Bell Canyon equivalent in Orange county (Anaheim, Glendale: appointed, renting, custom home)

[calves2997]

I am looking to move to the LA area. I have 4 different employment offers: 2 are in the SFV ( Van Nuys and Glendale) and 2 are in OC ( Newport Beach and Mission Viejo). I looked at several houses in Bell canyon which I really liked. Because of this I am inclinied to take the offer from Van Nuys over the others.
Is there anything comparable to Bell canyon (that is large custom homes on large parcels of land) in the OC or southern LA county? I am looking at 2500+ SF homes with 4 brs.
Any information is appreciated!

[Charles]

Buying or renting? What is your housing budget?

[calves2997]

Buying, budget is up to 1.3 M.

[missionhome]

For something that feels secluded and almost rural with large lots, equestrian communities, etc... in South Orange County near Mission Viejo: go with San Juan Capistrano.

It has a ton of history as the oldest residential community in ALL of California. The community has a historic downtown area, Mission San Juan Capistrano, and equestrian trails throughout with large lots. Plus, it is just minutes from the beaches of Dana Point and San Clemente, adjacent to Mission Viejo and even close to Irvine. It really is a rural feeling community surrounded by the more developed suburbs of Orange County.

Here is a sample listing in your price range:
27472 Silver Creek Dr, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675 | MLS# S566660

[bhcompy]

I'll throw a few out there.. Parts of Newport Coast/Crystal Cove, portions of Anaheim Hills, Santiago Canyon area, Silverado, Trabuco Hills. A drive down Santiago Canyon Rd should give you plenty of options

[Charles]

Originally Posted by missionhome

For something that feels secluded and almost rural with large lots, equestrian communities, etc... in South Orange County near Mission Viejo: go with San Juan Capistrano.

It has a ton of history as the oldest residential community in ALL of California. The community has a historic downtown area, Mission San Juan Capistrano, and equestrian trails throughout with large lots. Plus, it is just minutes from the beaches of Dana Point and San Clemente, adjacent to Mission Viejo and even close to Irvine. It really is a rural feeling community surrounded by the more developed suburbs of Orange County.

Here is a sample listing in your price range:
27472 Silver Creek Dr, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675 | MLS# S566660

This house referenced above, going for $1.2M now, sold for $40K in 1989. That's forty thousand dollars.

[calves2997]

Looks just like the area I am looking for. How is the school district rated?
How safe is the area?

[Charles]

Check out this thread I started with some really good tools:

http://www.city-data.com/forum/orang...ing-tools.html

School Performance Maps

[bhcompy]

Originally Posted by Charles

This house referenced above, going for $1.2M now, sold for $40K in 1989. That's forty thousand dollars.

Kind of like the house my former neighbors bought in Mission Viejo shortly after that area was developed by MV Co. Even in this down time it's appreciated some 600% since purchase

[missionhome]

Originally Posted by calves2997

Looks just like the area I am looking for. How is the school district rated?
How safe is the area?

San Juan Capistrano is a fairly safe community, although there is gang activity in the area located around downtown. Those neighborhoods in particular aren't so great. In reality, there are two San Juan Capistranos. The affluent San Juan that lives in the mansions and estates in the hillsides, and the poor San Juan that lives in the valley and is largely immigrants.

Also, SJC is part of the Capistrano Unified School District. It is a good large school district with many good schools, but with its large size (55,000 students) inevitably has some lower performing schools due to covering a diverse set of communities. The district is often in the media for its highly controversial board and a series of recent recalls that appointed new leadership. The schools of CUSD are in general pretty good, but San Juan is one of the districts lower performing areas school wise. The home shown attends Ambuehl Elementary with an API of 834 and is BY FAR the best school in San Juan Capistrano and unsurpirsinly has the most affluent neighborhoods. In comparison, Round Meadow for Bell Canyon has an API of 884.

The biggest difference is at middle school, where many San Juan parents go for private school. Marco Forester combines the students from all SJC elementary schools into one. Alice C. Stelle Middle School for Bell Canyon is an impressive 899. Marco Forester Middle in San Juan is still below the 800 state goal, stuck at 778.

I give the school edge to Bell Canyon for sure. San Juan schools are better than the state average, but the state average is pretty horrible.