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Moving to Laguna Beach for work. I realize there are homes for sale as much as $20,000,000, but I have heard it has a bit of a homeless, drug problem. Is that even true? Are there certain areas to avoid?
Moving to Laguna Beach for work. I realize there are homes for sale as much as $20,000,000, but I have heard it has a bit of a homeless, drug problem. Is that even true? Are there certain areas to avoid?
Laguna? You got to be kidding. No Laguna probably has a rare incident on the beach but is about as peaceful a place as you can find.
In any case, there are many homeless people by downtown who panhandle. Some sleep by the beach. I go downtown often and avoid them since I know where they congregate.
Laguna Beach's crime rate is lower than the national average. This is how it compares to neighboring cities:
Crime rate legend:
Very low (< 50) Low (50 - 199) Average (200 - 449) High (450 - 1000) Very high (> 1000)
See how dangerous Laguna Beach, CA is compared to nearest cities: (Note: Higher means more crime) Laguna Beach:
194.2 Dana Point:
139.2 Laguna Niguel:
80.9 Laguna Woods:
47.0 Aliso Viejo:
64.4 Laguna Hills:
128.2 San Juan Capistrano:
113.4 Mission Viejo:
78.8 Lake Forest:
102.4
By comparison, C-D lists Irvine (on a different page) at 89.4 and Newport Beach is at 151.7.
There are more homeless folks there than in surrounding towns, but LB residents don't seem to fear them and even offer services to help them out.
You are from the East Coast, but I don't know if you have ever lived in a large city? If so, I imagine you probably encountered the homeless, even those who may be aggressive panhandlers, and have some degree of street smarts.
It's not as if Laguna Beach is swarming with criminals, and it's actually a very pleasant place and popular tourist spot.
Still, thieves, most of whom are not homeless, like to follow the money. That may be why, low though it is, Laguna Beach's crime rate is higher than that of nearby cities.
Moving to Laguna Beach for work. I realize there are homes for sale as much as $20,000,000, but I have heard it has a bit of a homeless, drug problem. Is that even true? Are there certain areas to avoid?
Everyone is a jokester. Ah, I just LOVE Southern Californians!
Laguna Beach is not dangerous. Yes, there are homeless there -- they are not going to hurt you. In fact, buy a homeless person a cup of coffee in the morning or give one a little change everyday. Good for the soul. [And, no, they won't be mobbing you everyday after that. You'd be surprised. They're homeless, cold (in the winters) and they're hungry -- and yet they still have manners.]
I'm curious -- what job do you have there? You don't have to answer, of course.
I'm going to tell you what I tell everyone else: If you're out, after 10-11 p.m. (10 a.m in the winter and 1 p.m. - 12 a.m. in the summer), alone (or even with someone), and walking along the beach (or walking around town when only the bars are open) -- no, it's not particularly safe. But then it's not particularly safe anywhere after those hours.
You are going to LOVE Laguna Beach! [Maybe not during the summer. Traffic can get really bad around there during the summer.] I used to go down (from Tustin/Irvine), all year long, and all alone, just before daybreak in the mornings and sometimes at sunset and walk the beach. SO beautiful. (And NO ONE ever bothered me -- homeless or not.)
I now live in Albuquerque. I KNOW what dangerous is. Laguna Beach is not.
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Ah, I just LOVE Southern Californians! 
