What area do you recommend?

[Spikett]

Originally Posted by Aloha04

Redfin? I'll check it out.

What is it that rules out most of the areas near downtown? I mean, are the houses smaller, or is it less safe? Just curious.

Right now, my youngest is homeschooled, so schools may not be a problem. Oldest is graduated but not interested in college.

If you live in the Huntington Beach/Laguna Niguel/etc areas, how easy is it to drive to the other side of LA? Is it easy to just drive over there and visit somebody or shop, and then drive back home the same day, or is that kind of thing pretty impossible with the traffic?

It's a long way from the beach - in miles and driving time. But downtown has the metro light rail. The Blue Line goes to Long Beach, the Green Line goes to Manhattan Beach and El Segundo. A lot faster and less stressful than driving.

As someone else mentioned, California beaches are nothing like Florida beaches. In the winter, it's pretty chilly - a lot of cold wind. In summer, it can still be cool and the water temps never really get very warm. Personally, it's too cold for me. Most surfers wear wetsuits. We also don't have the shells here that Florida has. We have different shellfish because the Pacific is so much colder off the west coast than the Atlantic or Gulf. Here's an average of water temps off the Santa Monica pier:

Santa Monica Pier Water Temperature (Sea) and Wetsuit Guide (CAL - LA County, USA)

[JohnSoCal]

Originally Posted by Aloha04

I love the beach. That's really my only question of whether CA is better for us than FL... we all love to just play in the water (my daughter and I do enjoy a little surfing, but it's not a huge thing) and walk on the beach looking for shells. Is that kind of thing still enjoyable in California with the water being so cold? Either way, it's still better than where we live now - 1,000 miles away from any ocean.

I do like Florida, but I think mostly for the beach and the heat. THe humidity doesn't bother me too much, except when we want to go for a bike ride or something. One thing I don't like is the daily rain or thunderstorms during the summer, and that it's so flat that bike rides aren't as exciting. You have to go a long distance to get a good workout, which is sometimes good and osmetimes not.


(Where I live now, it's been raining for 2 weeks straight, with the exception of one day of partial sunshine! Sick of it!)

If you like to play in the water then Florida is a much better choice. The ocean temps in California are cold all year. In SE Florida, the water is warm all year and the beaches are not nearly as crowded. Seeing as you don't mind the humidity then I would choose Florida.The cost of living is much lower and you will be able to get a home right next to the beach. One thing I don't like about the California coast is the marine layer. I like to see the sun when I get up in the morning and I like it warmer than at the coast which is why we live inland.

Having said that, I far prefer California because I hate the humidity and the topography of Florida is very boring. In SE Florida, the 95 interchange is the highest point and the countryside is all Jungle green. There is also a lot more to do in California because of the diversity.

[Aloha04]

That's the thing... we have family in Florida, and none in California. I know a few people who live out there, though. I grew up in Florida, and my husband lived there for a while. My kids have both been there so many times they feel like they've already lived there (my oldest has the equivalent of about 6 months living there). I lived in the San Francisco area for a couple of years, and have visited San Diego. I liked everything about SF except for the cost of living and the earthquakes.

My oldest would love to live in Southern California (she's in music/film industries). My youngest doesn't care where we live. My husband seems to have kind of a media-induced view of California. None of us are really sure which place we'd rather live in, as there are certainly pros and cons to both areas. If California had Hawaii's beaches, it'd be perfect. If Hawaii wasn't 3,000 miles from everywhere else, I'd just move there.