Finally Moving To LA/OC, Need Advice on Where to Live! (San Diego: 2014, apartment)

[Blitz2014]

Hey all,

So posted a few weeks back, but now its getting real, as my wife and I have contracts, so we are trying to decide where to live.

My wife will be working at Miller Hospital (Long Beach).

I think I most likely will choose 3 part time jobs in:

1. Irvine
2. Laguna Niguel
3. Orange

So where do you suggest is best to live, being close to Miller Hospital/Long Beach as well as Irvine/Laguna Niguel/Orange?

- Also, how far is commute from:

1. Long Beach to Irvine
2. Long Beach to Laguna Niguel
3. Long Beach to Orange

Any of these brutal commutes with traffic?


Also:

- We are in our mid 30s
- Looking to start a family (no kids yet)
- Will rent when we move this summer
- Interested in Townhouse or Condo, Renting, 2 bedroom/2 bathroom
- Moving from NYC, so we like something a bit urban, like Park Slope/Bay Ridge/Hoboken
- Would like Liberal Areas (not super liberal), some nice bars/restaurants (Like Brooklyn)
- Budget is around $4500 for monthly rent

On my prior post, people suggested Belmont Shores and Bixby Knolls

- Any other suggestions?
- I posted in LA forum, but obviously interested in possible OC areas? I think previously people suggested Santa Ana, so was wondering if any other suggestions?

Thanks!

[OUgrad09]

Laguna Niguel is too far from Long Beach. Even Irvine is a bit of a hike. Both are very suburban feeling anyway. If she's in the medical field (and likely will be driving exhausted), it's probably better for you to set up shop closer to Long Beach and then work in Orange, Anaheim, or Irvine.

Orange is probably a little more of the urban vibe you're going for, and has a cool little downtown village square. Best thing to do is do a Google Street View of different areas to get a sense of the neighborhoods.

[Blitz2014]

Originally Posted by OUgrad09

Laguna Niguel is too far from Long Beach. Even Irvine is a bit of a hike. Both are very suburban feeling anyway. If she's in the medical field (and likely will be driving exhausted), it's probably better for you to set up shop closer to Long Beach and then work in Orange, Anaheim, or Irvine.

Orange is probably a little more of the urban vibe you're going for, and has a cool little downtown village square. Best thing to do is do a Google Street View of different areas to get a sense of the neighborhoods.

Thx for helpful message!

I'm interested in Costa Mesa, thoughts?

[OUgrad09]

Originally Posted by Blitz2014

Thx for helpful message!

I'm interested in Costa Mesa, thoughts?

Costa Mesa is nice because it's close to the beach, shopping, freeway, and airport. Has some nice condo complexes, and gets you closer to Laguna Niguel if you are absolutely set on working down there frequently. Like Irvine though, still a pretty tough haul up to Long Beach. If your wife ever transferred down to Hoag, UCI, or CHOC, getting a place down in OC would definitely make a lot of sense.

[Blitz2014]

Originally Posted by OUgrad09

Costa Mesa is nice because it's close to the beach, shopping, freeway, and airport. Has some nice condo complexes, and gets you closer to Laguna Niguel if you are absolutely set on working down there frequently. Like Irvine though, still a pretty tough haul up to Long Beach. If your wife ever transferred down to Hoag, UCI, or CHOC, getting a place down in OC would definitely make a lot of sense.

Hmm, thx

So traffic from Costa Mesa to LB is a mess?

[OUgrad09]

Originally Posted by Blitz2014

Hmm, thx

So traffic from Costa Mesa to LB is a mess?

Pretty much everywhere these days in SoCal. The 405 has notoriously bad traffic in general and they’re currently doing a big construction project which is making it pretty unpleasant to drive these days. If you end up deciding on South OC I’d definitely recommend renting for a bit so you get a sense of what the commute is actually like.

[Blitz2014]

Originally Posted by OUgrad09

Pretty much everywhere these days in SoCal. The 405 has notoriously bad traffic in general and they’re currently doing a big construction project which is making it pretty unpleasant to drive these days. If you end up deciding on South OC I’d definitely recommend renting for a bit so you get a sense of what the commute is actually like.

Thx again.

Yeah, my wife works crazy hours, so I'm more concerned about her commute.

So yeah, not sure if Costa Mesa/Orange will work for us.

I guess I have to consider again Belmont Shores/Bixby Knolls, and I'll bite the bullet with the commute to Laguna Niguel (1-2 days/week).

[TimTheEnchanter]

Last time I suggested Cerritos and Lakewood. Those are still areas I'd recommend looking at, as well as Seal Beach, Cypress and Los Alamitos. In general I would NOT look in Long Beach itself because of crime issues and the schools.

No, it is NOT too far to commute to Laguna Niguel or Irvine from Long Beach or any of the areas I mentioned, especially not if the jobs are not full time. People drive much more brutal commutes and there are multiple ways to get to these places.

Costa Mesa is a nice place, so is the southern end of the Santa Ana, what they call the "South Coast Metro" area. There are many nice apartment/condo complexes.

It is hard to judge the quality of OUgrad's advice since they don't list where they live. I don't know how much they drive in these different areas. I split time between my homes in Orange County and San Diego and spend a decent amount of time in my Downtown LA office. I am on the road constantly in CA for a variety of work and social reasons. I've done Newport Beach to LA, Newport Beach to Santa Monica, Santa Barbara to DTLA and Newport to Anaheim, plus other commutes at various times in my life/career. It is just what you do (commute) to get the quality of home life you want.

[OUgrad09]

I mainly would be concerned about someone in the medical field working long exhausting hours making the drive from Laguna Niguel to Long Beach every day (and back). I wouldn’t let my spouse (who is a physician) do that for example, especially with the 405 being such a headache. Yes, it’s possible and while plenty of people do commute from OC to LA, it’s far from ideal. I agree though, it just depends on what’s important to you. Plus Laguna Niguel definitely does not have an “urban” vibe, although not much of OC is. If it’s possible, I would recommend doing a scouting trip in advance to get a true sense of what the commutes are really like.

2nd Street in Belmont would be a fun place for a young couple like yourselves to be close to.

[Blitz2014]

Originally Posted by TimTheEnchanter

Last time I suggested Cerritos and Lakewood. Those are still areas I'd recommend looking at, as well as Seal Beach, Cypress and Los Alamitos. In general I would NOT look in Long Beach itself because of crime issues and the schools.

No, it is NOT too far to commute to Laguna Niguel or Irvine from Long Beach or any of the areas I mentioned, especially not if the jobs are not full time. People drive much more brutal commutes and there are multiple ways to get to these places.

Costa Mesa is a nice place, so is the southern end of the Santa Ana, what they call the "South Coast Metro" area. There are many nice apartment/condo complexes.

It is hard to judge the quality of OUgrad's advice since they don't list where they live. I don't know how much they drive in these different areas. I split time between my homes in Orange County and San Diego and spend a decent amount of time in my Downtown LA office. I am on the road constantly in CA for a variety of work and social reasons. I've done Newport Beach to LA, Newport Beach to Santa Monica, Santa Barbara to DTLA and Newport to Anaheim, plus other commutes at various times in my life/career. It is just what you do (commute) to get the quality of home life you want.

Thx for your super helpful post.

Of those areas you suggested

Cerritos
Lakewood
Seal Beach
Cypress
Los Alamitos

Which you suggest is the most "fun" for a young couple, no kids?

I was in SoCal last week for interviews, so had a taste of the 405 grind...