Los Angeles was overpriced so I moved to Tulsa. My extended family followed me here, and we love it—and I’m a homeowner

(Credit: Courtesy of Jasmine Ball)

If you had asked me to point out Oklahoma, let alone Tulsa, on a map three years ago, I wouldn’t have been able to do it. Fast forward to today and, while my geography hasn’t much improved, I can not only point out Oklahoma on a map, I live there.

I’m a native Californian—born in San Jose, raised in Orland, moved to Los Angeles after college. I never planned to leave the Golden State, but when the pandemic hit in 2020, my priorities quickly shifted.