Huntington Beach For Families? (Irvine, Orange: middle-class, real estate, apartment complexes)

[JakeDog]

Huntington Beach seems like a low crime area- how is it for young families? $700K-850K?

[newportbeachsmostwanted]

Huntington Beach; I would describe as exciting, safe, friendly, unprententious, and active. The quality of life is among the best in the country. Beach Boulevard provides you with whatever you need. Congestion studies show that Huntington Beach roads will have some of the best roads(least congestion) in OC through 2030.

The schools are great. Huntington Beach HS has a world-famous surf team. Other high schools include, Edison and Ocean View. Parents are involved and concerned. Residents care highly about public education and the future of Huntington Beach.

IMO, Property values will skyrocket once downtown is completed. Pacific City is going to be beautiful and "a smaller version" of Fashion Island or Irvine Spectrum. The Strand Development will be another quality of life-enhancer.

The beaches in Huntington Beach are very clean. In the dead-heat of summer, the area around the pier can get packed! In any case, Bolsa Chica and Huntington State Beaches can offer congestion relief for a member ($90 or so) or a one-timer($10). Firepits, showers, restrooms, and consessions are available.

$750 to 850 can afford a 3-4 bedroom single family house. The neighborhood will be clean, quiet, and safe. There are really no horrible neighborhoods in Huntington Beach. It's hard to go wrong in H.B.

Good luck!

[ferretkona]

The north part of the town looks shady to me. There is a lot of drug use in HB, of course drugs are everywhere. HB has a lot of signs proclaiming "HB is Drug free" but don't believe it.

But HB is a lot of fun, spent my youth there.

[newportbeachsmostwanted]

Originally Posted by ferretkona

The north part of the town looks shady to me.

The north part is Sunset Beach and Huntington Harbour which is some of the most expensive real estate in Orange County. You might mean the northeast, near Westminster which is more middle-class, but by no means "a bad area." I have a friend who lives there(actually technically he lives in Westminster), but I've always felt totally safe.


Here's some H.B. imagery:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=AjjvJdLV8II

[NYSD1995]

HB is awesome but there is a lot of drugs and partying there. Just because the kids are wealthy doesn't meant they don't make trouble. It's front-row SoCal, so expect the good with the bad.

[ferretkona]

Originally Posted by newportbeachsmostwanted

The north part is Sunset Beach and Huntington Harbour which is some of the most expensive real estate in Orange County. You might mean the northeast, near Westminster which is more middle-class, but by no means "a bad area." I have a friend who lives there(actually technically he lives in Westminster), but I've always felt totally safe.


Here's some H.B. imagery:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=AjjvJdLV8II

Actually Sunset is west of Huntington. The beach faces south not north to south. The North part is up along the 405. The rough areas I am thinking of is along Beach and Talbert, Hell.

[Dennis P]

Originally Posted by ferretkona

The north part of the town looks shady to me. There is a lot of drug use in HB, of course drugs are everywhere. HB has a lot of signs proclaiming "HB is Drug free" but don't believe it.

But HB is a lot of fun, spent my youth there.

I noticed that there are some shady-looking apartment complexes on Slater Avenue just west of Beach Blvd., and it looks like many of the residents there are Latinos. My friends who used to live in H.B. and now live in Austin, TX, referred to those apartments as "Slater Slums." Other than that, I feel that most of H.B. is pretty nice and safe for families.

[flowermom]

Hi there,

My family moved to HB about a year ago and really like it. The public schools have a good reputation and a lot of parental involvement. Many great parks, and of course the beaches. What I like most about it is the more down to earth feel here. I grew up in Newport and it was very plastic if you know what I mean. HB is still an expensive area - we paid about $1 million for our one story ranch home. It's an okay house, walking distance to the beach, but nothing fancy. I would think for $750 to 800,000 you could afford something, but it would be further inland, maybe an older house that had not been remodeled. Don't expect a lot for your money, but I am sure you know that.

Many of my neighbors grew up in HB and chose to return here to buy homes and raise their families, I think that speaks well of an area. Also, I agree with an earlier poster that the continued revitilization of the downtown is only going to increase prices in the future, so it is probably a good investment. I can't think of another area in OC where I could live so close to the beach for what we paid for our house. Best of luck to you and your family!

[Amavel]

In the price range from $700,000 to $850,000, you'll be able to afford many of the homes on the market in the 92646 zip code, which is south Huntington Beach and is roughly within Edison High's district. Anywhere south of downtown (near the beach but moving towards Newport) is decently affordable, quiet, and safe.

Moving northwest from downtown (towards Sunset Beach), you'll find the new(er) Seacliff developments close to the coast, but they're more in the 800's to 900's (if not over 1 million) range. Everything downtown is expensive; a 60 year old, 1 bedroom home will sell for $800,000 just because of its proximity to the beach and nightlife. Any of the new 3-story sardine homes in downtown are over a million dollars.

The areas near the 405 freeway, especially near Beach Blvd, Newland St, and Gothard St, are more dense (apartments and condos) and have fewer homeowners. Likewise, there is much more traffic and overall congestion.

I hope this information is useful.

[nevercoldcall]

One thing about Huntington is it seems to be a big loud college party scene. We looked there before everywhere else due to the lower cost compared to Newport, Laguna, etc., but were immediately turned off by the apparently never-ending college party scene. That just isn't for us ... maybe when we were 22, but not anymore!!