looking to move between Dana Point and San Clemente, need advice. (Mission Viejo: for sale, real estate)

[susan822]

Some questions, what is the deal with the place called Talega? It seems there are lots of foreclosures and such, is this a safe place to buy? Also a place called the Reserve, are these good locations to live? What are some neighborhoods closer to the beach that are safe? What is the difference in the culture and lifestyle in San Clemente, Capistrano Beach and Dana Point?

[missionhome]

It isn't necessarily safe to buy anywhere in the USA right now with prices falling and the market so unstable. Who knows how things could be a month from now in this economy. However things seem to be hitting a bottom with real estate a little.

Talega and the Reserve are both nice neighborhoods if you like master planned communities with lots of kids and new homes. Capistrano Beach is part of the city of Dana Point. It isn't all that different, though actually more like San Clemente in character. San Clemente has a nice downtown, Dana Point has more shops spread randomly throughout. Dana has the huge resort like "Monarch Beach" area near the coast around the Ritz Carlton and St. Regis and then some more beach like dense neighborhoods with surf boards all around. San Clemente is a laid back vibe although Talega seems a little more "keep up with the Joneses" than coastal San Clemente. The only coastal area to avoid is around Las Palmas Elementary, but the other coastal neighborhoods are pretty. Capistrano Beach is really nice and established for example.

Do you have kids and are schools an issue?
Commute concerns?
Looking for a retirement atmosphere, lots of kids, new, old, etc....?
Certain price for a home?

[ROGER_NJ_T]

I am new to this type of communication..so bear with me!
My wife & I are looking to sort out communities in the area between north San diego & way south of LA. We don't know much about the area, but on some visits really liked the Dana point +/- 10 miles on the coast.
We plan a trip down there mid May this year. I am looking for ideas of communities that have good facilities, golf, rec stuff etc. Would like to be somewhat near the coast. Thinking about individual houses not at the ulta high price range!
So, if some one can chat about this Thanks

[susan822]

Let us know what you find out, we are looking also. We went there and visited, we loved Dana Point but have not found the perfect place yet, we also want amenities. We did meet some very nice people at the Dana Point West Yacht Club, the Restaurant called White Horses in San Clemente and several other places. Housing just seems to be over the top even still as far as price goes. We did meet a very nice Realtor, Suzanne Hefni-Pyle, she only helps buyers and does not work with sellers, if we decide to move there we thought she may be good to work with.

[Luv4ThePaws]

I grew up in Dana Point and spent 20 years there until I moved to Charlotte, NC a few years ago for a lower cost of living. I guess I never appreciated the beauty of it growing up since it surrounded me every day! When you are raised somewhere, you just sort of take it as what it is and it always made me laugh when people wanted to visit or move to the town I lived in! Now that I moved away, I understand the appeal!! I do miss the harbor, and that is my favorite thing about DP as opposed to SC (San Clemente). My mom and I would go walking at the harbor every night with our dog, a quick 5 minute car trip from our house and it is a lovely, safe place to walk around. She still goes by herself, as my dad passed away, and she does not ever feel unsafe or uncomfortable walking around at dusk, which is something I can't do in many parts of the area I live in now! DP has the harbor and the several large resorts as its main draw whereas SC is more of a true beachy, laid-back surfer kind of town with the shops down off Del Mar and stuff. It has a great, sorta eclectic vibe to it and it has a slightly younger feel. There are some areas in SC that have become rundown and whole blocks of the city are pretty much Mexican immigrant housing, but you are able to find cheaper homes for sale or rent in those areas. That is where the crime tends to be associated, although I am not trying to start anything on here about that whole subject!! Just passing along what I know, as my dad was a police officer and patrolled those areas every day! You can't live in SoCal and not deal with that whole issue, anyhow, and there are some more run-down areas of DP as well the closer you get to San Juan Capistrano and such. But, "run-down" is still extremely nice compared to "run-down" in other parts of the country!! You are talking about the average home/condo price being $950,000 in both of these cities, so, trust me- both areas are going to be idyllic, especially if you are coming from a large, bustling and dirty city!!

Their is a lot of traffic on the major freeways if you are going to be commuting anywhere, but the side streets flow pretty easy outside of rush hour times. There is a lot more smog than there was 20 years ago. When my parents moved to DP in 1970 it was a crystal blue sky with cows roaming and hardly any housing! That has definately changed! More people means more cars and that means more smog, but being so close to the coast, if there is a breeze, it will clear it away nicely. If you have kids, the schools were always fine for me and I took alot of AP (advanced placement), college prep and honors classes which was great, since I know of many other kids who didn't have as many offered at their schools. It was not uncommon to have friends whose parents bought them a BMW or Mercedes when they turned 16 and there was a lot of pressure to have the next best thing. I can't imagine it now, with so many new gadgets and stuff that I am sure a lot of the kids have! Simply put, it never ceased to amaze me the lengths some parents would go to buy their kids' love and not teach them the value of hard work. My high school was definately not the type of school where kids worked in the summer to save up for things, and that was hard to deal with, since I come from much more realistic parents and I never cared for that lifestyle!

Laguna Niguel has some nice areas to live and you can find more affordable housing than either DP or SC. Depending on where you are in Laguna Niguel, you can be in DP in ten minutes, usually fifteen or twenty, so it's not a bad area to look if you still want to be close to the coast but can't afford the prices. I have several friends who, as young families, want to stay in the area but can't afford a million dollar house in DP! So, they tend to look in Laguna Niguel, Aliso Viejo, Mission Viejo, etc. and can find a townhouse for $300,000 or a small home for $400,000. You can always find homes that need updating in the area. SO many of the developments were built in the 1960s and 1970s, and many haven't been modernized. If you are handy and can do a lot of the work yourself, oftentimes you can get a home in DP or SC, if that is truly where you desire to live, and you can get a much better price on it than a home that has had everything done to it. I prefer the older neighborhoods anyhow, as opposed to many of the master-planned communities that have overtaken parts of SC. Especially if you are looking to retire, I would consider an older neighborhood with a little bit more room between the houses and not so many young families. Even as a young gal myself, there are only so many screaming kids at the pool that I can take! Not to say that the master-planned ones are bad- they just tend to be too cookie-cutter and crowded for my tastes.

Hope this helps!! I was just a tad nostalgic tonight and wanted to check out some DP pics on city-data when I saw this forum. Hopefully this helps somebody!!!

P.S. Oh, and termites can be a problem, so make sure to get a home inspection before you buy. Beware also of the homes built too close to the cliffs. Mudslides are very common after heavy rain and the constant erosion of the soil. Many homes have been lost along Pacific Coast Hwy due to that, so make sure you don't buy any home too close to the edge! I am sure if you do a seach on-line, you could see pictures and stuff of past incidents. My dad took me to see some condemned homes one time when I was young and it was horrible. Literally, half of the house would be down the hill and it was devastating.

[missionhome]

^^^^
Excellent information. You really know your stuff on Dana Point and San Clemente!!! I think you hit it right on the nail.

[Luv4ThePaws]

Thanks, missionhome! I appreciate your kind words! There is so much more that can be said, but I didn't go into it! Restaurants, shopping, more in depth on schools, community events, etc.- it seems like there is a lot to take into account when you are considering a place to move to! Of course, if anyone has specific questions, you can DM me and I will try and answer them for you!