If you have time to wait for up and coming….right on! If not NCC from SB to Cbadvis what you described, that’s all my town. We welcome you.

If you are looking at 1 hour to downtown, sky’s the limit!

Escondido, Valley Center, Hidden Meadows. There should be plenty of homes built during the peak, so relatively new and most should be without MR with low HOA. Some of the communities, even with MR, the prices would be so low you can simply absorb the MR cost and pay it off.

Also consider Vista, milder climate but should have plenty of options that fit your requirement.

Bonsail. Maybe too rural..but hidden gems.

[quote=harvey][quote=ocrenter]I thought about the areas age restricted communities. Problem is they tend to be much older homes that OP would like to avoid. Otherwise RB would be an excellent choice.[/quote]

My in-laws once lived in an age-restricted community with new construction.

One of the “modern” features of the homes was a red light on the front of the house that you could switch on to help the ambulance/paramedics locate your house after making a call.

It was a nice reminder that all the residents chose their home as the place where they were planning to die.[/quote]

Laguna Woods, aka former Leisure World, aka seizure world, aka geezer world, has a known practice where neighbors would raid a unit following an ambulance departure.

Laguna Woods, aka former Leisure World, aka seizure world, aka geezer world, has a known practice where neighbors would raid a unit following an ambulance departure.

Wonder if “built-in booby traps” (set on a time delay so paramedics don’t get hurt) could be a selling point in new elder housing. Perhaps I should patent the idea…

But I don’t know why anyone in their right mind would want to spend their final years surrounded by a bunch of f**kin’ has-been geezers. I’d move to one of the beach cities and enjoy the “views.” Or to Eastern Europe where it’s relatively cheap to live, if I were truly broke.

The hard part is the “newer construction” coupled with “no HOA MR Fees” as those tend to go hand-in-hand.

I think you can avoid young families by buying in nicer neighborhoods served by crappy schools. Any young family that can afford a $750K house is likely going to buy in the “School Belt” (I think I just coined a new term – copyright sdduuuude) which runs from Poway to CV and up the 5 a bit.

As you know, I’m a Clairemont guy, but since you have a $700K budget and you don’t care about school districts, you can probably get into a better ‘hood that CM.

Houses built in the 50’s are very well built. Usually you need to do the cosmetic work, but the bones are good.

In Clairemont, follow the canyon edge above Hwy 52. On the way there, you will see some crappy houses, but as you get into the canyons, it improves. Also, follow Tecolote Canyon from I-5 all the way up to Genesee Ave. Anything on the canyon or its fingers is going to be nice.

I think you should look closely at Bay Park / Bay Ho or the part of Clairemont just above Bay Ho – there are some canyon gems around the streets of Courser, Monongahela, Wyandotte. Drive around all over the area above Costso on either side of Moraga.

This place looks keen.
http://www.redfin.com/CA/San-Diego/3969-Kenosha-Ave-92117/home/6257807

Some of my favorite streets run parallel to Nute Way. Really cool 1-story 50’s houses overlooking the bay. They are stacked on each other with driveways only on one side of the street so everyone has a view. There are likely bylaws restricting development to keep everyone’s view in-tact. A good size to retire into and a neat view. Only thing keeping me from buying here is the school district.

Here’s a recent sale. A cool place.
http://www.redfin.com/CA/San-Diego/3087-Conner-Way-92117/home/6255559

More from the “Nute Way” area:
http://www.redfin.com/CA/San-Diego/3075-Hartman-Way-92117/home/6255448

http://www.redfin.com/CA/San-Diego/3015-Plone-Way-92117/home/6255161

UTC is definitely worth looking at, though lots on canyon homes there may push past your budget. I’d south of Governor well to the west of Genesee.

There are some cool houses on and around Erie Street in lower Bay Park that I love. They have garages in the back and are low enough that I-5 traffic noise is reduced a bit.

The neighborhood that stretches along Burgener south of Clairemont Drive is great. You won’t get a big yard there – most houses are on a slope, but it’s a neat neighborhood with lots of interesting houses and they can feel private with views. The houses on the east side of Cowley have an ocean view and a canyon view.

Mission Hills comes to mind, though it may be too expensive.

Also, check out the little neighborhood just east of I-5 near State Street, Upas, etc. Start at Laurel and State Street and head North on State. It turns into Reynard. Keep west as you drive north. I don’t know the area well, but it’s a fun place to get lost in the canyons.

As a word of encouragement to the OP, all of my family and my wife’s family retired here, with no problem. We’re in our 50’s and retired from the airlines. We have lots of investment properties and other consulting projects, plus family, etc., etc., that keep us busy, and we enjoy living in a place that has everything we want.

We’re in RSF and love it, and it sounds like you have received some great suggestions for possible locations in the price range noted. I particularly think La Costa might be a great fit.

As mentioned, it might be a bit difficult to get newer construction without HOA or MELLO, but there are certainly many options out there. Be sure to check out all zip codes of interest at sdlookup.com

It’s true that if you have to worry about money, whether you’re retired, young, old, or in-between, San Diego can be a difficult place to live the life you want to live. We’ve known many people–especially younger people–who have had to leave the state for financial reasons–but I don’t think that’s a problem for the OP.

Enjoy!!