Moving from Boston to SD with Kids (San Diego, Carlsbad: middle-class, renting)

[oceanview]

We are moving from North Shore of Boston to SD (have family there, love the area, weather) any advice on communities for good schools - have 4 kids ages 4-11 and houses that aren't right on top of each other. Thanks for any replies.

[newportbeachsmostwanted]

Poway, Rancho Bernardo, Carmel Valley, Encinitas, Del Mar, and Rancho Santa Fe. Those are some decent districts! Carmel Valley, Del Mar, Encinitas, and RSF being the most expensive. However, Torrey Pines HS is like #1 or #2 in the country..

If that's too expensive, try Scripps Ranch. It's got more trees so I suppose it may be more like Massachusetts. ..lol. Further north, Carlsbad is pretty nice. The schools are good. Carlsbad HS is decent. Check out www.Greatschools.net to research the schools in these areas for yourself...

Happy hunting.

[beantown2]

Oceanview! What a hoot! Also live on NS Boston, thinking of moving to SD. However, not an easy decision. Live 1 mile from beach here. Have a v. pretty 1900's house on brick sidewalk tree-lined street. V. "average" home here; something similar in SD would cost a fortune. Also, from what I can tell, not easy to find "neighborhoods"--so much of Southern CA is a vast condo complex. Am also a New Englander through and through: beside ties here, love Maine and islands in Casco Bay. Can deal with Boston/Cambridge at 3AM in the middle of a blizzard; am a seasoned 128 "road warrior," but just the thought of an AM commute in CA gives me the heebeejeebies. Sounds like I want to stay here, right? W-e-e-e-l-l-l, not exactly: I HATE WINTER!!!! Brother who moved to CA 17 years ago could not be pried out East ever again. Visited him 2 years ago; traffic and prices notwithstanding, cannot wait to return to CA. Thinking of renting my house here for a year, going out to CA for a year. So like you, want info. re schools, communities, jobs (am a teacher and writer), etc. My brother's "take" from a rather more financially secure and LA/SF base is that CA is a hard state to live in unless you have a pretty hefty income and don't put family/neighborhood at the top of your list: there's a lot of suburban condo anonymity that is hard to navigate. I have been looking at RE listings for two years, and I agree there's a strong case to be made for that. But I also think there have got to be pockets of smaller cities that have a more "homey" feel: I just think finding them from a distance is v. tricky. Therefore, would love to know what others say to your query. BTW, one of my daughter's closest friends (age 16-17) has family in SD; visits them at least 2X/year: LOVES it, and thinks moving/adjusting would be easy. My daughter determined to go to school in CA: loved tours of CA schools when we were there. Not fazed at all about adjusting...we'll see. Therefore, am also extremely interested in response to your question: good areas for families/kids that don't cost bazillions, have a "homey" feel, yet are real CA. Not looking to replicate New England, just want clues about smaller communities where a family can make itself at home. ...Or maybe I am trying to replicate New England--just minus winter! Anybody out there have any ideas? Thanks!!!

[NYSD1995]

You won't find the East Coast neighborhood feel anywhere outside of the older areas of SD. That means excluding pretty much all of North County east of I-5 and north of I-8.

La Jolla, Point Loma, and SD metro have older homes, walkable neighborhoods, and a more urban flair. Otherwise you are pretty much looking at mile-upon-mile of cookie-cutter tract sprawl and traffic.

[beantown2]

Sassberto--
You have a tremendous knowledge base! Great info! OK, so query: what about "true West Coast" minus condos/tract mansions? Anything left? Hopeless cause? BTW, the small farm town I grew up in--classic, classic New England--has now been totally McMansioned, so really hurt for Californians. Eighty-five farms in my old town are now eighty-five subdivions of huge McMansions on postage stamp lots. Seems like both coasts have same malady--everyone here is "from away" (to borrow a Maine phrase). I LOVED the difference between the coasts--CA is unbelievable--gorgeous geography/landscape. Went bananas trying to ID trees, flowers, birds. Figure I should live there once before I turn up my toes. So don't get me wrong--the only part of NE that I would like to take with me is the smaller scale of daily life: but I want to connect as much as possible with whatever is/was truly CA. Don't think you can do that from a condo sitting on a freeway. Clues? Is is still possible anywhere out there? Thanks!

[NYSD1995]

Originally Posted by beantown2

Sassberto--
what about "true West Coast" minus condos/tract mansions? Anything left?

Plenty of old-school CA still around. But it's gonna cost ya. If you want to have pre-tract home sprawl neighborhoods and the best North County school districts - you are going to pay through the nose for it. Encinitas is probably the best example.

There are neighborhoods closer to San Diego - Allied Gardens, Fletcher Hills, La Mesa... where you can still find that middle-class postwar California Ranch home bliss. But the schools won't be the best in the county, you may have to get creative there.

[beantown2]

...It's tuition time....so my much-missed Mum (note: not Mom!: I even say "cahn't"...) years of elementary-middle-hs have pretty much flown...too fast. So: 1) I'm 'way downsizing and 2) really thinking more about my own needs. Not necessarily in a selfish way, but in more practical things, e.g., re shoveling snow: finita e la comedia; re, OK, done with tied-down here: let's check out another part of the world--how 'bout the other coast?, and 3) you REALLY want college in Australia, NZ or CA??? ...OK, let's go!! ...but still want that local, smaller-scale base. Have already checked out some of the places you noted; also looking at SD proper. Ideas? Normal Heights has a lot of those postage stamp bungalows--fine by me. Expect will have to do a "location scout" this summer. Anybody out there ever do sabbatical-type home exchanges? Used to work at MIT; exchanges were sometimes a really good way to have either a short-term exploration, or a base for a longer-term commitment.

[northcountystooge]

Originally Posted by beantown2

...It's tuition time....so my much-missed Mum (note: not Mom!: I even say "cahn't"...) years of elementary-middle-hs have pretty much flown...too fast. So: 1) I'm 'way downsizing and 2) really thinking more about my own needs. Not necessarily in a selfish way, but in more practical things, e.g., re shoveling snow: finita e la comedia; re, OK, done with tied-down here: let's check out another part of the world--how 'bout the other coast?, and 3) you REALLY want college in Australia, NZ or CA??? ...OK, let's go!! ...but still want that local, smaller-scale base. Have already checked out some of the places you noted; also looking at SD proper. Ideas? Normal Heights has a lot of those postage stamp bungalows--fine by me. Expect will have to do a "location scout" this summer. Anybody out there ever do sabbatical-type home exchanges? Used to work at MIT; exchanges were sometimes a really good way to have either a short-term exploration, or a base for a longer-term commitment.

You have 4 kids? I just scouted uptown areas this past weekend. A 1400 sq foot house there could be called a McMansion compared to other properties. I am willing to give up suburban sq footage for that desirable arty urban living, but I have three kids, too.

[beantown2]

Northcountystooge--
Hi! Nope: just one, and she's headed out at the end of the summer--tuition time. That's why smaller is OK and schools no longer #1 concern. I can easily downsize: in fact, should. I really miss "being a Mum," but it's time to travel lighter/smaller, check out another part of the country. Daughter and I were in CA two years ago visiting colleges; had a blast, in total agreement that a move, even if for only a few years, well worth doing: expand the horizons, live in a totally different place, etc. Am a dyed-in-the-wool New Englander, but bypassing a few blizzard seasons sounds pretty good right now! It's just a little daunting to be on one coast in a tiny state trying to narrow the search in a huge state on the other. Expect to travel out again soon; trying to get a list of good SD areas together. In no rush; want to do my homework first. McMansion out here is over 4000 square feet. Aside from the fact that they're ugly, I'd hate the upkeep. I'm in a 1,600-1,800 sf 1905-era house, and that's too much for two. Looking for small: like bungalows--same era, half the size. Oh ((: I'm the oldest of TWELVE!!! Families like that long gone, but your three will do fine--we were sardines and survived. Good luck in your search, too!

[northcountystooge]

Originally Posted by beantown2

Northcountystooge--
Hi! Nope: just one, and she's headed out at the end of the summer--tuition time. That's why smaller is OK and schools no longer #1 concern. I can easily downsize: in fact, should. I really miss "being a Mum," but it's time to travel lighter/smaller, check out another part of the country. Daughter and I were in CA two years ago visiting colleges; had a blast, in total agreement that a move, even if for only a few years, well worth doing: expand the horizons, live in a totally different place, etc. Am a dyed-in-the-wool New Englander, but bypassing a few blizzard seasons sounds pretty good right now! It's just a little daunting to be on one coast in a tiny state trying to narrow the search in a huge state on the other. Expect to travel out again soon; trying to get a list of good SD areas together. In no rush; want to do my homework first. McMansion out here is over 4000 square feet. Aside from the fact that they're ugly, I'd hate the upkeep. I'm in a 1,600-1,800 sf 1905-era house, and that's too much for two. Looking for small: like bungalows--same era, half the size. Oh ((: I'm the oldest of TWELVE!!! Families like that long gone, but your three will do fine--we were sardines and survived. Good luck in your search, too!

I mixed you up with Oceanview. My bad. And I might have been exaggerating about the 1400=McMansion thing; most Craigslist ads that I've seen for city central don't list sq footage, and I only did drive-bys.