Which place to move to from 91601 ZIP in SFV? (Santa Clarita: work, new home)

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Our house in North Hollywood is WAAY too small for us. (900 sq.ft., 2+1 w/ family of 3!) There's only one person working, who can retire soon. We've been wanting to move, and have looked at the Antelope Valley (yuck!), and Santa Clarita (Fair Oaks Ranch, Stetson Ranch, Sienna Hills @ Plum Canyon--nice, but I don't think we could afford it). We are only looking for a new/newer house that's less than 5 years old. Recently, I've taken a lot of interest in the Inland Empire, and have singled out a few new commuities there that we're planning to go out and take a look at, but I want some "real-world" feedback on them first, seeing as they're all at least 1.5 to 2 hours away from where we are.

Here's the places that've caught my eye:

*Pardee's Tournament Hills in Beaumont (have you seen their latest ads in the New Homes Guide? Looks gorgeous, but I don't know...)

*Fairway Canyon in Beaumont

*Heritage Lake in Menifee/Romoland (is it really in Romoland, or is it in Menifee?)

*Possibly Wolf Creek or Harveston in Temecula, but right now the places in Beaumont are REALLY appealling to me.

I'm ONLY looking for a TWO-story home, at least 2700 sq. ft., preferably more (the bigger, the better), larger lot size (over 5,000 sq. ft. is better). My price range is under $525,000. If anyone who lives in any of these areas can tell me about the overall atmosphere, what kind of retail shopping and food stores are there, weather, and crime incidences, I'd very much appreciate it. Schools don't matter-- no one in my household is young enough to attend anymore. We can't move right now, though (although I wish we could, so much)--our house needs a lot of work to make it saleable, and we have MOUNTAINS of clutter-- any ideas on that, as well?