Need some SoCal info

[fine59]

It's official, the wife has to move for her job based in Irvine ca, and me being the great husband that I am has agreed to tag along, gonna miss these east coast winters, anyway looking for some info on where to live out there,looking to rent a apt, want nice and safe area, areas to avoid, ect ect, any locals have any info they can share? Making the move in late Aug, sept1st...thanks

[rexdogg]

not so familiar with SoCal.....I can say this....Southern California is HUGE!.....growing up in Chicago, I thought that the city was big.....visited New York last year, that was even larger....but....my youngest daughter is a grade school teacher in Hollywood, CA....have been to visit her a few times....rents out there are enormous, and outrageous, in my estimation....having said that, if I were you, I would go out there a couple of times, drive around, get a feel for the area, see where the apartments are in relation to the work site....get a feel for the areas, stores, shops, etc.....you sure as hell won't miss the east coast weather...(visited my daughter in early Feb., sunny and 80 every day)

[oletrux4evr]

Chad should have some good info. Also Doug 'bearphoto', Danny (SoCalCamaro), and Rett (street72) should have tons of info for ya Fred. You'll be closer to Seattle, and you'll also be able to do the Western Scenic Tours with relative ease!!

[Loren]

Lots of nice areas near Irvine, very few "bad" ones, the whole place wasn't even "there" 30 years ago (all developed by mostly one company). It is expensive. You have a number of car shows plus the Irvine Amphitheater all nearby, the coast is a half-hour away,snow if you miss it is a couple hour's drive in winter. I would mainly say, don't be tempted to live too far away from work (especially out 91 toward the Pomona Valley) for cheaper prices...unless you enjoy spending two hours or more of your day sitting in freeway traffic. Traffic, to me, is the main thing about the L.A./Orange County area, you can really wind up either timing your life to work around it, or spending a big part of your life sitting in it. CDM Bill (Corona-Del-Mar) is also nearby, incidentally.

[rexdogg]

Loren hit it on the head.....the freeway traffic can be a nightmare......long lines of folks going nowhere........get out there, spend some time to see the areas, and judge for yourself

[fine59]

Thanks for the info, keep it coming,I'm heading out next week to look around, last time I spent any time in SoCal was in the early 80s, (gotta check on statute of limitions on a couple things) and I'm sure times have changed, I'm old now and just wanna chill, we're gonna meet up with a realtor and look at a few places, traffic is my wife's biggest bitch, hope we can find someplace where she will have a easy commute?

[Monster]

Great weather ... horrible legislation (especially for cars and guns).

[cstmwgn]

Great weather ... horrible legislation (especially for cars and guns).

If you carry a gun you don't need to own a car!

[bearphoto]

Oh boy, I lived in so cal for 58 years. The weather is awesome! Beyond that, not so much. Irvine itself is a great place, very safe city, very expensive as is most of "south" Orange County. Grab a map to look at nearby cities and as others have mentioned you can spend your life sitting on the freeways commuting back and forth to work! Because she is going to Irvine or South County I'd look in that direction if one can afford it. Mission Viejo, Laguna areas, Corona Del Mar, Tustin, (stay out of Santa Ana). Yorba Linda which is to the north (or the towns of Placentia or Brea) is where I grew up, very nice place but she'd have to commute. From Yorba Linda she could take the 247 which is a toll road so traffic is not too bad and it runs from the edge of YL south to Irvine. If you need cheaper housing than south OC can provide Corona is nice, its in Riverside County but she would have the dreaded Santa Ana Canyon along the 91 freeway which frequently has big traffic issues but again, she could grab the 247 toll road to head south. If you like the beaches, the towns of Newport Beach and Huntington Beach are very nice as is Costa Mesa. Commutes for many are two hours each way simply due to the cost of housing. The farther out you go from the OC/LA basins the more affordable housing is (still can be expensive but not like OC/LA areas. Feel free to pm me or call regarding housing costs, general commute times from various locations, safety of particular areas...good luck in your search. The good news...you will have some of the best weather in the country 12 months a year, the bad news is all of your cars must meet strict smog laws if they are newer than 1975. Older than 75 and you have no emission testing. Gun laws...oh boy, this would take a separate topic. No assault weapons, no unusual handguns, no saturday night special types and on and on.

[street72]

Loren did hit right on the head. your main problem will be traffic. DO NOT live more then 10 miles from where your wife will work or you/she WILL spend many hours a day sitting in traffic. The 5,55,57 405 and the 91 freeways are a bitch during rush hours. And rush hour starts about 5 am and runs to about 9:30 am and starts again about 2 ish until 7-7;30pm. And if it does rain that day, add at least an hour or two. So if she can drive surface streets to work, she will be in heaven. I've lived in Southern California for 36 years and worked in Orange county (Irvine is in Orange County) for 15 years. It's not pretty when it comes to traffic. You can get fast track for some of the roads, but it was over $8 each way when I live in Corona and took the 91 every day. And like Loren said, Irvine is a good area. And you have to get to Cruisin for a Cure in Sept. Largest one day car show in the United States. Also remember that everything is more expensive in California, and then live in Orange County and add on a few more bucks. But I have to tell you, I sure do miss California. And don't forget to head to the River for some boating fun, or maybe you want to run your sand rail in the dunes at Glamas. Go water skiing in the morning and snow skiing at night, all in the same day. You can go to any one of the hundreds of car builders shops in the area. And only a 4 hour drive to Vegas for SEMA. And it only rains in the winter and everyone will have forgotten how to drive when it happens. I too am a trailing spouse, but you will love living out there. Best of luck and I'm jealous. If you need any more info, you should have my number from THE list. If not just ask..Rett

[patrickth]

I second Costa Mesa, Huntington Beach,Westminster, Probably even Garden Grove and Seal Beach. Personally I like Tustin, but I seldom had to fight rush hour traffic because I picked my own hours.

[cobra]

i don't know much about LA, but have been out there twice this past year....june, the LA rodster show (thats the time to hit the shops, every one is open and expecting people) and in january for the Grand National show (really nice top notch cars). on saturday mornings, 5 till 9, you have to go to the "Donut Derelicts" in Huntington Beach (ask anyone into cars and they will know about it). We went to a killer automotive swap/flea market, can't remember where it was, but i think it's a regular event. i'm not a big fan of LA in general, but i have to admit, after all these years of denying it, ....it IS the meca for car stuff.

ps when i was out there in jan, i meet your buddy from Laidback. did you go out and meet him for superbowl?

[TheSilverBuick]

Great weather ... horrible legislation (especially for cars and guns).

I don't think the car legislation is actually that bad. Just the smog requirements on the '75 and newer cars, which if you have an older car than that means nothing. The car rules are actually very relaxed as there is no inspection requirements and the registration and insuring, or non-op'ing them is a piece of cake and you can get a AAA membership and avoid the DMV to accomplish these things.

[fine59]

I think we narrowed it down to a few of the surrounding areas of Irvine, Tustin, Lake Forest,Laguna hills,or Laguna Niguel, these areas are close enough that her commute isn't that bad, and I won't be far from the beach, looking forward to getting back in the water after taking a few years off from surfing, all the car related stuff is going to be big fun, bringing my 66 vert to use as my DD just hope the gas prices stay down,

And yes met up with Hondo from Laid-Back in Vegas, drove down to Phoenix, even my friend that plays for the Seahawks couldn't get us tickets, cheapest seat to be found was 16k ...yea sixteen thousand dollars...not rubles, dollars! Crazy crazy, but had a great time, game didn't end the way I was hoping but...... Always next year...

Thanks for the info, keep it coming,

[bearphoto]

All of those cities you have named off carry a hefty price tag. Of course there is the option of renting a house or an apartment while you learn the area and decide on where you want to be and what you can afford. There are just so many cities to choose from! For me, I'd stay clear of Garden Grove as it has become very crowded and has a heavy heavy population of Vietnamese and related food places. As for car stuff, yes the OC is big, really big. The Pomona swap meet someone was mentioning is the biggest. Get there by 5 am for good parking (still crowded at that time of the am). Its also a great place to buy or sell a car! Donut derelicts is also huge in Huntington Beach! And then you have Cars and Coffee in Irvine, that might be every weekend but I just don't recall. www.socalcarculture.com is THEE place to find out whats happening on any given weekend in So Cal for car events. Each New Years Day morning there is a car cruise that starts in Tustin and they tour Orange County and end up at a few places for a breakfast. It has some of the most incredible cars you have NEVER seen, Big money stuff. OC is pretty big money wise! All free, anyone that wants to get up early shows up as do many car clubs.

Getting back to the smog stuff for a moment, any cars that you own that are 1976 and newer (up to 75 is exempt) must pass a smog check before you can register it. No engine mods, no headers ect unless they have a California Air Resources Board or CARB sticker on the parts. Then you will have to re-smog your vehicles every other year. There are no yearly vehicle inspections. If you have old cars that are not your daily drivers I'd suggest insuring them through the National Corvette Museum. They are similar to Hagerty and others but much cheaper. They accept all cars that are muscle, exotic, pony, antique ect. They are an "agreed" value company and all 6 of my cars are with them. Adam is the agent there.

By the way, the Western Scenic Tour is this Sept. 7-12 and we will be in the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone areas for 6 days if you guys can make it. Any car is accepted!