Moving from San Francisco to San Diego - did you do this? How do you like it? (Fairfield: fit in, lease) - City-Data Forum

50sNoCalGuy · 10-20-2011, 06:27 PM

Summary: I live in San Francisco and I plan to move to the San Diego area in 2012, either Carmel Valley or Carlsbad. I'd like to hear from people who moved from SF to SD, especially if they did not like San Diego when they got there.

I am a 51-year-old white man, married to a Japanese woman, and we have a 7 year old son. We do not have family in either city, but we want to make closer friends and that has proved difficult here. I hope it is somewhat easier in a suburban city like SD, where almost everyone has children. San Francisco was a wonderful place to live when I was a young adult, but I don't think it's the greatest place for my son to grow up - too dense, not family-friendly.

My job will come with me, and I make about $135k per year. I will lease out my house in SF and rent one in SD, for approximately $3k per month. My son will attend the local public school. We plan to try this for one year and then decide if we want to sell our SF house and plant roots in San Diego.

If you made a similar move for similar reasons, I'll be grateful to hear your thoughts. Was it good for your family? Is anything easier, cheaper? Because I think this is an attractive option for us, I'm especially interested in hearing from people who think San Diego would NOT be a good place for a family like ours. Thank you for reading my post.

ffdan.k · 10-21-2011, 10:08 PM

I'm not from SF, but from Fairfield..And it was pretty hard at first adjusting to the climate,finding schools for the kids, work...But we managed to live off less than 30K a year. I'm pretty sure with 3k a month rent income it's very doable

50sNoCalGuy · 10-22-2011, 06:15 AM

Thank you, FFdan.k. Can you tell me how you and your family felt about the move, once you adjusted?

Palmer Eldritch · 10-23-2011, 08:05 PM

I moved from SF (where I lived for 23 years) to La Jolla in August. I have two kids, ages two and six. I love SF and always will, but so far I like San Diego much better. My neighbors in SF and the parents at my son's school were some
of the most pretentious people I have ever had to deal with.

50sNoCalGuy · 10-24-2011, 05:27 AM

Thank you for your input, Palmer! If you have any other thoughts, I'll be grateful to read them.

shemp · 10-24-2011, 09:59 AM

I lived in SF in my mid twenties and enjoyed it. Moved to SD and ended up having children. But we didn't stay in SD.

My wife is hapa and grew up in SF. While she loves SF deeply, she is not interested in raising our kids there, if that tells you anything.

Last time I took the family to SF we had a wonderful time, but I was struck by how few children I saw in many places. So I understand why you are considering moving and don't think its the wrong choice. SD is certainly a good place to raise a family.

But understand you will be moving to a more conservative suburban setting. I don't mention that because I think there will be any issues with your family's mixed race; you should fit in just fine. I bring it up because SD will be quite different culturally than what you are used to. The suburban beach culture of N. County isn't a good fit for everyone. And this is coming from an avid surfer.

Your plan to check it out before committing is a good one. I recommend living close to work, but if that is not an issue, you may want to look at areas closer in to SD too.

scratchNsniff · 10-25-2011, 01:34 AM

Although I'm not in the same situation as you (no kids, single, different part of the county), I moved here 2 years ago and have found it hard to feel a great sense of community here in San Diego. People are stressed out and barely keeping it together and seem to have tunnel vision. Or it might be because I live near SDSU and it's mainly students and renters.

I was in downtown SD and overheard some tourists talking, they remarked to each other that nobody was smiling and they found it surprising that everybody looked so sad when they were living in such a nice place!

I waved at a neighbor watering his lawn the other day and he looked at me like I just grew a 2nd head and was about to shoot fire out of my eyes at him. I talked to a friend who said she was moving back up to the bay area because of the politics here and the lack of community that she also felt.

Hopefully with you being in the north county and with a kid, you won't have that same problem.

Howiester · 10-25-2011, 09:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ffdan.k

I'm not from SF, but from Fairfield..And it was pretty hard at first adjusting to the climate,finding schools for the kids, work...But we managed to live off less than 30K a year. I'm pretty sure with 3k a month rent income it's very doable

Yeah, I bet it was hard adjusting to 75 and sunny every day.

Huckleberry3911948 · 10-25-2011, 09:51 AM

u sound so much like me.
yes i did all of the above.
avoid north county, its overrated. too expensive. move to SD central much better.
your wife will like it much better.
japanese cultural resources are here.

50sNoCalGuy · 10-25-2011, 03:54 PM

Everyone: Politics has come up, so just to close the subject, let me sum up my politics: I do not enjoy political life, of any strain. I am not afraid of conservatives or liberals, but prefer to base my relationships on interests closer to home.

Shemp: Good input. Do you mind telling me why you left SD? Was there something you did not like?

Scratch: If you can think of more examples of people being unfriendly, please tell me about them. Any positive encounters?

Huckleberry: Thank you for your thoughts.