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#1
09-16-2007, 02:19 PM
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So Cal. High school and housing questions.
We're seriously considering moving back to the US, and getting the kids back in school there. They're 16 and 13 years old. Daniel (oldest) just graduated here (they get out at 16), and blew most of his exams. We're hoping to keep him down a grade (birthday is in August) to give him whole 3 years to 'try again'. He knows he blew it here and really wants to give it another go. This is an opportunity that most people don't get, to re-do high school, so we are behind him.
How are the high schools there? I've heard good and bad about them, gangs and such. What should we look for in a US high school? Any recommendations? It'll probably be back in the So Cal area. We used to live in Santa Monica, Burbank, Long Beach/Lakewood areas, so we know those. Also we have family in Santa Monica and Monrovia, so we could use those as residential addresses if needed. Also, what are house prices doing there? I've been reading (a bit) about the US market being flat right now. Is it a buyers or sellers market? We have enough equity in our UK house to get setup there (especially as its still $2 to every ?1!), and we don't want to waste more money on renting (did that for 12 years when we lived there before, got nothing to show for it). Any help or advice would be appreciated. Thanks. 
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#2
09-16-2007, 03:45 PM
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Most of LAUSD is complete crap. Complete and utter crap. Unless you can get your kid into a magnet or gifted school, LAUSD, especially in the Jr. High and High schools is nothing more than babysitting kids who couldn't care less or worse housing thugs and criminals.
Most people I know living in LA, that can afford it, have either moved to areas with school districts different than LAUSD. Such as the school district for Agoura Hills, as an example near to where I live. Or people put their kids in private schools, which is serious $. Now if you're really diligent, you can find the pearl in the muck school here or there, depending on where you move in LAUSD, but you're still going to have to possibly deal with drug and gang issues. As for housing prices, yes they are dropping. Depending on where you are looking, then can be dropping quite a bit. If you are looking at metropolitan L.A. city or the areas just around it, you're still going to be looking at ridiculous prices, however.
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#3
09-16-2007, 04:29 PM
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Howdy Tim.
 Housing prices around me (Rancho San Diego, zip 92019) have been pretty flat. I've lived here for 2.5 years in this home and the quick sales have decreased, but the values remain very close. It's not uncommon for a home to be on the market for months, instead of just hours like before. We bought for $80,000 less than the appraised value at the time, yet the sales are still about $80-$90,000 more than what we purchased, for an equivelent size & upgraded home. Relatively speaking - it's a buyers market, if buying a home in the $450-$700K range fits the bill. It seems as soon as you start looking for homes less than ~$400K, the neighborhoods are trashy, schools are full of gangs & drugs, crime is high, insurance is higher for cars due to theft/vandalizm, and you'll wish you had a gun if you walk to the store at night or want to walk a dog or have a family walk. These same junk neighborhoods will have a liquor store at most corners & loitering outside late at night is a way of life there. Schools here are above average, actually way above average and folks fight to get their kids into local schools here. Crime here is almost unheard of, and the neighborhoods are clean & graffiti free. Generally speaking, smog levels are far less than LA, traffic is far less, and job opportunities are excellent here.
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#5
09-16-2007, 07:44 PM
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I agree with Shalom, LAUSD is really, really bad. Worse than crap.
The only two public school areas I would consider are the La Crescenta/La Canada (where I live) and the Las Virgines (Calabasas and West of it). A lot of people rent apartments in these areas just to have an address and to be able to put their kids in these school systems (even though they live somewhere else). As far as homes, the prices are still up there. In some areas, people don't want to face the reality that their homes are not worth what they are asking. In other areas, the prices are holding up because of the quality of the area. All in all, if you move back, rent for a few months, wait for the foreclosure rate to go through the roof, and buy your dream home for cheap. The real estate dip is just the tip of the iceberg, the big hit will be in the next 12 to 18 months.
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#6
09-16-2007, 07:50 PM
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Forget LA - the only redeeming thing about LA is that Shalom lives up there.
Traffic = sucks Schools = sucks Houses = old and expensive, sucks People = suck Move down to "Gods Country" - Orange County. Great schools, newer wider roads, great amenities, same high prices as anywhere in California. Beautiful people (women), etc.  I recommend: HB, Fountain Valley, parts of Costa Mesa for older neighborhoods, or Tustin, Irvine, Mission Viejo, Dana Point, etc, for newer neighborhoods. San Clemente is very nice and San Diego is just incredible. Just remember - you are going to pay for the nice weather the closer you get to the beach. Anything east of the hills is the IE/909 and you DON'T want to live out there. I'm not sure anyone from England could tolerate the blasting heat and giant full size lifted pickups that prevail in the IE - plus you'd have to become a Country Western fan.....and mount a cowbell on your Jeep! (tick, tock, tick, tock) Jeff
__________________
Now I've always been puzzled by the yin and the yang - It'll come out in the wash, but it always leaves a stain
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#7
09-16-2007, 08:32 PM
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Quote:
When my wife was teaching there were always programs being cut and the teachers were always told there wasn't enough money for anything, even basic supplies. There's plenty of money. It gets spent on administrator junkets, and salaries and gets shoveled at keeping the criminal thug, gang kids babysat for a day and the rest gets spent on dealing with the overflow of all the kids from mexico that are in the school system. It's lowest common denominator teaching and the lowest common denominators don't care about learning (culturally), which makes it a babysitting mission. There are a couple of schools, here or there, in LAUSD that can be considered to actually be teaching the kids within their walls. It just depends on the neighborhood. However for 95% of the schools in the system, it's pure and utter crap. Don't believe me? Go look up the standardized test scores for every year. They are published. It's abysmal.
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#8
09-16-2007, 08:40 PM
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BTW, part of the west end of the valley, in the area called " West Hills" is actually part of the Las virgines school district.
We have friends that couldn't move too far west due to work, but wanted to be in that school district and they discovered that little slice of neighborhood that qualifies for that school district. They couldn't be happier with the school their kid attends right now.
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#9
09-16-2007, 09:05 PM
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#10
09-16-2007, 09:41 PM
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L.A. isn't all bad or it wouldn't be so crowded. I wake up to this view out the backyard every morning (unless it is too smoggy or "June Gloom") and I live in one of the many 'cities' that make up the City of Los Angeles. As for the schools, you can look up the districts and see their API (standard testing) scores. As others have said, LAUSD is a total disgrace from pretty much junior high and up. My kids will never see the inside of middle or high school here, though their elementary school tests pretty high. You can look up the districts here: http://api.cde.ca.gov/reports/page2....submit1=submit FWIW, there are plenty of good districts in the L.A. area. I went to school in the Palos Verdes Peninsula district which is only a few miles from where I live now and they score 899 district wide. The problem is that it is going to cost you $1M+ to move to a house in that district as well as most of the other high performing districts in L.A. County. Good luck with your decision. [edit] If I didn't already live here I don't think I'd move here given the high cost of living, endless sprawl and overcrowding.
__________________
Jeff
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#11
09-16-2007, 09:59 PM
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/\/\/\ Jeff, only the more wealthy neighborhoods tend to have decent elementary schools in LAUSD.
It's a complete shame, or maybe sham, that people living in 80% of the general LA CITY have to deal with schools that blow. I grew up, in a perfectly normal, middle class neighborhood in LA and was able to go to a decent elementary school. If I were living in a similar neighborhood now, that would not be true. Not even close.
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#13
09-17-2007, 08:54 AM
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Have you considered the San Diego area?
Two hours South of LA, and worlds different. The housing is not quite as ridiculous as LA, but a decent house in a good school district will start in the $750k range. There are several excellent public school districts, Poway comes to mind as one of the highest ranked public high schools and it is in an area that you 'might' be able to find a 750k house. I live in a very unique pocket of "County" between Escondido and Rancho Santa Fe that has excellent public schools (San Pasqual High, ranked 324 in the country). My oldest just started kindergarten and we are VERY happy with the local elementary school. Houses near me seem to be $700 to multi-million (as you get closer to RSF) range. If you have deep pockets, check out Del Mar. Torrey Pines High School is one of the highest ranked schools in the country (Ranked 119), this is where I went to High School. Just a bit to the North, but still on the beach is Encinitas, slightly more affordable than Del Mar. San Dieguito High, ranked 131 Heres a list of the top ranked high schools - http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18757087...=100&year=2007 Good luck with the search
__________________
The trouble with common sense is it is no longer common
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#14
09-17-2007, 09:57 AM
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Matt's suggestion to look into the San Diego county area is a good one. I was born and raised in Los Angeles county and couldn't be happier having moved from there down here in the Northern part of San Diego county. In fact, Matt and I live no more than 3-4 miles from each other in a really nice area (Escondido) near Lake Hodges.
I'd definitely avoid the southern end of San Diego county but the north end is really very... very.... nice. If you get serious, my wife is a well connected Realtor and she can help you if you decide to look at this part of southern California. Good luck, it's great you're willing to do this kind of move for your kids and their education.
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#15
09-17-2007, 11:00 AM
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Does your work require you live in the Los Angeles/Orange County area?
I'm even a bit more north then Matt and Jerry, in Temecula. Temecula is about an hour from the beach, the mountains and the desert. The days are warm, but cool off in the afternoon, as we get an ocean breeze each day. Though we are only 15 miles from the ocean, we are blocked by a mountain range. Temecula is all new. There are no old run down neighborhoods. Sadly, the economy has hit the area here pretty hard, there are ALOT of foreclosures right now. Its a PERFECT time to buy here. As far as the schools go, both my daughters are seniors in high school. Having had nearly all of their education here in Temecula, I consider them to have had an excellent education. Temecula schools all score high in comparison to the surrounding areas. Great Oak High School is not on the list Matt provided yet, as its a new school. They offer both AP classes and IB classes. I'd say you could pick up a nice newer home, around 2500 SF for around 450k. Maybe less. Good luck with your decision to move! Let me know if you have any questions about the area. Tam
__________________
02 TJ with some stuff
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#16
09-17-2007, 12:58 PM
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The magic number for a loan now is $417,000. For many families it is difficult to get a loan for anything more than that. But if your FICO score is 740 or greater, you should be able to find a no lender fees and no points 30-year mortgage at 7.5% with 25% down payment relatively easy. I am talking about the premium jumbo loan category.
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#17
09-17-2007, 02:59 PM
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I'd forgotten how important credit ratings are. Not sure how we're gonna rate. How long does it take a credit rating to 'heal'? We've been over here 5 years, but had some bad credit before we left. She still has Sallie Mae hanging over her head with student loans.
I'm thinking we 'could' clear around ?70k selling our house, which is about $135k. So we could make 25% down if needed, and have some setting up money left over, but we'd like to hang to as much as possible. Jerry, if you could ask your Wife what we can do to improve our credit score, we'd appreciate it. Some of you are pitching SD county and Temecula. I'd be interested in that. I used to like driving through the area, on the way to Los Coyotes (R.I.P), Anza Borrego, etc. I also used to fly to Hemet and French Valley when i was in flight school. Nice area. Didn't seem as build up as Riverside county (back in '02 anyway). As far as work goes, we don't have anything setup yet. I've got 14 years in IT support, and Chris has 20 years as a paralegal. Should be able to pick something up. Thanks again for the advice. Just have to convince Chris its time to move home. S'funny, but she's the only real holdout to moving back to her home state. The boys are willing, and i have been kicking myself in the head for 5 years for dragging us back here, so i'm real ready.
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#18
09-17-2007, 03:02 PM
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Quote:
$417K is not a jumbo loan, it is a conforming loan in most cases. These loans are not difficult to get as long as you have a decent FICO (of course product, LTV/CLTV, doc type, etc? come into play as well), since Fannie and Freddie will buy them from the banks any day of the week. The problem loans are the non-conforming ones (jumbo, subprime, etc?), since Fannie and Freddie won?t buy them and they have to be sold to investors on Wall Street. With so many homeowners defaulting on these non-conforming loans, investors have backed off and are not purchasing them any longer. That?s where all the turmoil is coming from and why so many lenders are in trouble. Now, $417K is pretty good in some areas, however in SoCal, it limits your choices.
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#19
09-17-2007, 05:49 PM
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i live in lakewood, which is one of the areas you put on your list. I have to tell you that overall, Lakewood is a mighty fine area to live in. the cost of homes here has gone up quite a bit but you can still buy in for about $550 for a fixer, or a house in original 50's era style.
the prices range from 500-1M~ depending on lot size, and how much new stuff is in your house. every area has its good and bad neighbors, and it so-happens, i got one of them. i am pretty sure they are in the minority in this area. the schools by comparison are not bad either. i happen to live right by Esther Lindstrom elementary school and Mayfair high. both fared pretty well on the scores for public schools. here is a link for you to compare scores in the area. http://api.cde.ca.gov/AcntRpt2007/20...oice=2007GDst1 Mayfair High 737 Lindstrom (Esther) Elementary 822 as far as repairing your credit, there is a great book out there that i used in repairing mine. it worked great, and saved me a ton of money.  there are some great tips in this book to help get you straightened out.
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#21
09-17-2007, 07:04 PM
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#22
09-17-2007, 07:22 PM
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No problem, I should have been clearer.
One pretty much has to go jumbo. Conforming loans are easy to get, but unless your loan-to-value ratio is way down, in Sothern California you will be looking at houses in the slums.
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#23
09-18-2007, 10:21 AM
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UK,
As someone who was born and raised in Long Beach and went to nothing but Long Beach schools, I'm biased. However, the LBUSD schools did win blue ribbons (or some honor) for academic achievement, if my memory serves me correctly. Millikan and Lakewood, I believe, are the safest high schools, gang-activity wise, with Wilson, Jordan and Poly following (I think Poly is the worst in that respect). Cabrillo has gang problems, too...but I don't recall if Cabrillo is in the LBUSD. I can definitely vouch for Millikan's music program, if your children are into music. I attended Burcham elementary and Marshall Middle School and felt safe there, too.
__________________
2005 Jeep Liberty Renegade 4X2 (shut up, she rules!), 6-speed.
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#24
09-18-2007, 10:42 AM
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#25
09-18-2007, 10:56 AM
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WHOA! Mezzanine.
Weird! What did you play?
__________________
2005 Jeep Liberty Renegade 4X2 (shut up, she rules!), 6-speed.
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#26
09-18-2007, 11:09 AM
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Didn't mean to hijack the thread guys, just funny we went to the same schools. Back to the topic at hand.
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#27
09-18-2007, 02:40 PM
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 We lived on Harco too. Right under the stadium (goddam lights shone right on us all football season! ). Then we moved over to Lakewood. Monogram, right across from the driving range. I really miss it.
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#28
09-18-2007, 03:51 PM
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