Family Neighborhoods to visit? (San Diego, San Marcos: rent, low crime, houses)

[kwaping]

My family and I are getting set to close escrow on a home in Rancho Penasquitos. I think it is the perfect location for us, and we are a lot like you. We have a three-year-old child, so schools are important. Both my wife and I work in Sorrento Valley/Mira Mesa, so a short commute is also a consideration. We have a similar budget and space needs as well.

Keep your eye on the areas just north and south of the 56 and west of the 15. I think you'll find something great, like we did!

[kettlepot]

Regarding yard care and your husbands dislike of lawn mowing, yard upkeep can be hired out fairly cheaply in the San Diego area. Given the general smallness of the yards, you could probably get a Mow, Blow, and Go guy for about $40-60 per month. Therefore, you don't necessarily have to limit your self to condo type places if you can afford that extra amount of cash outlay.

[jghall00]

I live in Tierrasanta. I'm pretty happy with the neighborhood. It's very family oriented, the schools are good through middle school, and its convenient to nearly anywhere in San Diego. There's also a good mix of housing available to suit many budgets.

[cnkad]

santee gets a bad rap, but it has really improved in recent years. The town center is all new, and it is starting to attract more families. But I would also agree with the last poster. I would def. seriously consider renting first before I bought. Rentals are much cheaper than homes. You can rent something in a much nicer area than you could afford to buy in.

[S888]

We did more estimates/budgets. Do the options open up more for neighborhoods if we go up to 500K?

[CrissCT]

Originally Posted by S888

We did more estimates/budgets. Do the options open up more for neighborhoods if we go up to 500K?

That would get you into 4S Ranch (I just checked realtor.com and that would get you a 2000 sq ft house - so not too shabby - use zipcode 92127), but I still recommend renting for a year first.

[esmith143]

Originally Posted by CrissCT

That would get you into 4S Ranch (I just checked realtor.com and that would get you a 2000 sq ft house - so not too shabby - use zipcode 92127), but I still recommend renting for a year first.

I don't think so. There is a couple of smaller houses for sale in 500k range in 4S but the cheapest detached 4br. 2000 sq ft house is 8280 Katherine Claire Ct. asking 570k-635k. Also, 500K in 4S is not the same as 500K in say Mira Mesa. In 4S you'll pay a lot of extra taxes and HOA fees. This one has $5300/year Mello-Roos and $175/month HOA.

Quite simply, 4S, CV, Carlsbad, and Scripps Ranch are upper-middle-class neighborhoods and 500K is not enough to get you a decent detached house in an upper-middle-class neighborhood in SD. (Yet)

[S888]

Hmm,
maybe a decent townhouse in a middle class neighborhood with 1600 sq feet? 3bd with an office or extra room?
Any neighborhoods where techies tend to congregate?

Kind of sad that someone who makes 6 figures in Ohio maybe can't afford to move to SD because of having a family
I know we can't afford what we can in Ohio, and that SD jobs don't pay rates to make up for the high cost of living, but you would think if we don't have high expectations (we live very modestly housing wise now considering), we might be able to swing something.

[CrissCT]

Originally Posted by S888

Hmm,
maybe a decent townhouse in a middle class neighborhood with 1600 sq feet? 3bd with an office or extra room?
Any neighborhoods where techies tend to congregate?

Kind of sad that someone who makes 6 figures in Ohio maybe can't afford to move to SD because of having a family
I know we can't afford what we can in Ohio, and that SD jobs don't pay rates to make up for the high cost of living, but you would think if we don't have high expectations (we live very modestly housing wise now considering), we might be able to swing something.

Don't be discouraged - we moved here from Cleveland 3 years ago (and lived in Columbus before that). You can do it. Esmith is incorrect, there is a detached home in 4s - 2000 sq ft for sale. Here is the MLS ID# 076088713. Oh how I wish prices had been at this level when we moved here 3 years ago! Yes taxes are high compared to other areas in San Diego but I live in 4S and it is a great family oriented community with awesome schools - and the actual tax rates are lower than what we paid in OH. Again, I recommend renting first then you avoid all those taxes and if you don't like it you can move somewhere else after you get to know the area better. Renting is very common here, not like Ohio. There isn't a stigma of "oh you don't own your house" here.

If you are used to living modestly on that salary then you should do just fine here. Just be prepared that EVERYTHING is more expensive here, not just housing, but dance lessons, little league, vet expenses. It was quite a shock for me at first. Also, if your kids are already in school the changes they will notice are that a.) lunch is outside every day b.) no hallways - you walk outside from class to class c.) no art, music, gym class - it is all done by the teacher - that is not to say the schools aren't good - just very different.

Best of luck and I'd be happy to answer anymore questions you have! We had a great realtor who was very patient with us (we took over a year to buy a home here) and she specializes in relos, if you are interested I can DM you with her info.

[S888]

We will consider renting (assuming we get an offer - I might be just getting a cheap weekend vacation, but that is ok too).
I'm a little hesitant to rent because my oldest is just finishing kindergarten here, and we are moving. I would hate to move again and change schools yet again the following year. I moved a lot when I was a kid, and I don't want to put them through losing friends so often. Plus if we rent in an area we can't afford to buy in, we will just get used to that
Plus we have a mid sized dog.
But we will consider it. If we rent, we still want to try to get into the same place we will want to buy so as to not change schools. I don't have to find a house this trip. Just to get an idea if we can afford an area that will be ok with us so we know if we can accept an offer and at what price. And to get a feel for the general area that would be a good fit.

Maybe more info about me would help. My family is from NJ and I lived in parts of NJ and TN as a kid up until high school. I have been in Ohio since high school (3 different cities - high school, college/early marriage, and currently). So I'm used to moving and meeting new people. My mom is from the "nicer" area of Newark (Um, no way I would drive on the busy parts of NJ myself). My grandma lives on the Jersey Shore. I used to love walking on the Jersey boardwalks to look at the Ocean (and that was just the New Jersey beaches). I really miss the water. I am also very affected by the weather. It is a big plus to have more sunny warm days.
I don't have the NJ rush around, speak more than your mind stereotypical attitude, but I'm a bit more worldly than the stereotypical never left Ohio person, too. (I've met all kinds of people in different states, so I think it's just a matter of finding friends you get along with anywhere).
The high school I went to was 40% minority. Great AP classes. Good extra curricular. When I graduated, we had a security guard in the hall,weren't allowed to wear coats to class because of fear of hiding a weapon. However, I felt safe. I think times might have changed. Back then there were random fights in the hall, you might hear that someone brought a gun to school, but it was more just individual fights between people I didn't know. I'm more protective of my kids and times may be different now. However, upper class schools can have their own issues. I went to Catholic school for jr high and the eighth graders were getting nose jobs and the girls were not nice as a general group. (They would pick one of the former popular girls to pick on and when that girl sat down at the art table, the entire table would stand up and move).

The current school my kindergarten goes to is very diverse (for suburbia Ohio). About a third come from non-english speaking homes. They have a great ESL program (my child is learning some spanish as well). The school is about 20% hispanic, 12% various other races. So this might smooth some of the transition for her. (Compared to if she were going to the top rated schools that have 1% minorities).

Although it seems like a good portion of the white families in our current school and neighborhood don't care about their child's education or their house. About a third of the kids in the kindergarten did not turn in the required monthly homework (ANY month) of a list of 15 books that were read to them that month. What parent could not at least lie and write down 15 titles? Or the house that had a big gaping hole of siding missing so the rain was coming in? I'm getting tired of the police helicopter checking out the area for someone who robbed a nearby business.
So I have no problem looking at schools with diversity and not all upper class. I just want to avoid areas with people who really don't care enough to take care of their kids or house. The two don't have anything to do with each other.

Hope this makes sense. So hard to communicate over the internet.