Any Escondido experts out there?

[exvalleygirl]

Interesting what everyone is saying about Escondido. I, too, am moving to nearby Valley Center. AND, I will miss the coffee shops etc; but they are putting a four lane road through it as we speak, and with that, I believe the growth will come, too. Prices there are more affordable, and there are suburbs and rural areas. Check it out....we could be neighbors and hopefully I'll see you at Starbucks in the next while. =-)

[RUBIES77]

Originally Posted by escoguy66

I have lived and worked in Escondido for eight years now. Have lived in the area for 25 plus years. I came to work in Escondido in what was at that time a flourishing arts scene. Now, that scene is just pathetic and I am on the verge of escaping to Arizona.

There is no downtown vibe to Escondido. Sure, there are restaurants and plenty of art galleries. But, realistically, how many times does one wake up and have a need to go buy art?

The demographics of the city are changing greatly. The town is now 40% Hispanic. There have been recent killings involving that ethnicity. While the city council is taking a stand, it more or less stays the same.

There are slums in every city. There are run down neighborhoods with apartments aplenty. There are neighborhoods in this city where if you drive around when school lets out, you feel like you're in Mexico.

The nice areas of Escondido are in the southern part of the town near the mall (is also where the fire swept through, so one needs to be concerned about that every October). If you want to live in a rural area and not have to deal with the bad parts, it is possible to live here. But for those thinking they can move here and be within driving distance of San Diego, forget it. The highway traffic is a nightmare going both directions.

I guess I just don'e have anything nice to say about this town I've lived in for about eight years. Would I recommend it? No.

YOU NEED TO MOVE a little more North west of I-15, in Fallbrook, so you can break bread with the Head of the ARYAN NATIONS Neo-nazi Group. I think you will be more comfortable there.

[Judy P.]

I forgot to tell you that you should check out Rancho Bernardo, it is really nice and a LITTLE closer to San Diego than Escondido.

[Cheeto]

Originally Posted by cnkad

If I were relocating to san diego (and I do live in san diego, but I am not an expert on Escondido either, But I have been there and about many times and my cousin lives there now.) Escondido would be rather low on my list of places to live in. It sounds like you want a place with a nice down towny vibe....and all the "nice" areas of Escondido are not close to downtown. Here is a good tip...if you are thinking about a particular area, take a drive there at night. Then you can get a better idea of what it would be like to live there and what kind of area it is-cause everything looks better in the day time. well good luck.

I would have to disagree with the above. There are a lot of nice older residential areas near downtown esco that have a small town feel to them. Downtown itself is nice and there are a lot of shops,eateries, and activities on a regular basis. Definitely more "towny" than many other communitites in the area. There are a few random apartment complexes north and east of downtown that have drug and gang issues, but most of downtown escondido is a hidden gem

[lucyluc]

Escondido used to be a nice rural town years ago;NOW it is a big ghetto and has all the concomitant problems;overcrowding, homelessness, crime, illegal aliens ; ghetto blaster noise on all streets...it is simply hell on earth.Property values have suffered huge declines due to the subprime meltdown in the hispanic population. Do not buy there; neighorhoods and property values keep going down....Stay as close to the coast as you can, preferably west of 5 to preserve property values.

[esmith143]

Originally Posted by lucyluc

overcrowding, homelessness, crime, illegal aliens ; ghetto blaster noise on all streets...it is simply hell on earth.Property values have suffered huge declines due to the subprime meltdown in the hispanic population. Do not buy there; neighorhoods and property values keep going down....Stay as close to the coast as you can, preferably west of 5 to preserve property values.

To be fair, there are more homeless and more crime in Pacific Beach (west of 5) than in Escondido. In fact, I don't think there are many homeless in Escondido at all. You try to live in the streets when daily highs are in triple digits.

You're right about overcrowding, though. And you're right about property values. The same 900 s.f. prewar hovel that goes for 150K in Escondido would go for 600K in Pacific Beach. Hooray for preserved property values.