Don't be scared off by the negative reviews.
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1/15/2016
I have been holding off for a bit until I had spent more time living in Oceanside to comment, but its been almost a year since I bought my house and before that I had lived in North County for going on two years, so I feel I can give an informed review. First off, I understand that Oceanside has had a sketchy past, but that doesn’t seem to be as much an issue as of this writing. The place must have cleaned up a lot, because I do not see the Oceanside that a lot of the older reviews depict. Yes, its a city of close to 170k residents, nestled between two large metro areas with one of the largest military bases in the US — there are going to be rough spots. My point is, I really don’t see as many problems as this place is credited for, and I am really surprised that I don’t see more. I’ll go through my list of pros and cons for Oceanside, and some of the surrounding areas:
Pros:
- The climate:
Everyone knows San Diego’s famous weather. What they may not know is that coast north county is just a little bit better, in my opinion. I think we get more sunny days, and it doesn’t seem to get quite as hot in the summer in Oceanside compared to most of San Diego.
- The people:
The people here are diverse, down to earth and not snobby; many are blue collar workers. It is very refreshing. It has a more conservative feel to it (compared to California in general) but I have no beef with that. There are a lot of religious people and quite a few churches. That is neither a pro or a con for me, because I really don’t care one way or the other about religion. I feel like the people living in North County, and Oceanside in particular, are rapidly becoming atypical for coastal cities in California that are being overrun with yuppies.
- The relatively low cost of living:
As of this writing, the median home price in Oceanside is under $400k. That is a steal when it comes to coastal communities. The closer you get to the beach, the more expensive (like mid $700k), but still, it’s a steal. Also, you might be lucky enough to get a nice yard in a normal suburban neighborhood. I bought my house in early 2015: four bedroom, two bath, on almost a quarter-acre in a nice, quiet neighborhood for only a little over $400k.
- The culture:
Oceanside has a bit of a creative edge to it. There’s the hotrod culture, motorcycle clubs, and a growing identification as being a very artistic town. The downtown has beautiful murals everywhere you look and art galleries. Every Thursday they close a street off downtown for a farmers market, and in the evening they move it down a block closer to the beach with the street fair with live music and probably well over a hundred art, food and clothing vendors. The crowd tends to be mix of younger families, many with pierced and tattooed parents — it’s a beautiful thing.
Also the thing to do is something active. Everyone is doing something. It’s beautiful outside — why stay in? One of my family’s favorite activities is to take our bikes to one of the closest trailheads for the San Luis Rey bike trail, and ride the seven miles or so to the harbor. We get some lunch and drinks for the adults, and then spend the day at the beach before riding back. You can also take the sprinter, a light rail train, right to downtown Oceanside and the beach. It pretty much runs along the 78 between Escondido and Oceanside.
Don’t forget about the beer. Second to avocados, craft beer is probably the next biggest North County export. We have something like 70-80 breweries along the 78 between Escondido and Oceanside. People are even trying to get that stretch of highway renamed to the “Hops Highway”.
- Downtown:
I’ve already touched on this a bit, but the beachfront downtown area really has a lot to offer and a lot of potential. It is the artistic and cultural heart of this city and it has an identity that is distinct from other coastal cities. There is a definite buzz about it and I absolutely love going down there to spend the day/afternoon/evening. There are concerts played at the outdoor amphitheater near the pier. There is live music in several of the eateries and bars. There are vintage clothing and antique stores, art galleries, and gastropubs. It’s just really a place I am proud to be part of now.
- The neighborhoods:
In the central part of the city you have your typical suburban neighborhoods, but most, like mine, have been around for at least 30 years. There is a good mix of HOA and non-HOA neighborhoods. We don’t care for HOAs so we lucked out with our neighborhood. They keep the streets clean any sign of graffiti or vandalism is addressed quickly. Kids play football and soccer in the street. There is a mix of new and long time residents in most neighborhoods, and people really seem to look out for each other.
If you are looking for family friendly suburbs, the neighborhoods to check out are as follows in no particular order:
- Ivy Ranch
- Rancho Del Oro
- Fire Mountain
- Guajome Park
These are the more central suburbs, and tend to be the best maintained and most family friendly in my experience. There are some places north of 76 that are nice, but they tend to butt up against areas that are just a little too sketchy for my tastes. If I were without kids, I might consider somewhere closer to downtown. Also, South Oceanside is nice but expensive because it is near the beach.
Cons:
- The commutes:
Unless you work in Oceanside, Carlsbad or Vista, you have to commute either by the 5 or the 78 to go inland. For most, like myself, we have to take the 5 south to Sorrento Valley, where most of the bigger companies are based in San Diego. This commute sucks. Its about 30 miles, but always takes at least an hour, and usually over an hour and a half to make. There is the Coaster (a commuter train from Oceanside to Downtown San Diego), but it is expensive and you will still need to make several connections, so it ends up taking about the same amount of time.
There seems to be a lot of new development in Oceanside of business parks, commercial buildings, etc., but I am not sure how the city is going to go about enticing companies to move in. I hope it works out, because I would really love to live AND work in Oceanside. I think there is a lot of talent in the area that can be tapped to do great and beautiful things. I love San Diego, but I don’t like commuting into it everyday. If I have to commute, I am starting to think I will be better off commuting to Orange County than into the San Diego.
- The tourists:
In the summer months, forget about finding parking in downtown or a spot on the beach. I don’t want to complain about this too much, because I know it is a major part of the local economy, but it can suck. Also gas prices seem to reflect the fact that it is a tourist destination in the summer, with steep prices. I usually can drive a distance inland to get gas, and it still makes more economic sense than paying the high price in Oceanside during the summer. By the way, there are some not-so-secret beach spots that the locals frequent that are not so bad during tourist season, but you’ll have to ask a local. I’m not going to say it here.
- The schools:
The schools are hit and miss. About half the city is Oceanside Unified, and the other half is Vista Unified. I can only really speak for Vista Unified, because that is where my elementary school kids go. There are decent schools, but the scores don’t reflect them as such. The problem is that because this is an affordable city in North County, and one of North County’s main industries is still agriculture, there is a high percentage of migrant workers and ESL students here. The migrant workers will sometimes up and head south in the winter to follow the crops and the kids go with them. This effects the testing, attendance and performance of the students at these schools. Also, the number of ESL students pretty much means all of the teaching staff has to be fluent in English and Spanish, which I am sure makes it even harder to find qualified teachers.
So far my kids have had excellent teachers, so I am just speaking in broad generalities about my hypothesis about why the schools do not seem to score well. Your milage may vary. Speaking from experience in North County though, I found Escondido Union to have it more “together” than Vista Unified, however both seem to be better districts than San Juan (in the Sacramento area, where I am originally from).
Brett | Oceanside, CA