Bay Area family thinking of a move to O.C.--suggestions of towns? (San Francisco: cul-de-sac)

[LisainCalifornia]

Hello all,
I am hoping for some advice. I know you are all the people to ask

My husband is considering a job in Irvine. We currently live in the Bay Area--in a small town outside S.F. (Moraga, CA). We are use to the high cost of living and all that is involved with living in California. Houses in our neighborhood sell for about 900,000+--but these are not "fancy" houses. Picture a typical 4 bedroom ranch house built in 1953. Our town is known for it's rolling hills, non-existent crime rate, and excellent schools (ranked 99th percentile). This is a very family focused town with some very nice homes, but lots of typical "modest" homes as well.

We are probably one of the only Democrats living in this town--it is a Republican hotspot in the Bay Area. That has been a bit difficult, as we moved from living in San Francisco for many years and the culture shock was pretty severe. We have adjusted, though--and know that is what we will be moving to in the O.C. as well.

We are looking for a nice town to live in that is safe and good for families. Good schools are a must, and we would like a house a little bigger than the one we currently have. Our home is 1899 square feet, but we have 3 growing kids and could use more room. I would like a really nice, neat neighborhood with walking paths and where kids play outside easily and ride their bikes. Right now my kids play outside on our cul-de-sac with all the neighborhood kids till dark each night, and that is wonderful for them. I would hope we could find something like that for them again.

Any suggestions for me?
Thanks,
Lisa

[EscapeCalifornia]

Pretty much anywhere in south OC from Irvine on down would fit the bill. Irvine, Lake Forest, and Mission Viejo are all very good places to live. Come down for the weekend and have a look around.

[OC Investor2]

Originally Posted by LisainCalifornia

Hello all,
Our town is known for it's rolling hills, non-existent crime rate, and excellent schools (ranked 99th percentile). This is a very family focused town with some very nice homes, but lots of typical "modest" homes as well.

We are probably one of the only Democrats living in this town--it is a Republican hotspot in the Bay Area. That has been a bit difficult, as we moved from living in San Francisco for many years and the culture shock was pretty severe. We have adjusted, though--and know that is what we will be moving to in the O.C. as well.

We are looking for a nice town to live in that is safe and good for families. Good schools are a must, and we would like a house a little bigger than the one we currently have. Our home is 1899 square feet, but we have 3 growing kids and could use more room. I would like a really nice, neat neighborhood with walking paths and where kids play outside easily and ride their bikes. Right now my kids play outside on our cul-de-sac with all the neighborhood kids till dark each night, and that is wonderful for them. I would hope we could find something like that for them again.

Any suggestions for me?
Thanks,
Lisa

You just described pretty much all of South Orange County.

You could look anywhere from Irvine south down the 5 and find the exact same thing. A few more specifics on what your looking for & maybe we can help you narrow it down.

I did'nt know there were any republican hot spots in the bay area.....

[LisainCalifornia]

Originally Posted by OC Investor2

I did'nt know there were any republican hot spots in the bay area.....

Oh yeah--the town right next to us (Orinda) is also very republican dominated, but not as much as Moraga, where we live. I am not necessarily anti-republican, but it can make you feel like an alien living amongst earthlings when you are the only Obama supporter in a five mile radius. I think we became the town freaks when we put our "Another Family for Peace" bumper sticker on our minivan 5 years ago---it was Bush/Cheney as far as the eye could see at that point. I was the one smiling to myself on Nov. 5th, while the other patrons at Safeway market were consoling each other. It makes for an interesting life experience.

Anyway, here is what we are looking for:

4+ bedrooms
Safe community for kids
Good Schools
Cute downtown area
Clean
Very little crime
Walking paths and commuity pools

I don't know much about Mission Viejo. I will have to check it out. How about Newport Beach? Or even Irvine itself?
Thanks,
Lisa

[LisainCalifornia]

Thank you for the suggestion of Mission Viejo--I just have been looking online and it looks great!

[missionhome]

Mission Viejo, Laguna Niguel, RSM, area is similar to the San Ramon, Livermore, Pleasanton area of the Bay Area. If you like that area, you will most likely like south OC. However, the only area with a cute downtown would be San Juan Capistrano where schools aren't desireable. It is only a short drive away from the other communities. You might like the coastal city of San Clemente. Lots of charm there, beautiful beaches, and a nice downtown. You have your pick of brand new (Talega development) or older (closer to coast area) in San Clemente.

PLEASE look at the "Pictures of Orange County thread" at the top of the Orange County subforum to see pictures of the South Orange County communities. Irvine and Newport Beach are VERY nice also, but I'm not as much the "specialist" on those areas, so I'm sure someone else will chime in for those cities.

Best match in Mission Viejo:
I think a home in the community of Canyon Crest in Mission Viejo fits your needs. The community is guard gated and has a great list of ammenities such as pools and tennis courts, is located above stunning Florence Joyner Olympic Park, and is just off the Lake Mission Viejo walk/jog route. Index-Canyon Estates Community Association
Here is a nice sample listing: 22125 Canyon Crest Dr, Mission Viejo, CA | California Real Estate | Listing Information (http://www.prudentialcal.com/Listing/ListingDetail.aspx?Search=23ecc8cf-cf6c-429b-a49b-7e26d9fb8c34&Listing=32622030&IRPAgentID=&Image=1& First=1&Last=10&pagesize=10&SearchType=city&Listin gDistrictTypeID=&FirstLetter=&Sort=6&Cookies=&UseC olorBar=false - broken link)
Love this kitchen in this house by the way. School attendance is Capistrano Unified: Castille Elementary (API=871, 9/10 state rank), Newhart Middle (API=840, 9/10 rank), Capistrano Valley High (API=812, 9/10 rank).

Laguna Niguel:
I like homes in the Bear Brand Ridge community. Very clean neighborhood with upscale homes close to the ocean and shopping. http://www.theoccoastalgroup.com/Lag...al-Estate.html

Here is a nice sample home to show what there is in Laguna Niguel. Prices have come down in this upscale city. This type of home used to sell for around 1.6 million dollars, but it is now down to 900k which is great news for you.
http://www.prudentialcal.com/Listing...ColorBar=false
School attendance is in Capistrano Unified to: George White Elementary (API=865, state rank=9/10), Niguel Hills Middle School (837, state rank=9/10), Dana Hills High School (API=825, state rank=10/10)

[OC Investor2]

Anyway, here is what we are looking for:

4+ bedrooms
Safe community for kids
Good Schools
Cute downtown area
Clean
Very little crime
Walking paths and commuity pools

I don't know much about Mission Viejo. I will have to check it out. How about Newport Beach? Or even Irvine itself?
Thanks,
Lisa

You can easily get into a 4BR in Irvine, Mission V. Foothill ranch, Rancho Santa Margarita, etc. for 700-800k. All areas are very family friendly. There are parts of South county where it almost seems like having kids is a requirement in the HOA's.

Irvine Schools are excellent & there are several excellent schools in M.V. & the rest of south county as well. There are some spots that are served by some individually mediocre schools, but these are the exception. Other members of the forum have better advice to offer on M.V. Schools. Check some of Missionhomes' previous postings in the forum.

Mission Viejo & Irvine in particular are "master planned communties" & are chock full of trails, parks etc. that allow residents to take advantage of the weather. In Irvine most areas have HOA run pools. The trade off is they really don't offer a quaint downtown experience like a say a Pleasanton has. They really are more suburban/ exurban enviroments. The only thing close to a Pleasanton type downtown is further south in San Juan Capistrano and to a lesser extent San Clemente. The Corona Del Mar area of Newport has it as does Laguna Beach, but those areas are $1MM + and come with a whole diffent set of issues and advantages apart from the rest of South County.

As for Crime, Irvine & south county are very safe. M.V. & Irvine consistantly appear in the "america's safest city's" lists. I joke with my wife that the IPD is so bored they call out the swat team everytime a cat gets stuck in a tree. There are a some older parts of SJC & San Clemente that have a few gang problems, but it is minor compared to a Santa Ana or Garden Grove.

Personally, I'm partail to Irvine. Its a bit more diverse - big Asian, persian, middle eastern & jewish communities. It also is more central to OC and offers easier access to LA & the inland empire The rest of South county is more geographically isolated, lying between the hills of the Cleveland Nat'l forrest & the Ocean. Irvine has a bigger job base and is home to many of the areas big empoyers. The schools are excellent as a master planned community it has tons of parks, pools & amenities for my family.

At the end of the day, it's kind of splitting hairs. South OC is a pretty good place to live & raise a family and will deliver on most of what you are looking for no matter where you end up.

Editted to add: 1 last thought. Traffic does suck here, and your quality of life is inverse to the amount of time you spend commuting. So depending on where your hubby ends up & where you want to go on a day to day basis, commute times can be a big tiebraker in deciding where to live.

[LisainCalifornia]

Thanks so much Missionhome and OCInvestor for those great detalied posts! That is so helpful. I just looked through the pictures thread.

I am off to look up the places you both mentioned.

Take care,
Lisa