Tell me about living in San Diego

[Zoemakes5]

I will be cross-posting for traffic....
My DH may have a job opportunity in the San Diego area! Being from So. Cal area (Redondo beach and Torrance), I'm all for the idea, but wanted to get the scoop from people who live there.

What's a good neighborhood/community for families with kids?
What's a good school district?
Job market okay? Is it possible/probable to get a job that can pay the cost of living there?
What do you love, like and hate?

And, this may be way out there, but anyone know of Autism/Asperger's support in the area?

Any input is greatly appreciated! I have a brother who lives in Carlsbad and parents who live in Vista, and they both love it, but all they seem to know is those areas. I don't think it would be reasonable (financially or commute-wise) to live in their areas, it's just too dang expensive and too far away from the downtown area!

 

[JohnZ46]

Hi Zoe,

I've lived in San Diego since 1982. However, I don't have any children so my knowledge regarding family-friendly areas and school disticts is all second hand.

Based on what I hear from coworkers, etc. thr Poway, Rancho Bernardo, Carmel Mountain area are very family-oriented and have good schools. However, the median cost of a house is around $500 K and those areas are above the median.

Job-wise, San Diego has a large technology and biotechnology base. Someone with skills and experience in those areas can do very well here. However, the biggest employment areas are hospitality (hotels, tourism) and military. You can find employment info at the local paper's web site. (www.signonsandiego.com)

What I love/like:

Diversity. Not just in terms of people but also environmentally. I could easily go to the beach, the mountains, and the desert in one day. San Diego is very spread out and, outside of the downtown area, feels very open with a lot of undeveloped space.

What I hate: The traffic can be annoying during rush hour (not bad otherwise). Anything that is popular requires considering crowds and parking (Del Mar Fair, downtown events, weekends at Balboa Park, etc.)

It is also somewhat expensive here in terms of housing. We were fortunate that we bought our house during the mid-90s. Otherwise I couldn't afford one.

Hope that helps.

 

[Zoemakes5]

Thanks for the reply, John! I appreciate it so much!
I too, have heard good things about Poway school district. DH has a former co-worker who lives in that school district (Rancho Posquitos or something similar) and choose to live there because of the schools. It's nice to hear that is similar for others.
Around 500k is about what I've heard re: housing as well. My bro and dad's homes are significantly more, which is why I knew that I wouldn't be able to afford moving to the North beach areas. We didn't hit too much traffic wise while we were there this last week, but we didn't tend to travel during peak rush hour times.
What are areas to avoid due to gangs/crime, do you know?

 

[HydroGuy]

Lived there for five years and our oldest was born there. DW was a teacher in the SD school system. She worked in two different districts, and, to be honest, her experience with the school system was a major factor in us leaving the area. Like all school systems, there are (were) some good areas, but also lots of areas that were not so good.

I lived in various places around SD and had friends with kids who lived in Tierrasanta. I always that Tierrasanta would be a good place to live as it is fairly central to the city, and had nice neighborhoods and pretty good schools. Can't say anything about what has happened over the last 15 years except that the home prices have sky rocketed.

 

[deletedpenguin]

I grew up and graduated from the Poway School district. The area around Poway, Carmel Mountain, Rancho Penasquitos etc. is really a nice area, and it's still growing. It's going to be right on par, in terms of price, with most of North County, but you really do get what you pay for. In relation to other areas of San Diego county, it's newer and cleaner, but the traffic up and down the 15 is getting pretty bad. Fortunately they're working at a feverish rate to get I15 widened as quickly as possible, but in the meantime, you've got long commutes to look forward to.

I'll check back if you have any specific questions.

 

[ScooterL]

If you want to be close to downtown with minimal traffic, try Clairemont or Linda Vista - the housing prices aren't quite as bad there. Both communities have nicer areas and some that aren't quite as good. (I live on the border the two - LOVE our area - 15 minutes to downtown, 15-20 to airport, shopping and the beach, and I can be on the freeway in less than two minutes.) Tierrasanta and Serra Mesa are also more moderately priced areas, and closer to downtown than Mira Mesa, Penasquitos, Poway, etc.

No kids, so I can't speak for the school districts, but there are a lot of magnet programs - I have a co-worker who lives not far from me, but his kids don't go to the local school district - one is in Point Loma and the other one in University City.

One of my officemates has a daughter with autism, and I know they get some kind of support for her through the school/county, but I don't know the specifics...it IS available, though.

What I love about San Diego...

The weather!!!! Practically perfect all year long.

For a big city, the traffic doesn't seem THAT bad - and it's not for hours and hours like in LA and Orange County. Living where I do, I avoid all of the really bad traffic, and my evening commute generally only takes me 5 minutes more than my morning commute.

There's lots to do here.

What I dislike...

You gotta drive through LA to get to almost anywhere else.

The airport is small, and there's very few direct flights to anywhere.

Housing is expensive. Utilities are also very high.

Gas prices are the highest in the continental U.S. Always higher than L.A/Orange County.

Hope that helps.

 

[JohnZ46]

I can vouch for Serra Mesa. I live in Birdland, which is the western-most portion of Serra Mesa. We're very close to downtown but, because of all of the canyons and deadend streets, it like living in the suburbs.

 

[arliepooh68]

if you have children that are not exceptional at their grades the poway school district will be a struggle. Have a friend who was literally told "your daughter needs to go to a different school as she is failing and we cannot have our grades slip below a certain point". if she brings her grades back up at this other school she might be able to return to the original school. No help for struggling students were offered. I have a son who has an AWESOME program within the san diego city schools, so do your research if you have any type of special needs addressed. . . to me poway and rb are too north of most things, takes my coworker almost an hour to get to work, when it should only be about a 25 minute drive. ..

we are kind of near the stadium, in the "canyons', so we a decent breeze where most of the summer you rarely need AC. ..

 

[deletedpenguin]

As a rebuttal, I've got nothing but great things to say about the Poway School District. It was definitely challenging, but when I struggled, I had all the help I needed. When I graduated from Poway HS, I was definitely a step ahead, or at least it felt like it.