relocation to Bakersfield!!!

Pretty much what I know about Bakersfield is that it is hot. If you are coming from the desert in AZ, you should feel comfortable there. Also heard that you need to be careful about the area you move to, but that is just about true of anywhere nowadays. Good luck in your new job.

I lived in Bakersfield from 2003 to 2005, and still have family members who live there. The area is more reminiscent of Oklahoma City or Kansas than it is of California. It is extremely hot from May through early October, with temperatures sometimes exceeding 100 degrees.

It is not the most glamorous, exciting or cosmopolitan place in existence. The city has a slight stench due to the large number of dairy farms and agricultural fields on the outskirts. Social problems such as street gangs, violent crime, graffiti, teen pregnancy and generational poverty are deeply entrenched there.

Bakersfield has seen explosive growth over the past decade, primarily due to lower-income residents relocating there after being priced out of the expensive coastal parts of the state. It was recently voted one of the most illiterate locations in the US, and was hit especially hard by the real estate meltdown.

If you wish to stay safe, a general rule of thumb is to live west of Highway 99. Northwest Bakersfield (Rosedale) is considered the upscale part of town, and Southwest Bakersfield is the middle income part of town. Poverty and crime are rampant in Southeast Bakersfield (Cottonwood), so I wouldn't live there.

Good luck to you!