Originally Posted by Gamedog

Sweet! Yeah Riverside is pretty much close to everything out here man. An hour drive up to Big Bear (Great snowboarding in the winter), 40 minutes to the beach (year round), 45 minutes to LA/Hollywood, An hour and a half down to San Diego. Pretty centralized if you ask me But yeah it can get kinda hot here, but living in a nice air conditioned home takes the heat away.

Chase is right, $350K will easily get you a 5 bedroom home. I bought a 3200SF 5 bed, 3 bath home sitting on a half acre for less than that this past December. Not in a gated community but it might as well be. So quiet and all the neighbors are cool as hell.

Can't go wrong in the Inland Empire. Just stay away from the Casa Blanca/Arlanza areas and you'll be straight. Look up Riverside, Corona, Norco, and maybe even Rancho Cucamonga (although that might be more expensive, the city is VERY nice)

Originally Posted by Keng

Inland is really cheap, you can get a 3k SQFT brand new house like 400k easy in Corona

Originally Posted by Taktix1

I'm looking to buy, and after some research I see that I probably cant do much more than a condo. I'm thinking it might be better to rent for a while to get a feel for places and then decide to buy later. Excuse my west coast ignorance (I've been on the EC my whole life) but is it smart to live in a high rise condo (because of earthquakes?). I mean I know you guys dont get them that often so am I just worried over nothing?

Originally Posted by Gamedog

Yeah Chekov's right. He's been through his share. I mean he's old enough to remember "The Big One" that took out the Dinosaurs



Hahaha just messin with ya Chekov

Originally Posted by Gamedog

Yeah Chekov's right. He's been through his share. I mean he's old enough to remember "The Big One" that took out the Dinosaurs



Hahaha just messin with ya Chekov

Originally Posted by Gamedog

I'm in the La Sierra Heights/La Sierra Hills area man. Check the Lake Hills/Victoria area too. Pretty nice.

Mission Viejo and Chino Hills are nice as well. $350K won't get you as much as it would get you in the Inland Empire though. I work in Chino Hills and some of the houses out here are pretty nice.

Originally Posted by Chekov

There’s no good place to hide from earthquakes; it’s a fact of life in Southern California. But any high rise building built since circa 1970 should be perfectly safe.

The real danger is the heart attack one may get as the ground starts to shake or the high rise you’re in starts to sway back and forth. I’ve been through more than my share and have never gotten used to it.

Originally Posted by ucla bruin

taktix have you checked the map to see where Inland Empire is? Might have to pick between buying an affordable house over being closer to the beach.....

Chino Hills is nice but I'm not sure you want to be in Chino. Mission Viejo is nice too. They're in opposite directions though. Mission Viejo is more south, near Irvine. You can check out Diamond Bar, next to Chino Hills too. Along the west on the 60 from Diamond Bar, it's predominantly Asian.

Originally Posted by LAG37

Santa Monica
Beverly Hills
Westwood

Originally Posted by Taktix1

Thanks for all the great info. I'll keep looking at the Inland Empire and see how much money can get me what kind of place.



I can't even imagine that. I doubt I'd be used to that feeling either. Might have to say no to a high rise condo haha.



I've looked at the map, and I know I have named places that seem scattered. The only reason I actually named them is because Mission Viejo, Chino Hills, and Irvine all made the top 15 safest cities in the USA. What makes Chino Hills a place you wouldn't want to be in? Just looking for differing opinions. Mission Viejo seems to be in prime placement although it has to be more expensive than Corona/Riverside. Is Mission Viejo cheaper than Irvine or along the same lines for home prices?

Originally Posted by Mike

@ the OP

I'm actively involved in the real estate market, and may be able to guide you in the right direction.