wanderer

Could someone give us insight into lifestyle, weather, pros and cons of living in Northern CA vs. living in Central CA?

Alot will be dictated by price, but most likely we will end up with a small townhouse condo when we retire, and have looked at these town/cities as possibilities:

Napa, Santa Rosa, Petaluma, Benicia, Marina/Seaside, San Luis Obispo, and PismoBeach/Avila Beach/Grover Beach/Oceano/Arroyo Grande.

We've read alot on the weather, crime rates, housing prices, etc. but would be interested to hear from insiders. We want a place with things to do, relatively safe, with a nice ambience rather than urban sprawl.

We had Paso Robles and Atascadero on our list, but some have told us would be hot, hot, hot in the summer.

We plan on visiting all these areas, but sometimes only people who live there can provide accurate insight that you can't get elsewhere regarding pros and cons. That's what we are looking for.

We are not set on a specific size town/city, but would like a place with a choice of recreational opportunities (parks, golf, etc.), shops, restaurants, nice (moderate)housing and sense of neighborhoods, not too hot in summer (@80) with close proximity to the ocean (30 min or less). If the town is small, proximity to a larger town or city would be desirable, and we want a place with a real "downtown" and sense of community. We would also want a town with or close access to a major hospital. We will be retired, so schools are not important, but a town with vitality and things going on - festivals, farmers markets, volunteer opportunities, perhpas access to a university etc. would appeal to us.

Right now we live East Coast and are seeking to escape the cold and snow. Though we do love to ski, so access to a ski area that we could drive to would be a bonus. We live in a town of 20K on the ocean, but it is very vital, and has alot going on - upscale restaurants and shops, strong sense of community, theatre, parks, boating, fishing, festivals, etc. Again, size is not important as long as the town is vital.

Our budget is 300K-350K, and again we are looking only for a modest (but nice) townhouse condo (no one above or below us) that has some small yard or courtyard, a private entrance and dry storage (attic or basement). Right now we are living in a similar situation, @ 1,100 sq. ft. so that is all we would need.

It's hard to tell if anything like that exists in the places we have picked, if we are way off base, or have missed other possibilites. Our goal is to narrow this list down to a manageable number of towns to visit. Any help/comments much appreciated.

SloPugs

Hi wanderer: I live in Arroyo Grande and I just love it. I grew up in Orange County and moved up to go to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in 1988, met my husband here, started our family and our business. It is a great place to live for people of all ages with everything you are looking for (according to your post). There are many, many microclimates here within a small area and you get downright cold to extreme heat. Anything over "The Grade" (Cuesta Grade just north on hwy. 101 from San Luis Obispo) gets serious summer heat, and dips into freezing in the winter, but nothing like midwest/eastcoast winters. San Luis Obispo is near perfect (if you like moderate) sunny weather, but also the most expensive. The coast is mild in the winter with little frost if any and cool summers (warmest in fall and spring). You might have a tougher time finding something in your price range in SLO. Out of SLO your options expand, but the market is rapidly changing as communities develop outside SLO. I can't stress how all these little communities in San Luis Obispo differ quite a bit in character/weather/housing. Might I suggest that you come and stay as long as possible (in a hotel or vacation rental) in order to scope out the scene? That's the best way for you to know which community suits you best. SLO County has staggering natural beauty and communities that are concerned about growth issues (Cal Poly is the largest school-or #2 depending on the year- of environmental design in the country). If you have any more specific questions about SLO COunty and living the SLO life feel free to ask me! A few things I like about it: we can live a very relaxed, country lifestyle, yet be just 1/2 day drive from LA and SF (1 hr.15 min. north of Santa Barbara and 2-1/2 hrs. south of Monterey). We also have an airport served by American Eagle, United Express and America West. I wouldn't live in the best place in the world if I couldn't easily get out of town!!!

J_Correa

I like the SLO area a lot too. The only thing I would be concerned about is the university and housing. I have heard from several students and a couple faculty members that the on-campus housing is inadaquate, so there are a large number of parents who buy homes in the surrounding area for their children to live in and rent the extra rooms out to other students. I know this is common in many univeristy towns, but it seems to be much more common in SLO. I don't know if this has caused any problems in the neighborhoods, but it is something to consider.

Lovesatq

Hello,

I've been a resident of Benicia for 25 years and love it here but after visiting the San Luis Obispo area (my daughter goes to Cal Poly) I would have to say is a better location for retirement. The housing issue at Cal Poly should take care of itself over the next few years with the school building several new dorms to house continuing students however I did hear that this wonderful State school would like to become part of the UC system which would mean a larger student population in the future. Even with this possibility, the town and surrounding area is ideal with pleasant weather, great beaches, a wonderful downtown and central location to San Francisco, Monterey and LA area. I agree that you should first spend several months in the area before purchasing. Good luck

SloPugs

SLO's a typical "College Town" with associated problems, but it's NOT horrible! It's just so nice in SLO Town, that that's practically the only thing the locals can complain about (I'm not exaggerating)! If you are considering the surrounding towns in SLO County, the University issues are not even of any concern. It's really only a problem if you live right next to the University or near frat/sorority houses.

wanderer

Can anyone comment on Paso Robles or Atascadero?

We love the sound of SLO (especially the weather coming from the NE!!), and the vibrancy of the town, but Atascadero and Paso Robles are alot more reasonable as far as housing prices.

We hate the heat, so someone told us to avoid these two towns. Is there really that much difference in climate?

We are also looking at Northern CA - Santa Rosa, Petaluma, and possibly Napa - would be curious is anyone has comparisons - lifestyle, climate, etc. between Northern CA and Central CA (SLO area).

Thanks.
p.s. The poster that said SLO is better than Benicia for retirement, would love to hear why. Less congestion, cheaper, more vibrant city with more senior services???

wanderer

One other question... I know this is asking for Paradise, but my husband and I are both avid skiiers and hate to give that up.

Would either Central Ca or Northern CA afford us access - days drive - to a ski area? Would Central CA or Northern CA be better?

traveler24

Napa housing prices are "out of sight"---Maybe a SMALL condo for the money you stated.. Napa is very "clickish" Hard to work your way into the community unless you are wealthy, involved in wine or your family has live in the
valley for 3 generations.
I really prefer Healdsberg, Ocidental, Rusian River, Windsor all in
Santa Rosa area.SR has nice "community" flavor, lots of shopping and good medical access, cultural activitiesJr.College and 4 yr..State college -I finished my B S there at age of 56...
You can get to the snow--about 4 hr. drive-to the Ocean in30 min. Summers often in 80s(occas 90) but cools down most nights to 60s. Not sure of housing prices ..I know lots of people are moving to area and communting to SF bay area..
In my honest opinion I would not consider Benicia because of its close proximity to oil refineries and episodes of extreme pollution..
Good luck with your decisions..

SloPugs

Both Atascadero & Paso Robles are north over the Cuesta Grade from San Luis Obispo~extremely HOT in the summer (90's-100's are normal)and cold in the winter. It is inland and away from the coastal influence that keeps SLO, the coast, and south SLO County cities mild.

Nearest ski area to SLO is about 3-4 hours away. Sierra Summit I think is the name, though I've never been myself. A lot of locals ski there. Some actually do daytrips there, but most do it for at least an overnight.

janis

If skiing is important to you -- anywhere in northern California is within 2 or 3 hours of some of the best skiing in the entire country,

Squaw Valley,
Alpine Meadows,
Heavenly Valley,
Mount Rose,
Boreal Ridge,
Kirkwood,
and about 20 other terrific ski areas.

gogoellen

We live in Fresno but have vacationed a lot in SLO and bay area. SLO seems to have a lot going on! I have not heard great things about Paso Robles. I like the hot weather (being from Fresno) but I have heard the community is lots of transient farmworkers..."not that there's anything wrong...." anyway, it may not be what you are looking for. We investigated it when we had kids in HS and overruled it! How fun to make this change! Good luck!

wanderer

Slopugs,
You mentioned that anything North of Highway 101 would have HOT/cold weather. Does this include the areas we are looking at in Sonoma/Napa county?

We really like the sound of Petaluma, but it appears very pricey, Santa Rosa seems more reasonable, but would that be HOT being so far inland?

Pismo/Grover/Avila Beach areas seemed interesting and less expensive than SLO. Are we reading this right?

We realize we will have to come out and spend lots of time, which we will. We just want to narrow that down to 3-4 towns to "live" in.

SloPugs

Hi wanderer: for my comments I'm only speaking for SLO county. Between the northern and southern borders of the county (as I've mentioned) there are many distinct cities/communities, each with their own "Flavor," and microclimate. It took my husband & I 10 years to realize Avila Beach/Valley was the best place for us, but by the time we had a clue it was far out of our price range (astronomical since they rebuilt and cleaned up the town due to years of oil leakage from Unocal-the town won a huge class action law suit). Next, we like "Edna Valley," the area just southeast of SLO past the airport, but again, pricey. More reasonable housing prices MIGHT be found in any towns south of Avila Beach and sometimes Morro Bay. Morro Bay, Los Osos, and Pismo get a lot of fog and overcast weather (especially in the summer), but when the sun's out they're gorgeous. A little sunnier are Arroyo Grande and Nipomo. In any event, all of these towns are pretty close together, and no matter where you live you can enjoy everything that each one has to offer! When it gets too cool where I live I just take a little drive into warmer weather. There are festivals and farmers markets all year around. Daily life is relaxed, the pace is SLO (we call it "The SLO Life"), and the people are friendly. If you like the outdoors and nature, you will not run out of things to do/see. I'm originally from orange county in Southern California, and all my family & friends LOVE to come visit us here!

wanderer

I noticed that Suisun has some nice, relatively inexpensive (compared to other areas) victorians in a historic district.

Is Suisun an area that we should consider, or is it like Vallejo in that it has some nice older victorian homes, but would not be a great retirement area?

applejaxs

The major interest for us with Suisun was the new Marina. Houses are reasonable, but many of the lower priced ones are home ownwer associations type. f that works for you it might be OK. we decided against it because there seemed to be some rowdier(driving cars fast, loud music, lots of cars)in the area we were looking. What is nice is the Marina though. It is new and beautiful. It seems the Chamber of Commerce is trying to draw people. In all honesty there are not many support services in the area though. Nearby Fairfield seems to be where Suisun residents have to go. It is right at a train connection. You could hop on and go to the Bay Area or Sacramento fairly easy.There are areas that are not near the water, perhaps they are better, quieter? We are not tract home lovers so that was not something we looked into.

sgbslo

I recently moved to San Luis Obispo from the east coast. We were looking for a change and investigated areas up and down the California coast. SLO won hands down! Prices are fairly high, but if you're looking for a townhome rather than a detached house you could probably find something in your price range in the city of SLO.
Paso Robles is becoming quite the wine center and the downtown area is charming with some nice restaurants. However it does get very hot during the day in the summer.
The town of Arroyo Grande is very nice and the surrounding area is beautiful.
Everything in the county is pretty close together and within 10-20 minutes you can be in a different enviroment.
I also like the town of Morro Bay.
You should come spend some time here and I'm pretty sure you'll be won over.

traveljune

wanderer,
FYI regarding those Victorian houses in Suisun. They are not in the best part of town. I grew up in that area and it was literally the "wrong side of the tracks."
It's better than was years ago, and those homes are beautiful and have such potential. However, I wouldn't feel 100% safe there at night.

wanderer

Thanks everyone for your comments.

We have narrowed our list down to the following towns based on what we can surmise from real estate sites on line.

The list will probably change when we visit each area, and if we see there are more reasonable prices than we think in the ones we had to cross off.

Right now it is:
Petaluma and Santa Rosa in Northern, CA, Marina and Seaside in Monterey area, and Arroyo Grande and Grover Beach in Central CA.

We crossed off SLO as too expensive, although it seems it might be what we are looking for - Paso Robles and Atascadero and Salinas as too hot, and Napa, Sonoma and Healdsburg as too expensive (and too hot). We also had Benicia on our list, which we crossed off due to above comments. I also feel we want to be a little further away from the Bay area.

So again, would love first hand comments on lifestyle, weather, housing costs, services, etc. in the towns we have chosen.

mjs

Just a few comments. First the summer weather in the central valley of California is really not bad at all. I have lived on the east coast in Boston, New Haven, Philadelphia and Pittsburg and the summers here are not close to the weather you have back east. Generally you may get 2 to 3 weeks of 100+ weather in the central valley with rapid cooling in the evening. 24 hour air conditioing is only needed for a few weeks in the summer. The weather is also low in humidity and a 90 day in California is nothing like a 90 or even a 80 day on the east coast.
I should also mention that if you are thinking of living on the coast, ie Marina you should be ready to have lots of sunless, cloudy days.
I do like Santa Rosa and Petaluma alot but I do not think it is much different from a climate perspective than Napa, although it is closer to the coast. If costs prove to be ok, they would be my location of choice for retirement of your choices.

tpl

Hi Wanderer,

I grew up in Carmel and Salinas -- depending on the neighborhood, Seaside and Marina might be good choices. However, I wanted to let you know that the weather in Salinas is *not* hot; in fact the fog rolls in every day around 4 or so. One of the complaints the locals had was that it wasn't warm enough! So, if you ruled Salinas out for this reason alone, you may want to rethink it.

I live in Marin county now, and think both Santa Rosa and Petaluma are good options. Both of these cities get pretty warm though, though not like the Central Valley or Sacramento.

Good luck!