I’m in Central NJ at a H/J show barn. Full board is $1800, plus training rides ($40 each) and lessons ($75). Shoeing runs around $300-$450 per cycle. We do have access to great vets (New Bolton, MidAtlantic), shows, and it’s a great area, but it’s very high COL.
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I don’t think I’ve ever had a horse in California living on sand. Adobe, yes. Decomposed granite, yes. Wood chips, yes. Not saying it doesn’t happen, though maybe not super loose sand like the beach, because I know of horses living on dirt that’s sandy enough that people recommend feeding on mats to help avoid sand colic. And a vet at an equine hospital once told me that all horses in Southern California should be on psyllium because of the potential for sand colic.
Unless “sand” means “not grass.” That’s true pretty much everywhere in So Cal, but horses don’t need to live on grass. There are ways to provide constant forage without grass. And my insulin-resistant horse would have to wear a muzzle if he lived in a grass pasture. The grass does look pretty though.
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When I worked/rode at Flintridge, it’s all sand turn out. We put hay on mats or in tubs, but of course horses still toss it off and eat it off the sand 🫠
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Aiken, SC is one to consider. Bruce’s Field is hosting some really nice, big rated H/J shows (one going on right now). Also, tons of affordable and fun H/J schooling and B shows (often several a month year round). Lots of pasture and places with nice facilities, most will let a trainer come to you. Prices in line with what you said for lessons and (I think- we keep ours at home) for boarding. That said, while improving, still has a “retirement” community vibe and we don’t have many traditional full service barns. Some H/J folks leave for Ocala/Wellington in the winter for a few months. We’ve found Aiken a great place to live and my horses are very happy. They got out every day and the footing is excellent.
ETA, it’s a bit more expensive than some places in the south for cost of living but my experience is that people come here from SoCal and are amazed by how far their money goes for housing.
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Have you considered other parts of CA? If you get out of the cities, you can get quite a bit more turnout. Thinking central coast or Sacramento, foothills, and as I recall even some pockets of so cal have more space than others (but I’m less familiar with that half of the state).
That was kind of my gist. I think it’s more “river” sand than beach sand but the majority of “sun pens” and “mare motels” I encountered had that as the base to try and counteract the endless hock sores.
Grassed or not, the lack of turnout was what constantly troubled me. Sure, plenty of horses can get by with a stall and 24x24 sun pen, but a lot of the young athletic warmbloods cannot. And they ended up getting chased around the arena before their kid came to ride.
It’s the trade off for getting to ride horses in paradise!
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I suppose I should also tip the hat for Kentucky 
There’s always a horse show nearby and the winters aren’t all that bad (though I diverted through Chicago after California so pretty much any winter would have been an improvement). It’s a truly beautiful place to live and horses are a way of life in many parts so you can find a wide variety of offerings. I’m in Lex; our barn charges $1850 for full training & board, $1550 for partial and $1350 for basic (1 lesson per week). They show all the KY shows, mix in WEC Ohio, Chicago, Brownland, Atlanta & Tryon, and go to Ocala for several weeks in the winter.
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Another Midwest fan here (but OH). With WEC down near Columbus, it’s easy to show throughout the winter. You’ll find a spectrum of H/J trainers, and most importantly in my humble opinion - vets. Just in Northeast Ohio, there are 2 amazing sport horse practices, an equine hospital, then you have OSU, or an easy drive to Rood and Riddle or Hagyard. The nicer barns will run $1000, generally full care (hay, grain, cleaning, turnout, eyes on the horses) and good amenities…if you want full FULL care, there are places that run $2k+ or places a bit further out and smaller in the $6-800 range. It’s also hard to beat Midwest summer overnight turnout
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I wanna add that Kentucky is great, and there are a RANGE of barns. You have those that travel everywhere, but there are others that stay more local and balance the local circuit plus the A circuit you see at the horse park.
It’s been a minute since I was living in KY, but the two barns I’m thinking of that aren’t necessarily AA show barns charge anywhere from $650-1200 depending on the caliber of the facilities and how much care you want to put in. Reasonable lesson and training costs (like $45-60; discount if you buy in bulk).
Just all depends on your goals. If you’re looking to do AA shows year-round, it all ends up costing the same at the end of the day, at least IME. If you’re looking to find something a little more low-key, you can def find some good money savings, and Kentucky is a great state for offering a range of options.
FYI if you’re looking in KY, go ahead and find somewhere with an indoor. Don’t overlook that. Usually winters are fine but for the one or two weeks that are really miserable, it’s better to have that amenity.
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This is where I’m at now and can confirm on pricing as well as what’s available. It’s also just real affordable to live in Columbus. Hard pressed to find better COL in an urban area with access to horses.
My biggest complaint however is that the winter weather can be rough enough that turnout doesn’t always happen–ground freezes over in ice frequently; we get a lot of rain which can cause issues. That means it’s a lot of time in the indoor. Some horses are fine with this. Others have a threshold. Mine usually copes OK as long as we start to work outdoors again in April/May. The years we haven’t been able to get outside by then he has been a problem child, and I can’t really blame him 
If I had it my way and didn’t have familial considerations, I’d move back to KY in a heart beat and stay there.
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I’m not sure you’ll find what you need a whole lot cheaper than what you describe. I’m in a low COL area in North Carolina. The board at a show barn here is always north of $900, even if it’s not fancy in the slightest. Lessons range from $60-100, and training rides are similar.
But amazing grassy turnout makes for happy horses, so there’s that. I personally don’t think keeping a horse in a stall 24/7 is okay, and that’s very normal in SoCal.
Lots of sand in sun pens and turnouts for sure and why I’d keep one on psyllium at most boarding barns even if it didn’t live or eat off of sand. Not so much in the paddocks AKA corrals AKA mare motels. But if you leave them in the turnouts for very long they typically start to nuzzle around in the sand, so they may as well live in it.
A surprising number of horses do OK with the typical urban or suburban So Cal set up. Some, not so much. IMHO it’s not appropriate for a young horse that’s younger than about 3. And young warmbloods–it’s hard to feed them appropriately for their development and maintain sanity if they live 24/7 in a 12x12 box (just had this conversation with a trainer at an urban stable). A friend bought an OTTB her junior or senior year of high school. It needed a lot of lunging. She then moved to Ohio for college and he lived in a pasture. Problem solved, and she didn’t even need to ride every day. I happen to own one that doesn’t thrive in the stereotypical SoCal setting, though it’s more physical than mental. So he’s at a facility where he lives out 24/7 in a paddock/small field that has a shelter and wood chips to mitigate mud and hardness, has hay pretty continuously available in a net that’s clipped into a feed bin so they eat just above ground level, and a ring with great footing. But I drive a lot to achieve his lifestyle and still ride.
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I don’t think that you’ll find board prices to be much different anywhere you go, but what you will find is the amenities increase for what you pay. For instance, around me 850-1000 a month will get you stall board at a place with a very nice indoor and outdoor arena, full grass turnout, easy trail access and onsite trainer (lessons not included). Some of those places also have things like an theraplate for rent, or a tack room with showers.
The issue is $800 is about the sweet spot where you make money from the board instead of loosing money. So places will have added value so you’ll pay that.
I’d recommend
Ocala: lower cost of living. Board will still be expensive. Multiple year round showing opportunities. Good weather most of the year. Summers are hot.
Aiken: lower cost of living, board may be slightly less than what you pay now. The show scene is actually pretty decent, and you are only 2ish hours to tryon for a circuit. Weather is hot in the summer, mild and enjoyable in the winter. Town is small and closest airport is either Charleston, Charlotte, or Atlanta.
Northern Virginia: board will be about the same price, along with cost of living. Show scene is good. Lots of hunter trainers. Weather is lovely from April to November. Winters can be cold.
Eastern PA/Jersey: board will be about the same, cost of living may be slightly less or slightly more depending on how close you get to a city. Show scene is good, and lots of good trainers. About the same weather as northern Virginia.
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Since you mentioned the mid-Atlantic and seem to know what things cost in Aiken, would I be way priced out if I left Aiken and went North? What does $1M get you in a horsey area of the Mid-Atlantic?
Board and some training in a not super competitive program or at a place that’s not extra fancy. Not a hand holding do the AAs type program but you can find hunter barns that do local shows in that price range if you’re not super locked to being within a really close distance of a metro. There are places in NJ where you could be all in for around $1000k at a low key hunter barn.
$1m for a house in DMV will either get you a nice luxury single family home around 30-60 minutes outside of the city with very little land, or if you are willing to be a little further out and want to stretch the budget, you can likely find a nice farmette for under 1 and a quarter. I’m not sure about PA/NJ so will defer to others. I recently shopped for a home within the beltway (DH works downtown, I ride in MoCo MD) and these prices seem around average.
Just for browsing sake - https://www.horseproperties.net/properties/montgomery-county-maryland-united-states
I misread this as $1000k per month BOARD. I’m an idiot. You can buy a small farmette in NJ for half a million or less.
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I would recommend the DC/MD/VA area for access to trainers, showing, and variety of boarding options.
I don’t think I could recommend it as a place to make money go further. The cost of housing—while not SF, SD, etc—is very high and seems to have gotten worse in the past few years. So not knowing your financial situation, if low-to-mid $2k for a 1BR sounds “more reasonable,” then it may work for you.
edited for grammar
You have to like seasons. But I like seasons. I would be miserable someplace where it was hot and humid all year long. But if you are ok with seasons, the Mid Atlantic and DC metro area are hard to beat.
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