Help!! Aptos Capitola or Monterey to live? (Salinas, Santa Cruz: apartment, rental market)

[lexi]

Help!! We had decided to move to Monterey thinking there were no junior
colleges by Santa Cruz when we found out there are two!! Now we are
having a hard time deciding where to live. We just visited Monterey and
liked it alot but didn't get to see Aptos or Capitola. Also we have always
loved Santa Cruz but haven't been there in years. Got a kid starting JC
and are wondering what the best area would be. Maybe even Santa Cruz?
Opinions greatly appreciated!!!

[Luke9686]

Monterey would probably be the cheapest. It's stays a lot cooler even in the summer in Monterey. Santa Cruz, capitola and Aptos have gotten extremely expensive. Monterey is expensive, but not as much. I would pick Monterey, it seems a little less trendy than the others listed.

[lexi]

Originally Posted by Luke9686

Monterey would probably be the cheapest. It's stays a lot cooler even in the summer in Monterey. Santa Cruz, capitola and Aptos have gotten extremely expensive. Monterey is expensive, but not as much. I would pick Monterey, it seems a little less trendy than the others listed.

Hey Thanks! I was worried that Capitola and Aptos weren't nice but obviously
they are. We liked Monterey alot but the problem is we're going to be renting
and almost all the houses we saw on craigslist, the newspaper and housing
rental agencies said no pets. We can only afford 2200 a month so Monterey
is the first choice but it's nice to know Aptos and Capitola are nice too..
more choices. I'll just have my son apply to all three junior colleges so
when the time comes this summer we have more housing choices in case the
rental market is tight. Thanks!!

[Luke9686]

When searching for a place from Craigslist, if it says "no pets" it doesn't necessarily mean no pets. My landlord had his ad say the same, but I have two dogs. I negotiated with him, and put up a pet deposit. Same thing with two other places I rented.

Anything is negotiable.

[lexi]

Originally Posted by Luke9686

When searching for a place from Craigslist, if it says "no pets" it doesn't necessarily mean no pets. My landlord had his ad say the same, but I have two dogs. I negotiated with him, and put up a pet deposit. Same thing with two other places I rented.

Anything is negotiable.

Hey thanks Luke! I was getting discouraged. We're willing to up the
deposit as we have two indoor pouches that are excellently behaved.
Well, as long as you aren't walking them anyway... they'll drag you
down the street but otherwise very good!

[MontereyLocal]

The weather can vary somewhat between North Monterey Bay (Santa Cruz, Capitola, Soquel) and South Monterey Bay (Monterey, Seaside, Pacific Grove) with the former typically being hotter and/or foggier. As you've probably found out, Aptos has Cabrillo College (JC) and UC Santa Cruz while Monterey has Monterey Peninsula College (JC) with Hartnell College (JC) close by in Salinas and CSU Monterey Bay in Seaside. Having attended MPC a few years back, I can say there were decent class sizes and parking wasn't difficult (except on enrollment week); my opinion only though.

The Santa Cruz area, due to the intersection of Highway 1 and Highway 17 can lead to traffic snarls (hopefully alleviated when CalTrans completes construction) but is closer to the South Bay and "civilization". Personally I prefer the slower pace of life down in Monterey as the outdoor activities matter more to me than Valley Fair Mall (Westfield Shopping Town). If you have a "college-aged" kid living with you, you may want to steer more towards Monterey/Seaside/Marina as Pacific Grove properties tend to run small due to the age and "small town" feel maintained by the city.

[lexi]

Thanks Monterey Local! We're hoping for Monterey or New Monterey..
You are right about the Monterey Peninsula college.. we did a tour on
in May and found parking easily which is very difficult in some colleges so
that's a definite plus. We too like the small town feel of Monterey but
were concerned about finding a house to rent but I believe if we are flexable
it's possible with dogs. Thanks you!

[MontereyLocal]

No problem. Feel free to PM me with specific questions. I highly recommend, if you do move here, to purchase a membership to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. One of my weekend rituals is to walk the 3 miles along the coastal bike trail from my apartment to the aquarium. There's a great tea room along the way just off the trail by the aquarium. It's great exercise, and only costs me the $2 for the tea (after the annual membership cost to the aquarium).

[lexi]

Originally Posted by MontereyLocal

No problem. Feel free to PM me with specific questions. I highly recommend, if you do move here, to purchase a membership to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. One of my weekend rituals is to walk the 3 miles along the coastal bike trail from my apartment to the aquarium. There's a great tea room along the way just off the trail by the aquarium. It's great exercise, and only costs me the $2 for the tea (after the annual membership cost to the aquarium).

That sounds so good... that's one of the things I'm going to enjoy. We
live in the desert now and it's so hot 6 months out of the year. I'm going
to walk and buy a bike and get some excersise! Thanks! I'll definitly write
you when we get there. Should be around the middle of August.

[zindiz]

I'm addressing your college-aged family member here.

Having lived in Santa Cruz for over 10 years (I moved to the Monterey Peninsula from Santa Cruz 4 years ago and also grew up in Carmel), I agree with everything that MontereyLocal said -- great post. But I do know that the Santa Cruz area has much more to offer a young person in terms of things to do and a social life. There are just many more young people (college-aged) people in Santa Cruz, period. There is a lively downtown social scene, with its sketchy elements, I admit, although I feel fine going down there in the evenings with small children -- whereas downtown Monterey is virtually dead after hours, with the exception of a handful of drinking establishments, which are probably not what you are looking for.

Santa Cruz is a much more liberal community than down in Monterey (or in more conservative and foggy Aptos, for that matter), but it does have the traffic problems and definite parking problems at Cabrillo College and UCSC.

But if I was a college-aged person, I would take Santa Cruz County over Monterey County without question.

Hope this helps! And best of luck with your move!