where in Cali should I move to??? (San Diego, Riverside: sales, real estate market)

[treat yourself]

I am 34 year old and currently live in Naperville, il. I live with my girlfiend and we are both sick of the weather. We both have pretty portable jobs (I'm a car salesman and she works in retail clothing overseeing a number of stores). We have no children, but want to in a few years. Combined income is over $200,000 per year. We like to go out alot (since we don't have kids), and have just begun searching. Ideally, weather, things to do, the beach, good schools (for our future children), and affordability are the goals we would like to achieve. This may be an oxymoron, so please advise. Thanks in advance for your input.

[cleosmom]

With you being in car sales that can help you depending on of course your record. Does your girlfriend work for a national store to where she can be transferred? If so, that might help in selecting what part of CA you'd like.

It's a diverse state; mountains, desert, valleys, coastal areas. All of these locations also have varied cost of living.

[treat yourself]

thanks cleosmom. I currently sell Audi's and have been number one in sales at any store I have worked in the last 12 years I have been in the business. So, I figured maybe selling Mercedes would be the best manufacturer considering the local and reputation of Cali being so image conscious. My girlfriend works for Theory and tells me she would have many opportunities on the west coast (especially Cali). I hope that helps. Thanks again for your advice.

[bhcompy]

socal would be a fine area to start.. long beach, coastal orange county, and san diego offer plenty of MB, BMW, Audi, etc dealerships. in costa mesa you also have ferrari, porsche, lotus, etc. those areas also have plenty of nightlife

just keep in mind commissions vary wildly.. some dealerships may have you on a volume based plan, some may have you on traditional front end commission, some may have you on front and back. just remember to do your research on that part.

[sav858]

The beaches in Northern CA are fairly cool, foggy, windy, and never warm enough to swim in. So if having a nice beach scene is important then I'd avoid anywhere north of Santa Barbara. The weather up there is cooler and it rains more than Southern CA but it's still nice overall compared to most places, doesn't snow or get humid. But if beaches aren't really important then check out the Bay Area. Lots to do and it's pretty wealthy and lots of nice cars.

Coastal Southern CA has the best weather and beaches in CA. LA and Orange County are more image conscious and you see plenty of nice Audi's, BMW's, Benz's, ect... So that would be a place to consider.

San Diego is very nice and laid back with the best weather and it the most "affordable" compared to SF, LA, and OC.

Schools are all dependent on what part of town you live in, the wealthier areas have the best public schools.

SF, LA/OC, and SD are all different but great in their own ways so I'd research these cities and see what scene, types of people, ect... fit you best.

[treat yourself]

I have to say, this is the first time I have ever used a message board and it has been more helpful than any research I have found on the net. Thanks to all for taking the time to respond. Southern Cali is definitely where I would prefer to live, but property values based on the little research I have done are way higher than I can afford. Do housing prices decline the farther away from the coast you get? Is that a good rule of thumb. And, are all the nice cities (San Diego, Orange County, etc.) so congested that it would take forever to commute from a less expensive city?

[sav858]

Originally Posted by treat yourself

I have to say, this is the first time I have ever used a message board and it has been more helpful than any research I have found on the net. Thanks to all for taking the time to respond. Southern Cali is definitely where I would prefer to live, but property values based on the little research I have done are way higher than I can afford. Do housing prices decline the farther away from the coast you get? Is that a good rule of thumb. And, are all the nice cities (San Diego, Orange County, etc.) so congested that it would take forever to commute from a less expensive city?

Homes prices in SoCal have been taking a dive lately, more so than Northern CA and it seems like there are decent deals out there, but "expensive' is a relative term. Today I read an article how the median house price in San Diego is now below $400k and falling, which seems "cheap" considering how high they were at one point. So I'd wait to buy unless you can get a good deal or a foreclosed/auctioned home. If you were to make $200k here you could afford a good house in a nice neighborhood anywhere.

Housing prices definitely decline as you get away from the coast, which is why so many people were moving to the Inland Empire (Riverside and San Bernardino Counties) from LA and Orange County. But there commutes were HORRIBLE. Many people live in the Temecula area of SW Riverside County and commute to San Diego, that's at least 45min to an hour each way it seems.

What exactly is your price range? What kind of homes/areas are you looking to move b/c a combined income of $200k is pretty damn good. Areas of East San Diego County are relatively cheap, but it's also not very upscale, if that is important to you.

[treat yourself]

The price range for a home I was considering would be around $350,000.00. I am not necessarily looking for "upscale", just nice, clean, and safe. I would hope this could be possible in that price rane given todays economy. I understand I will be downgrading in size from what I'm used to out here, and that is a sacrifice I'm willing to make. I'll have to do some more research on areas further inland and see if there are any higher volume dealers in those areas. I could never do a 45 min commute each way. I just don't have the patience and the car business hours are too long as it is.

[bhcompy]

350k is doable, but it will be a difficult search to meet all your needs for this in a coastal region(like OC). prices ARE dropping, but 350k is probably half of what a basic ranch in a decent neighborhood with decent schools(in OC) was going for a few years ago.

[sav858]

I would keep an eye on the local real estate market by following the local papers like OC Register and SD Union Tribune. Today they had an article about the median price now being $395k in SD and some expect the median to bottom out at $350k.

SignOnSanDiego.com > News > Business -- Median price keeps falling

An area of San Diego you should look at is coastal North County in areas like Carlsbad, Encinitas, San Marcos, Solana Beach, ect... I see nice townhomes listed for $350k and even single detached family homes for that much. You might be able to snag a good deal on a foreclosure too. Carlsbad is a really nice suburb along the coast and they have an areas of car dealerships called "car country Carlsbad" with an Audi dealership. The Audi dealership is part of Hoehn Motors which also have a Benz, Porsche, Infiniti, Acura, and Honda dealerships. And they seem to pretty popular so I'd check them out.