Hey, I've got a question... No need to read anything into it at this point, I'm just curious.
Santa Monica is located in Southern California, just west of Beverly Hills, right on the Pacific Ocean. If one worked in Santa Monica, what cities would be good to consider as a good place to raise a family. ie. Not insanely wealthy, not a ghetto, just a nice good middle class neighborhood.
And if that question makes you feel geographically discriminated against...
Same question, but substitute either:
Palo Alto, up by San Francisco
or
Vancouver, British Columbia
No idea at all, good luck with that!
ReplyDeleteIs it not possible to live and work in the same city? People underestimate the child-friendliness of urban areas. Check out my life in Zurich!
ReplyDeleteThanks Mouse and C.L.
ReplyDeleteThe idea of Europe or the land down-under has been floated around as well at the Koda household in recent months, but when you mix 5 kidlets into the mix...
I'll check out your post... And I think if I get a chance today, maybe I'll check out the realty situation in Santa Monica or any of those other places. Interestingly enough, when we got married, Mrs. Koda like the idea of urban living, and I wanted to go as rural as possible. In recent years however, it seems like we've switched!
Thanks :-)
Update:
ReplyDeleteLooked up some currently available options for residence in Santa Monica...
YIKES!!!
i live in the greater Los Angeles area. there is nowhere in santa monica that one can live with many kids that is affordable and/or close to desirable work locations. while there may be pockets of affordable-ish housing, the west side of Los Angeles is crazy expensive, with small lots and horrible commutes ANYWHERE. and you can't GET there from anywhere either! i live east of downtown LA and it's more affordable...the farther east you go, the more affordable it is, largely.
ReplyDeletejust my opinion...
Thanks DCR! Are there any communities out east of LA that you would recommend I look at?
ReplyDeleteHey UK, I live in LA and agree w/ DCR. West LA is not affordable, and it's quite congested. Most of the greater LA area is really expensive. I would look in Orange County, esp. South OC. Nowhere east of downtown is really where you want to go. You'll find yourself in San Bernardino and that is an armpit. No offense to SB. I live in Los Feliz, slightly northwest of downtown LA. Great neighborhood, but not affordable unless you make a bit of money. I lucked out and got this condo for a fairly low price, but I wouldn't be able to afford anything more than the one bedroom I have. I would look at Portland, OR or Seattle, WA.
ReplyDeleteThanks E! Good suggestions.
ReplyDeleteFor those curious, I perusing the jobs at Google (Santa Monica) and FaceBook (Palo Alto), hence those two locations, but I would be willing to look elsewhere. Those two companies just seem to have the type of corporate culture that I think I could really thrive in.
Not that I don't like my job now, it's awesome, I just don't feel like I'm reaching my potential, and with growing kids and no sign of any significant pay raise or promotion in sight, it's starting to look like it might be time to move on to something better - and a move away from Utah might be good right now as well.
I feel like I need to give my two cents in for the Vancouver, BC area.
ReplyDeleteSome good middle class places would be Langley or Abbotsford; they're about an hour's drive away from being smack dab in Vancouver along the main freeway. If you want to take the train in, I would suggest Mission. All three places are pretty suburban. Mission has more lakes, forests, and hiking trails. Langley has more shopping centres and entertainment complexes. Abbotsford is between the two.
Some places to stay away from: Maple Ridge is the meth capital and full of sketchy people downtown. Surrey is known for its "loose" women, gangs, and a white minority.