Need help picking a neighborhood; family of 4

[cruitr]

Originally Posted by debyne

Having lived in the Seattle area for the past 5+ years, my wife and I have a ton of Asian friends...so that's definitely not a problem. Actually, it's probably more of a positive for us. I just want me and my family to be completely safe, but that's irrespective of ethnic concentration. I'll check out Mira Mesa again and see what I can find...I will admit that those people that said to stay away from MM are kind of snobs, which my wife and I definitely aren't. I almost prefer being around more working class people just as long as it's safe and has really good schools.

As doc already said, check out the housing on the southern edge of Penasquitos Canyon in Mira Mesa: close to Calle Cristobal, west of Camino Ruiz and east of Camino Santa Fe. It's a very nice area with beautiful homes at decent prices.

[docmcstuffin]

Originally Posted by debyne

Having lived in the Seattle area for the past 5+ years, my wife and I have a ton of Asian friends...so that's definitely not a problem. Actually, it's probably more of a positive for us. I just want me and my family to be completely safe, but that's irrespective of ethnic concentration. I'll check out Mira Mesa again and see what I can find...I will admit that those people that said to stay away from MM are kind of snobs, which my wife and I definitely aren't. I almost prefer being around more working class people just as long as it's safe and has really good schools.

Like all denser areas, you'll have your problem areas. For Mira Mesa, that tend to be where the apartments area. Most of the crime in Mira Mesa are car theft and crime of opportunities (people leaving their garage door open and getting their house broken into). There's a lot of auto theft, but I think it occurs everywhere in San Diego. If you park your car in your garage, you won't have that problem. Here's crime data: CrimeMapping.com - National Map. I grew up in MM and bought in MM. So, I might be a little biased, but I was attracted by MM's big bang for your bucks. It's also more west than all the other areas mentioned (at least the Western part of MM), so it'll be cooler too.

As for the school, the data speaks for itself. Here's the current data: http://api.cde.ca.gov/reports/page2....submit1=submit

You can go here to see the names of the schools:
School Rankings for the City of San Diego, CA The data on here is one year behind. But as you can see, MM's schools is quite competitive. I'm not sure how old are your kids, but MMHS scores better than a few of the HS schools in Poway Unified. Same goes for Sandburg Elementary and Challenger Middle School.

[oddstray]

Originally Posted by docmcstuffin

... I personally like Park Village of Penasquitos area better than most of 4S and Rancho Bernardo area. PQ and RB all have their "ghetto" area very nice area.

... keeping in mind the word "ghetto" applied to anywhere in San Diego is an extreme exaggeration. San Diego has nothing as dire as the ghettos of Chicago or New York (for example).

[shmoov_groovzsd]

"Ghetto" Mira Mesa





A 'ghetto' Crips house in Compton




The differences are hardly noticeable...:/

[Justin Time]

You already have a lot of great advice here. We have lived in several of the neighborhoods mentioned and visited all of the others and more. We also commuted to Mission Valley daily for MANY years. I would consider San Elijo Hills based on several of your factors (children, schools, commute, price range). It is a unique little community with its own elementary school and shopping centers.
San Elijo Hills

http://www.sehproperties.com/1003901...Hills-CA-92078

http://www.sehproperties.com/1003880...Hills-CA-92078

There are lots of great schools and great neighborhoods in San Diego and there will be activities and programs for your kids just about everywhere. There is some truth and some fiction to rankings based on test scores, but if you don't know the teachers, test scores are better than nothing.

You might want to consider daily temperature and proximity to social interests along with your other criteria. If your kids choose "surfing" as their "sport", will you need to drive to the beach daily? Temperatures in East County (Mt. Helix, La Mesa, Rancho San Diego) will be warmer than Rancho Penasquitos, Mira Mesa, Rancho Bernardo, and Poway. It can be 5-10 degrees or more difference, which translates to open windows vs. AC.

One thing to keep in mind, while searching for houses, is proximity to freeways. You'll want to be close enough, but not too close to the highway. Some houses are literally up the hill/embankment from the freeway. You end up with more noise and pollution when you are that close.

I found a realtor's site that has some easy to navigate links and posted them below. I don't know this realtor. I just liked the site.

San Diego Traffic Report
San Diego 10 Day Weather Forecast & Weather Report
San Diego School Reports

[docmcstuffin]

Originally Posted by oddstray

... keeping in mind the word "ghetto" applied to anywhere in San Diego is an extreme exaggeration. San Diego has nothing as dire as the ghettos of Chicago or New York (for example).

I totally agree. It was more tongue in cheek more than anything.