Relocating to Monterey...?

[Heathj]

I would say, stay away from Seaside and Marina. Look really hard and you should be able to find something in your price range in Monterey and maybe even Pacific Grove. GL

[mililani]

Seaside isn't so bad. You can check the crime reports. It's a bit safer than Salinas, but there was a year a few years ago where there were supposedly lots of drive by shootings. But, for the most part, it's ok. You could do better in the Marina. Rent is generally cheaper there. However, be prepared for fog. It gets overcast and foggy there, for some odd reason, and it's only 10-15 minutes north of Seaside.

Also, you don't want to buy. Most houses here are 400k+ You WILL be upside down on your house for at least 7-8 years compared to renting at $1400/month. Just use a buy vs rent calc. You will see.

If you want cheaper rents and a bigger place, check out deep into Carmel Valley. You can find places way out there for pretty cheap. And, it's about 30 minutes into town. Personally, I would live down near SLO. It's cheaper, sunnier, and pretty laid back too.

[Hawk J]

My Mom loved living in Marina for many years. There was many a day I was over there painting outside, or working on her yard, when it was sunny & warm. Mom lived up off Reservation Road, close to the Fort Ord boundary fence. The farther inland you lived, the sunnier it is...

I'm not saying there aren't any foggy days, cuz there are. Just not as many as some folks are saying...

If your interested in Marina, best thing to do is spend some time looking around on some early afternoons..

Years ago we even lived in Stilwell Park in Fort Ord, off Gigling Road. We even had many sunny afternoons there...

[threepounduniverse]

Originally Posted by MtnSurfer

Maybe, but not for $1400/mo. PG is nice and has one of the best school districts, second only to Carmel. However prices definitely reflect that benefit.

Derek

Over the course of 6 months we looked at *three* cottages fitting those descriptions for $1400.00-1450.00/mo. on CL... One landed on CL proper and two landlords answered our 'housing wanted' posts on CL. I suggest to the OP that they post 'Housing Wanted' ads in EVERY CL area they are considering and KEEP THEM CURRENT. We had better luck doing it that way than just calling/showing up... YMMV.

Those kinds of rents are anomalies, true... but if WE found them it's even money that a few will pop up every now and then... it isn't like Santa Cruz where every mud hut one-day open house gets 200 applications... Pac Grove is nice, but it ain't Pebble Beach or Carmel Highlands. As I said in my previous post- we found and looked at several... they are quite unusual but NOT impossible to find in Pac Grove, as we proved. As usual you're entitled to your no doubt informed opinions but not your own facts, Derek!

[mililani]

We were about to rent a house this weekend in the Marina. About 800 sq. ft., two smaller sized rooms, completely renovated with everything new appliances, and in the sunnier part of the Marina. Weather was warm everywhere, but lo and behold, fog was encroaching all across the Monterey bay and right into Marina. You see that all the time. A huge fog belt just steam rolling across the bay, right in front of Monterey, and right in to the Marina.

Anyways, the rent was only $1200 a month. We decided to rescind when we found active termites in the property, and a shower that wasn't working for over 4 days.