Looking to relocate next autumn (San Diego, Corona: apartments, rentals, condo)

[dglade]

I am a 57 year old, semi retired, active, self employed man. I trade from home so employment is not an issue. I am interested in apartments or condo. 2 bedroom, close to the ocean if possible. Initially I would prefer to be int he city. I was thinking near gaslamp because of the concentration of restaurants and nightlife. But are there other areas of the city that are active and vibrant, with a city feel? An ocean view would be fantastic. I am moving from the Chicago suburbs.

[skelaki]

What is your budget and your earning potential. A great deal depends on those two items. For example, here is one link to apartments in the Gaslamp District: http://www.apartmentguide.com/neighb...Diego/Gaslamp/ . One for balboa Park area: http://www.apartmentguide.com/neighb...o/Balboa-Park/ and one for the Hilcrest area: Hillcrest Apartments For Rent - Find Rentals Near the Hillcrest Neighborhood in San Diego, CA - ForRent.com

Those links will give you some general idea of what you can expect to pay for rentals. Now, of course, there are other sources and many apartments do not advertise. But, San Diego does tend to be an expensive place to live.

[dglade]

Thanks Skelaki. My earning potential is 10-12 K per month. As far as budget there are no expenses outside of living expenses. No credit cards or car payment.

[loveautumn]

No offense, but at 57 the Gaslamp district might not be for you...it's mostly 20-30 year olds. SD nightlife is geared toward that age group as far as bars. Restaurants for your age group would be for dating, not hanging out. You might want to look at the La Jolla area or Del Mar.

[dglade]

None taken. I was thinking gaslamp because of its proximity to Petco. I am a huge baseball fan and the thought of being able to walk to games is extremely attractive. Looking at a map La Jolla and Del Mar have a great location right on the water. What do you like about those 2 areas , love autumn? And thank you for your reply.

[dglade]

Thank you Skelaki. Balboa Park does seem a very desirable area, with many choices. And having the park right there offers many opportunities.

[skelaki]

La Jolla and del Mar are both upscale beach areas. I grew up (partially) in La Jolla and my parents lived in Del Mar for several years after moving out of La Jolla. If I was choosing to day i would choose Del Mar over La Jolla. Del Mar has a more village atmosphere than La Jolla does now. But you could not go wrong either way. The only time Del Mar can be problematic, depending on where you live, would be the few weeks the fair is going on.

Also check out Coronado Island. It would have very close access to Petco Park, allthough not walkable, but just a short dirve or bus ride across the bridge. Personally I love Coronado and it is very walkable. Coronado CA Apartments for Rent - 43 Rentals - Zillow Houses for Rent in Coronado CA - 46 Homes - Zillow (links to rentals in Coronado)

[kettlepot]

I get Loveautumn's point about the Gaslamp crowd and avoiding it, but the OP might make it work if he gravitates toward some of the pricier venues to weed out the youngsters on a budget. That is if proximity to Petco is a major selling point.

If you are willing to spend the money, La Jolla may work for you. I'm so used to steering people away from there for cost reasons and the difficulty of driving into and out of it that it unnerves me a bit to actually suggest it to someone.

Little Italy may work for you. You could take the Trolley to Petco on game days. It is very near the bay and the entire North Embarcadero project is well underway with plenty of jogging, biking, and sitting a watching venues. Little Italy also has a decent selection of restaurants and small cafes. Many of the buildings are new, or new conversions if you are looking for modern conveniences in your living space.

I too would recommend Hillcrest to you. It depends on how close you want to be to the activity. The city life activity is clustered around University and 5th Avenue, but the major new apartment buildings are a solid 10 blocks south between Palm and Laurel. Though the immediate area isn't totally devoid of life so you could walk to get a meal if you needed too. It just isn't the same as it is at University & 5th. And if you are really prepared for a walk, the distance to University & 5th could be a motivator for you to get out and get some exercise.

[skelaki]

I totally agree about getting in and out of La Jolla. It can definitely be a real pain. so can Del Mar, but to a lesser extent. Little Italy or Old Town could be good alternatives to check out. For beach Coronado would be my choice but the negative there would be the bridge tolls.

[dglade]

Thank you to all for your wonderful suggestions. I think i will focus on Hillcrest, Little Italy and Balboa Park for the first year. As described those areas seem perfect for me. And i will take that year to look into Del Mar, La Jolla and other areas further away.

Having grown up in NY the toll bridges of Coronado are not something I want any part of on a daily basis.

It is nice to think of a place where one can do things outdoors for all 12 months to look into other areas to live.