Looking for info about renting in Chula Vista and surrounding areas (San Diego: apartment complex, for rent) - California (CA) - City-Data Forum

azrael · 09-03-2007, 06:28 AM

Hi all,
My husband is starting a new job in Chula Vista, CA in about six months. Can anyone give me some tips for apartment hunting in this area. Also, is this a safe area? I am pregnant and will have a newborn at that time. We are looking for a two bedroom but will settle for one if it means safer living conditions. We are hoping to spend about $1,000-1,200 on rent. Also, if anyone has any suggestions to a cheaper area that is close by please let me know. However, I do not want my husband to have to commute more than forty minutes to work. I greatly appreciate your help. Thanks!

jksouthbay88 · 09-03-2007, 08:04 PM

South Bay is great.Not all upscale like N.County but not all rough like some parts of the city.Safety in your own home should be good.A few home break-ins here and there but it is rare.Street safety might be a little bit of a concern.Things like auto theft/breakins,and street robberies are things you should keep in the back of your head.But other than that Chula Vista is a excellent place to live.Lived here 19 years and the only thing that has happen was auto-theft(Thanks to my mom not listening)In that price range should be good.Both sides of CV is pretty good;the west a little rougher than the east but most of the east people used to live in the west(incl.me!)A few select cities in National City are "decent" to live in.South SD apartments I wouldn't touch.High gang area.IB is a little low key and bland but hey some people like it.And finally low traffic.For about half a million people there isn't major slowing on most of the streets and we do have the trolley and decent bus service.I would recomend the South Bay to anyone and I would for sure say Chula Vista is the best choice.

azrael · 09-05-2007, 07:43 PM

Thank you for responding to my post. We are moving from New Jersey and any help from a local is great. I just have a few more questions that I was hoping you could answer. I am seeing a great deal of info about crime in Chula Vista. Some people say that this is about the worst place to live in San Diego county. Is there any truth to this? You say that east Chula Vista is better than the west. I'm having trouble locating apartments for rent in the east. Can you name some neighborhoods that I might use for apartment searches. Perhaps you may be able to recommend some apartment complexes. Do you know of Terra Vista apartments on Santa Lucia Road? Is this too far south? I'm sorry for all the questions but I feel pretty lost right now. Again, any advice you can give me would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much!

jksouthbay88 · 09-05-2007, 11:05 PM

Nah,those comments about being the worst place in the county are dead wrong.It is not the greatest but it's not the worst.The east west theory is somewhat true but most of the east people came from the west.The west is slightly urban and the east is pretty much sub.Areas like NW(West if 5th and North of H)South Central(South of J-to Naples West of Hilltop-5th)and the Otay sections are slightly rough but there are plenty of areas far worse than that in the county.Yeah it is tough to find east apartments because there aren't that many out there.I live on East H about 1 mile east of the 805 and there is only one other apartment complex for about 2 miles.The neighborhood question is a little tough because there isn't "neighborhoods"There are areas and developments.(Ill send a PM to you with locations and details of all of them if you would like)Never heard of those apartments but Santa Lucia has nice homes around there;great area.It's OK I'm here to help.

sdurbanite · 09-05-2007, 11:58 PM

For once I have to agree with JK - CV is not as bad as others say it is. I've seen parts of Vista, which is in the northern part of the county that are way worse than anything I've seen in CV.

I have many friends that live in the area, on the east side of the 805 freeway and they seem to like living there. The area is about as suburban as it gets, which isn't meant to be a bad thing.

I just mapquested the Terra Vista Apartments and it looks to be in a good area that is safe. As far as shopping and restaurants in the vicinity, you'll find nearly every major chain outlet to choose from.

db108108 · 10-02-2007, 02:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by azrael

Thank you for responding to my post. We are moving from New Jersey and any help from a local is great. I just have a few more questions that I was hoping you could answer. I am seeing a great deal of info about crime in Chula Vista. Some people say that this is about the worst place to live in San Diego county. Is there any truth to this? You say that east Chula Vista is better than the west. I'm having trouble locating apartments for rent in the east. Can you name some neighborhoods that I might use for apartment searches. Perhaps you may be able to recommend some apartment complexes. Do you know of Terra Vista apartments on Santa Lucia Road? Is this too far south? I'm sorry for all the questions but I feel pretty lost right now. Again, any advice you can give me would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much!

I live very close to Santa Lucia (on Santa Rita) and the area is extremely safe. The whole area is very new, nicely manicured, and very quiet. Overwhelmingly so at times. If you look at a map, Heritage Park is at the end of Santa Lucia. It's a nice park with a soccer field/playground and a pond. Again, very clean and full of kids and parents. There are also tonnes of walking/biking trails in the area. Every main street has a trail on the side, which is very nice. I go for a 5 mile daily jog around Telegraph Canyon/Olympic Parkway. From here to the main freeway (the 805), it's about a 10 minute drive. Traffic is rarely a problem.

The only problem out here is that many people want in, and waiting lists for apartments can be long. I live at the Sunrose/Harvest Ridge complex. It's a bit dense, but the apartments are very new and the whole area is very, very quiet. There are lots of unsupervised kids running around and playing, so I'm taking that as a sign that the parents think it's safe. There's also a hospital next door and a few shops up on Palomar.

If you don't have a car, living here would be hell. There is exactly one bus route that goes to the trolley, and that takes forever. If you do have a car, within a five minute drive there are grocery stores, a new large mall, Wal-Mart, etc, etc. I really recommend Henry's Farmer's Market for good produce.

As for safety, what can I say? I've never had a problem or seen a problem. People say that there are problems in downtown CV (the west), but again, I've never had a problem. Yes, it looks more run-down, but it still seems fine to me.

For searches, use "Eastlake." That's roughly the area east of the 805, but especially anything east of the new freeway (CA 125). I might search as well using some of the major street names (Telegraph Canyon, Olympic Pkwy, East Palomar, etc). I don't know of any other neighbourhood name. Everything here is very new.

Commute wise, it shouldn't take more than 20 minutes to get anywhere in CV. We can drive from our house to Mission Valley (north of downtown San Diego) in less than 30 minutes. If you avoid the freeways during peak times, traffic isn't ever that bad. If you're travelling east/west in CV, there are no freeways anyway, but rather six lane divided avenues that go the length of a good part of the city. Traffic moves great on these, usually.