*Moving to OC in July - School advice needed! (Mission Viejo: house, buying)

[silken]

We are relocating to OC in July. Our two kids will be in 9th grade and 5th grade this fall. We have been looking at Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel and Aliso Viejo. How are these areas in terms of raising kids and getting a house around 800K of 3 bedroom/2bath, with yard.

From the map, I see these two high schools - any insight of these two ?
-Aliso Niguel High
-Laguna Hills High

Also for middle school - any thoughts on these?
- La Paz Intermediate school
- Aliso Viejo middle school
- Don Juan Avila Middle school

Thank you so much!

[mrwumpus]

I recommend using Niche.com for actual HS reviews, but it works for stats on middle school too.

Have you looked at nearby Rancho Santa Margarita? It's more isolated away from the freeway but feels more cozy and less sprawled in my opinion. Probably a bit pricier though.

[DKM]

Aliso has better schools than Laguna Hills with prices to match. Both Aliso middle schools are equally as good from the research I've done, Don Juan Avila has slightly better scores...A bit further away: Las Flores is very good.

[saibot]

Isn't La Paz in Mission Viejo?

You can't go wrong with any of the cities you mentioned, plus RSM and Mission Viejo. You can find a house with your budget. Leaving the schools aside (you can look them up, but I think most schools around here are pretty good), it comes down more to things like how close do you want to be to the beach and freeways, exactly how big/how new the house will be, etc.

[pacific2]

Originally Posted by silken

We are relocating to OC in July. Our two kids will be in 9th grade and 5th grade this fall. We have been looking at Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel and Aliso Viejo. How are these areas in terms of raising kids and getting a house around 800K of 3 bedroom/2bath, with yard.

From the map, I see these two high schools - any insight of these two ?
-Aliso Niguel High
-Laguna Hills High

Also for middle school - any thoughts on these?
- La Paz Intermediate school
- Aliso Viejo middle school
- Don Juan Avila Middle school

Thank you so much!

I have no personal experience with the schools in Aliso Viejo, but the city is very kid-friendly. You might want to add Rancho Santa Margarita and Ladera Ranch to your search.

[pacific2]

Originally Posted by mrwumpus

I recommend using Niche.com for actual HS reviews, but it works for stats on middle school too.

Have you looked at nearby Rancho Santa Margarita? It's more isolated away from the freeway but feels more cozy and less sprawled in my opinion. Probably a bit pricier though.

I'm not sure how you are using the term "sprawl," but Aliso Viejo does not fit this definition:

Urban sprawl or suburban sprawl describes the expansion of human populations away from central urban areas into low-density, monofunctional and usually car-dependent communities, in a process called suburbanization.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_sprawl

Aliso is a very high density town of 50,000 people who live in about 7.47 sq miles. Town Center, the city's core, is no more than 2 miles from any AV residence.

[LuvSouthOC]

Originally Posted by silken

We are relocating to OC in July. Our two kids will be in 9th grade and 5th grade this fall. We have been looking at Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel and Aliso Viejo. How are these areas in terms of raising kids and getting a house around 800K of 3 bedroom/2bath, with yard.

From the map, I see these two high schools - any insight of these two ?
-Aliso Niguel High
-Laguna Hills High

Also for middle school - any thoughts on these?
- La Paz Intermediate school
- Aliso Viejo middle school
- Don Juan Avila Middle school

Thank you so much!

Consider Dana Hills High and Niguel Middle School too if living in southern Laguna Niguel.

[silken]

Thank you so much for the input, much appreciated! I'll expand the search to include north of I-5 area and Dana point as well.

[RosieSD]

Originally Posted by silken

Thank you so much for the input, much appreciated! I'll expand the search to include north of I-5 area and Dana point as well.

Tip: call each high school's counseling office, tell them you are considering buying in the area, and ask if they can send you a copy of the school's Profile. This is a report that schools send to colleges when students apply. For parents, the Profiles will tell you about SAT scores, the curriculum, number of Advanced Placement courses, and where students are admitted to college. The profiles allow you to compare apples to apples, and also get a sense of how the high schools present themselves to colleges.

I would also suggest calling the high school that your kids' would attend if you stayed in your current town, so that you have a baseline for comparison.

Many high schools these days post their profiles on their websites, usually under the Guidance/Counseling section. But, if you call the counseling office, you may get to talk with one of the counselors about other things, such as how your son's middle school prep will match with the way the school places kids in AP courses, and any general academic questions you may have.

[LuvSouthOC]

Originally Posted by silken

Thank you so much for the input, much appreciated! I'll expand the search to include north of I-5 area and Dana point as well.

Dana Hills High serves Dana Point and south Laguna Niguel.