Interesting conversation here today. I've never even looked at La Canada so went on Redfin to look at some comparable homes and was not impressed. They look really old, the neighborhoods don't look like they are governed by an HOA, it looks very "LA" (like I can see power lines running right behindsome of the homes in the back yards. )
So we're a young couple, professionals, early 30s, young kids and I think I can speak for many here as to why we bought in Irvine:
1. Great PUBLIC schools
2. New homes - I love my new build because for the same price as some 20+ year old product I got to buy a functional floor plan, put in all the options, all the latest technology and my favorite designs into a home made to my liking
3. Everything in Irvine is aesthetically beautiful and I LOVE that - beautiful landscapes, rolling orchard groves surrounding my home in OH, no power lines to be seen anywhere around my home, everything matches, all the neighbors homes are coordinated and looks like it all fits together nicely. No neighbors with a red front door or pink house color that sticks out.
4. lots of outdoor spaces, trails, parks, community centers and all farily new
5. More young families like us in the neighborhood (no rock stars, wanna be actors, very hip LA crowd mixed into our neighborhoods)
6. Relatively close to the beach - takes me 15-20 mins surface streets on jamboree to drive to Newport and the beach
7. Lots of convenient shopping centers, great malls (south coast, fashion island, Irvine spectrum) at my fingertips...relatively easy to get to
8. Not as much traffic congestion as LA - this was a primary reason we moved out of LA. That congestion and inconvenince just to get an errand done without honking my horn once was well worth the move outta LA
9. Overall more relaxed environment - my feeling in LA is more people are stressed out and that energy can be felt
10. Irvine is safe, safety is of primary importance with young kids
11. And YES lot size is much smaller but I (maybe rare sentiment) LIKE that because it is less yard space I have to maintain but I can walk 5 mins outside my house to a park for the kids to play, tennis courts for tennis, a massive pool that we can enjoy but I don't have to maintain.
Anyway some reasons we love Irvine and I'm sure many of my TI members here share in my sentiment.
My thoughts on Irvine affordability is that most live within their means or a little below. But I can't speak for others..for us we try very hard to live below our means. Our 3230 sqft home is a perfect size for our family of 4 and meets all of our needs. Larger home to us does not equal happiness, it equals more money and effort to maintain. Life is better enjoyed simpler which is a motto we live by. I'm a doctor and I have many physician friends but all our sources of income and wealth span from hundreds of thousands to well into the multi-millions because it depends on if the physician is the sole breadwinner of the family or their spouse makes just as much or even more than they do. And yes the poorest physician earners (family medicine, primary care, general peds) make the average $150-160 k but remember that most physicians these days are specialists and those average salaries are $300k to $500k annually as an "average". And my plastics friends, interventional radiology are easily into the million range salaries. So yes they have school loans and are late in the game to earn a salary but we catch up to the "average" professional earner very quickly. But as perspective mentioned, how they manage that income is a whole different story. I have friends that are extremely financially savvy and others that spend every dime they make with no positive cash flow at the end of each month.
) now to Turtle ridge 2.6 mil house with a 500k mortgage that is not a back breaker. We are now considering selling(will profit 900K) and moving to Shady Canyon. It is NOT all luck!! Buying and selling homes is like any other business. You have to know what your getting your self into and not make a emotional purchase. Intuition, and knowing when to sell and when to buy. Analyzing the market, and by all means I don't have a PHD on finance but read the WSJ 