Cheapest and Safest place to live in Southern CA???? (San Diego: HOA, townhouse)

[Clevelandgal]

Originally Posted by tonyinsd

Cheap, safe, desirable. Pick two.

Well not any 2...cause cheap and desirable won't go together. other combos possible. ..Relatively speaking of course.

[magnum0417]

I work with SD natives at my job in PHX. They say El Cajon does have some "white trash redneck types".However, they also say they have cleaned up the prostitution and other stuff that was more prevalent there in the 1980's. If you google El Cajon Rentals, you will find places for under $1000/mth. They may not be the Taj Majal but single BDR/BA is better than nothing when you have limited options like the OP.

[reinbeauchaser]

If you want to find out how safe an area is, go to Trulia - Real Estate, Homes for Sale, Apartments for Rent, Local data. Type in a city and state. When it shows the various houses for sale, click on one. The next page will detail the house, but what I find important is further down on the page where it gives you information about the area, such as public transportation, schools, conveniences and - crime! You have to click on each topic to get the info. With regards to Crime, they’ve color coded it from green to red, with yellow and orange in the middle. It will tell you what kind of crime is most recent for the area, too. Green is obviously preferred, but it gives an idea about how safe things are in a specific area.

Another site is Neighborhood Search for Home Buyers and Real Estate Investment - NeighborhoodScout. Although it requires a subscription (and you have a choice of one month, 3 months, or 6 months), you can sometimes get your first or second search free. It will also give you options in what to look for, including Crime. I don't know if you get more details with a subscription - as in 'types' of crime, but if you're serious about moving to a particular state and city, it's a good investment. You just have to be diligent about canceling it once you're moved. :0)

As for moving to California, I've been here my whole life. Yes, housing is expensive. Yes, there are bad areas, but there are good areas, too. Unfortunately, Crime knows no boundaries, so you can move into a relative safe neighborhood and still have issues. Your best bet is a gated community, but that always comes with a hefty HOA fee, not to mention an expensive price tag on the house. HOA’s, though, pay for security, enforcement of noise pollution, and oftentimes the gardener fee to keep your front lawns looking nice. Fortunately, due to the market crash a couple of years ago, prices are at record lows (at least low compared to a few years ago). This is the time to buy and it may be the last year, too. I’m hearing rumors that prices are going to go up next year.

Inexpensive areas with good neighborhoods would be Beaumont (a lot of police live there) and Yucaipa (rural but building up with new homes). Price range goes from the mid $100K to $400K, sometimes higher if there’s property exceeding a half acre. I’m considering that area, now that my kids have moved out that direction and my husband is retiring. We were going to move to Oregon ‘back in the day’ when we were visiting my in-laws and raising our kids, but since my kids now work in the opposite direction and I want to be close to my future grandkids, it’s a done deal that Oregon is no longer on my ‘bucket list’. Rather sad about that, actually. Oregon is gorgeous! :0)

[Bonnie62]

Is San Marcos, Vista or Bonsall a safe place to live? May be relocating to SD area and curious!
Thanks

[oddstray]

Originally Posted by Bonnie62

Is San Marcos, Vista or Bonsall a safe place to live? May be relocating to SD area and curious!
Thanks

Vista just north of I-78 looks run-down and seedy. I wouldn't feel safe there. Other parts of Vista are good.

San Marcos just north of I-78 is strip-mall hell. I wouldn't live there due to the crazy traffic around the malls. Other parts of San Marcos are good.

I don't know much about Bonsall, but what I've heard or read is that it's a good area. Sounds like it's a bit rural and isolated, which may or may not be what someone wants.

[sdhkshdcny09]

Originally Posted by oddstray

Vista just north of I-78 looks run-down and seedy. I wouldn't feel safe there. Other parts of Vista are good.

San Marcos just north of I-78 is strip-mall hell. I wouldn't live there due to the crazy traffic around the malls. Other parts of San Marcos are good.

I don't know much about Bonsall, but what I've heard or read is that it's a good area. Sounds like it's a bit rural and isolated, which may or may not be what someone wants.

I agree, the majority of north Vista is pretty run-down. Northeast Vista is pretty nice, however, and is similar to Bonsall. Bonsall is nicer though, also has higher performing schools

Nordahl is really the only area I try to avoid due to traffic. You may want to look into Santa Fe Hills or Twin Oaks Valley if you choose north of the freeway. Overall, South San Marcos is nicer- but it's also more expensive.

[Kmedbery]

I live 45 min outside sacramento. I would like to relocate to
A town down south. I work at a major airport for the us government
Commuting is ok I commute 30 min to work and 30 min everyday
So that's not a problem. I have no kids and no wife , I'm single with two dogs I have
A major thing for Disney. I'm not coming out of the Midwest or out the eastO
coast. I get a am station out of Burbank so I need the news around the southland
Any ideas you can provide me would be great. I know another person wanting to move south
My parents live in Vegas and sis and brother live in Sacramento.

[reinbeauchaser]

Originally Posted by Kmedbery

I live 45 min outside sacramento. I would like to relocate to
A town down south. I work at a major airport for the us government
Commuting is ok I commute 30 min to work and 30 min everyday
So that's not a problem. I have no kids and no wife , I'm single with two dogs I have
A major thing for Disney. I'm not coming out of the Midwest or out the eastO
coast. I get a am station out of Burbank so I need the news around the southland
Any ideas you can provide me would be great. I know another person wanting to move south
My parents live in Vegas and sis and brother live in Sacramento.

Is this a job change or just an address change? You don't say how far down south you want to move. There are a lot of towns between Disneyland and Sacramento. :-)

[bigdaddy5]

If you like tall bro-trucks, some white trash but big, cheap houses on huge lots, check out Jamul. I heard it's safe there but you're living out in the sticks.

[ghomm]

Look into foreclosure properties near San Diego, they will hit right around the 1000 mark, require minimum to no money down and ultimately the place is yours not a rental. There are also many web sites with rentals listed . We are currently looking at moving from So. Iowa to be closer to relatives. Good luck!