Moving to Thousand Oaks or Simi Valley. Expensive? (Los Angeles, Oxnard: apartments, to rent)

[mtman]

Hey can anybody tell me that has lived in or nearby on ne these cities what I can expect as for cost of living? I am offered a job makeing aroound 70 to 75k a year and my wife is an RN so she sould make about the same. Are there cheaper yet decent areas nearby? Can we live OK on this kind of pay? what do 2 bed apts or 3 bed houses typically rent for? any areas to stay away from? Any input is appreciated, thanks

[Charles]

Originally Posted by mtman

Hey can anybody tell me that has lived in or nearby on ne these cities what I can expect as for cost of living? I am offered a job makeing aroound 70 to 75k a year and my wife is an RN so she sould make about the same. Are there cheaper yet decent areas nearby? Can we live OK on this kind of pay? what do 2 bed apts or 3 bed houses typically rent for? any areas to stay away from? Any input is appreciated, thanks

$150K is more than enough.

Do you have kids? Are you planning on two incomes forever, or one income if kids?

TO and Simi are very family/kid friendly with great schools and lots of family things to do. They might be dull for singles and OK for DINKS.

Where will you be working?
There are hospitals at Simi Adventist, Thousand Oaks Los Robles, Kaiser Woodland Hills, St Johns Oxnard and (I forgot) Camarillo. Also Northridge Medical Center.

Traffic heading east into the San Fernando Valley and Los Angeles is really, really bad (worse on the 101)

[BRinSM]

thousand oaks is quite a bit more expensive than simi valley. however, you should be able to find a nice place for under $2,000/ month in either location.

[user_id]

Originally Posted by Charles

TO and Simi are very family/kid friendly with great schools and lots of family things to do. They might be dull for singles and OK for DINKS.

This is not that accurate, at least for Simi Valley. The schools in Simi are hit/miss and most are either bad or so-so (to me bad = API rank less than 5, so-so = API rank between 5-7). There are some great elementary schools, but they are in the more expensive communities (e.g, Woodranch). Where as most the schools in TO are 9~10's.

Anyhow, there really is not an area that is close, decent and cheaper. Decent 2-bedroom apartments in Simi Valley are $1,400~$1,600/month, where as in Thousand Oaks they are more like $1,500~2,000. Anything below this is likely to be in a so-so area. You should be able to get a 3-bedroom house in the $2,000-$2,500 range.

You will be able to live very well on $150k/year, I would just not suggest buying a home yet. But you are going to rent first, so that is not an issue. With the exception of the high rents (and depending where you are coming from, the income taxes) most other costs are pretty comparable to other areas. The weather in Thousand Oaks is near perfect, and you'll rarely need to use your AC or heater.

Personally, I would avoid living in most of Simi Valley.

[Winston Smith]

Originally Posted by user_id

This is not that accurate, at least for Simi Valley. The schools in Simi are hit/miss and most are either bad or so-so (to me bad = API rank less than 5, so-so = API rank between 5-7). There are some great elementary schools, but they are in the more expensive communities (e.g, Woodranch). Where as most the schools in TO are 9~10's.

Anyhow, there really is not an area that is close, decent and cheaper. Decent 2-bedroom apartments in Simi Valley are $1,400~$1,600/month, where as in Thousand Oaks they are more like $1,500~2,000. Anything below this is likely to be in a so-so area. You should be able to get a 3-bedroom house in the $2,000-$2,500 range.

You will be able to live very well on $150k/year, I would just not suggest buying a home yet. But you are going to rent first, so that is not an issue. With the exception of the high rents (and depending where you are coming from, the income taxes) most other costs are pretty comparable to other areas. The weather in Thousand Oaks is near perfect, and you'll rarely need to use your AC or heater.

Personally, I would avoid living in most of Simi Valley.

Second user_id, except to say that my preference would be Simi over Thousand Oaks. My reasons: Simi is less pretentious than TO. It has a rail connection served by Metrolink and Amtrak. Simi's support for bicycle commuting outranks TO by a lot. The Arroyo Simi Trail, which connects with the train station, is a great way to get across town by bike. Riding a bike in TO is more akin to being "thrown to the SUV dogs"! Last but not least, some of my favorite hiking spots are in the rocky hills at Simi's east end.

I'd agree to be judicious on where you live, but wouldn't discount Simi all together. In many ways it's a great city.

[SOON2BNSURPRISE]

I would also agree with both user_id and Winston Smith,

Simi for one would be more family middle income friendly. Thousand Oaks is a place that as a kid was the place to land when you made it in life. I for one prefer the ocean breezes of the Ventura Oxnard area and that is not too far away.

[user_id]

Originally Posted by Winston Smith

It has a rail connection served by Metrolink and Amtrak.

Yes, but the station is on the east end. So depending where you live in simi the drive to the station can be just as far as someone in Thousand Oaks driving to the Moorpark station.

Originally Posted by Winston Smith

The Arroyo Simi Trail, which connects with the train station, is a great way to get across town by bike. Riding a bike in TO is more akin to being "thrown to the SUV dogs"!

The Arroyo trail can be convenient, but it is along the wash. I'm not sure if i get your comment about Thousand Oaks, with the exception of the Arroyo wash trail they two are similar in terms of biking.

Originally Posted by SOON2BNSURPRISE

Simi for one would be more family middle income friendly. Thousand Oaks is a place that as a kid was the place to land when you made it in life.

They really are not that different in price, perhaps 5~10% more for housing. But there has always been this strange (socioeconomic) divide between the two cities, with Moorpark being a mixed bag.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by user_id

But there has always been this strange (socioeconomic) divide between the two cities, with Moorpark being a mixed bag.

The histories are a little different too. Simi really took off after the LAUSD busing thing in the 1970s. San Fernando Valley people who didn't want their kids bused just moved over the Santa Susana pass into Simi. Parents could keep their existing jobs. Also, the Simi Freeway (or Ronald Reagan Freeway to keep with the spirit of the freeway naming thread) didn't go east of Topanga until sometime around 1979 (I think).

Thousand Oaks is on the 101 which is more of a direct shot towards jobs in LA. It also benefited from not being part of LAUSD.

[Winston Smith]

Originally Posted by user_id

Yes, but the station is on the east end. So depending where you live in simi the drive to the station can be just as far as someone in Thousand Oaks driving to the Moorpark station.

Perhaps, but Simi's layout, flat long and narrow, makes it easier to get to the train if you don't want to drive. As I said, it's the terminus of the Arroyo trail and the Simi Transit serves it, too. TO is too much of a car place for my tastes. Even by your implication, the trip between home and train would be by car. It's about the only choice in TO. Not so in Simi.

Originally Posted by user_id

The Arroyo trail can be convenient, but it is along the wash. I'm not sure if i get your comment about Thousand Oaks, with the exception of the Arroyo wash trail they two are similar in terms of biking.

Biking in TO is absolutely terrifying. I commuted by bike in TO a few years back between the TO Transit Center* (where I used the VISTA Express bus in and out of TO) and my job in Westlake Village. Worst bike commute I've ever had. Even worse than the SFV, when I lived there. Drivers are clueless and do not respect or expect bikes at all. It's a lot more sane in Simi, IMO.

*Sidebar, don't get me started on the TO Transit Center. Who ever designed that place... First of all, it's way inconvenient to get to, and even worse if you're on foot -- no sidewalks, car-only infrastructure at the 101, terrible, terrible, terrible. As someone who has either worked or lived, used transit, walked and biked in both communities, TO gets an F. Simi I'd give a C+ or B.

[user_id]

Originally Posted by Winston Smith

Even by your implication, the trip between home and train would be by car. It's about the only choice in TO. Not so in Simi.

People usually drive, but you can bike to the Moorpark train station from Thousand Oaks. Their are bike lanes on the 23.

Regardless, I don't think either city is the sort of place where you can efficiently use public transit.