I can say with confidence that there are parts of CA that will understand your plight.Years ago, before it got overpopulated, I lived in Chino, CA (not Chico) where it was predominantly farm land.

Unfortunately, they have to cull the herds regularly to keep them from over-populating.

An over populated area doesn't have the infrastructure to support negative economic fluctuations.

Do you mean overpopulated with investors, rehabbers, flippers, wholesalers, etc.?

Mountains, trails, and not overpopulated if you want to get away from the condensed population of large cities.