Live in OC, Work in Commerce (Long Beach, Huntington Beach: appointed, apartments, to rent)

[New2Cali]

Long story short....moving from Miami FL to California. Hubby's company wants to move him to the Commerce office. We have 2 kids (5 and 1) and 2 dogs.

Today is Day 5 of our 9 day trip to S. California. We stayed in West Hollywood for 4 days and my husband's commute to Commerce took him max. 40 mins in traffic. But Santa Monica Blvd is a mess in traffic (even on weekends) and it’s not very family oriented.

Now we are in Costa Mesa across South Coast Plaza and tomorrow he will start his commute from out here.

Out of all the places we visited so far to live, the following we liked a lot and will go back to Miami and decide

- Irvine : Commute will be 40 miles each way. We checked out the Santa Maria apartments which were nice and the surrounding areas. Very good place for families with kids. Could get a nice 3 bedroom home with backyard for $3,500 and less. May be too quiet for us.

- Huntington Beach : Commute is 30 miles. Our agent said will take max. 40 mins in traffic using the 605/405/5 option. We loved the homes on Pacific Coast Hwy between goldenwest and beach blvd. Much newer and area is very lively. Saw some nice layouts for $3,500, one block to beach and behind the Hyatt hotel. Have also very good school in the 9/10 ratings. The Pier was very crowded on the weekend. Bella Terra mall was very nice. Rush Hour traffic is not crazy on PCH like in West Hollywood . So far my favorite place to live.

- Fullerton: Commute is 20 miles away. Clearly the closet to his work and Amerige heights Community was very beautiful. Walking to a 10 rated school and we are checking the homes @ amerige heights on Friday with another agent. Homes are little more expensive to rent in the $3,500 - $4,500 range but the sq ft is huge and the whole community looked nice when we took a drive there today. My 2nd favorite place.

We also visited Long Beach and Seal Beach which were nice by the beach but decided to pass on those and focus on the 3 above.

What does everyone think of Fullerton and Amerige heights community? I read it’s full of Koreans which does not bother us at all. But I also read about gangs in Fullerton?

P.S : I have to say that the traffic in LA/OC is one of the worst i have ever seen .....and we have lived in Toronto, NYC and Miami and nothing comes close....well maybe NYC! All the freeways especially the 5 and 405 are a mess even on weekends. The only one that looked respectable was the 605.

[missionhome]

Honestly, go with your gut. If you have that feeling that Huntington Beach is the "place" for you, then I say go with that. There is no reason to try to force yourself into liking Fullerton more.

[MisterDuke]

Fullerton is good. That is one of the safer, newer neighborhoods. The gang areas are south of the railroad tracks, so you would be pretty far away.

[slang75]

Could he use the train? Metrolink stops in Commerce. If he could walk to work/bike from the train it might make Fullerton or Irvine more appealing.

My 2 cents. We looked at Fullerton a bit last year. It's just too spotty for what we would have to pay to live there. Plus it's far from the beach and hotter in the summers. For just a little more we stayed in Irvine. It is dull and bland. It's also safe, has good schools and is diverse. If it were only between Fullerton and Irvine, given what you can afford, Irvine would be the winner. I don't know much about Huntington Beach.

Good luck in your search.

[New2Cali]

Thanks everyone for your comments. He did the commute from Costa Mesa to Commerce (27 miles) this morning in 35 mins. Left for work at 9:15am and the 405/605/5 were not busy at all. Left work at 7:30pm and was back at the hotel at 8:10pm.
He said he tried to do the Commerce metrolink walk (1.4 miles) at lunch break this afternoon but the area looked very shady and he turned around after 2 blocks. You save 20 mins living in Fullerton than Irvine when taking the metrolink to Commerce. The problem is that the last train is 5:54pm.
Since we have 2 kids, Irvine does look like the best place to raise a family. I understand the quietness but it has great schools/parks and is much peaceful than Huntington beach etc. We are looking at 4 homes in Amerige Heights-Fullerton on Friday and will go back to Miami and figure out where we eventually want to move. Since we will be in Corporate Housing for 3 months, gives us some time to spare.

[missionhome]

Originally Posted by New2Cali

Thanks everyone for your comments. He did the commute from Costa Mesa to Commerce (27 miles) this morning in 35 mins. Left for work at 9:15am and the 405/605/5 were not busy at all. Left work at 7:30pm and was back at the hotel at 8:10pm.
He said he tried to do the Commerce metrolink walk (1.4 miles) at lunch break this afternoon but the area looked very shady and he turned around after 2 blocks. You save 20 mins living in Fullerton than Irvine when taking the metrolink to Commerce. The problem is that the last train is 5:54pm.
Since we have 2 kids, Irvine does look like the best place to raise a family. I understand the quietness but it has great schools/parks and is much peaceful than Huntington beach etc. We are looking at 4 homes in Amerige Heights-Fullerton on Friday and will go back to Miami and figure out where we eventually want to move. Since we will be in Corporate Housing for 3 months, gives us some time to spare.

Sounds like you are doing some great research and personal tests are the best. Let us know what you decide and always keep the commute factor as a top priority.

[BRinSM]

fullerton is a great city and doesn't get that hot as others have mentioned. it won't have the mild coastal temperatures of the beach cities, but rarely does it get above 100. i went to college there for 5 years, so trust me, i know. people try to discount fullerton because it's in north county, but i actually prefer north county to south county, especially when commuting to commerce.

the 5 can be a rough freeway, especially if commuting all the way from irvine. i wouldn't do that to myself or my family, but that is just me. unfortunately, commerce doesn't really have any nicer, upper middle class homes anywhere nearby, so you'll have to commute, but fullerton is a great option.the only other option i can think of for you that is anywhere near commerce is south pasadena, but that will certainly be even more expensive.

[New2Cali]

As for Irvine, we want to live close to the 405. Even though my husband's exit is Eastern Ave/Atlantic Blvd on the I-5, he said its faster for him to get to work taking the 405 to 605 to 5. Maximum time 45 mins.
We also think it could be with the schools being out that its taking him only that amount of time to work. We hope we are wrong

[EscapeCalifornia]

Irvine is nice but why not look into Rossmoor/Los Alamitos area? It's a heck of a lot closer to work for your husband and still a nice area with good schools. It's hard to make a decision based on one test drive when traffic is so unpredictable here. I often go up the 405 and 605 to Santa Fe Springs (Telegraph exit off 605) and can't tell you how many times I've been stuck in bumper to bumper traffic at 10:00am or 2:00pm when you would expect it to be free flowing. So the closer to work, the better. You're right about the 405 being better than the 5 though. Avoid the 5 at all costs. It's pretty much a permanent traffic jam from Buena Park north.

[MisterDuke]

Originally Posted by New2Cali

As for Irvine, we want to live close to the 405. Even though my husband's exit is Eastern Ave/Atlantic Blvd on the I-5, he said its faster for him to get to work taking the 405 to 605 to 5. Maximum time 45 mins.

If your plan is based on the premise that you will be able to travel 40 miles in 45 minutes during each commute, I think you are going to be disappointed by the reality. Please reconsider. This is the reason our traffic is so awful.

You can take a bike on the Metrolink and use that to get from the station to work. You can also look into vanpools/carpools to get from the station to work. He might also arrange something on his own, to have a co-worker at his business pick him up on the way into work. There may be other people at the business who arrive at the station at the same time he does.