Anyone familiar with Irvine, CA?

[Globetrotter]

There is a chance that we might move there, so I'm trying to find out about the area. What are the pros and cons? School situation? Housing market? We are coming from the Bay Area so nothing shocks us, sad to say.

It seems to be really safe, which is very reassuring. How is it for families with kids? Do people interact with their neighbors? Do kids play in the street? (alright, I know this will depend on the neighborhood :)) We don't have that here!

My biggest concerns, which I hope are based on stereotypes, and please correct me if I'm wrong:

- S. Cal has this image of perfectly manicured and groomed women - is it really like that? I like people who are down to earth, and I don't want the kids to be obsessed with their looks.

- traffic - We go down to OC every year once or twice, and I am always stunned by the traffic! Is Irvine also like that?

- politics - is it very conservative? I don't mind a mix and I know I've been sheltered here, but I'm wondering what is the general vibe?

I would appreciate any feedback. Thanks!

[deborah_r]

Not much help, just wanted to say I've been there and it seemed really nice! I think there are plenty of perfectly groomed and manicured women here in SoCal, and then the rest of us normal people! I was worried before moving that I'd be too self-conscious to go tt he grocery store even, but it hasn't been much of a problem, IME.

[Globetrotter]

Good to know!

I have been reading about the notorious HOAs out there. Seems the rules are very strict, which would be tough for me..

[NN317]

I lived in Orange County, CA most of my life before moving here. Irvine is very nice, though I never lived in the city itself. I do know about the traffic. During rush hour, Irvine is part of some of the worst traffic on the 5 & 405 freeways, though mostly only northbound in the am and southbound in the pm.

[amandabea]

I've only lived in So Cal, never in the OC or Irvine, but I've been there. It is a nice area. Has a lot of planned communities/developments. It's crowded, so traffic is worse than other areas of the country (not as bad as LA (405/101), but close). In general is pretty consevative.

[elektra]

I grew up there. Irvine High School grad. ;)
The school situation is excellent. Irvine Unified School District is one of the best.
I have two friends looking to buy houses in Irvine right now and they are running into some problems. They are either getting outbid by investors paying cash or outbid by other "regular" buyers. The houses aren't staying on the market for months and months like other places I guess. Maybe people are pricing them to sell now. The houses are expensive still (but you will not be shocked if coming from the bay area.) It's one of the reasons DH and I bought our house in a city adjacent to Irvine instead. We also prefer older homes with bigger yards and no HOA. Irvine houses are all HOA with only a few choices in model type per neighborhood. The newest neighborhoods are the worst with all the houses looking completely cookie cutter from the next. My parents still live in the house I grew up in and their HOA does allow for home additions and such. And we have been swimming at their community pool which is nice!
It is very safe. There were kids playing in the park when I was at my parents' pool this week but there were still parents around. Not like when I was a kid and just rode my bike everywhere. But I think you probably see more of that anyway these days (parents always present), KWIM?
I wouldn't say everyone is obsessed with their looks, however it might be worse than other places. Honestly, when I moved back down to Orange County after living in Santa Barbara, I noticed how overweight many people were and the huge SUV's they drove, compared to folk in SB.
Traffic within Irvine itself is not bad. But yes, the 405 and 5 can be pretty bad.
Politcs are generally conservative. I grew up in a liberal household though, so there is a mix.

[mom2binsd]

One of my best friends lives in Irvine, they bought a brand new townhome in a community that is very pretty but everytime I go there I get lost because it all looks the same, very nice but so easy to get turned around. Lots of new parks, all the stores you could need in a 2 mile radius. They have been in Irvine for 15 years.

They would like to move into something bigger, they are in a 3bed.2.5 bath (very small though) but LOVE their school and can't seem to find anything that they can afford and stay in their district. Their boys love do a lot of sports, and their are a million kids around their complex (it has a pool like most do). They live on Reggio Aisle if you want a visual of the area just look it up on a map. I know they would like to find something in Tustin.

Yes the traffic is terrible, her DH luckily works 5 min from home, but if you need to go anywhere of any distance you sort of need to plan your route etc.

I used to live in San Diego, a little more laid back than OC, but yes there is a lot of silicone up there....and nails and hair, but not everyone looks like a Barbie doll and there are a lot of nice folks there too, just like anywhere I think.

If you want any specific info I can email my friend.

[MMMommy]

I like Orange County and have friends who live in Irvine and Huntington Beach. Good food and nice weather. We live in the Bay Area too, but we frequent Orange County for trips.

Traffic is a bear. Period. All the way from Los Angeles (Getty Museum area), through UCLA, through LAX, to Orange County via the 405. Everytime we drive from No. Cal to Orange County for trips, the traffic is always an unwelcome certainty.

I distinctly remember going to Fashion Island mall on a weekend one time and couldn't help but notice that everyone seemed to be more "dressed up." And by "dressed up," I mean the women didn't seem to be wearing sweats and tees. More fashion coordinated, if you know what I mean.

[maestramommy]

I've not lived there, but I know people who do and who've considered moving there. The schools are supposed to be very good, maybe because of the demographic? One thing I didn't like about it, and someone can correct me if this isn't true, is that Irvine has city ordinances about what you can or can't do on your own property. Like fixing your car in your driveway. Maybe they consider that against the manicured look:p

My BF's brother and SIL live in Irvine, and they are homeschooling, partly because their DD1 was too advanced for K by the time she got to it, but partly because the demographic is extremely competitive, and they didn't want to get caught in the ratrace. Ironically, they own a tutoring business.

[moonsky]

We moved from Irvine 1 year ago. I love the City. It is very nice, clean, and very safe. Housing is not cheap. You may have better deal looking in Tustin Ranch, but schools may not be as good as Irvine.

Traffic during rush hours is bad both 405 and 5(before 55 Fwy). I am not into the politic. So, I can't help you in that area. It is very family oriented city. Nice and peaceful. It is also in the good location, 15 mins drive to the beach(newport), 10 mins to large shopping malls(Southcoast Plaza). I love love the City.

Also, there are a lot of good restaurants esp Asian food(yummy).

In term of pp, there are a lot of young families and they are very friendly. PM me with any questions.

[TwinFoxes]

I think you'll be in for culture shock moving from the Bay Area to OC. The things you've heard about HOA in Irvine are true I think. What color you can paint your house, whether or not you put up a fence etc. I think a lot of HOA have those kinds of rules, but Irvine seems to take it a step further. Like no parking on the street after dark no kids play structures...but it depends on the particular development you live in. I don't think many places in the Bay Area have HOAs, so it may seem kind of like living with Big Brother. But I also think you'd probably get used to it eventually, and Irvine has a lot going for it. It's very safe, statistically the safest big city in the country, and it's also very pretty. Now that I have kids I can definitely see its appeal.

It's not very ethnically diverse, although it does have a large Asian population. The Hispanic and African American population is much smaller than the rest of the state. It is also very Republican compared to the Bay Area, although it's not as heavily Republican as it was in decades past.

As for how people dress/obsession with looks I'll try to put it in San Francisco terms. If Orange County is the Marina District, then the Bay Area is South of Market.

[ha98ed14]

One of my best friends lives in Irvine, they bought a brand new townhome in a community that is very pretty but everytime I go there I get lost because it all looks the same, very nice but so easy to get turned around. Lots of new parks, all the stores you could need in a 2 mile radius.

:yeahthat:

I live in North OC. Personally, I don't like Irvine. But some people love it. My reasons for not liking it is that it is that it is a completely planned community. That's why it all looks the same; that uniformity was planned. It does not follow the traditional grid street plan. It has very curvy arterial roads and "pods" of neighborhoods which are little more than subdivisions built by the same builder, hence the uniformity of the houses in that particular neighborhood. If you like those aspects of the planned developments then you may really like Irvine. It all depends on your personal tastes. The things Irvine does have going for it are a good network of greenways and greenspace, excellent schools and being a major employment center. There are a lot of corporate offices in Irvine, so if you work there, living there also makes your commute short. In the AM, traffic towards Irvine is stop and go and the PM rush hour is stop and go back north.

As for the stereotype of SoCal women, there is some truth to it. But it is much more prevalent in South County than in North County. If you want that vibe, hang out at South Coast Plaza and you will get your fill. But there are plenty of crunchy, earth types up my way. There is a wholistic moms community in the town where I live. It centers around a store and a CSA. I am not super involved with it, but there is that network if you are looking for it. If you have to move here and don't want to live in Irvine, I would suggest Placentia, Fullerton or parts of Orange as good alternatives with good schools in North OC. Brea and Yorba Linda tend to fit more of the OC stereotype. Tustin has a little more diversity. One place I would love to live is Long Beach. It is actually in LA County, but it is a really cool city and actually has really good schools and lots of diversity. It's not that far from Irvine either. Anyway, just some impressions from my 4 years spent here. I'm originally from PA.

[Globetrotter]

Thanks, guys! As always, you are the best :applause: (my icon of the day).

It sounds like the HOA stuff is true, but I'm wondering if it's stricter in the communities with tiny lots (I'm saying tiny by Bay Area standards, which would be microscopic elsewhere :)). We have friends here who have very strict rules about parking (don't know about other stuff), but the houses are very close to each other.

I was hoping for a decent yard, enough for the kids to play and for entertaining. I like the look of older neighborhoods, personally. To tell you the truth, my main reason for thinking of Irvine is due to dh's job, which would be located near UCIrvine. given the traffic situation, I don't want him to commute far. It sounds like people tend to commute from the North. How are Mission Viejo or Aliso Viejo? Cost Mesa? Would that be reverse commute? I hear Newport Beach is very expensive and "exclusive" so forget that one :)

I like to dress up myself, so I don't mind that. However, I don't like the idea of rampant tummy tucks and lipo.. that sort of thing. I suppose that depends on who you hang out with.

As far as the schools go, I want to avoid the extreme competition that we see here. It sounds like Irvine HS is more balanced than, say, University.
maestramommy, do you know where you friends live?

I might have more questions. Thanks again!