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School me on Huntington Beach

Ace in the Hole

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In all likelihood we will be relocating either to CA, or back to HI due for work/career reasons. My wife would prefer California, and Huntington Beach has caught my eye and we have friends in the area. Any locals want to throw their two cents in? We have two kids, have found a lot of homes in our range already..mainly looking for real world experience. I'm planning to go spend a few days there after our August havasu trip. There is also a duke's there which for some reason is a big plus to me lol
 
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BHC Vic

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Personally you couldn’t pay me to live in Huntington Beach but I don’t like people. I have buddies that live there and absolutely love it. They pay 3400 a month for a one bedroom apartment.
 

PDQH2O

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What Whatexit said. HB used to be a great city, loved everything about it. Lived there for 28 years.

Then about 10 -15 years ago, the cIty council caught the environmental and tourism money bugs and ruined it. Same thinking as Sacramento.

Last few years of living there couldn’t even go downtown without having to deal with the homeless, drug addicts, panhandlers, etc. Don’t even get me started on city services like building permits, or police, parking and the like.
 

Ace in the Hole

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Let’s just say that he’d fit in more in HB than Hawaii. LOL

😂🤣😂🤣 my kid not so much 😳🤣
Most of my childhood and career was there though so that’s an easier move in reality...except we lose what we enjoy
 
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rivermobster

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I drove though HB on PCH last weekend. Oh boy, I hardly recognized the place!

I have a good friend that has lived there for years and he doesn't seem to be interested in moving.

@RaceTec should know a bit about the area as well.

I'd probably shoot for Seal Beach if I could afford beach life in So Cal. 😎

From a couple of weeks ago...

20210705_132156.jpg
 

Javajoe

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I drove though HB on PCH last weekend. Oh boy, I hardly recognized the place!

I have a good friend that has lived there for years and he doesn't seem to be interested in moving.

@RaceTec should know a bit about the area as well.

I'd probably shoot for Seal Beach if I could afford beach life in So Cal. 😎
Seal beach is a nice area with great people
 

Ace in the Hole

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I drove though HB on PCH last weekend. Oh boy, I hardly recognized the place!

I have a good friend that has lived there for years and he doesn't seem to be interested in moving.

@RaceTec should know a bit about the area as well.

I'd probably shoot for Seal Beach if I could afford beach life in So Cal. 😎

From a couple of weeks ago...

When we go to Havasu in a few weeks bri is flying home with the kids afterwards and I’m going to go spend a few days there and look at things. I appreciate the honest feedback
 

Hallett_Whacker

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HB is great if you’re going to live in SoCal (I liked it a couple of miles inland). I now live in Seal Beach, but I used to own a home in North HB-I was between Heil, Edinger, Springdale, and Edwards. I’d live in that track again no problem. There are lots of areas around there that are awesome: check below Warner, and between Golden West and Graham.

Just my two cents.

Most importantly, what’s your budget?
 

ka0tyk

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I'm over in huntington harbor. its a nice little niche of huntington beach with the naval weapons base and the harbor. its not as dense and busy as say downtown HB. nice and quiet. We do have coyotes though that will eat your small animals.

Why live in CA though?
 

Ace in the Hole

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I'm over in huntington harbor. its a nice little niche of huntington beach with the naval weapons base and the harbor. its not as dense and busy as say downtown HB. nice and quiet. We do have coyotes though that will eat your small animals.

Why live in CA though?

I have two dogs (15-20lbs)...they have survived 5 years+ of havasu visits lol..But ill take that down in our notes.

CA is more of an appeasement of my wife..cutting down on her travel from my work base to go places (havasu, WA, MT etc). HI is much easier on me, but I'm trying to find a happy medium..
 

Ace in the Hole

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That’s an easy fix....my step mother is Filipino. We just refer to her as our Filipino gardener. LOL

I need my non-bastardized poke, ponset, adobo, etc hahahahaha...im a fan of round up...hate grass 100%
 

shintoooo

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[mention]Joker [/mention] lives there and will give you the scoop.
 

Ace in the Hole

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Most importantly, what’s your budget?

I sent those deets to my wife..

Budget wise pretty much the same as we would spend in HI for a 3-4 bedroom house in Hawaii Kai...huntington is actually a bit cheaper. We will probably liquidate certain assets short term to try and borrow as little as possible. We have essentially no debt..

We aren't getting a mansion...just a normal 3-4 bed house within reasonable distance to water...and dukes :oops: :cool: 🤣
 

Hypnautic

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Albeit several years ago. HB was fun to live in when noise, traffic and people didn’t bother me as much.

Used to live near corner of Alabama and Atlanta (just two blocks to pier). Great for nightlife, surfing, etc. but helicopters almost daily overhead. Noisy. If one neighbor isn’t throwing a party the neighbor on the other side was. Then bring in events like OP Surf Open and it’s all that x100.

What I disliked the most about living so close to downtown was driving outta there. Takes so long to drive up Beach Blvd to freeway or head South to get to 55frwy. It can easily add 30 minutes to your commute.

Own 4-plex near Bolsa Chica and Warner and like that area much better. It’s an easy bike ride to beach, little easier to get to frwy.

HB is still a great place to live. Usually one of the safest cities to live in.
 

ka0tyk

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Albeit several years ago. HB was fun to live in when noise, traffic and people didn’t bother me as much.

Used to live near corner of Alabama and Atlanta (just two blocks to pier). Great for nightlife, surfing, etc. but helicopters almost daily overhead. Noisy. If one neighbor isn’t throwing a party the neighbor on the other side was. Then bring in events like OP Surf Open and it’s all that x100.

What I disliked the most about living so close to downtown was driving outta there. Takes so long to drive up Beach Blvd to freeway or head South to get to 55frwy. It can easily add 30 minutes to your commute.

Own 4-plex near Bolsa Chica and Warner and like that area much better. It’s an easy bike ride to beach, little easier to get to frwy.

HB is still a great place to live. Usually one of the safest cities to live in.

yup we are at bolsa chica and edinger. Bolsa chica is a 50mph shot to the 405/22. They recently built that big warehouse near rancho and BC which might suck.
 

Xtrmwakeboarder

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ALL of my friends live in HB. They grew up there, went to Marina, and are raising families there. They’ll never leave. They think it’s the best city in the world, but unless you have a healthy budget, look elsewhere. I wouldn’t even start looking at houses under $1.5MM as the area would be so so at best. I like the Huntington Harbor area or Seacliff.

Newport would be 100 times better if you can afford it.
 

hawgty55

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Spent alot of my younger years at the beaches of southern California to me HB is a younger crowd. if i had options i would go north and get closer to ventura to Santa Barbara its a bit slower and classier imo.
 

DILLIGAF

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When we go to Havasu in a few weeks bri is flying home with the kids afterwards and I’m going to go spend a few days there and look at things. I appreciate the honest feedback

HB is crazy busy. I dont think its for you and the family. Seal Beach like others have mentioned might get it done for you.

if you can futher North I like Cambria but its a pretty small community. Lots of water issues as well…as in limiting growth.
 

Hallett_Whacker

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@Ace in the Hole you should definitely check out Seal as well. There’s a great neighborhood called “the hill,” just north of PCH and Seal Beach Blvd. it’s super quiet and mellow (suburban, no apartments mixed with mansions) and still within walking distance of downtown Seal. You may find something that fits the bill.

If you’re over the age of 30, downtown Seal is way cooler imo than downtown HB... again, just my humble opinion.
 

Ace in the Hole

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@Ace in the Hole you should definitely check out Seal as well. There’s a great neighborhood called “the hill,” just north of PCH and Seal Beach Blvd. it’s super quiet and mellow (suburban, no apartments mixed with mansions) and still within walking distance of downtown Seal. You may find something that fits the bill.

If you’re over the age of 30, downtown Seal is way cooler imo than downtown HB... again, just my humble opinion.

Im about to step out for the evening, but im 34, my wife is 31. Im going to put that on my list to check out while out there for sure, especially with many people echoing the same idea. Much will depend on the position I take, but this area checks a lot of boxes...and is reasonable distance to havasu.
 

Joker

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We live downtown and I hate the place. I wouldn’t wish living in our neighborhood on my worst enemy. If you love tourists, homeless beach bums and enjoy parking blocks from your house, this place is for you. If you have any questions pm me. I’ll be the last one to beat around the bush and say it’s amazing.
 

WildHorses24

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Im about to step out for the evening, but im 34, my wife is 31. Im going to put that on my list to check out while out there for sure, especially with many people echoing the same idea. Much will depend on the position I take, but this area checks a lot of boxes...and is reasonable distance to havasu.

Look in south HB, I lived downtown for 17 years and loved it while I was young but 7/4 and the Surf Open were stupid as others have commented. We moved to south HB and it’s an entire different world… in fact HB has like 10 different “worlds” and everyone always judges HB on Main st, even when we lived 4 blocks away we still avoided it.. the out of towners is what everyone bitches about [emoji2361][emoji23] Pacific City is where we hang mostly now. The “white” comment is funny since I’m the minority on my street, many Asian, black and middle eastern families in our “hood”. I live in the HCS track off Atlanta and love it. Long trip to the 405 or 55 but worth it when everyone else is melting [emoji6] as they say, “when it’s over a 100 in the IE it’s 909 in HB!”
 

rmarion

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South HB is getting younger... My wife & I grew up in So HB late 70's (Brookhurst/Atlantic- Edison HS)... my son and his family just moved into a 1970 home. All original for a 925k.
He lives in a culasac... with 5 young families his age.... (Hamilton/Bushard)

I only wish we still had our parents home...SHIT
 

gqchris

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[emoji2359]everyone commenting doesnt live here. Lol.

HB is a BIG city, and each area is like a city in its own.

I like it here. But i live close to Kayotk and HBCraig, SJP and many more members. Different vibes then living downtown HB.

My daughter goes to one of the best Cathlic schools in the nation. Thats all i really care about.

I dont choose to live here, but work and wife dictates that I do.

Id prefer a ranch in MT or lakefront home in TN. But thats not happening anytime soon.

And dont let the 909’ers salt you from moving here. They are bitter and love that 91 commute! [emoji23]
 

HB2Havasu

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Been living in the HB area the last 10 years, but I’ve been coming here to surf since I was a kid in the early 80’s. My wife grew up here and she will never leave even though she loves Havasu. The town has changed a lot in the last 40 years for sure! There’s a lot more tourism these days. Along with that comes the homeless problems, but that’s pretty much everywhere in California these days. It’s still a good community to raise a family, and that’s rare now in SoCal. You never said what your budget is? It’s not cheap anymore. A starter home / fixer upper is $900K in today’s market. I thought homes were overpriced 10 years ago, wow was I wrong, lol. If you do move to California and have children I would highly suggest budgeting in for private schooling. Unless your ok with your kids being indoctrinated with LBGTY, CRT, and Gender Studies in 2nd Grade, and mandatory mask wearing? California schools are the worst in the country! Feel free to PM me if you have any questions about the area sir.
 

Desert Whaler

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I've lived in HB for 46 years and probably won't be going anywhere else anytime soon.
Like anywhere, there's thnigs I love about it and things that piss me off about it.
Our tract of homes have full Rv access, (side of the lot was designed to allow for boat /rv storage) which is rare nowadays.
Shoot me a DM w/ any questions you may have, I'd be happy to offer me $.02.
 

SJP

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I like HB I have lived here 20 years. If you are a Havasu / Parker guy and living in CA is required you will find a spot you like there. A few of general coastal focused areas:
* South Magnolia / Brookhurst areas - nice suburban homes - quite. Great access to schools. I like that section of beach and boardwalk path. Nice bike ride to Newport Beach. I have a couple of friends that live there and really like the neighborhood.
* Beach Blvd North - Downtown - I lived there for 15 years moved there when I was 25. It is a lot of fun but you really need to go into it eyes wide open. We were a little ways off main st. so We could walk or quick bike to chaos but when the new Pacific City development finished it brought a lot more traffic to area. You can still find low key places but they will be a few blocks in land. There are a few gated areas in the downtown section as you head north. Downtown HB has a mall now. It is very commercial but it is still HB. Not crazy about my boys hanging out there in there teens so we moved North.
* Sea Cliff - north of downtown Golden West / Sea Pointe off of PCH - this area is nice. Brother in law lives over here. Mostly if not all gated communities if that is your thing. Big houses, parks, really quite, places to walk other than the beach. I would say a more mellow, older crowd.
* Huntington Harbour - Warner North along PCH / Edinger / Bolsa Chica - Sunset Beach leading into Seal Beach. I live here now. Older crowd with less tourists. Paddleboarding and boating, quiet neighborhood. Two of my neighbors have places in Parker. Gun club up the street and work is pretty close without getting on freeway.

So take your pick - there are a lot of nice places heading inland going towards Fountain Valley. I have a bunch of friends that live south in Costa Mesa (outskirts of Newport Beach). In closing if you are going to live in CA you better like the place you live because you pay for it.
 

boatpi

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I have had a house in hb since 1978, kept it as a vacation house when we moved to vegas. I am against the wetlands, beyond peaceful great for walks, birds, great neighbors. Most anything is $1,000,000 now though. Try to find a 1970’s or newer build house as opposed to 1960s. All wetlands houses were built in 1970’s. Look in zip 92649. Most anything i Need is within 5 minutes.
 

TCHB

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We lived in HB for 36 years. Great city with lots to do. Our kids were in the Jr.Lifegard program all the way up to 11 grade. For 9 months the inland crowd is not there. We lived on the south side right behind Edison High School which is very nice and quiet. I would go down after work and surf about 3 times a week. My daughters went to Mater Dei which is not that far.
 

HBCraig

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It's fine but like what others have said downtown will be a nightmare. Can't find parking and the homeless folks are everywhere.
It has changed a lot during my 50 year tenure here but it's still nice. Houses are selling for outrageous prices.

If you need to hit the freeway daily for work I would choose something g in the north HB area. Just my opinion

And like what @HOOTER SLED- said...... I am white too. ;)
 

HBCraig

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I've lived in HB for 46 years and probably won't be going anywhere else anytime soon.
Like anywhere, there's thnigs I love about it and things that piss me off about it.
Our tract of homes have full Rv access, (side of the lot was designed to allow for boat /rv storage) which is rare nowadays.
Shoot me a DM w/ any questions you may have, I'd be happy to offer me $.02.
My house has RV parking as well. Lots of tract homes with rv parking if you need it
 

gqchris

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My house has RV parking as well. Lots of tract homes with rv parking if you need it

Yup same here. I forgot to mention that. Huge parking here also and they are strict on the Rv’s in the streets so it keeps down the liveaboards who pretty much spend their days at the state beach anyways.
 

boatpi

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FYI; if you work in parts of Los Angeles county or the Long Beach area do you want to live somewhere near Bolsa Chica and Warner we call Bolsa Chica St. the Bolsa Chica freeway. Zip right up and run up to the 405605 interchange or if you work in Long Beach and leave it in early morning hour ago right down Coast Highway there’s always alternatives.
 

BHC Vic

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[emoji2359]everyone commenting doesnt live here. Lol.

HB is a BIG city, and each area is like a city in its own.

I like it here. But i live close to Kayotk and HBCraig, SJP and many more members. Different vibes then living downtown HB.

My daughter goes to one of the best Cathlic schools in the nation. Thats all i really care about.

I dont choose to live here, but work and wife dictates that I do.

Id prefer a ranch in MT or lakefront home in TN. But thats not happening anytime soon.

And dont let the 909’ers salt you from moving here. They are bitter and love that 91 commute! [emoji23]
Commute has nothing to do with it. I’d like to live in Texas or Tennessee and I will when my parents pass. In the meantime I choose norco because it’s similar to where I want to end up. Like I said, couldn’t pay me to live in Huntington Beach.

Let me edit because I’m not trying to be rude but I know how that might come off. That’s just my real world take on it. I think hooters hit it right. Has nothing to do with race for me but attitude. It’s like a snobby beach attitude, not everyone but enough. I like people with the same interests as me. A little more simple lifestyle I guess. That’s just my personal opinion though. Like I said I have buddies that absolutely love it there. It’s just not for me
 
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BHC Vic

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Hawaii on the other hand. I could probably do a little house on Maui with some chickens running around. I don’t know though every time I go to Hawaii I’m ready to come home after a week or two.
 
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