You might want to look at some of the areas of inland northern O’side that aren’t that bad value wise because of the long commute to San Diego. If you are working in Carlsbad, you’re in a good position commute wise, why screw it up by commuting from Temecula. I know alot of people who would love to work in North County where they live.
Another thing to watch out for in Temecula is the high property taxes due to high mello-roos/special assessments. You’ll probably end up paying out more $ in property taxes in Temecula vs. North County even though the property values are lower in Temecula.
The absolutely only good reason I have think that one might want to live in Temecula vs the more affordable areas closer in is that the public schools in Temecula are supposed to be good. I certainly wouldn’t move out there for a bigger house.
I live in Carlsbad but will not use my neighborhood public school, so I have had to opt-out and send my kids to a charter school in Oceanside. I tried to get an intradistrict transfer to another school in Carlsbad but was not allowed. You are allowed to use Charter Schools in any district but then, of course, you have to transport your kids to the school, and also, many of the good charter schools are full and have waiting lists.
If you have kids I suggest you buy the best you can afford in the boundries of one of the better schools, this is also a good selling point. There are major differences in quality of the properties, education (check out the API scores), and the problems that the different schools are dealing with – even within the “good” districts.
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