San Clemente, Carlsbad or Ladera Ranch? (San Diego, Irvine: sale, real estate, renting)

[Chicago5]

Our family is looking to relocated from Chicago to San Clemente, Carlsbad or Ladera Ranch. We have 5 children under 11 and work out of our home. What town is the best being the most family friendly, access to shopping, good value for house size per sq foot and overall great family area? We love the outdoors, play sports, etc. Also what is the proximity to San Diego and LA?

[Charles]

Renting or buying? Budget?
Type of home you are looking for? Age? Size, yard?

[Chicago5]

buy, 600-750K, our children are under 11. also, any info about the quality of schools in these areas would be wonderful. thx!!

[Charles]

I am very familiar with Ladera, a little familiar with San Clemente (the inland neighborhoods like Talega, not at all with the beach areas), and not familiar with Carlsbad.

Ladera Ranch is the definition of Family Friendly, everything revolves around kids: AYSO, Pools, good schools, homework clubs, other sports leagues, bike trails, lots of parks, etc.

Best real estate tool is redfin.

Quick and dirty school performance can be mapped here:

School Performance Maps

Ladera is closer to the OC/LA metro than SC
Ladera HOA is around $200/month, Check Talega and Forster Ranch
Most schools in Ladera and the inland areas of SC are very good.
If you ever have to hustle for jobs, SC is sort of halfway between the LA area and the SD area so that gives you two commutable options. (I live right next to Ladera and I could make it to north SD in a little over an hour in a pinch for a job).

Here's a bunch of other stuff that will come in handy:

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

[Chicago5]

This is fantastic information! Thank you so much!! For family friendly, would you say Ladera Ranch is probably the better option?

[Charles]

Originally Posted by Chicago5

This is fantastic information! Thank you so much!! For family friendly, would you say Ladera Ranch is probably the better option?

I can't say because I'm not that familiar with the other places but my guess is those two I mentioned in SC are very family friendly too.

We looked at Talega and the biggest drawback was its distance from my job (and future jobs) in the LA metro. It seems a person could find Talega-like housing further north (LN, MV, Irvine, Ladera, Coto) without having to drive that far south. But your situation is a little different. I have to factor in commuting and I'm doing 52 miles one way right now as it is.

It may come down to what houses are available when you buy. For example, when we were ready to buy we were going to buy the first house that we liked in either RSM, Ladera, Mission Viejo, or Las Flores. Finally a standard sale cul de sac home became available in Las Flores so we bought it. We could have easily bought in RSM or Ladera or Mission Viejo.

[pacific2]

Originally Posted by Chicago5

This is fantastic information! Thank you so much!! For family friendly, would you say Ladera Ranch is probably the better option?

Most South County communities, including San Clemente, are family friendly. It seems, from what I’ve read, that Ladera Ranch has more “bling,” or extras when it comes to amenities for kids. If it matters, San Clemente is a coastal town, while Ladera is near-coastal.

[loveorangecounty]

I live in Ladera Ranch and love it. It is very family friendly and has a strong community feel. I'm not too familiar with San Clemente but I would guess it is very nice. I would think Talega is similar to Ladera regarding being family friendly. San Clemente and Ladera Ranch are both in the Capo Unified School District. It definatly has had it's issues in the past few years but still maintains great test scores and strong parent involvement. If you end up in Ladera be aware that our middle school is split between 2 high schools, Tesoro and San Juan Hills. Personally I would not send my kids to San Juan Hills but many do. If that concerns you be sure to buy in an area that is zoned for Tesoro (north side of Ladera). The only experience I have had with Carlsbad is a very good friend moved from Ladera to a very good area in Carlsbad. She claimed their schools were good but not as good as Ladera. Also Ladera is very walkable. If the kids want to ride their bikes up to CVS for a candy bar it is totally doable. They did not find that option in Carlsbad. Other areas to consider are Las Flores, Ranch Santa Margarita and Mission Viejo.

[pacific2]

I imagine your list is growing, but you might want to check-out Dana Point, another small coastal town.

[VeronikaW]

I live in Aliso Viejo and it is really nice and family friendly. There are lots of parks and trails and activities for kids. However, Ladera is the one place I'd really like to live because of the offering for kids.