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Hi I wasn't sure where to post this, since Ventura county is obviously not L.A. or any of the other choices.
I am a born and raised so. cal girl. I now live in Florida, my husband is from out here and we wanted to buy a home where we could afford.
However even though I thought it was beautiful here, it is one thing to visit and another to live.
I really miss my family and all that California has to offer. Mountains, valleys, oceans, well you know what I mean. I lived all over southern california and my favorite area was Ventura county. I loved the mountains and beach right next to eachother adn the somewhat small town feel of historic Ventura main street and surrounding towns like Ojai.
I have written in different section of city data trying to get a feel for where would be a good location to raise our family. All the while I had forgotten or more like ignored my love of ventura county. Probably becuase my husband says he doesn't really like california or at least not L.A. county in general.
However lately I have been reminding him how cute it is in ventura and nearby. He seems to be more open to this area.
It has been over a year more like 2 since I have been to ventura.
What can anybody tell me about it. Also I do look at real estate online, it is getting more affordable but still more expensive than out here. What is the job market like? My husband is a computer guy, can do anything. He also does construction and handyman work. He is doing great here even with the economy he is able to be self employed and pay the mortgage. I know it sounds crazy that I would even think of moving.
Here are some major issues.
No family ( and I am very close to my family)
The humidity out here keeps us indoors for months!
Flat
Kind of racist feel to it at times, like old school south
Also my 22 month old son has Down syndrome if anyone out there also happens to know how the situation is out there for special needs. Services, etc.)
Thanks any help is greatly appreciated. Gotta go, baby is crying.
Most
I am very partial to Ventura County. Access to everything from beaches to mountains is part of it. Very low crime rate is another. Excellent weather.
Downtown Ventura has been going through a gentrification. Some like it, some want the original, down to earth style. In general, the thrift shops are going in favor of antique shops. There are a lot of clubs and restaurants running the gamut up to some pretty high end places. The official travel magazine of the IFWTWA (http://www.global-writes.com/winesspirits/index.html - broken link) An embassy Suites is scheduled for downtown. Downtown Ventura has great surfing, jogging, bicycling, kite boarding, scuba. Take a boat to the channel islands. Take the train to anywhere in California. I like to visit downtown Los Angeles by train.
Here is a picture to make you homesick
The suburbs in eastern Ventura County (Simi, Thousand Oaks, and Moorpark) continue to be a very low crime area and a great place to raise a family as well.
Camarillo has great weather and nice housing developments. Oxnard has very nice areas, some new areas, and some areas that are not all that great.
Ojai has a quieter artsy feel.
In my opinion, any of these cities in Ventura county are great to live.
I have been in Ventura County for 20 years now, most of it in Simi Valley with a few years in Thousand Oaks. I don't think you could find a better place in Southern California or the whole state for that matter. We have almost perfect year round weather with excellent air quality and an extremely low crime rate. The cities of Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks regularly end up in the top 5 FBI's list of safest cities in America with a population of 100,000. We have access to hiking, surfing, skiing, boating and any other recreational activity you can think all within an easy drive.
Well you did it, I am homesick! What a gorgeous picture and just the way I remembered it. Thanks for sharing that, please post more if you could. I can't wait to show my husband and remind him how beautiful and perfect it is there. Also the super blue water in the background is just what I need to prove to him that not all the water in California beaches is brown!
So happy to hear 2 positive comments. I completely agree. I think I will make it my goal once again to eventually move out there and raise our family there, please pray for that! I am so homesick. Florida has alot of beauty to it also but in my heart it just doesn't come close to all the pluses that California offers.
In fact I originally moved away from ventura only becuase the opportunity to live in Hawaii arised. How could I turn that down!
Even though I LOVE Hawaii and would love to afford living there, the only place that I would say is my dream place to live is Ventura county.
Oh one other thing I forgot to mention, I am afraid of the alligators out here. At first I was fascinated by them. The park we walk to has tons of huge gators. REally anywhere you go out here could have a gator, certainly any body of water. I have 2 small babies, that is just too scary and an extra risk that I just don't want to have to worry about.
Please keep comments coming, I would love to hear more. Thanks!
Hi JJ - I lived in Ventura for 10 years, it is a wonderful place. I wouldn't say it's perfect, it has some drawbacks, but if you have a good income it is a great place to raise a family. I also live in Florida and may end up back to California in the next few years as well. We'd probably go sooner but the Florida real estate market hasn't turned around yet. We don't want to give our home away.
Here's a few websites for you. Ventura County Star: Local Ventura, California News Delivered Throughout the Day.. It is the Ventura County Star newspaper website. A lot of good information... local news, etc. Also here is a website for the National Down Syndrome Society. National Down Syndrome Society - Welcome to NDSS Maybe you already have it but if not, I'm sure there is a lot of info on local chapters in Ventura County. On a side note, my Down Syndrome sister in law just turned 50! Best of luck with all your contemplating!
By the way, I never see alligators where I live! That would be nerve wracking!
We can write accolades about Ventura all day but your husband has to find a job. Until he does, nothing else matters.
Point Mugu and Port Hueneme (together Naval Base Ventura County) might have something for him, especially if he has, has had, or can get a security clearance.
There are all sorts of high tech industries on the 101 Tech Corridor, basically from Calabasas to Camarillo (Warner Center too in Woodland Hills).
That's it. Until he gets a job, you're stuck in Florida.
San Fernando Valley Business Journal Online - San Fernando Valley California business news" (http://sfvbj.com/article.asp?aID=4407757.4786143.1093794.6509913.16 6514.959&aID2=84129 - broken link)
Hi I wasn't sure where to post this, since Ventura county is obviously not L.A. or any of the other choices.
I am a born and raised so. cal girl. I now live in Florida, my husband is from out here and we wanted to buy a home where we could afford.
However even though I thought it was beautiful here, it is one thing to visit and another to live.
I really miss my family and all that California has to offer. Mountains, valleys, oceans, well you know what I mean. I lived all over southern california and my favorite area was Ventura county. I loved the mountains and beach right next to eachother adn the somewhat small town feel of historic Ventura main street and surrounding towns like Ojai.
I have written in different section of city data trying to get a feel for where would be a good location to raise our family. All the while I had forgotten or more like ignored my love of ventura county. Probably becuase my husband says he doesn't really like california or at least not L.A. county in general.
However lately I have been reminding him how cute it is in ventura and nearby. He seems to be more open to this area.
It has been over a year more like 2 since I have been to ventura.
What can anybody tell me about it. Also I do look at real estate online, it is getting more affordable but still more expensive than out here. What is the job market like? My husband is a computer guy, can do anything. He also does construction and handyman work. He is doing great here even with the economy he is able to be self employed and pay the mortgage. I know it sounds crazy that I would even think of moving.
Here are some major issues.
No family ( and I am very close to my family)
The humidity out here keeps us indoors for months!
Flat
Kind of racist feel to it at times, like old school south
Also my 22 month old son has Down syndrome if anyone out there also happens to know how the situation is out there for special needs. Services, etc.)
Thanks any help is greatly appreciated. Gotta go, baby is crying.
Most
I just did a search for homes in T.O., Agoura Hills, Newbury Park and Ventura starting at $200k to $700k for a three bed, two bath single family home. Looked like most homes that were under $350k that were decent were condos or townhomes. I did find a nice one in Ventura under $400k. Here is the link:
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Hi I wasn't sure where to post this, since Ventura county is obviously not L.A. or any of the other choices.
I am a born and raised so. cal girl. I now live in Florida, my husband is from out here and we wanted to buy a home where we could afford.
However even though I thought it was beautiful here, it is one thing to visit and another to live.
I really miss my family and all that California has to offer. Mountains, valleys, oceans, well you know what I mean. I lived all over southern california and my favorite area was Ventura county. I loved the mountains and beach right next to eachother adn the somewhat small town feel of historic Ventura main street and surrounding towns like Ojai.
I have written in different section of city data trying to get a feel for where would be a good location to raise our family. All the while I had forgotten or more like ignored my love of ventura county. Probably becuase my husband says he doesn't really like california or at least not L.A. county in general.
However lately I have been reminding him how cute it is in ventura and nearby. He seems to be more open to this area.
It has been over a year more like 2 since I have been to ventura.
What can anybody tell me about it. Also I do look at real estate online, it is getting more affordable but still more expensive than out here. What is the job market like? My husband is a computer guy, can do anything. He also does construction and handyman work. He is doing great here even with the economy he is able to be self employed and pay the mortgage. I know it sounds crazy that I would even think of moving.
Here are some major issues.
No family ( and I am very close to my family)
The humidity out here keeps us indoors for months!
Flat
Kind of racist feel to it at times, like old school south
Also my 22 month old son has Down syndrome if anyone out there also happens to know how the situation is out there for special needs. Services, etc.)
Thanks any help is greatly appreciated. Gotta go, baby is crying.
Most
I just did a search for homes in T.O., Agoura Hills, Newbury Park and Ventura starting at $200k to $700k for a three bed, two bath single family home. Looked like most homes that were under $350k that were decent were condos or townhomes. I did find a nice one in Ventura under $400k. I went to Prudential California Realty and just plugged in the info. Zillow is great too. Schools are much better from Thousand Oaks to Calabasas, imo. Wouldn't send my kids to school in the Oxnard/Ventura or Simi Valley area. If the prices are really low then the school district sucks. You generally get what you pay for in property prices because of the schools.
Wow I am just amazed at all the wonderful help and how people go out of their way to find links and just to respond to a post. Thank you EVERYONE!
We definitely would not just up and move without a job or a clue. First of all the market has to get to the point where we could sell our home for at least what we bought it for. We bought it when market was starting to decline but has since declined more, we bought it last year.
Secondly my husband was a firefighter in the airforce when he was 19. He is now 33, wants to get back into firefighting or at least try. I know he is old for starting but hey if it doesn't happen he will not be lost with nothing else to do.
Another thing is that all of my family is in different counties throughout so. cal. so we would live with my parents until we were secure. I know this sounds crazy but we did it before moving here to save money and we could do it again.
Lastly we actually want to homeschool. NOt to make our kids antisocial, we definitely would socialize them with sports, playdates, family, church,etc..
We just want to raise our children with the best opportunity to have a good morale basis. School is so difficult and kids can be ruthless, especially since we have a son with down syndrome who may not be able to defend himself or even tell us one day how bad things are.
REal estate is still very expensive, I have been searching for months. I love looking at real estate, thank God for the internet and yes it seems that the only thing decent in the 200,000 range are condo's and townhomes.
Having said all that I still appreciate hearing more. Please keep it coming.
Oh special thanks to beenaroundtheblock, that was very sweet to send the link to Ndss. I actually joined there forum, they are great. I have also found the Arc of Ventura online. Happy Birthday to your sis in law, that is wonderful!
Thanks for the links to real estate osuzana!
God Bless!
First of all the market has to get to the point where we could sell our home for at least what we bought it for. We bought it when market was starting to decline but has since declined more, we bought it last year.
Secondly my husband was a firefighter in the airforce when he was 19. He is now 33, wants to get back into firefighting or at least try. I know he is old for starting but hey if it doesn't happen he will not be lost with nothing else to do.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jjeska30
My husband is a computer guy, can do anything. He also does construction and handyman work.
While you are waiting for your house to appreciate, the prices in Ventura County might to up too.
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Prudential California and our team of relocation specialists are confident that you and your employee will be pleased with all the aspects of our service. Our counselors take special care to match an appropriate Realtor to your employee after determining the area of interest and specific needs. 
