Raising kids in L.A...where to live? (Torrance, Redondo Beach: price, beach)

[Axxlrod]

Originally Posted by orionstars

If I had kids, I would consider these areas. Note some of them are at the borders of the greater L.A. area.

El Segundo-Manhattan Beach-Redondo Beach area.

South O.C.

Perris-Murrieta area.

This is a joke, right? That's the Metal Mullisha/Bro/Dirt **** capital.

Would be great suggestion if the OP said they were looking for desert living, focusing on dirt bikes, Monster Energy drinks, 4x4 trucks and guns.

[majoun]

Originally Posted by LuvSouthOC

The South Bay is "conservative"?

Fiscal conservatives such as myself may exist in RPV but not really anywhere else where the majority of the populace wants more and more government largesse.

There have been Republican elected officials in the South Bay in recent years such as former Assemblyman David Hadley of Manhattan Beach, and Redondo mayor Mike Gin, who unsuccessfully ran for Congress.

Congressionally speaking the South Bay is divided between the districts of Ted Lieu, Maxine Waters, and Nanette Barragan, all of whose districts encompass areas outside the South Bay as well. None of those districts could possibly be won by a Republican.

[majoun]

The South Bay is more centrist than conservative. Of course by the standards of L.A. today centrist would be conservative.

[Tuscan80]

I've run across quite a few Trump supporters from South Bay actually... and not the "fiscally conservative" type but the "lets build a wall" types. :\

[Mirabella_Balthazar]

Originally Posted by Cloudwalker

As well as Culver City, I would also look at the 90066 and 90064 zip codes, which cover large parts of the Westside, excluding Santa Monica and Venice.

Given that you don't have to worry about schools, I'd also look around at a reasonably wide corridor of streets around Venice and Washington Blvds through to the southern parts of the Pico-Robertson area. It's very close to freeways and the arterial surface streets to both the Westside (including a quick run to Silicon Beach) and up into West Hollywood, but yet is usually very quiet just a short distance from those main roads. You are close to museums, clubs, music venues, restaurants. Friends who moved from Brooklyn 3 years ago recently bought a 2 story new build near Venice and Fairfax for around $900,000. It's laid back, their kids ride their bikes on their very low traffic street. And go to charter schools in West LA.

Being prepared to live in a townhouse really opens things up for you, but you'd be surprised, there will also be houses that fits your needs and budget in some of these areas.

Thank you for your response and suggestions. I will keep that in mind.

[Mirabella_Balthazar]

Originally Posted by DKM

Schoolwork isn't usually meant to be enjoyed. Its also pretty important to socialize children and have them get used to group settings, schedules and organized events. She could get that in church but I doubt you attend one. Cities that have more kids than average (like mine) tend to have so many activities available that you would never have time to explore them all. I wish you luck, I think the only area that suites your needs and budget are those near LAX, more or less. If you bought 7 years ago for less, you'll have a nice step up in property taxes to look forward to. A condo or townhouse may not be as budget friendly when you consider HOA's.

I have a friend like you that's pretty happy in the Bixby Knolls area of Long Beach if you are looking for something else.

I agree with you schools aren't meant to be enjoyed, but they have to be at least meeting a child's needs. My child isn't allowed to skip a grade, nor will she be thriving in the big size of gifted classes (25 kids) so I know public school isn't a right fit for her. Every child is different. Some fit in the conventional school setting, some learn better in Montessori-style of teaching, some even excel in "unschooling" movement and some just learns better through hands-on, tactile experiences (like mine) rather than worksheets.

I am not here to debate school systems or defend for my decision for homeschooling. In fact she's been getting more socialization through homeschooling curriculum than at the public schools. A "high-performing" school district like South Pasadena can be rigid, students spend a lot of time lining up even to go to recess. My daughter followed directions well and is reported to be "well-behaved" at school but I can see it repressing her creativity and personality that she learns more about compliance than expressing herself. Again, every child is different. We are looking out for our child, what would be better for her long-term development.

Lastly, no, we're atheists.

Thank you for the response.

[Mirabella_Balthazar]

Originally Posted by LuvSouthOC

The South Bay is "conservative"?

Fiscal conservatives such as myself may exist in RPV but not really anywhere else where the majority of the populace wants more and more government largesse.

To be honest with you, I don't know enough about South Bay to form an opinion. I read it here in cty data forum.

I am here to learn, so thank you for anyone's opinion, whether it's in agreement with mine or not.

[pacific2]

Originally Posted by Mirabella_Balthazar

I like your first choice.

We are staying far, far away from the O.C. Being the liberals we can't do the O.C.

I don't know the 3rd area, will google it.

Thank you for your reply.

OC has changed a lot.

Orange County Is No Longer Nixon Country - The New York Times

Besides, places like Laguna Beach (In South OC) are liberal. You mentioned that you are high energy, so a place like that might fit you.

Alternately, there is neighboring Aliso Viejo which, although by no means similar to LB, is far less expensive and split about 50/50 liberal/conservative, with access to LB.

There are number of former New Yorkers, myself included, living here.

FWIW, Aliso was very sleepy when I first moved here from Manhattan, but a number of tech and biomed companies have "discovered" Aliso Viejo and moved in, so the place has been energized:

Aliso Viejo is a hotbed of entrepreneurship among Southern California cities, study finds – Orange County Register

[Mirabella_Balthazar]

Originally Posted by pacific2

OC has changed a lot.

Orange County Is No Longer Nixon Country - The New York Times

Besides, places like Laguna Beach (In South OC) are liberal. You mentioned that you are high energy, so a place like that might fit you.

Alternately, there is neighboring Aliso Viejo which, although by no means similar to LB, is far less expensive and split about 50/50 liberal/conservative, with access to LB.

There are number of former New Yorkers, myself included, living here.

FWIW, Aliso was very sleepy when I first moved here from Manhattan, but a number of tech and biomed companies "discovered" Aliso Viejo, and have now moved in, so the place has been energized:

Aliso Viejo is a hotbed of entrepreneurship among Southern California cities, study finds – Orange County Register

Thank you for this, I need to remind myself to be more open-minded.

Depends on my husband's job, the high-tech industry is near the now called Silicon Beach area.---is there any similar area in the O.C where the high-tech/start-ups gather?

Again, I appreciate so much from the fellow New Yorker to provide another perspective.

[pacific2]

Originally Posted by Mirabella_Balthazar

Thank you for this, I need to remind myself to be more open-minded.

Depends on my husband's job, the high-tech industry is near the now called Silicon Beach area.---is there any similar area in the O.C where the high-tech/start-ups gather?

Again, I appreciate so much from the fellow New Yorker to provide another perspective.

From the above article, "Aliso Viejo is a hotbed of entrepreneurship among Southern California cities, study finds – Orange County Register":

South Orange County’s Aliso Viejo is a hotbed of successful entrepreneurship compared with other Southern California cities, according to a study by researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan School of Management.

Aliso Viejo ranked higher in entrepreneurial quality – measured by the likelihood of launching a successful IPO or being acquired – than 121 other cities in the Greater Los Angeles area and 18 in the San Diego area, according to the MIT paper, which examined startup ventures across California.

There are a relatively large number of successful IPO's in Aliso, but I'm sure that's dwarfed by the absolute number in other places, like Irvine.

Nearby Irvine is in Central OC and is easily the tech hub of this area. A number of people work in the tech industry in Irvine, but live in either North or South OC.

Aliso Viejo is a much smaller mini-tech center. Aliso has a population of about 50K.

Some of the companies with either headquarters or offices in Aliso include: Dell, QLogic, Microsemi, Telogis, OCTANe, Microsoft, MicroVention, UST Global, Corent Technology, Fluor, Smith Micro Software, Gaikai Inc , etc.

There are also a lot f startups here.

Tech is not my field, so I don't know if I answered your question about "the high-tech industry."

BTW, glad to help, if I can.