Moving to DIAMOND BAR - need advice (Los Angeles, Long Beach: for sale, apartments)

[cigarfanatic]

Hello forum members,

I am new here (just joined today) and I have to say this forum is very informative and helpful. With that said, I would like to ask any Diamond Bar resident or former resident some questions about the area.

I am looking to purchase a home near the Lanterman Developmental Center. There are a handful of nice homes that are for sale in that area (just South of it), and I am wondering how these areas are since they are pretty close to Pomona and also neighbor Walnut.

I would also like to know my commute options going into downtown Los Angeles since driving my own car would probably be out of the question. Thank you all.


edit: By the way, if anyone knows of any really good realtors in the area please let me know!

[Paula Lynn]

Hi and welcome,

My friends moved to Diamond Bar from Long Beach 3 years ago. They both are employed in Long Beach. They took the "drive" a few times before deciding on the move (commute and freeway). They decided it was worth it. Of course it may be an hour and a half commute each way (not matter what time they leave), but they wanted home ownership that was affordable at that time. Diamond Bar is very nice, but IMO it's a 'burb .... I prefer walking distance to establishments. Even with the long commute, they have not regretted it.

[newportbeachsmostwanted]

Diamond Bar is probably "hands-down" on of my favorite cities in the IE. Safe beautiful area with lots of nice homes. The schools seem to be pretty good too. Traffic on the nearby freeways can be a mess- but this is Southern California after all! Graffiti seems to be either well-managed or non-existant, because I haven't noticed any yet in DB.

[cigarfanatic]

Thanks Paula, I prefer "suburbia" since I plan on settling down and starting a family. I am tired of noise and living next to apartments.


Newport- Safe, nice homes, and nice schools is what I am aiming for. It's a relief to hear that Diamond Bar residents have zero tolerance for graffiti. I want to move to an area where the residents really care about their curb appeal, and I would prefer a noisy neighbor than one that did not care at all.


Does anyone know if cops patrol the area frequently? I have a feeling that their response time to a distress call would be fairly quick due to low crime in the area.

[newportbeachsmostwanted]

Originally Posted by cigarfanatic

Does anyone know if cops patrol the area frequently? I have a feeling that their response time to a distress call would be fairly quick due to low crime in the area.

I think the police presence is high. Neighboring Walnut is also pretty nice. Pomona is fairly close, but Diamond Bar is still far away from the riff raff. The part of DB, closer to Pomona, should be fine.

[cigarfanatic]

Originally Posted by newportbeachsmostwanted

I think the police presence is high. Neighboring Walnut is also pretty nice. Pomona is fairly close, but Diamond Bar is still far away from the riff raff. The part of DB, closer to Pomona, should be fine.

Thanks newport, how do you know so much on this area? Do you know anyone who lives in Diamond Bar personally? Seems like you frequent the area.

I was also looking into Rowland Heights or Hacienda, but I personally would prefer DB of course!

[CAguy]

I posted this in another thread, but I will repost here --

Hello --

I came across this thread, and I grew up mostly in Diamond Bar, so I thought I would give my input.

Diamond Bar is a nice, quiet, safe, clean, family-friendly city that is convenient and almost equidistant to major work centers in the LA area (Downtown LA is 30 miles west, Riverside/San Bernardino is 20-30 miles east, and major work centers of Orange County (Santa Ana/Irvine/Newport) are 20-30 miles south of Diamond Bar).

Most cities that are safe, quiet, etc. in the Los Angeles area are not exactly affordable. Places that are safe and family-friendly -- such as Calabasas, San Marino, Rancho Palos Verdes, Irvine -- are also expensive -- especially for newcomers and first time buyers.

Diamond Bar is a rarity in that it is "relatively affordable" for families priced out of the West LA area or Orange County. Yes, there are more affordable places if you venture further east into the Inland Empire (I.E.) But if you are commuting to Los Angeles/Long Beach/Orange County, every mile you are further away, will make your commute on L.A.'s congested freeways -- even worse. But at least in Diamond Bar, you have easy access to major freeways (60, 57, I-10, I-210).

Diamond Bar is probably the closest "desirable" city/suburb east of Los Angeles, with the exception of certain pricey foothill cities (such as San Marino, Sierra Madre, Arcadia, etc). Most of the cities closer to L.A. such as El Monte, Montebello, etc. are a little more gritty in comparison.

As for demographics, Diamond Bar is about 50% white and 50% Asian. Just within Diamond Bar (pop. 60,000) you can find a variety of diverse restaurants (Italian, Mexican, Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Thai, etc.)

As for topography, Diamond Bar is very hilly compared to neighboring cities. But because of the rolling hills, many houses have views of the L.A. basin, and it is possible to see downtown skycrapers of Downtown L.A. on a good day.

As for the houses, the most modest (and affordable) houses are "ranch" style houses built in the 1960s and 1970s. In the 1980s and 1990s, a lot of new houses were built in the hills of Diamond Bar (it is these houses that have OUTSTANDING views of LA) were built. In today's market, prices for these houses probably range from about $400,000 to $900,000.

In case you're curious, the most expensive homes in Diamond Bar are located in a gated hillside community called "The Country," where all of the houses are custom and huge. Most of them could fetch from $1 million to $3 million, but if they were in more ritzier places like Newport Beach, they would easily sell for over $8 million. Most people who live in The Country are well-to-do professionals & executives, although a few celebrities live there too (I heard rapper Snoop Dogg owns a house there).

If you're looking for new-construction, it is harder to come by because, as in LA, land is scarce. However, right now they are building new townhouses and small houses ("Vantage" by Brookfield Homes).....I think they're going for $600,000 and up. A few years ago, Pulte Homes built luxury houses in Diamond Bar of up to 4,500 square feet, but those are selling for about $1.3 million now.

As someone I think was mentioning earlier, South Diamond Bar is served by Walnut Unified School District, and North Diamond Bar is served by Pomona Unified School District. Diamond Bar High School is part of Walnut Unified District. Walnut Unified is generally really good, but you should know the student population of all schools (elementary, middle, and high) is overwhelmingly Asian.

Pomona Unified School District is an entirely different story. Almost all of Pomona Unified schools in Pomona are really bad, but all of Pomona Unified Schools within Diamond Bar tend to be decent to excellent. For elementary school, Golden Springs Elementary and Pantera Elementary are outstanding schools, perhaps even surpassing Walnut Unified. Pantera Elementary scored a 950 out of 1,000 on its API school scoring system, which is extremely good (generally a score of 800 out of 1,000 is considered good).

If you are looking to move into North Diamond Bar and you have young kids, I would highly recommend moving into a house that is served by Pantera Elementary.

Lorbeer middle school is the middle school of Pomona Unified, within Diamond Bar. Lorbeer Middle School is also a good school. Diamond Ranch is the high school for Diamond Bar residents within the Pomona Unified District. Diamond Ranch is also a decent school. Generally, the demographic mix of Pomona Unified schools in Diamond Bar are a mix between White, Asian, and Hispanic students.

In my opinion, the Walnut Schools are better for students who are more self-reliant and self-motivated and able to succeed better by themselves. The Pomona Unified Schools might be better for students who are motivated, but need a little extra guidance and attention (PUSD schools have excellent G.A.T.E. and academic enrichment programs for gifted students).

[RobE]

Diamond Bar is very low crime and there are indeed lots of nice houses there. Just stay as far away from Pomona and the 60 freeway as you can.

Moderator cut: linking to competitors sites is not allowed