Questions about areas in California

[goldfish]

I was wondering if you Californians can help me out with a few questions. :) We REALLY want to move to CA within the next few years...we've traveled there fairly often to visit family but we don't know too much about your state! Other than that we just LOVE it there.

Can you give me the names of some towns/areas that I should look into that have the following:

1. Racially diverse

2. Good school district

3. Anywhere from San Fernando Valley south (we don't want to live north of there)

4. We could buy a modest single-family home for $400-500K

5. Close to Vallarta supermarket - just kidding;) , but seriously, I love that grocery store!

I would really appreciate it if anyone could help me out - thank you in advance!! :)

[villanelle75]

If you are looking for a SFH for less than 500k, you'll probably need to look pretty far inland. Maybe some areas of Riverside County. You'll do okay for racial diversity in Riverside, but I don't know much about the schools.

I live in San Diego and absolutely love love love it, but for 500k, you would get a condo or townhouse that was about 1500-1700 sqft.

[PinkMartini]

Growing up in Riverside/San Bernadino, I'd say avoid it at all costs if you can. You can probably get a house under $500k there but the schools are horrible (or they were when I was last down there 4 years ago)... There are a few nice neighborhoods in Moreno valley, Menifee, (Stay away from Perris), maybe some areas of San Bernadino... I agree with villanelle75, you're going to have to go far inland for a house under $500k

[goldfish]

Oops, when I said between $400-500K I meant in the 500's also...so I should've put up to 600K. :)

Thanks guys for your replys...we don't mind being inland, but we don't want to be in the middle of nowhere either. Thanks for the info! :)

[villanelle75]

For about 599k, you can get a small, somewhat older home in parts of San Diego. I know there are areas here with great schools and areas with not so great schools, sad.ly, I think the less diverse the area, the better the schools.

I think I remember hearing somewhere that Tierrasanta (which is the name of an area that is part of the city of San Diego) has good schools. It is a very suburbia beighborhood but it's good because it is closer to downtown that a lot of areas. I think you could find something for 600k or just under in that area if you don't need a ton of space and you are patient.

You might also check out Mira Mesa (further north so probably a longer commute, but not awful), though I have no clue about schools, and depending on your tolerance for driving, even Escondido.

You can also look East (La Mesa, El Cajon, Santee) where you won't be totally in the middle of nowhere but your money will go a bit further. Depending on your lifestyle and preferences, these may or may not be a good fit. They are definitely slower, less urban areas, with a semi-rural bent.

San Diego itself is pretty diverse but certain neighborhoods might not be, FWIW.

[lcarlson90]

I know you said that you don't want to go further north then the San Fernando Valley, but have you looked into Valencia. It's about 30 minutes north of Burbank. The advantage to living in Valencia is that you can get a decent house for about $500k. The area is relatively new and clean. The schools are great too. The only drawback for you is that it isn't a very racially diverse city. I would rather live in Valencia then San Bernadino. At least Valencia is closer to the beaches and Los Angeles.

[goldfish]

Thank you so much guys for your responses!

PinkMartini, we'll check out those areas you suggested. Avoid Riverside and San Bernadino, huh? Thanks!

villanelle75, You are so right about a lot of times that schools that have a better reputation are less diverse. Sadly it's the same where we live now - we're in a great school district but it's not very diverse. I absolutely love the weather in the san diego area! I'll check out those places you mentioned. We like a less urban area more "suburbs" type of place though, so maybe some of those towns to the east would be nice for us. Do you know anything about the Temecula area?

lcarlson90, it's so funny you mentioned Valencia because we actually stayed there last time we were in CA! We have some family that moved there, but their house was more like $800k but it's pretty big though, and new I think. You're right about it not being too diverse. Love that little downtown area...there was this awesome Italian restaurant we ate at, but I can't remember the name.

Thanks again guys! If anyone has other suggestions I would really appreciate it! :)

[PinkMartini]

Yea I don't know about Valencia being less than $600k. I lived in Santa Clarita for a short while (right next to Valencia) and have a few friends who own homes there. $800k was the cheapest I've heard of a home being bought there... Santa Clarita would probably be a little less, but even then, it's outrageous. We rented a 3 bdroom townhouse there for $2600/month :eek:

[villanelle75]

Temecula and Lake Elsinore are still fairly affordable. The only thing is that fidnign ajob in those ares is rough. Some people commute to San Diego from Temecula or OC from Elsinore, but that is a VERY logn drive everyday.

Is you want suburban, Mira Mesae, Escondido, Clairmont Mesa, or Tierrasanta come to mind, and kind of La Mesa. If you want suburban-rural (but still only about 25 mintues from downtown during non-rush hour so it isn't middle of nowhere) then Sante or El Cajon are good options. There are also other small areas (like Lemon Grove) that I don't know much about but might work.

[yby1]

If you like SFV, you can probably find homes for under 600k in Sylmar. The schools might not be great, so you may need to look into private schools. There is racial diversity there and a Vallarta market. ;)