Emigrating to the USA

[Cheshirelad]

Mark Twain said it better than I ever could:-

 

 

[Bobba]

You ask if it would be possible for you to work in America. Our American friend says yes. I am not contradicting him but if it is important to you then I would check. I say this because our son did two long periods in New York in banking. His wife is a qualified physiotherapist. Not only were her UK qualifications not recognised there but she was not allowed to work in any capacity. They lived a block or so away from Central Park and so to keep her sanity she became a volunteer there.

[Lloyd90]

38 minutes ago, Bobba said:

You ask if it would be possible for you to work in America. Our American friend says yes. I am not contradicting him but if it is important to you then I would check. I say this because our son did two long periods in New York in banking. His wife is a qualified physiotherapist. Not only were her UK qualifications not recognised there but she was not allowed to work in any capacity. They lived a block or so away from Central Park and so to keep her sanity she became a volunteer there.

Yes I saw a show where the husband had a business out there and his wife wasn’t allowed to work at all! 

[bigbird]

Thanks all, certainly food for thought!

[udderlyoffroad]

I say go for it; the freedom your teenage kids will experience compared to the cloying nature of this country will likely compensate for any perceived educational short comings (though I doubt there will be any).

Spend the money on a decent immigration lawyer and get the paperwork sorted (green card and then citizen) for all your family ASAP.

My parents emigrated (but not to the US) when I was 11.  Some things I knew about that the other kids didn't, and they knew things I didn't.  Wasn't hard for me to catch up.  And we have the internet now as a great resource.

 

[NorfolkAYA]

I've always fancied north California. I've been to the states a few times with work. Last time was Las Vegas for 6 weeks, love everything about the states. If everything adds up I say go for it. 

ATB 

pete

 

 

[blackbird]

Before this virus I would be the first one to tell you to go for it but with major uncertainty with the world economy & mass job losses in the US already who knows what to do for the best, because  if the **** hits the fan big time I can tell you one thing I would rather be this side of the pond in the UK.

Edited April 9, 2020 by blackbird

[Lloyd90]

20 minutes ago, NorfolkAYA said:

I've always fancied north California. I've been to the states a few times with work. Last time was Las Vegas for 6 weeks, love everything about the states. If everything adds up I say go for it. 

ATB 

pete

 

 

 

You'd have to be a multi-millionaire to get a half decent place in California I believe. People are leaving the state in droves for cheaper area's. They also complain that it is very restrictive and liberal vs other states. 

 

[udderlyoffroad]

11 hours ago, Lloyd90 said:

You'd have to be a multi-millionaire to get a half decent place in California I believe. People are leaving the state in droves for cheaper area's. They also complain that it is very restrictive and liberal vs other states. 

I mean it's still a liberal paradise compared to what we put up with in the UK.  And I mean liberal in both senses of the word, i.e. what @NoBodyImportant and his fellow countrymen would define as a liberal, and liberal in the classic sense.  Jail time for using plastic cutlery nothwithstanding.

Anyhoo, spent a couple of weeks over there earlier this year, and I personally would try and go just across the border, i.e. Oregon or even Washington State, mostly because your money will go further, and yes the firearms laws are less restrictive.

My brother has a place up in the mountains of Arizona, and the countryside is fantastic (Almost Alpine, and drops into 'high desert').  If I could, I'd move there like a shot.  Not that much work up there; but am sure you could earn a decent living if you were dedicated enough.

[amateur]

11 minutes ago, udderlyoffroad said:

...... Oregon or even Washington State, mostly because your money will go further, and yes the firearms laws are less restrictive....

Oregon and Washington are a bit damp, but friendly people and liberal firearms laws.

[manthing]

15 hours ago, Lloyd90 said:

 

You'd have to be a multi-millionaire to get a half decent place in California I believe. People are leaving the state in droves for cheaper area's. They also complain that it is very restrictive and liberal vs other states. 

 

Can restrictive and Liberal Co exist? 🤔

[Lloyd90]

1 hour ago, manthing said:

Can restrictive and Liberal Co exist? 🤔

Definition of liberal.

 

It's very restrictive on things like gun laws etc, when compared to other states. Compared to the UK however you can still own some pretty cool stuff (if your a citizen?) 

It's also very liberal in their political sense. Lots of American's complaining that they have turned it into liberal waste land.

I believe its called a sanctuary state, so illegal migrants can't be deported and have a lot of rights. 

 

Depends on your opinion on those things. Same as here, lots complain that it adds big stresses on housing, infastructure and services, which working illegally and not paying in. 

 

[NoBodyImportant]

5 hours ago, udderlyoffroad said:

I mean it's still a liberal paradise compared to what we put up with in the UK.  And I mean liberal in both senses of the word, i.e. what @NoBodyImportant and his fellow countrymen would define as a liberal, and liberal in the classic sense.  Jail time for using plastic cutlery nothwithstanding.

Anyhoo, spent a couple of weeks over there earlier this year, and I personally would try and go just across the border, i.e. Oregon or even Washington State, mostly because your money will go further, and yes the firearms laws are less restrictive.

My brother has a place up in the mountains of Arizona, and the countryside is fantastic (Almost Alpine, and drops into 'high desert').  If I could, I'd move there like a shot.  Not that much work up there; but am sure you could earn a decent living if you were dedicated enough.

California is beautiful but the the liberals have ruined it. The taxes are crazy and the voters keep voting for more and more “free stuff”.  You can still conceal carry with permit but are restricted to 10 rounds.  In fact all semi auto are restricted to 10 round magazines. You can still buy guns but there is a ten day waiting period. Look at a political map.  The more democrat the location is the more crime, drugs, homeless, taxes you are going have.  Keep that in mind when choosing a place to settle.  As far as home prices it balances out.  Someone making $28 an hour running a cash registered in NY doesn’t live better then someone making $10 an hour in Ohio when you considered cost of living.  Northern California is very conservative but gets wrapped up in the government overreach of the south. 

[NoBodyImportant]

6 hours ago, udderlyoffroad said:

I mean it's still a liberal paradise compared to what we put up with in the UK.  And I mean liberal in both senses of the word, i.e. what @NoBodyImportant and his fellow countrymen would define as a liberal, and liberal in the classic sense.  Jail time for using plastic cutlery nothwithstanding.

Anyhoo, spent a couple of weeks over there earlier this year, and I personally would try and go just across the border, i.e. Oregon or even Washington State, mostly because your money will go further, and yes the firearms laws are less restrictive.

My brother has a place up in the mountains of Arizona, and the countryside is fantastic (Almost Alpine, and drops into 'high desert').  If I could, I'd move there like a shot.  Not that much work up there; but am sure you could earn a decent living if you were dedicated enough.

California is beautiful but the the liberals have ruined it. The taxes are crazy and the voters keep voting for more and more “free stuff”.  You can still conceal carry with permit but are restricted to 10 rounds.  In fact all semi auto are restricted to 10 round magazines. You can still buy guns but there is a ten day waiting period. Look at a political map.  The more democrat the location is the more crime, drugs, homeless, taxes you are going have.  Keep that in mind when choosing a place to settle.  As far as home prices it balances out.  Someone making $28 an hour running a cash registered in NY doesn’t live better then someone making $10 an hour in Ohio when you considered cost of living.  Northern California is very conservative but gets wrapped up in the government overreach of the south. If you look at county by county the bulk a California is conservative. 

[treetree]

6 hours ago, amateur said:

Oregon and Washington are a bit damp, but friendly people and liberal firearms laws.

I spent 2 weeks in Oregon and Washington on holiday. The Pacific North West felt like a true wilderness, the scale of which it is difficult for someone living in the UK to conceive. Stunning coastline, forests, snow capped mountain ranges, desert, all in one state.

[Retsdon]

The education and family side, I don't know about but I'd definitely say that the people are nice in the States - particularly people from the less well known places. They're absolute salt of the Earth. I spent a few months working in Colorado, and I'd have either stayed or gone back in a heartbeat if I'd had the chance. I was fortunate in that I was working as fly fishing guide and consequently had the opportunity to meet a very wide range of Americans from all over the country without ever having to move out of the drift boat. You had them from dawn to dusk too, so got a pretty good idea of what they were like. And they're not all the same at all. The idea of 'America' as a homogeneous society is completely wrong - the difference between people from say, New York or LA is massive. Likewise Texas!

Anyway, that area that you're thinking of  - the Carolinas, Kentucky, up into West Virginia -great people IMHO. Religious for the most part, but certainly none the worse for that. I'd certainly go if I were in your shoes. What's to lose? If the worst came to the worst and it didn't work out you could always come back. These opportunities don't come up every day and once they're missed... No, do it.

Edited April 9, 2020 by Retsdon

[Lloyd90]

2 hours ago, NoBodyImportant said:

California is beautiful but the the liberals have ruined it. The taxes are crazy and the voters keep voting for more and more “free stuff”.  You can still conceal carry with permit but are restricted to 10 rounds.  In fact all semi auto are restricted to 10 round magazines. You can still buy guns but there is a ten day waiting period. Look at a political map.  The more democrat the location is the more crime, drugs, homeless, taxes you are going have.  Keep that in mind when choosing a place to settle.  As far as home prices it balances out.  Someone making $28 an hour running a cash registered in NY doesn’t live better then someone making $10 an hour in Ohio when you considered cost of living.  Northern California is very conservative but gets wrapped up in the government overreach of the south. If you look at county by county the bulk a California is conservative. 

Looking at that you wonder how the reds over lose? 😳 it can’t be right? 

[udderlyoffroad]

36 minutes ago, Retsdon said:

The idea of 'America' as a homogeneous society is completely wrong - the difference between people from say, New York or LA is massive. Likewise Texas!

Very much this. As bad as when our US cousins refer to ‘Europe’ as homogeneous society.

2 hours ago, NoBodyImportant said:

If you look at county by county the bulk a California is conservative. 

Worth mentioning here that large parts of California are given over to farming of one type or another, not natural Dem territory. Albeit the  densely populated areas (LA, the Bay Area, San Diego & Sacramento) are Blue.

We get such terrible reporting of life in the US from our media, influenced by the US media, who regardless of political persuasion, tend to ignore the ‘flyover’ states

[NoBodyImportant]

7 hours ago, Lloyd90 said:

Looking at that you wonder how the reds over lose? 😳 it can’t be right? 

Population density, even then California was 61% blue and 39% red. But a 51% vote gives all 55 of there delegates to democrats.  Same with NY and their 29 delegates.  Land out west is sold buy squares and not acres.  A square is 160 acres.  Quarter square is 40, so on.  When they opened the west to homesteading the government gave farms away for free.  Depending on location they where given in squares, half squares, and quarters.  Those land grants still can be seen today.  So you have families living on 160 acres where in NYC a family live in 300sqft apartment.  

Edited April 10, 2020 by NoBodyImportant

[dogone]

   If you are not to far left  move to Canada. We are somewhere between US and UK. Lots of guns BUT not all guns legal. The west is wide open  sparsely  popul;ated  while the east has a lot more people and would be closer to UK density. Possibly easier to immigrate to Canada because of historic ties to UK. Very few people in rural areas anymore because of increase in farm sizes. My rural area had a lot of English war brides but they are passing on.

     ANYONE can get a licence to buy guns here without any difficulty. All you want and through the mail too. You can not buy handguns unless you are a resident. You can be a UK resident and buy firearms here but you may have to leave them in storage here as I don't know what your import laws are.

Edited April 10, 2020 by dogone

[cardigun]

Hi NobodyImportant,

I thought land grants were in Sections, which is a square mile.  That is 640 acres, a quarter is 160 acres, and a "quarter quarter" is 40 acres.  Hence everyone has a "back forty"

[NoBodyImportant]

42 minutes ago, cardigun said:

Hi NobodyImportant,

I thought land grants were in Sections, which is a square mile.  That is 640 acres, a quarter is 160 acres, and a "quarter quarter" is 40 acres.  Hence everyone has a "back forty"

Every state had different grant programs but in reference to land sales today a square is 160 acres as to the 1862 homestead act. So a 640 acre plot would be advertised as 4 squares fore sell. A married male was entitled to 160 acres. This is all out west. Where I’m at it still the good ol fashion acre.     copy paste:The passage of the Homestead Act of 1862 established a land grant program that allowed individuals, both U.S.citizens and intended citizens, to apply for 160-acre plots of land. “Homesteading” was a term referring to the process of moving west onto land in unsettled territories and cultivating the land.

Edited April 10, 2020 by NoBodyImportant

[NoBodyImportant]

Lot of those plots are deeded wrong anyway.  My farm is 27 acres but is deeded as 19.9.  I will try to dig out the deeds to show you.  It reads something like starting and a pile a rocks to go north west 986 feet to a model T Ford axel sticking out of the ground.  The turn east for about 1200 feet to the end of a rock wall.  Back the the mountain of NC the tax collector would ask what is your property and the collector would say that’s about 30 acres and the farmer would say it’s only 15 and they would meet in the middle.   

[amateur]

Every day is a school day

[cardigun]

Hi Nobodyimportant,

Section -Wikipedia (United States Land Surveying,)  Seems to think its 640 acres.