Got job in SD, coming in May - Commute Question (San Diego: leases, how much)

[ComingToSD]

Hi everyone,

I was offered a job in San Diego and will be coming to your fine city at the end of May/early June. I'm a mid-20s professional coming from the Midwest and will be working downtown. I've been browsing the forum a bit lately so I wont bother asking the questions you seem to get every day (Where should I live? How much is rent? etc.).

What I would like to know is what I can expect for commute times. There are two areas I'm looking at living in - Carlsbad and Pacific Beach (How are those my two places my options? I have family in one and a good friend in the other so I want to live near at least 1 person I already know). I've looked at drive times on Google Maps, but I'm guessing that isn't very accurate for rush hours.

What are commute times actually like from these two areas to downtown on a typical weekday morning/evening for you 9-5ers?

Thanks! I can't wait to get there and start familiarizing myself with your craft breweries!

[docmcstuffin]

I would totally pick PB if you're working in downtown. Commuting from Carlsbad would suck. Depend where in Carlsbad too. But southern part of Carlsbad to Sorrento Valley is already 25-30 minutes, so to get downtown, add another 20-30 minutes. So, you're looking at 45-60 minutes door to door. PB would be much faster.

[moved]

Why don't you consider downtown? Then you could walk to work.

[ComingToSD]

Originally Posted by moved

Why don't you consider downtown? Then you could walk to work.

I have considered that, and it's very tempting. However, I'm looking to find a short term lease/sublet/month-to-month type of living situation for when I first get there before committing to a longer lease, which doesn't seem available (or as prevalent, at least) downtown. Also, in all honesty, I'd like to live as close to the beach as possible when I first get there, especially since it will be summer, and can be a walk or bike ride away in Carlsbad or PB.

[ComingToSD]

Originally Posted by docmcstuffin

I would totally pick PB if you're working in downtown. Commuting from Carlsbad would suck. Depend where in Carlsbad too. But southern part of Carlsbad to Sorrento Valley is already 25-30 minutes, so to get downtown, add another 20-30 minutes. So, you're looking at 45-60 minutes door to door. PB would be much faster.

Thanks. I'm looking at a place off of Carlsbad Village Drive, so that would be northern Carlsbad if I'm not mistaken.

Any idea on what the commute from PB would look like?

[Clevelandgal]

There is one main road out of PB, and it gets backed up. Depending on how close you are to 5, it still would not take too long. Maybe 20 min. You also might throw ocean beach into the mix if you are looking for beach communities close to downtown. It's even closer, and in my opinion, a little easier because there a couple route options for getting from OB to downtown.

[Marinadistrict]

It depends on what time you are working. I can make it from northern Encinitas to downtown in 25-30 minutes if I drive before 7 AM, Carlsbad Village would be another 5 minutes or so. After that, build in some delays through Encinitas/Cardiff. The drive home will take you 55-65 minutes if you drive home between 4 and 5, a little longer if between 5 and 6. If your office is near the Santa Fe station, you could always Coaster into work from the Carlsbad station. PB is closer, but might totally not be your scene. If you can swing a place in Encinitas or Solana Beach, you could stay close to the beach, close to a Coaster commute option, and shave 10-15 minutes off your commute.

[tonyinsd]

I'd allocate an hour for the drive from Carlsbad. With the caveat that if something goes wrong, it's going to be a lot longer.

Six month leases are as short as I've seen them. If you were downtown, you could bike to the beach. I've done it a lot.

[Marinadistrict]

Agree with Tony on the relative merits of downtown. I get that you have family/friends in PB and Carlsbad, but I don't see why you couldn't live downtown, make your Monday-Friday awesome, and drive out to C-bad and PB (likely on off-traffic hours when it will be really easy). You can bike to the beach from downtown, sure, but it's not like it's right around the corner. It's a hike. And good luck bringing a board that distance. On the other hand, I was able to drive to Coronado dog beach in 15 minutes and OB in about the same. Not that bad. That sacrifice would be well worth saving 45 minutes, 5 days a week, to live walking distance to your job downtown.

[Pedro2000]

A lot of it depends on what the OP likes to do and where he likes to live.

Downtown is usually more expensive and really not worth it. Smaller spaces for more money.
And it's a certain kind of lifestyle.
If you live in the gaslamp or close, you probably like getting dressed up, going to night clubs, spending money on overpriced restaurants and bars.
San Diego downtown isn't that impressive compared to other downtowns.
Venture out to Little Italy and it's an older crowd, higher priced date type of restaurants and a walk to the marina and so on. But Downtown is small. Go past 8th and you start to get into the shady part of town. It's been fixed up but there are many areas where you need to be on the lookout. Nothing like a lot of big cities, but for such a small downtown, there isn't all that much besides restaurants and bars/nightclubs. The surfer types don't live downtown. So if the guy loves the beach, you probably avoid downtown living.


PB is the young drunk crowds, tons of cops on weekends, tons of military and 22 year olds partying. It can be fun. I used to live in PB. Loved it then. Don't go there at all now. It' s one of those places where you reach a certain age and expect different things, PB becomes annoying. You could live out near crowne Point, but then you get away from the beach. So if you want nothing but the beach, it might not be the greatest. But a short bike ride around the bay is nice.

The person who said you an bike to the beach from downtown, that's not exactly an easy trip. I used to live downtown and walked everywhere, biked often, and going from downtown on a bike to OB or PB or MB is a pain.
Hell one time I took the train up to Oceanside and rode a bike back downtown. Fun, but it's not exactly something you do that often. Driving from downtown to those beaches isn't any fun either.

Carlsbad. It's North San Diego. it's a little slower. It's a little older. There are some nice bars and restaurants now, but it's a long commute. A commute from carlsbad to downtown and back everyday would get annoying.