Family moving to Irvine - lots of relo and housing ?’s

[Socalpal]

take a look at brea, decent downtown but can get boring after a while

[NORTY FLATZ]

Originally Posted by aroaro

Generally speaking, there is no shortage of towns that are nice, safe and have good schools. The only constraint is the budget. The choices are pretty much between very expensive and expensive.

San Diego County rental prices are similar to OC. Commuting from San Diego proper to Irvine could be up to two hours, depending exactly from where. This is outside morning and evening rush hour traffic.

Carlsbad is in the North County part of San Diego County. That's about one hour drive to Irvine (again, outside rush hour). Carlsbad and everything south of it on the coast is beautiful. You have to take into account the high gas prices in CA when commuting longer distances.

The beach towns are the most expensive and the more inland you go, the cheaper it gets. It never gets cheap though!

Spot-on.

The only thing I'd add, is that a commute from Carlsbad/Oceanside to Irvine can be done on the AmTrac train. Much more delightful and not as "soul crushing." (Especially on Friday afternoon, Southbound.)

If your husband has "OC to Mexico" then a place in North County makes perfect sense.

Here's a place...

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1.../16582409_zpid

[OUgrad09]

FYI Amtrak service between San Diego County and Orange County is indefinitely suspended due to erosion of the shoreline which has put the coastal tracks at risk.

[KaraG]

The neighborhoods and vibes are so different, I suggest renting a place this first year while you explore the area and see what's a good fit for your family. Plus that gives you time to get a job. We lived in south Orange County, Mission Viejo, Laguna Hills, Trabuco Canyon area, which was good for the kids.

But if we moved back to CA, we would probably look further inland and more rural, outside of the typical planned neighborhoods.

Best of luck to you.

[TimTheEnchanter]

There is no reason to look outside Orange County. Since you are renting for a year, you have plenty of time to house hunt in OC. There are areas in Santa Ana, Orange, Placentia, Brea, Fountain Valley, West Garden Grove, El Modena, etc that are lovely and have good schools. The other areas like Lake Forest, Mission Viejo, Baker Ranch, Foothill Ranch, Portola Springs, Woodbury, Tustin, North Tustin, etc are great too. It is just a matter of looking and being persistent.

[Foofoole]

Originally Posted by TimTheEnchanter

There is no reason to look outside Orange County. Since you are renting for a year, you have plenty of time to house hunt in OC. There are areas in Santa Ana, Orange, Placentia, Brea, Fountain Valley, West Garden Grove, El Modena, etc that are lovely and have good schools. The other areas like Lake Forest, Mission Viejo, Baker Ranch, Foothill Ranch, Portola Springs, Woodbury, Tustin, North Tustin, etc are great too. It is just a matter of looking and being persistent.

I think this will be very on point. Be always looking and persistent. The plan seems to be find something we can land in that has good schools and accepts our pets, and then search neighborhoods from there to see where we fit the best.
We will have relo help, and might possibly keep our house back East as income property, since it would seem to rent for as much as we would be looking to rent in CA. I know that opens up a whole other ball of wax, so it is just an idea we have to explore a little more.

[Podo944]

Good luck.

[dexter75]

Originally Posted by Foofoole

My husband has the opportunity to move ahead in his career with his company. Company home base is in Irvine. His territory will be CA. We would be moving with an 8th grader, 21 yr old with mental health issues(unable to work) and 2 cats/1 dog. Salary will be about $120k until I can help (48yr old). My top concern is cost and safety of housing and high school. Also would like a walkable area with arts district or vibe close by for the oldest. I have no idea where to even start looking. We plan on renting for at least a year. Is this do-able?

Hi. You left out two big things. What kind of place are you looking to rent and what is your max you can pay? Keep in mind that the average price for an apartment in Irvine is over $3k. Not only that, you will be competing with rich Chinese people who are willing to pay a year rent up front on houses and you are going to lose out every time. Been there and done that. $10k a month salary is doable, just depends how much of that you want to spend on rent. I know people who spend near 80% of their income on rent because they want to live in a certain area. Depends on what you want to prioritize.