

Craigslist is your best option, I also looked at these sites daily while we were looking, however they always post on Craigslist anyway.

http://www.cornerstonepm.net/?page=listings
http://www.dwmproperties.com/Nav.asp...ory.com/288970
http://www.mpmsv.com/current-properties.php
http://www.actionproperties.com/
http://www.atlantisproperties.net/home_rentals
http://wakrauss.postlets.com/

Try find an area with more than one school that you like, moving part way through the year may mean there is no room at the 'local' school and they will place you in another school within the district.

Alternatively, if you see a house you like but it isn't in your first choice school area, give the school district a call and ask if they will take your child into your first choice school. If there is room, they will often take you if you live in the district.

SanDiegogirl

How does your husband's salary in the US compare with what he is getting in the UK?

In my last company people moving from the UK to Silicon Valley were given "cost of living raises" of at least 10%.

While basic taxes might be lower in the US, by the time you have taken into account health insurance costs, higher rentals, higher gas prices and sales tax, Silicon Valley (and California) in general is an expensive place to live compared to many States.

LeavingLondon

We don't know yet - we've presented our estimated monthly budget and we'll see what they come back with. Yikes

CKB40

Hi, we moved to the area in January.

Rent is very expensive in a lot of areas and this is because they have the best schools.
Make sure you call the local schools and check the address for your possible rental before you sign the lease, dont trust the landlord or agent to tell you what the local catchment is.

When you are looking at your estimated costs, take into account that there is only one electricity and gas company called PG&E. Ours bills are more expensive than they were in the UK.

This area is a great place to live, great weather, friendly people and my two kids 13 and 11 settled really well into their school.

Good Luck!

LeavingLondon

Thanks for the tips. Are you renting an appartment or a house? Are you happy with the schooling? Was there anything else you've noticed re monthly outgoings?

CKB40

We are renting a house organised by my husbands company, but the local school isn't at good as I wanted, so we put them into a private school.

Budget for replacing all your electrical goods. Hoover, kitchen gadgets, iron etc. it costs more than you first think!

Good luck, it is worth it.

nun

Doesn't Sunnyvale have a problem with vampires....sorry that's Sunnydale.

Silicon valley has some really nice areas and you are close to San Fran..always good. But you have to balance that against it being very expensive, particularly for housing and with terrible traffic. Cupertino is very nice as you are close to the mountains...Sunnyvale has a lot of 1960s and 70s developments...think Brady Bunch houses and some really big office parks, NASA Ames and Lockheed.