Alpine vs. Lakeside vs Escondido vs Vista (San Diego, El Cajon: HOA, new home)

[brooooke]

I'm living in Rancho Bernardo now, but thinking of moving somewhere a little cheaper so we can have a bigger home. I'm looking at Alpine, Vista, Lakeside & Escondido based on the things we are looking for in a home. Can anyone give me some insight into the areas (ie things I can't get from Google) as far as what the people are like, kid friendlyness, good places to shop/eat, etc?

[malcorub16]

I can speak for Lakeside and somewhat Alpine. If you are coming from the newer manicured suburbs of Rancho Bernardo and have no experience with the far East County, Lakeside/Alpine will be a be bit of a culture shock for you regardless of your culture, race or ethnicity. My previous neighborhood of Tierrasanta is somewhat comparable to Rancho Bernardo and I can say that it was a bit of an awkward move for me at first, I adjusted pretty quickly being that I’ve lived in so many different places… and I am now pretty much settled here and love it.

In Lakeside/Alpine, you are not in the City of San Diego jurisdiction or any city jurisdiction for that matter, you will be in County of SD jurisdiction. So there is a lot you can get away with regarding adjustments to your home or property without any authority to hassle you about it (city or hoa) and personally I love it this way. We have neighbor, for example, down the street who has a cool little wooden tree house he recently built for his kids right in there front lawn and its completely visible from the street. I think he did a nice job on it and told him so myself, I can’t imagine him being able to do that in any San Diego city neighborhood. Also, we put up a nice iron gate down our driveway and I love that I didn’t have to ask anyone’s permission to do it.

A few of my neighbors have enough property to have small horse stables for two or three horses. Others have nice landscaping and others have their property set up likes it’s a resort house with swimming pools and small cabana…. and sure there are a couple of other neighbors that have JUNK in their front yard but for the most part, people in my hood have nice homes and take pride in their house’s appearance. Having a couple couple of dumpy neighbors is just a small price to pay to live in peace and tranquility.

In certain parts of Lakeside and most of Alpine, you can buy a big house on more than a an acre or more of land for less than what you get in most neighborhoods in the City of SD….Or you can also find homes in a typical sub-urban layout home within certain smaller communities in Lakeside if that is your style. Personally, I don’t much care for the homes around the Downtown Lakeside area around Lindo Lake as it’s a little more crowded and flat that way and somewhat dumpy. I much prefer the semi-rural hillside setting.

Is it kid friendly? Sure. Honestly, I would much rather raise a child in a in a rural or semi-rural area than the suburbs or the city, it’s how I grew up so I prefer it this way. I love taking my kids to Lindo Lake Park and County Library, Steltzer County Park is cool and so is Lake Jennings.

Where to shop? We find ourselves shopping a lot in Santee Town Center Area or Parkway Plaza Mall Area in El Cajon. Both of these areas are close and have the typical big name stores you can find anywhere. Are the people friendly? We seem to have a good mix of the old timers and the new younger crowds. For the most part, I think people here are a friendly down to earth bunch.

As far a convenience for a commute. It depends where you work, I work in Mission Valley and my colleagues that live in Rancho Bernardo have a longer commute than I do. Alpine of course is farther out so the commute will be longer and the setting more rural than Lakeside.

I love the peacefuless out here in my neighborhood. Of course, like any neighborhood or town, the communities within these vary in style. So, I would recommend getting in your car and driving to these potential hoods.

Good luck on your search for a home!

[brooooke]

Thank you so much! Your response is so detailed, and exactly the kind of information I am looking for. I will be exploring the area soon and will check out some of those parks with my little girl I appreciate you taking the time. I grew up in rural Connecticut so these two towns sound delightful to me!

[malcorub16]

Originally Posted by brooooke

Thank you so much! Your response is so detailed, and exactly the kind of information I am looking for. I will be exploring the area soon and will check out some of those parks with my little girl I appreciate you taking the time. I grew up in rural Connecticut so these two towns sound delightful to me!

Happy to help, if you are looking for something newer, there is also a new sub-urban community over by Lake Jennings which is a little farther East about 7-8 minute drive from my home. Here is a link to the newest one in Lakeside, its called Green Hills, I am sure this is an HOA type neighborhood, .

Green Hills: Lakeside, CA, New homes by Michael Gregory Builders