looking for the perfect California town to raise our 5 children (Sacramento: cul-de-sac, best neighborhood)

[eekwine]

Los Olivos- they call it Mayberry & in fact Return to Mayberry was filmed there.

[ferretkona]

I have lived in many places in CA. My vote is for Pebble Beach right between Monterey and Carmel. Pebble Beach is just oh so nice. Very secure and warm feeling just being there. The deer sleep on the greens on the golf courses, you have to nudge them and ask to play thru.

Carmel was nice, I had a home over looking the beach. Never once shut my balcony door facing the beach. Carmel by far is the most dog friendly town I have ever lived in. Restaurants have outdoor patios with a "welcome doggie" sign above.

[stuff and things]

Originally Posted by sliverbox

Bottom line- California is not a good place to raise a family. Do some research. You'll find that CA ranks at the bottom for best places to raise a family.

Where did you find this research? Who does these rankings and what criteria do they use? How can one actually rank places to raise a family, especially on a statewide level? I could see maybe ranking idividual cities and towns, but a state as a whole? Every State is diverse and has good places to live. Also, different people has different tastes and needs. California is the most diverse state in the country and any person can find a nice place to live and raise a family in California regardless of their financial status, climate preference, and education requirements. Again, it depends on the individual family. In my opinion, if you are living somewhere in the United States, you are better off than 99% of the world.

[xeretinhac]

SANTA BARBARA is theplace for you, period. I've traveled a lot and moved there 5 years ago from Brazil . LOVE IT!
The city is small but with Lots to do: movies, good schools, diverse population, theaters, awesome restaurants, hikes, bike lanes thru downtown, fabulous scenic views from the Mountains e the Ocean.
People arent as frantic as they are in LA. The city is as charming as San Francisco, but the weather is always mild and pleasant.
The SBA airport is local, never crowded and very efficient. If you REALLY need to go to LAX it will just be 90 minutes away.
Now I'm in South Carolina and cry everyday missing Santa Barbara... I just wish I could afford the house market there, because it is the most gourgeous city in the country.

[it's all good]

I just wanted to say a few things in response to the several comments about "plastic" people and materialism in CA. Of course that does exist--it exists in most places. We are very blessed in the U.S. with our material comforts and the ease in obtaining them. If you've travelled outsite the U.S., you realize this and appreciate it.
However, the people in CA are just as real as anywhere else. (We're not all movie stars.) As for how your children will be raised, that's up to you. I have two children (girls) and, when reading the post about how parents have to "keep up with the Jones" and buy designer clothing, etc. for their children I was surprised. If you are materialistic, then your children will be as well. If not, they won't be. My children are in their teens and they couldn't care less about these things. They have never worn designer clothes, but they've never noticed and neither have their friends. They've never come home from school saying that someone picked on them for not wearing expensive clothes, so nobody else noticed, either....They are good children with good values and they have good manners. They are both Honors and AP (advanced placement--college courses for h.s.) students.
I've raised them in Southern California all their lives. Our focus has always been on the family, church, and education. And most of the children and families we know are the same. As far as education goes, I'm a teacher. In CA, the state content standards are very high (some of us think too high for the age/cognitive development of children--check out the standards and you'll see what I mean. They started out good, but then they kept adding standards and now even those who develop them realize they're a bit unrealistic.), and the curriculum is fully loaded.
This, and the fact that we have about 80% ELL's in most schools is a major reason for our low test scores. But those in education are constantly searching for ways to bridge this gap and help our students to succeed. There was a major influx of immigrants in the past 10 years so the demographics have changed. It will level as these families integrate. About 3/4 of my class are English-language learners--six of those are my top students--and their families are so supportive of their education that there's no doubt these students will succeed. One thing I don't think you should worry about is schools, if education is important to you it will be to your children, too, and they will do well.
One thing I appreciate about CA is that anyone can come here. In reading other threads from other states on this forum, I've seen a lot of posters in other states who felt unwelcomed by the people in the places they went. CA is an expensive place to live for housing, but at least no one is going to be harboring resentment about you because you came from somewhere else. I was considering relocating to another state where housing costs are less (I want acreage), but after reading posts for several months in several different states, I've changed my mind. Not only because there were very few universities or even colleges in that state (opportunity for my children), but also because there are constant negative comments about anyone who came from somewhere else. There were comments from people who had lived there 20 and 30 years and were still having trouble not being accepted because they were from "wherever"! I'm not moving somewhere my children will be expected to apologize for being from CA. That's silly. I'll just keep saving my money and wait for the market to cool.
Good luck in your search and WELCOME .

[Suzer]

I would suggest University City and Serra Mesa (Serra Mesa being more diverse) in San Diego.

I grew up in University City and walked to school without fear. It is a pricier area, but solidly middle class in orientation.

[century]

Yorba Linda is a great city. Very safe. Yorba Linda and Brea are the only 2 cities that do not have any gangs. This information is from Orange County Law Enforcement. I am a Realtor and have had to research some of these things for clients. Know that Chino Hills, Anaheim Hills, Placentia, Tustin, etc all border these 2 cities and have gangs. Gang members pass through all these cities but are not in these 2 cities. This is great for kids. They do not have to worry about distractions and influences from these type of groups. There is several houses available. If you need help let me know.

[jmiles80]

how much $ can you spend on a home.
500K gets you a starter

[kturbe]

Rancho Bernardo, Poway school district is very good in San Diego and not far from the Airport.

[JWPRICE]

Redlands Ca is a great place with good schools..Still has that small town
feeling. The Local police work hard to keep it that way...