I've Lived here and there a long time....
-
10/22/2010
Escondido is in the north east section of San Diego County - Many people consider Temecula to be part of this metro area. This area over all is very diverse - you could be 50-60 miles from the ocean and still have a sneak of a view.
Escondido itself has a great cultural arts center that really does it's best on it's limited income but it is an absolutely beautiful building. The arts here have tried and tried to make it. There are several galleries and it seems there just isn't enough "umph" to make it "artsy" like some other towns in San Diego.
Unemployment is high right now. Classified ads are dismal, rents are still a little high unless you rent in the center of the city which is mostly Hispanic. Crime isn't really a big issue here compared to other suburbs in america from my experience.
The weather is frustrating here. In the summer time when you want to be at the beach it's foggy and cold, believe me, I paid the outrageous rent to live on the beach for a year and was terribly sad. The only sunny days I saw last year were the ones in Escondido. In the summer it does get a little hot but not unbearable and it really is the gateway to many other lanscapes, high desert, low desert, mountains, oceans, and big city are all within a hour or so drive.
Many people commute to San Diego for work and traffic can be bad but I have lived in Chicago and Orange County and the SF Bay Area and this traffic is nothing compared to that.
It's very central to everything at a price. Housing is expensive here, if you do find anything at all under a $1,000 a month it won't be anything you would want to rent and buying seems like you pay a whole lot of money for a whole lot of driving to somewhere else to spend your day.
kymberley | Escondido, CA