Family friendly area to live for joung couple (30s) with a kid (San Diego: cul-de-sac)

[leela28]

Hi, my husband and I just moved to SD and are looking for a house. We currently rent in the kearny mesa area because it is very close to where I work. My husband works in La Jolla. I used to commute a lot and now I learned how wonderful it is to save all the time and spend it with the family. I prefer if we don't have to drive too much.

we have a 18 months old and we are looking for a condo/single family house in a area with good kindergarden/schools. We are planning to spend 500K but it could be also a little more. I like areas where we can walk to restaurants or parks, but subdivisions with a cul-de-sac will also be ok. I don't like those areas where every house looks the same as the other though....

Any help and suggestions for a family friendly area please? Where shall we look? Poway seams a little too old, Hillcrest too many students, La jolla and point loma too expensive, I don't know what to think of Pacific beach,in Rancho bernardo/rancho penasquitos houses look all the same, really not quite appealing...
thanks,
Diana

[NYSD1995]

in your price range the options are fairly limited.

For single family mostly north county inland areas like RB / RP / Poway

For condo you can look at coastal areas like Carmel Valley or Carlsbad (best areas)

Also would look at San Carlos area in San Diego... Patrick Henry is still OK.

The kicker is "homes look exactly the same"... that's unfortunately what you have to trade off to live in an area that has good schools and is also affordable. IMO the areas with the best schools are the least appealing in the whole city, you basically just move there for schools and accept the big 70's stucco box house. Beach areas like PB, are not places I would want to raise kids.

You can look at some other areas where schools might be good up to K-8 but then high schools become a problem.

[Anak]

If you are liking the convenience of the commute from Kearny Mesa take a look at some of the nicer parts of Clairemont. If you get back from the busy streets (Balboa, Clairemont Mesa Blvd, Genesee, Clairemont Drive) and go a few blocks into the neighborhood, there are some very family friendly areas in your price range.

I live in the Mount Streets (neighborhood in which all the streets are named for mountains) and we are within easy walking distance of our neighborhood park and two schools. There are some nice areas along some of the canyon rims too. Since you are already close by, take a map and an hour or two and just drive around through some of the neighborhood interiors. Decide whether or not you like what you see.

You will have a hard time finding a more central and convenient location. My wife puts less than 30 miles/week on her vehicle, and we have three boys. I suspect you are familiar with the "Mom's taxi service" routine. We have an excellent location from the perspective of convenience.

Good schools is a whole 'nuther subject. Our choice is to homeschool. I have a teaching credential. I am quite familiar with the local schools. I don't have much positive to say about the schools in San Diego county. Best advice I can give you there is to be VERY actively involved in the education of your child. Go over their studies with them. If the teacher isn't sending things home ask the child to bring materials home anyways. If nothing else, ask for copies of the teacher's lesson plans so that you can go over subject matter with your child. If the teacher is unwilling to share copies of the lesson plans find another teacher. Any teacher who is not supportive of a seriously involved parent is a liability to your child's education. (Personal rant from personal experience)

[cruitr]

Anak is right. It's hard to beat the convenience of Clairemont. If you lived in Clairemont the both of you would have a fairly short commute.

We live in an area of Clairemont called Bay Ho. Here's a Bay Ho house that is currently for sale in your price range:
SDLookup.com | 3366*Moraga*Pl - MLS# 090069508