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One of the two biggest differences is demographics. San Marino has a lot more Chinese & Taiwanese folks.
The other major difference is physical. San Marino is more urban-like (flatter, more sidewalks, gardened). SM has more lined-up grid lots. Lots of old world estates and ranch homes. La Canada is more rural and hilly. A greater variation in housing stock and property size. Great views from many areas. Parts of La Canada feel like your in the country.
They both have good schools. The difference isn't big enough... to make a difference.
Personally, I like that diversity in housing stock that La Canada offers... the views.... the feeling of being in the country (in some parts).
You might consider Linda Vista / San Rafael area of Pasadena, around the Rose Bowl. It's right in between LC & SM. You don't the prestigious address & you might opt for Polytechnic or Mayfair private schools, but you get most everything else.
Really just comes down to rural/gardened & your feelings about being in a whiter city or a more Asian city.
One of the two biggest differences is demographics. San Marino has a lot more Chinese & Taiwanese folks.
The other major difference is physical. San Marino is more urban-like (flatter, more sidewalks, gardened). SM has more lined-up grid lots. Lots of old world estates and ranch homes. La Canada is more rural and hilly. A greater variation in housing stock and property size. Great views from many areas. Parts of La Canada feel like your in the country.
They both have good schools. The difference isn't big enough... to make a difference.
Personally, I like that diversity in housing stock that La Canada offers... the views.... the feeling of being in the country (in some parts).
You might consider Linda Vista / San Rafael area of Pasadena, around the Rose Bowl. It's right in between LC & SM. You don't the prestigious address & you might opt for Polytechnic or Mayfair private schools, but you get most everything else.
Really just comes down to rural/gardened & your feelings about being in a whiter city or a more Asian city.
I think you mean Mayfield. And yes it is a Catholic private school.
We went through the same issue 7 years back... glad we went to La Canada... Traffic does NOT exist... school are rated higher (both are good)... and I say this with all due respect (my wife is Asian and my kids are half).... San Marino is WAY to Asian... even for my wife! it is like 80%
Oh, please! Another one of those Chinese that obviously tries too hard to impress others as being above her own race and wants desperately to fit in the white society that she probably sees as more "elite". This clearly reflects an extreme insecurity and also the mentality of a snob. Just because the statement comes from someone who is Chinese herself does not make it any more acceptable or agreeable. Is she the first generation who was born in China which means her earlier years in China must have been horrifying times surrounded by almost 100% Chinese!
I am Chinese and my spouse is Causasian. We went through similar exercise a couple of years back. When we returned to U.S. from overseas three years ago we wanted to rent for a year to get familiar with the area before we buy. Our choices were narrowed down to San Marino and La Canada-Flintridge as well mainly for the school districts. There were very very few LCF rentals at the time but a few more in SM where we ended up renting. We later learned that during the financial crisis, there were so many more foreclosures in LCF many in LCF lost their homes and ended up renting in LCF which caused the rental shortage there. A year later when we were ready to buy (RE market in SM heated up significantly by then there were multiple offers on almost every listing in SM), although we looked at and liked both areas we ended up in SM mainly because the kids liked their schools so much and did not want to part with their friends. Looking back we are so happy and feel very fortunate being in SM, its central location can't be beat. Our house value has gone up 50% which I am certain is much higher than if we had bought in LCF.
We liked LCF's hills and suburban feel (mainly the Flintridge area for its exclusitivity and terrain) and that you get more house for the money compared with SM, but the location is not as central and convenient as SM. LCF borders La Cresenta/Glendale to the west and Altadena to east which are mostly residential. It has Pasadena to the south but the most vibrant part of Pasadena is south of 210 which is closer to SM. By comparison, although SM itself has very strict and limited commercial zoning (which makes it nice in a way), the SM City itself is very small and it borders Pasadena to the north, San Gabriel to the south, South Pasadena to the west and Arcadia nearby to the east. It has the best of all worlds and easy access to both east and west or whatever your hearts may fancy on any given day. Commute to downtown is about the same as LCF, and unlike LCF, SM has access to a number of alternative routes to downtown LA - 110, Huntington and 10 (with an LA Metro transponder it is a breeze on the 10). Depending on what the quickest route is that day we've hardly had issues with traffic.
As far as schools, both of them are good. It is a matter of where your children would feel most comfortable that offers a good learning and social environment and helps build the necessary confidence he/she needs. I would like to quote my daughter (who looks more white than Asian herself and has always had races other than her own as best friends growing up - Black, Indian, Iranian etc.) - I asked her once why her close friends at SM schools are mostly Chinese she replied "Chinese girls are not mean, nasty and are more friendly and down to earth". These are the voluntary, unsolicitated words of a 13-yo. I will leave it to the rest of you to interpret, but as a parent I am glad that I have my kids in a school district where they are happy and comfortable and not feel insecure, unconfident of who they are, or being looked down upon because they are/look different. After all, the world (which is the stage our future generations will be playing) population mix reflects very differently from the traditional white-dominant U.S. neighborhoods.
Oh, please! Another one of those Chinese that obviously tries too hard to impress others as being above her own race and wants desperately to fit in the white society that she probably sees as more "elite". This clearly reflects an extreme insecurity and also the mentality of a snob. Just because the statement comes from someone who is Chinese herself does not make it any more acceptable or agreeable. Is she the first generation who was born in China which means her earlier years in China must have been horrifying times surrounded by almost 100% Chinese!
I am Chinese and my spouse is Causasian. We went through similar exercise a couple of years back. When we returned to U.S. from overseas three years ago we wanted to rent for a year to get familiar with the area before we buy. Our choices were narrowed down to San Marino and La Canada-Flintridge as well mainly for the school districts. There were very very few LCF rentals at the time but a few more in SM where we ended up renting. We later learned that during the financial crisis, there were so many more foreclosures in LCF many in LCF lost their homes and ended up renting in LCF which caused the rental shortage there. A year later when we were ready to buy (RE market in SM heated up significantly by then there were multiple offers on almost every listing in SM), although we looked at and liked both areas we ended up in SM mainly because the kids liked their schools so much and did not want to part with their friends. Looking back we are so happy and feel very fortunate being in SM, its central location can't be beat. Our house value has gone up 50% which I am certain is much higher than if we had bought in LCF.
We liked LCF's hills and suburban feel (mainly the Flintridge area for its exclusitivity and terrain) and that you get more house for the money compared with SM, but the location is not as central and convenient as SM. LCF borders La Cresenta/Glendale to the west and Altadena to east which are mostly residential. It has Pasadena to the south but the most vibrant part of Pasadena is south of 210 which is closer to SM. By comparison, although SM itself has very strict and limited commercial zoning (which makes it nice in a way), the SM City itself is very small and it borders Pasadena to the north, San Gabriel to the south, South Pasadena to the west and Arcadia nearby to the east. It has the best of all worlds and easy access to both east and west or whatever your hearts may fancy on any given day. Commute to downtown is about the same as LCF, and unlike LCF, SM has access to a number of alternative routes to downtown LA - 110, Huntington and 10 (with an LA Metro transponder it is a breeze on the 10). Depending on what the quickest route is that day we've hardly had issues with traffic.
As far as schools, both of them are good. It is a matter of where your children would feel most comfortable that offers a good learning and social environment and helps build the necessary confidence he/she needs. I would like to quote my daughter (who looks more white than Asian herself and has always had races other than her own as best friends growing up - Black, Indian, Iranian etc.) - I asked her once why her close friends at SM schools are mostly Chinese she replied "Chinese girls are not mean, nasty and are more friendly and down to earth". These are the voluntary, unsolicitated words of a 13-yo. I will leave it to the rest of you to interpret, but as a parent I am glad that I have my kids in a school district where they are happy and comfortable and not feel insecure, unconfident of who they are, or being looked down upon because they are/look different. After all, the world (which is the stage our future generations will be playing) population mix reflects very differently from the traditional white-dominant U.S. neighborhoods.
how on earth are you gleaning all that inferiority complex/diatribe bs from that post? He just said san marino is way too Asian..? He didn't say his wife likes trying to fit in etc. nor can anyone really even detect anything like that in that little snippet.
San Marino High is over 60% asian, maybe even 70%.... so what's the big deal wanting to live somewhere where the school and area might be a little more diverse?
San Marino has worse air quality imo, being hemmed in btween the 10 and 210 and those large multi lanes on Huntington but has better access to the places you mentioned.
san marino is more stately and better regulated and has always historically been nice. LCF is a nice foothill community that in the last 20 years has seen a massive influx in wealth, in not just the flintridge side, which has changed the character of the once sleepy town. most residents are so new they have no idea that many blue collar workers used to live there all the way up to the late 80s, plumbers and electricians! LC was always nice, but parts of city used to house pretty lower middle class workers. not anymore.
I am unsure of San Marino's historical demographic trends.
lcf still has a small townish vibe but oozes with muted pretensions and stressed out executive level parents, san marino is much different, like a beverly hills light for asians, mostly chinese, and plenty of old white people, retired and amazed how their city changed in the last 30 years.
both are pretty close to as good as it can get for a family based LA suburb.
We went through the same issue 7 years back... glad we went to La Canada... Traffic does NOT exist... school are rated higher (both are good)... and I say this with all due respect (my wife is Asian and my kids are half).... San Marino is WAY to Asian... even for my wife! it is like 80%
Interesting. I've heard the same sentiment from several Chinese families who have chosen not to buy/ rent in San Marino.
Additionally, we have many families who live in San Marino but choose to send their kids to private school in Pasadena (there are many in the private school that my kids attend). Given that San Marino/ La Canada public schools are some of the best rated in the state, I was curious. Here are some of the reasons given to me:
a) public schools, increasingly, have been teaching to the test.. because that's currently how public school's efficacy is measured.. good test scores and state API score. There is a feeling that public education, by doing this, is shortchanging critical thinking skills. I have a buddy who teaches in Taiwan, and his main complaint is that students are very good test takers, but are very poor at solving new problems..
b) control - When you pay $30k per kid per year, you have alot of control over what happens in your kid's education. In private school, if there's a few bad apples.. they get removed. In public, you get what you get. Additionally, public education is in a time of great upheaval. Recently, Jerry Brown et al passed new funding formulas, where wealthy districts.. such as SM and LCF will get shortchanged so more money flows to low-income districts. The effect of this on SM/ LCF is uncertain. Personally, I want to minimize uncertainty.
c) Competitiveness - some have even mentioned that, due to the large number of Chinese families who push their children to extremes in academics, that SM is actually too competitive. A large number of the kids have after school and weekend tutors to supplement their education...and the ones that don't suffer. I don't have hard numbers, but it's rumored that the number of kids having anxiety/ burnout issues is on the rise. This happens, too, in many private schools.. but many provide a more healthy environment, imho... meaning a better balance between academics/ social/ etc.
I'm certainly mixed on this topic. Both my wife and I have advanced degrees from top schools in the nation, so I do like the "raising of the bar", but at the same time, I don't want my kids to have a nervous breakdown by the time they're 18
While I wholeheartedly agree with the prevailing opinion on this thread that you can't go wrong with either community, I would narrowly prefer La Canada-Flintridge for one simple reason, which is because you can get gat a lot more house for your $$$ in LCF as opposed to San Marino in terms of sqaure footage and/or lot size.
Both cities are clean, quiet and extremely safe, and the schools are superb, and I'd hazard a guess that tons of graduates from high schools in either community routinely wind up at Stanford, UCLA, Harvard or any other academic powerhouse you'd care to name.
It's essentially a coin flip in picking one city over the other,.
Interesting. I've heard the same sentiment from several Chinese families who have chosen not to buy/ rent in San Marino.
Additionally, we have many families who live in San Marino but choose to send their kids to private school in Pasadena (there are many in the private school that my kids attend). Given that San Marino/ La Canada public schools are some of the best rated in the state, I was curious. Here are some of the reasons given to me:
a) public schools, increasingly, have been teaching to the test.. because that's currently how public school's efficacy is measured.. good test scores and state API score. There is a feeling that public education, by doing this, is shortchanging critical thinking skills. I have a buddy who teaches in Taiwan, and his main complaint is that students are very good test takers, but are very poor at solving new problems..
b) control - When you pay $30k per kid per year, you have alot of control over what happens in your kid's education. In private school, if there's a few bad apples.. they get removed. In public, you get what you get. Additionally, public education is in a time of great upheaval. Recently, Jerry Brown et al passed new funding formulas, where wealthy districts.. such as SM and LCF will get shortchanged so more money flows to low-income districts. The effect of this on SM/ LCF is uncertain. Personally, I want to minimize uncertainty.
c) Competitiveness - some have even mentioned that, due to the large number of Chinese families who push their children to extremes in academics, that SM is actually too competitive. A large number of the kids have after school and weekend tutors to supplement their education...and the ones that don't suffer. I don't have hard numbers, but it's rumored that the number of kids having anxiety/ burnout issues is on the rise. This happens, too, in many private schools.. but many provide a more healthy environment, imho... meaning a better balance between academics/ social/ etc.
I'm certainly mixed on this topic. Both my wife and I have advanced degrees from top schools in the nation, so I do like the "raising of the bar", but at the same time, I don't want my kids to have a nervous breakdown by the time they're 18
Where did you end up sending your kids to school if you don't mind me asking.
how on earth are you gleaning all that inferiority complex/diatribe bs from that post? He just said san marino is way too Asian..? He didn't say his wife likes trying to fit in etc. nor can anyone really even detect anything like that in that little snippet.
San Marino High is over 60% asian, maybe even 70%.... so what's the big deal wanting to live somewhere where the school and area might be a little more diverse?
San Marino has worse air quality imo, being hemmed in btween the 10 and 210 and those large multi lanes on Huntington but has better access to the places you mentioned.
san marino is more stately and better regulated and has always historically been nice. LCF is a nice foothill community that in the last 20 years has seen a massive influx in wealth, in not just the flintridge side, which has changed the character of the once sleepy town. most residents are so new they have no idea that many blue collar workers used to live there all the way up to the late 80s, plumbers and electricians! LC was always nice, but parts of city used to house pretty lower middle class workers. not anymore.
I am unsure of San Marino's historical demographic trends.
lcf still has a small townish vibe but oozes with muted pretensions and stressed out executive level parents, san marino is much different, like a beverly hills light for asians, mostly chinese, and plenty of old white people, retired and amazed how their city changed in the last 30 years.
both are pretty close to as good as it can get for a family based LA suburb.
Try replacing "Asian" in PapaPanda's sentences with "Black" or "Hispanic" and now tell me if most people would not have a problem with that statement.
So when a neighborhood is 60 or 70% Asian it is not diverse enough in your opinion. The majority of the U.S. cities or towns are at least 60 or 70% White, would you consider that "lack of diversity" in those neighborhoods and will you have a problem with it? Let's not forget the White population is not the majority in the world before you answer that.
Regardless of whether or not San Marino's Asian population is 60%, 70% or whatever, who determines the 'proper' level of diversity there or in any other community? It's merely an opinion, isn't it?
By comparison, the freshmen classes at both UCLA & Stanford have been stuck at around 40% or thereabouts for decades; if that's not a sign of diversity, then what would be the 'proper' percentage of Asians for either school to be considered 'diverse'?
Again, that's one person's opinion, isn't it?
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