Suggestions for moving to the Yucaipa/Moreno Valley/Woodcrest area? (San Francisco: real estate market, crime)

[ludwig72]

Hi; I just accepted a job in Moreno Valley, but I'm not sure I want to move my family to a place where I wouldn't want to be out at night except in some little enclave in the northwest or southeast corner of town. So I'm looking at Yucaipa, Calimesa, Cherry Valley, Woodcrest, maybe south Redlands or the southeast fringe of Riverside. My questions are these:

1) How much does the air quality improve as you move from Redlands or Riverside to the east and southeast? And how much has air quality in these areas improved over the last decade?

2) Which of these towns have made efforts to ensure that their schools, businesses, and newer homes are as prepared as possible for a moderate to large earthquake?

3) It appears that the further south one moves from the San Andreas Fault (which runs along the north edge of Redlands and Yucaipa), the less dramatic would be the shaking from a major quake. However, the further south one moves the hotter the summers are as well. Are there safe towns or neighborhoods in this area that have a happy medium between seismic hazard and summer heat? I know there's such a thing as air conditioning, but I'd rather not be a slave to it for three months a year.

Thanks!

[that1guy]

My family has lived in Moreno Valley for 20 years. In all that time (NW of town) it's been nice. 92557's average family income is over 70k with a population of 80k or so. The crime is low. The SE of town has an average family income that is higher with a large population as well. Yes, the central part of town is not so great, but honestly...there is never a time to go to said part of town.

There really is nothing wrong with Moreno Valley. Don't commute if you don't have to.

Also, as for a city prepared for a large earthquake...Moreno Valley would win since it is the newest city.

[mikelovato]

That1guy is right on, NW Moreno Valley and SE are nice places. NW Moreno Valley and East Riverside/Canyon Springs areas have lots of shopping as well.

Orangecrest and Woodcrest are nice areas as well. Orangecrest is a little closer in to Moreno Valley and consists of newer suburban type construction. Woodcrest is going to add a little to your commute and consists of bigger lots and a little more rural feel. Our family lives just outside downtown Riverside and really likes our location.

As far as your heat/AC question - if you want to be within a decent commute of Moreno Valley you're going to definitely deal with hot summer weather. Most of us in the area are just used to it and use the AC pretty decently throughout the summer.

[gthorson]

A couple of comments:

1) Yucaipa has some advantages. The nights cool off more in the summer, making the use of a whole house fan much more economical and pleasant than AC.

2) There may be less smog in Yucaipa due to its higher elevation.

3) Don't forget to consider the soil type as much as the distance from the San Andreas. It might be an even more important factor!

4) I don't like the drive to Moreno Valley from Yucaipa. That road makes me nervous.

5) If you have kids in school, there may be a wide variance in quality of schools. Redlands might be at the top, followed by Yucaipa.

6) If crime is an issue, Yucaipa beats everybody hands down. See city-data for specific rates by crime.

Good luck!

[ludwig72]

3) Don't forget to consider the soil type as much as the distance from the San Andreas. It might be an even more important factor!

4) I don't like the drive to Moreno Valley from Yucaipa. That road makes me nervous.


By soil type, do you mean soil depth?

And what about the drive makes you nervous?

Regarding Orangecrest, I considered that. I saw somewhere that there was talk of turning the adjacent March air force base into a commercial airport, which would obviously have noise impacts. Any truth to the rumor?

Thanks for the posts, everyone.

[that1guy]

Originally Posted by ludwig72

3) Don't forget to consider the soil type as much as the distance from the San Andreas. It might be an even more important factor!

4) I don't like the drive to Moreno Valley from Yucaipa. That road makes me nervous.


By soil type, do you mean soil depth?

And what about the drive makes you nervous?

Regarding Orangecrest, I considered that. I saw somewhere that there was talk of turning the adjacent March air force base into a commercial airport, which would obviously have noise impacts. Any truth to the rumor?



Thanks for the posts, everyone.

March was a commercial airport for a few years with DHL...however, DHL is shutting down it's operation at March. The noise should actually decrease. For me the drive between Yucaipa and Moreno Valley makes me nervous because you are literally driving through a major fault.

[gthorson]

Originally Posted by ludwig72

3) Don't forget to consider the soil type as much as the distance from the San Andreas. It might be an even more important factor!

4) I don't like the drive to Moreno Valley from Yucaipa. That road makes me nervous.


By soil type, do you mean soil depth?

And what about the drive makes you nervous?

Regarding Orangecrest, I considered that. I saw somewhere that there was talk of turning the adjacent March air force base into a commercial airport, which would obviously have noise impacts. Any truth to the rumor?

Some soil types are much better than others. Some even liquify during an earthquake.

Soil Type and Shaking Hazard in the San Francisco Bay Area

I don't like driving Live Oak Canyon Rd compared to the 10/215 freeways. Too curvy with oncoming traffic.

There is a lot of discussion about potentially converting March AFB into a major medical campus.

[GoodbyeCalifornia]

Originally Posted by ludwig72

It appears that the further south one moves from the San Andreas Fault (which runs along the north edge of Redlands and Yucaipa), the less dramatic would be the shaking from a major quake. However, the further south one moves the hotter the summers are as well. Are there safe towns or neighborhoods in this area that have a happy medium between seismic hazard and summer heat?

As someone who was born in Southern California and spent most of my adult life there, I have experienced my fair share of earthquakes, both big and small. And I can tell you, trying to determine the seismic hazards of an area simply by how far away it is from the San Andreas Fault, is an exercise in pointlessness. While how your home is constructed and the type of soil it sits on are not unimportant, the two factors that matter more are the magnitude of the earthquake and how far you are from it’s epicenter.

To illustrate, in 1992 a 7.3 quake struck Landers, then three hours later a 6.5 quake hit Big Bear. At that time I was living about 80 miles away from Big Bear, and around 107 miles from Landers. But when those earthquakes hit, it felt like the fault that caused them was running right under my house. Of course, being the distance I was from the epicenters of both of them, the damage to my home (items knocked from shelves and broken, small cracks in the plaster walls) was not nearly as severe as it likely would have been had I lived closer to either Landers or Big Bear.

More to the point, the San Andreas isn't the only fault in the state. It just happens to be the most significant and well known. There are faults all across the state capable of causing large quakes. In fact, the largest earthquakes that have occurred in Southern California over the last thirty plus years (1971 Sylmar, 1987 Whittier Narrows, 1992 Landers/Big Bear, 1994 Northridge) were not generated by the San Andreas Fault at all. The 6.7 magnitude Northridge quake, for example, was the result of slippage along a fault that seismologists weren’t even aware existed.

If seismic activity is of major concern to you, the bottom line is that there simply is no magic safety zone that one can move to in hopes of avoiding it. All you can do is be aware that an earthquake can happen anytime, anywhere, prepare for it, and keep your fingers crossed that it isn’t so large that it causes serious damage to your property. It’s either that, or avoid living in California altogether.

[ludwig72]

aloha, i'm ludwig 72's wife, Hedy, and i've read the comments re: my husbands Q.s/concerns. mahalo for all of your assistance.

yes, earthquakes are of concern and as one of you already noted there's no way of avoiding the potential hazard. my husband has printed-out maps galore off the USGS website illustrating the numerous faults that cross the general geographic area of Moreno Valley (San Jacinto, Elsinore, Mill Creek, San Andres, and San Bernardino)--yikes!

OK: here's the skinny: we are climbing the latter in the Fed system and plan to be in the area for 4-6 years. we lived in Long Beach for 4.5 yrs (we've been in CO for about 3 years now) and did not like it. ours was a transitional neighborhood: 3-4 blocks in any direction and one was in either a seedier area or a much nicer one. our luck ran out, though, and within 1 month my husband was mugged and a guy on crystal meth came very close to breaking into our house. at the time our little girl was 15 months-old and not at home but the combined experiences sent us back to CO.

Q. are there neighborhoods/towns that we can consider that offer a more homogenous socio-economic make-up--as opposed to those that have "good" and "bad" areas? we want to avoid towns straddling freeways (Calimesa, Perris, etc). we also need to buy a home in an area that will steadily rise in value as the market recovers. what we have gleaned from the reality websites/city-data/other sources of info is that home prices have dropped 40%-50% in the towns of Yucaipa and Woodcrest--areas that might be a good place for our duration of stay. there are lots of nuances associated with buying a house in any particular area, and S. Cal is a unique real estate market to be sure. any advice on this is greatly appreciated. additionally, how's the price of gas and food in the general area? we did enjoy shopping at Trader Joe's while in LB! and there were ample Sam's Club/Costco's around.

we will be taking a scouting trip in the next 2 weeks....p.s. we appreciate diversity--HI is a very concentrated cosmopolitan place to live--but we also want to avoid war zones.

[Gandalara]

Originally Posted by ludwig72

Q. are there neighborhoods/towns that we can consider that offer a more homogenous socio-economic make-up--as opposed to those that have "good" and "bad" areas? we want to avoid towns straddling freeways (Calimesa, Perris, etc). we also need to buy a home in an area that will steadily rise in value as the market recovers.

Even though it 'straddles a freeway', I would suggest you look at property in Redlands south of the freeway.

I just don't understand the obsession with earthquakes. You've lived in CA before - in a city that got hit really bad in 1933.