Moving from Irvine to Lake Elsinore? (Corona, Newport Beach: cheap house, to buy, magnet schools)

[Lauris26]

Hi, my family is thinking of moving from Irvine to Lake Elsinore. We love Irvine, but it is expensive and overcrowded. We are thinking of moving to Lake Elsinore because the houses there look nice but are inexpensive. My husband would need to commute to Irvine for work. What areas are good to live in? And what is the commute like? What are his options in commuting? Anyone living out in Lake Elsinore commute to Irvine? Also schools are very important for us because we have children. Thank you! =)

[Count David]

Don't do it. You will regret it.

[Narfcake]

Commuting options ... Ortega highway, which is a 2-lane road that was never designed for heavy traffic. The alternate is to head up to the 91 and all the way around.

If schools are important, don't move to Elsinore.

Factor in the fuel, wear/tear, and additional maintenance for your car. Getting a cheap house located further away might not be so cheap afterall.

[Fontucky]

Originally Posted by Narfcake

Factor in the fuel, wear/tear, and additional maintenance for your car. Getting a cheap house located further away might not be so cheap afterall.

Don't forget the heat-related electricity costs that aren't a factor in Irvine.

[bhcompy]

Elsinore has terrible schools. Just to the north, you'll find something better in Horsethief Canyon(unincorporated Corona) and still be close to Ortega Hwy. Still a long commute, at least 45 minutes and the road shuts down periodically due to wildfires, mud/rockslides, etc.

If you want something a bit more affordable and still commutable to Irvine with good schools, try western Corona. Still have newer developments going up in the mid 300s and if you take the 241 toll road, the commute is ~30 minutes

[Fontucky]

Originally Posted by bhcompy

and if you take the 241 toll road, the commute is ~30 minutes

Plus approx $9.50 in tolls per day (241 & 261), not including Fastrak discount.

[blah_blah_blahhhh]

Just to clarify, it is not a 30 min commute from Elsinore to Irvine, it takes 30 mins just to get across the Ortega to San Juan Capistrano. I live here and work in Newport Beach, not a bad drive (takes me about an hour). And yes, if you take the toll roads (which I do) it gets expensive.
The expense to keep cool is nothing if you use a swamp cooler as opposed to an air conditioner. Most hot days are dry around here so the swamp cooler works just fine.
The schools aren't the best, but not awful. We have the Arts Magnet schools out here (they incorporate the arts into certain schools, where many these days ignore the arts)

[Fontucky]

But how many of the newer homes are evap cooling equipped?

[cl723]

There are better places to live. LE is a really crappy area.

[blah_blah_blahhhh]

"But how many of the newer homes are evap cooling equipped?"

It doesn't matter, they are fairly cheap to buy, around 500 bucks for a good one. Having air and a swamp cooler would be the best since we do have a few days in the summer that are humid (swamp coolers and humidity don't work to well with each other).