California

Lifestyle Parenting, Household Affairs and Cuisine corner
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Since y’all are being so helpful with the Houston thread, I thought I might try my luck with our upcoming California move too. Hubby will be working in Burbank but is willing to move offices if we like it elsewhere. So far though we are concentrating on Burbank, Glendale or Pasadena.

Any thoughts on the best of the three? Best schools, safest neighborhood? I would really like the kiddo to attend Montessori and it would be so great to have a park and playground nearby.

Also is it true that no one ever walks anywhere in California? It’s all car culture?

Is is it better to rent an apartment or a house? What kind of rents should we be budgeting for, for a 3 or 4 bedroom place?

Are there masjids nearby and are they good places to meet families?

Thank you!!!

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Re: California

We went to sanfrancisco for a week last year, i was surprised by the obsession with organic foods, small portions, walking/biking. Dunno how different that is from the areas you are looking at but I would think there is more of the car culture in colder places like ny or chi.

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Re: California

i guess you should move to TX.. not much help from CA guppies, if there are any :smiley:

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Yeah seriously lol! :stuck_out_tongue:

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California

:hehe:

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California

I was born and raised in California probably that’s why I like Cali better then any other state I been to. My phuphi lives in Burbank so we go there sometimes. I don’t know about the other 2 but Burbank is pretty nice( wouldn’t recommend it if you have better options).They rent a house and they pay $3000 for 4 bedrooms and the house is pretty nice. The rent should be around $2500-$5000 but an apartment should be cheaper. I won’t suggest an apartment cuz we rented an apartment here in Santa Barbara and it was hell so we moved out within a year. Your neighbors complain about every little thing so I think houses are always a better option. This side of California is pretty expansive compared to SF or the capital sacramento where we used to live but you would find a lot of desi people and more masjids over there compared to here. There’s barely any masjids over here but fo education I prefer it here in Santa Barbara .Burbank would be a good option for education especially Montessori but the public schools are really crowded there and my cousins tell me that barely anyone speaks English there cuz of so many immigrants.My phuphi lives in sun valley and they go to Burbank Islamic center, not a fancy masjid but I really like it and it’s close to the freeway too which is a plus point :slight_smile: but but but the traffic is crazy over there and yeah haha you can say California is a car culture especially if you’re coming from another state. Overall I would give Burbank 7/10. There are waaaaay better cities here but if your husband will be working in Burbank then you’ll have to live around there cuz the traffic is CRAZY! Good luck :slight_smile:

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Re: California

hey hey hey! no dissing the socal guppies! :naraz:
we area all too busy enjoying the golden sunshine and missed the post :snooty:

SGC! yay! you are coming to my part of socal!

SoCal in general is very much a car town. you will need it.

Pasadena: excellent place to live. great mix of young hip families, college students and active older folks, old architecture. Ideally situated to reach downtown LA, burbank and other surrounding cities. Perfectly situated to get to snow or beach/water. Great nightlife. Pasadena is known for its great dining with loads and loads of restaurant (less of an options for halal eating folks but there are some) and fantastic shopping.
This is a very walkable town. Renting in a good neighborhood (3bdrm plus) will run you 3k and above.
Pasadena and its surrounding neighborhoods (la canada flintridge, san marino, montrose, arcadia) are posh hence pricy real estate … esp if you looking at good schools nearby.
buying in good part of pasadena will run you about 900K and above for 1800sqft onwards.
Pasadena school district sucks. period. unless you are looking at the tiny south Pasadena area. South pasadena shool district is one of the highest rated in the state (top five) if you just love pasadena so much that you must live there then id say send the kids to private schools.
plenty of private school options, with some the states best in this general area.
there are many mosques around too … in each of the cities you listed actually.

Burbank: ugly. urban. high rises. lots of business so ideal so get business started there, few parks. school district is subpar as well. I really only go to burbank for the airport or when i need to make use of one of the many businesses. its cheaper (relatively speaking) the say south pasadena,arcadia, la canda, san marino to ret and buy … although that really depends on what part of the city you are looking at. its not very walkable … too smoggy, too much traffic, lots of hurried ppl rushing about for work etc… not v green. we looked at the city for buying but quickly decided against it.

Glendale: like every city has its good parts and bad. big middle eastern population there (Armenians, Persians). Green and pretty. lots of good shopping … esp for ethnic foods etc..
rent is a bit less then good part of pasadena but but by a whole lot. buying similarly a bit less crazy in term of pricing but again not by much esp if you looking to be near good schools.
school district is not well rated overall but there are some specific very high performing schools that are as good as the coveted la canada/san marino/south Pasadena/arcadia schools. needless to say the homes around those schools are expensive to buy and/or rent. several of my colleagues live in Glendale and love it … BUT … the ones with kids also end up renting concurrently in good school district neighborhoods just for the schools :bummer: … so yea maintaining two households … depends how ummm intense you are about getting your kids to the right schools.

loads more to say about each really but honestly nothing beats and actual visit … so if you can … go seeeach one these neighboorhoods and get a feel for them. they are in close proximity to each other.

other areas to consider that ive already mentioned in close proximity (within 20 min drive) to burbank are

Arcadia
San marino
La canada flintridge
La Crescenta-montrose

when are you moving?
im here if you need more info or help in any way!

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Re: California

Hurray! Thank you for your advice and insight guys!

$3000+ for a rental? Eep! We are definitely sticking to an apartment then. We were thinking spending $2000 a month but I guess if that gets us into a less than ideal neighborhood than we’ll have to rethink.

I should say, hubby is willing to move offices within reason if we find a better area. If you guys had to choose around there, where would you choose to live based on having a young family? We will iA be with a 3 year old and a 3 month old.

Ehl, whereabouts are you? Wanna be neighbours? I promise we’re not the chipkoo type! :wink:

Parizay, you’re saying San Fran is less pricey than Burbank and surroundings areas? Everyone we’ve spoken to has said San Fran is super super pricey so although hubby has visited and loved it, we are not considering it at the moment.

In regards to Montessori, that is my ideal situation for him, but in case it doesn’t pan out financially, I would obviously want a good public school system but then as lovely as Pasadena sounds, I guess it won’t work for us.

Sigh. This is overwhelming!

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Re: California

the public school system sucketh over most of LA, but there are some sneaky ways to get your kid into the best magnet and charter schools in the city. here is a guide from a local radio personality. http://sandratsingloh.com/media/STL-Guide1.pdf

i’ve heard good things about housing in eagle rock,which is close to glendale. you should be able to find a decent apartment for your budget.

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Queer hah! Thanks for that guide! Here’s a question - what is a magnet school and what is a charter school? How do these differ from public schools?

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A charter school differs from a public school in that it does not benefit from property tax dollars, they are operated by a seperate organization that obtained a charter to run a school. The only funding they get from the state is based on enrollment. The rest of their funds comes from fundraising for private donations. They are not allowed it charge tuition. Charter schools still have to adhere to certain state requirements (like standardized testing) but after that, they are free to teach whatever curriculum however they like. They can set their own hours and policies. This leeway allows charter schools a lot a creativity and diversity. The catch is that they run enrollment on a lottery system. It’s your luck if you get in or not lol. One of the top schools in the entire country is a charter school in a Dallas suburb, I’ve been trying for 6 years to get my kids in, no luck :bummer:

Magnet schools are specialized schools that work within the public school district. They are for specialized areas/interests like health sciences, fine arts/drama/music, business, technology etc. These are also highly competative, and have rigorous auditions and applications for acceptance.

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GET OUT!!! you have another baby!!! when how whaaaaa!!! :blush: my goodness congratulations!

you are so very welcome!
yes i def want to be neighbors!!! :hugz:
we lived in Pasadena and LOVED it but recently bought a place in montrose/la crescenta as the kid is getting closer to schooling age.
I have a 2.5 yo and i’d say

  1. ideally move to la canada … simply because the school district is just superb. BUT this a VERY affluent town so all real estate is expensive. the colleague i mentioned previously … renting in la canada for kids (but owns/lives in glendale) is paying $3500/mo for a 1bdrom house and feels she got a “deal”. :bummer: for bigger houses (3-4 bdrooms) its not unusual to see rentals go for $12000/mo (yes thats 12K). That said I have also seen 3 bdrm condos listed approx $4000/mo. How quickly they go … i will leave to your imagination.
  2. more realistically, move to either my town or Pasadena and send your kid to a good Montessori.

if you decide on Pasadena and Montessori … just know that wait lists are long and there is competition (yep! even for babies). contact them now to get info and get yourself on the wait list if need be.
My town is so family friendly and quiet without being dull … AND … with Pasadena, downtown etc being so close … you are still close to the action. In my town … i havnt seen many apts, so if you pick la crescenta (plzzzz do!) id say look into renting a house in your budget range.

Pasadena, burbank, is 15-20min away from me, Glendale is like 10-15 min away.

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Thanks khatti!

I think my niece in Seattle attends a charter school. In her case though, although it is a very small and exclusive school, I gotta say, I wasn’t impressed with the academics at all. She’s 10 and had little to no knowledge of the geography of the US let alone the world, amongst other things. It seemed to be a very relaxed curriculum. My SIL is also required to volunteer at least 30 hours a week, I believe, as are the other parents as a condition of her daughters enrollment.

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Lol ehl baby 2 is due in September iA. Our move date is set for November or December this year iA. I will definitely look up your town and you, missy, when we visit! We are planning a May or June visit to check out the areas and figure out where to live. Where does your kiddo spend her days while you’re at work, I’m assuming? Does she attend daycare or are you a SAHM?

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that was a great read! had me chuckling throughout and so very honest!

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excellent! pm me your visiting dates when/if you are ready!
im working full time and mostly overnights/late nights so hubby has her at night and i have her during the days. i have an at home babysitter for when i work days. I haven’t put her into any preschool/daycare thus far .. am not going o do it till she is 4 (3.5 earliest)

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Yes, all charter schools are not created equal. In some towns its a better option for people whose school districts are not that good.

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Any Silicon Valley guppies? We are loosely considering Palo Alto/Cupertino/Mountain View and surrounding areas too. I was wondering if anyone could provide input on life and cost of living there?

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All the areas you mentioned Palo Alto/ Cupertino/ Mountain view are very expensive but with very good schools. Concentrated with mostly Indian, Asian familied who lives in small apartments so they can send the kids to better schools. My kids goes to Islamic school and we live in Santa Clara. Currently bay area housing amrket/ rent market is on fire, still a little bit cheaper to buy then rent. Let me know if you have any other questions, will be happy to answer :slight_smile:

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Sorry for the late reply. I was outta town. SF is fo’sure less pricey then Santa Barbara but yeah I gotta admit it’s really nice there tho really busy. It’s 8 hours from here but you should definitely pay a visit :slight_smile: talking about charter schools I went to a charter school myself and when I started middle school(public) I knew almost everything they were teaching me in 6th grade so I think it depends on schools. Some charter schools are better then others. Lemme know when you come cuz I love babies haha :slight_smile: