The Best Place - Camarillo, Port Hueneme, Oxnard or Ventura (Thousand Oaks: real estate, rentals)

[macsret]

Originally Posted by ZhugeLiang

For your demographic, I'd stick to Ventura or Camarillo. The 'Nard and Port Hueneme are a little rundown.
Ventura is a blast and is a bit cooler than Cam.

Thanks! I see you are from Honolulu HI. I was stationed there for the first 9 years of my career, met and married a local girl, 3 of my sons were born there. I loved it.

jOE
Angeles City
Philippines

[Winston Smith]

Originally Posted by ZhugeLiang

The 'Nard and Port Hueneme are a little rundown. Ventura is a blast...

Gonna' step in here and refute this claim. Both Oxnard and PH are turning into five-star cities. Don't believe me? Visit Oxnard downtown, Seabridge, Riverpark and the host of other new and redeveloped areas coming around. If you happen upon a blighted old shopping center, stick around a few months because it'll be replaced with something new and shiny. Both cities are very focused on fixing things these days. The notion of these two cities as run down is an outdated 80s and 90s mindset. Sorry for the barge-in.

Ventura is fun, I used to live there, but the homeless population staking claims at the end of the pier and around the waterfront is really getting out of hand. In Ventura, stick to midtown.

[macsret]

Originally Posted by cre8

Gonna' step in here and refute this claim. Both Oxnard and PH are turning into five-star cities. Don't believe me? Visit Oxnard downtown, Seabridge, Riverpark and the host of other new and redeveloped areas coming around. If you happen upon a blighted old shopping center, stick around a few months because it'll be replaced with something new and shiny. Both cities are very focused on fixing things these days. The notion of these two cities as run down is an outdated 80s and 90s mindset. Sorry for the barge-in.

Ventura is fun, I used to live there, but the homeless population staking claims at the end of the pier and around the waterfront is really getting out of hand. In Ventura, stick to midtown.

cre8,
As always first rate reply, which I enjoyed. I'm almost positive we will get a chance to see these fine cities in 2012, long time... too long I know. Well, hopefully we will get in a short visit before then.

[the city]

Camarillo is best.

[macsret]

Originally Posted by the city

Camarillo is best.

Hey City,
Ok, that comment just begs for a "What makes you say so?" As a young man would think you would have gone for Ventura. Can you address the cost of living in Camarillo, especially if some one is bringing in say $5,000 take home a month? What about the hospitals, compare them to the others in the OP. Crime seems to be much less in Camarillo, still can you give us some reasons why?

Seriously looking for a GREAT comeback reply.

jOE
Angeles City
Philippines

[IC*Twins]

I recommend Camarillo 100%. The weather is 72F year round, slightly overcast in the morning - not the entire day like in Oxnard and Ventura.

We lived in a subdivision called The Meadows and if you like a good size home 1600sf (currently in the mid 400K) and low maintenance living with a clubhouse and swimming pool then you might want to check it out. Oh, plus the community is about 3 miles from Pleasant Valley hospital, five miles from Trader Joe's and there are 4 different parks in a two-mile radius and again, it is not as cold as Ventura and not as hot as Thousand Oaks. And yes, beware of Oxnard neighborhood because there are sketchy locations but now that I have experienced living in another state in the South...Oxnard is not nearly as bad, trust me. Port Hueneme is not bad either. There are some great condos along the coast at fairly reasonable prices - then again, it is coastal so if you do not mind 60F and lower that is another ideal location.

Best hospital is Los Robles in Thousand Oaks. I hope this helps and best of luck.

[macsret]

Originally Posted by IC*Twins

I recommend Camarillo 100%. The weather is 72F year round, slightly overcast in the morning - not the entire day like in Oxnard and Ventura.

Sounds great.

Originally Posted by IC*Twins

We lived in a subdivision called The Meadows and if you like a good size home 1600sf (currently in the mid 400K) and low maintenance living with a clubhouse and swimming pool then you might want to check it out.

Did you own or rent and how long ago was it when you lived there? Can you tell me the layout of the condo, br/bath rooms? Would you have a clue as to the cost NOW of a 3 br/2.5 bath to rent / buy?

Originally Posted by IC*Twins

Oh, plus the community is about 3 miles from Pleasant Valley hospital, five miles from Trader Joe's and there are 4 different parks in a two-mile radius and again, it is not as cold as Ventura and not as hot as Thousand Oaks.

Sounds great, much better than the Philippines which is right now, 90 deg and 55% humidity.

Originally Posted by IC*Twins

And yes, beware of Oxnard neighborhood because there are sketchy locations but now that I have experienced living in another state in the South...Oxnard is not nearly as bad, trust me.

Noted!

Originally Posted by IC*Twins

Port Hueneme is not bad either. There are some great condos along the coast at fairly reasonable prices - then again, it is coastal so if you do not mind 60F and lower that is another ideal location.

Again, would you have any idea as to the price to rent or the cost to buy?

[quote=IC*Twins;4155665]Best hospital is Los Robles in Thousand Oaks. I hope this helps and best of luck.


What would be the main difference between Pleasant Valley and Los Robles hospitals?

I hope this helps and best of luck.
Yes, you were/are great and made my 'Oxnard Plain' File. Thank you very much.

[SoCalMomma]

I have to step in here and give you my 2 cents. I live in Thousand Oaks, which is just over the hill from the cities you are considering.

If it were me, I'd choose Camarillo. I think it's generally the 'safest' of the cities you are looking at. Its more of a bedroom community than Ventura, which would be my second choice. Oxnard / Port Hueneme are not areas I would recommend people move into without a TON of research because what looks like a very nice street could be very close to a dangerous area. There is quite a bit of gang activity in both areas. We have a police scanner & at least 75% of the stuff we hear going on is in Oxnard. Whether or not it all shows up on the stats for the city, I have no idea. There just seems to be a lot of 'distrubances' every night in Oxnard.

Check out this website: Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitors sites is not allowed. It shows that Oxnard is lower than the national average, but now plug in Camarillo and you'll see the difference plain as day. If my parents wanted to move to an unknown area - Oxnard would not be the place I'd suggest.

Camarillo is also close to Conejo Valley (Thousand Oaks, Camarillo, Westlake) where you'll have access to many doctors, Los Robles Hospital, large indoor mall which is currently being renovated, many restaurants, etc. You asked what the difference was between Pleasant Valley Hospital and Los Robles. I have only been to Pleasant Valley St Johns once, and at that time, it was fine. Here are both of their websites - take some time and review them to see what they offer: Los Robles and Pleasant Valley St Johns Only you know what special services you may need, or want in a hospital. Camarillo has a large, popular outlet mall. Also a couple of really nice golf courses, and easy access to many other areas of ventura county.

Another thing about Camarillo is that its not as cool as Oxnard/Ventura. Its a little more inland, but still very close to the ocean. So the sun will shine, and you'll have less fog. I dont know about your health, but some people have issues with the dampness in the air. I know my dad does - he feels much better in drier climates.

I have not looked at rents in those areas, so I am not sure about affordability. I just looked on craigslist and here is rental in Leisure Village in Camarillo (if you are 55+) and right now it seems like the the Leisure Village homes range in the $200-$300k range for a 2 bedroom. Traditional homes are probably in the $350-$500k for a small decent house.

I am trying to give you my honest opinion. I am not trying to offend anyone who lives in Oxnard. I just think that Camarillo would be a better option.

[Winston Smith]

To further balance the Ventura County picture, there tends to be a snootyness from the Thousand Oaks area about other parts of the county. In 25 years of living and working in Oxnard/Ventura/PH, I have yet to figure out exactly what it is. The Thousand Oaks area has its niceties, but to me it all looks the same and you need a car for everything. Oxnard/Ventura/PH have a mix and diversity of people and views that I've always found tremendously attractive. And, public transportation is way superior (to TO). Over the years, I've also noticed that the people most negative to Oxnard/PH usually do not know those cities. They can't name streets, neighborhoods and don't know what's up and coming or going on. I've been quite specific in my previous posts about Oxnard/PH in terms of where to go and not. Neither Oxnard nor PH are unsafe cities as a general rule. Both are home to many, many retired persons who live happy lives. Ox/PH is a big area -- much bigger than Thousand Oaks. Broad-brush negative descriptions don't paint an accurate picture and have the effect of throwing out the baby with the bath water. My experienced 2¢.

[IC*Twins]

One of my neighbors rented a 1750sf 3b w/ loft and 21/2 baths for 2100.00 - so in the 2K per month range which is not bad because there are apts. out there 2/b for 1800.