Moving from Miami to California. Which city is best for my family?

[johnkeats]

Yes Long beach or LA are being the most best cities where can one can easily find good community along best schools nearby, though the cost may be little higher, where sometime money needs to be compromised for the sake of better life & security for your kids.

[rainmand]

Irvine - your two children will be able to attend the best schools in Orange County.

[writealicia]

Look into Long Beach. It's really changing in the last several years Blue line that was built and the Aquarium, art museum, etc! You have to look into SPECIFIC neighborhoods when lookin in Los Angeles and Long Beach. For example, in Long Beach, look into the Bixby Knolls or Belmont Shore/Belmont Heights areas. They have some good schools and some that have gifted programs and some charters.

TOrrance also has some good public/charter schools/private schools if you're looking for something in the South Bay.
Both Long Beach and Torrance have some not so great schools too-- You just have to do your research. Torrance is more cookie cutter except in certain areas (Hollywood Riviera neighborhood for example)
If your home budget is less than $750k then look into Long Beach or Torrance. If your budget is more, then certainly go for the higher priced areas that you mentioned in your post (You won't find a single family house for under $1 million in areas like San Clemente, Laguna Niguel, Palos Verdes).
Just make sure when moving to Los Angeles seek out the specific neighborhoods because really every city has its own neighborhoods that are very different from each other! That's the secret to living in LA! :-)
Avoid OC if your budget is under $1 mill and you're trying to avoid cookie cutter suburbia.