Best Suburbs of San Diego

[socketz]

Originally Posted by ubringliten

I lived in Irvine before and Mira Mesa is not like Irvine.

I'd have to agree. 4S Ranch is sorta like Irvine, but Mira Mesa would be more along the lines of El Toro in OC.

Also, someone mentioned previously renting an apartment in Poway. You don't want an apartment there as it is not an apartment community.

There are much nicer apartments in the nieghborhood of Carmel Mtn/Rancho Bernardo.....or to the west in Carmel Valley.

[donalduckmoore]

how about rancho penesquito? Is it nice vs. rancho bernardo and poway?

[breeze823]

Originally Posted by jksouthbay88

Santee might be your best place if your living in the EastCo.San Bernado?I need help on that.Plus it's kind of tough to have an Irvine-type area in the East County just because it's not built up like Irvine.Linda Vista is about 85 no-15 yes,Mira Mesa 50/50,and Clairmont 65/35.Even though i said Santee,it's known by some as "KlanTee" because of a minor and deminshing KKK
presence.Most of the East County is called by some"Trailer Park COuntry" but I don't think it is true.

I grew up in East Co, it's definately not the same as it was when I was a child. But we lived in Santee before we left the state in 2001 and Santee is very nice. If, and that is a big "if" we ever moved back, I'd look into Santee again! They had just started building it up as we were leaving so I never saw the finished product, but hear it's really nice!

[wanttoteach]

Originally Posted by donalduckmoore

how about rancho penesquito? Is it nice vs. rancho bernardo and poway?

I did so much research on this website and there seemed to be some mixed views on PQ (Rancho Penasquitos). I had read that it was not as nice as Rancho Bernardo or Poway. We bought a home here in PQ about 4 months ago off of the Black Mountain exit. Rancho Bernardo and Poway are nice as well, but we liked PQ better because it is closer to the ocean (about 15 minutes without traffic.) The temperature is also cooler here in the summer. My neighborhood is off of Black Mountain which is not as hot in temp as the exit off of Rancho Penasquitos. Anyway, I know that many people like Rancho Bernardo and Poway better, but for what we could afford, the proximity to the ocean, and the summer temps off of our exit, this was the best choice for us. I also personally don't like the drier look of Poway or Rancho Bernardo. They really are quite beautiful towns, but PQ was more pleasing to me because of the amount of greenery. I feel very safe here. I also love the proximity to shopping in Poway or Carmel Mountain Ranch and of course, the Torrey Pines beach. The ocean view from our neighborhood is also pleasing to me (yes...a lot of days you can't see it and it looks very far away, but it is still an ocean view! Anyway, wow...I have really went on and on about PQ. I quess I just really like it, and I am happy about that because I was truly heartbroken when we just couldn't afford Encinitas. I think you should look at Poway, Penasquitos, and Rancho Bernardo and see which one you feel more at home in. BTW, the Penasquitos schools are in the Poway school district, which is a fantastic district. Sorry about going on and on and on...

[kwaping]

I love Rancho Peñasquitos. I was dead set on moving there, but found a perfect home in Mira Mesa that I couldn't pass up.

[veg8]

Rancho Bernardo, Carmel Mountain Ranch, Poway and Scripps Ranch are definitely a lot more like Irvine and have a large number of folks that work in the tech/biotech industry similiar to Irvine. You'll even find a large of number Chinese/Taiwanese in those areas just like Irvine but minus the yummy food=(

Rancho Peñasquito is definitely a less expensive version of the above neighborhoods but is generally nicer in north west (newer part).

4S Ranch is one of the newest communities if that's a top priority for you it's a great place to live.

Mira Mesa is more like Garden Grove/Westminster enough said.

[queenvic]

I've lived in SD most of my life. Some parts of El Cajon are cool and some are not. Lakeside and Klan-tee are a big no-no! Linda Vista is quite a bit run down. I would say good areas are: Rancho Bern, La Mesa, Poway,Scripps Ranch, Rancho Penasquitos, even the College Area may be alright. I say Mira Mesa is a so-so depending on where you live there. In closing overall your best bet is Northern SD. Good Luck!!

[trailtramp]

I grew up in Villa Park/Orange and spent lots of time in Irvine, Tustin.

Stay away from Linda Vista, Klan-tee, Clairemont, Rancho SD, El Cajon, Lakeside, Oceanside, San Marcos and keep completely out of South Bay.

If you can afford Irvine, check out Rancho Bernardo, Scripps Ranch, Poway, Del Cerro & San Carlos (older and established ranch type big homes like Irvine and truly centrally located)

4S Ranch and Carmel Valley are nice and newer but full of huge packed in 2 story McMansions. EEww!

[Stoney Mcgee]

Originally Posted by ExilefromCa

Poway sounds to be just right for us, Criss. I'll do some digging and see if I can find some good apartment communities there. Rancho Santa Fe would probably be out of my price range.

As far as Rancho Bernardo and Rancho Santa Fe go, I'm going to give to get out my map and take another look at these places.

You're right in choosing north county, especially Poway. But Rancho Bernardo (RB) is right next to Poway, just a couple more minutes on the freeway (with light traffic, if you can find it!). I'm sure other people have valid points, but to me RB and Poway are almost the same place. You really can't go wrong in either area.

PS. Last time I checked, apartments are rare and expensive in these areas, its mostly single family homes. I'm a little unsure about this, so you probably wanna check around. Good Luck....