Help Finding Apartment with reasonable distance to Santa Ana (Long Beach: renting, condo)

[NoelleImani]

I will be relocating to California in June for a job in Santa Ana (405 and Harbor Blvd area.. not too far from South Coast Plaza). My fiance and I are both 24, black, lesbian professionals. We also have a small (under 10 lbs.) dog. I'd prefer to be in between LA and work but I'd consider renting somewhere in the opposite direction as long as I could keep my commute time under 45 minutes. I'd prefer something relatively updated in a decent area for about $1500/month for a 2BR. Whether it's and apartment or condo doesn't matter and I'm not pressed to be in a community with a sizable black or lesbian population but I would prefer to be somewhere that would be considered age appropriate for us. Being near the beach is a definite plus. I've been looking in HB as well as Belmont Shores but I tend to keep finding properties in that "Slater Slums" area that everyone says to avoid and everything that I find in Belmont Shores that I like tends to be about $1800. I'm relocating from the Detroit area so I have more than enough street smarts to deal but a relatively safe location (no gang violence or anything like that) that's pet-friendly with a decent looking interior are top priorities. Can anyone suggest anything?

[ragnarkar]

Originally Posted by NoelleImani

I will be relocating to California in June for a job in Santa Ana. My fiance and I are both 24, black, lesbian professionals. We also have a small (under 10 lbs.) dog. I'd prefer to be in between LA and work but I'd consider renting somewhere in the opposite direction as long as I could keep my commute time under 45 minutes. I'd prefer something relatively updated in a decent area for about $1500/month for a 2BR. Whether it's and apartment or condo doesn't matter and I'm not pressed to be in a community with a sizable black or lesbian population but I would prefer to be somewhere that would be considered age appropriate for us. Being near the beach is a definite plus. I've been looking in HB as well as Belmont Shores but I tend to keep finding properties in that "Slater Slums" area that everyone says to avoid and everything that I find in Belmont Shores that I like tends to be about $1800. I'm relocating from the Detroit area so I have more than enough street smarts to deal but a relatively safe location (no gang violence or anything like that) that's pet-friendly with a decent looking interior are top priorities. Can anyone suggest anything?

You can look at Cerritos.. it's a nice safe area with a decent African American population..

[EscapeCalifornia]

Cerritos would probably be stretching the commute time. The Southbound 405 sucks in the morning. Of course, if she REALLY wants to live closer to LA that'll be a factor in any city she picks. Long Beach would be a good city, but again, the commute won't be much fun.