Some quick background before I post the question, and acknowledgement that this is alot of just me putting my thoughts into words and doing some analysis.
I live in Arizona, the cost of living here is dirt cheap compared to much of the U.S. There are plenty of good things about living here. No shoveling snow, housing is cheap, jobs in both my and my wife's field are plentiful. I estimate living here I can start working part-time in a little less than two years and then be work-free in 10-15 years(depending on exactly how much p/t income I make). If I stay full time, then full FIRE is probably 6-7 years away. However, I was living the good life in Southern California not that long ago, but at the time we found it financially unfeasible because the cost of housing plus daycare, plus a much tougher job market. My wife did not want to be a SAHM(also not interested in ER), and given that she could only find a low paying hourly job combined with the ridiculous cost of child care meant she either had to stay at home counting every penny, or we could move back to AZ, where we both grew up.
After coming back she found a job making $40K within a week. A few months after getting back, I had bumped my salary up almost 20%. Life is good here, but nevertheless, I miss the SoCal life. Lately I have been tossing around the idea that now the little one is getting bigger and will start school in a couple of years, that maybe we could move back to California and recapture some of the more fun times I have had in my life. Is this a stupid, mid-life crisis type of idea or should I accept fewer luxuries and a longer working career to live in a preferred destination? Anyway, just curious about your thoughts. Feel free to be blunt.
Arizona:
Pros:
Better job market for both of us
Job flexibility
Low cost of living
Close to family
6 hour drive, 2 hour flight to SoCal
More money than I would know what to do with
lower taxes
Max time until FIRE ~10 years, probably more like 6 or 7.
P/T work possible in ~2 years.
Cons:
Hot
Boring
Rednecks
Close to family
State hates education
California:
Pros:
Weather
Ocean
Culture
More stuff to do
Less rednecks
State hates education a little bit less than AZ
Cons:
housing costs about 2X more
higher taxes
more expensive everything
job market not as goood(for me)
job market terrible(for DW)
Committed to working full time for at least 15 more years
Possible that living here now wont be the same as before, that I'm chasing a dream that cannot be recaptured