Where should I live in San Diego?

October 3, 2008 6:23 AM

Where should I live in San Diego?

I am moving to San Diego for a new job.

I am an Orthodox Jew and would like to rent a 2 bedroom apartment walking distance (less than a 15 min walk) from a an orthodox synagogue.

I will be staying in a hotel until I find a place. My budget is around $1500.

Any suggestions for a first-time San Diego visitor? Any real estate agent recommendations or should I use Craigslist?

Thanks!

posted by torikim to travel & transportation (9 comments total)

You probably won't need a real estate agent for an apartment. Craigslist, the Reader (local weekly alt-paper), and the Union-Tribune (major daily paper) will cover all your needs. I don't know if real estate guys even deal with rental properties that aren't commercial out here.

I grew up near the Tifereth Israel Synagogue in a community called San Carlos, located in the eastern part of the city of San Diego, which is generally a pretty nice area. There are some apartments and condos around that would probably be available for rent, but the area immediately surrounding the synagogue itself is almost exclusively single-family homes. I've heard that there's a heavy Jewish presence in that area (likely due to the presence of the synagogue), but it doesn't really manifest itself like areas of New York or LA -- I've only about the demographics of the area from other people.

Google tells me that the other large synagogue in SD is the Ohr Shalom synagogue in Banker's Hill. That area is chock full of apartments and a much denser part of the city, and has a wealth of cultural stuff going on. Just a few blocks east of the synagogue is Balboa Park with its museums and zoo, while a few blocks north is Hillcrest, with a bunch of restaurants. Ideally, if you're looking to live around there, you'd want to shoot a few blocks north -- the area to the south of the synagogue is right under the approach flight path for the airport, and the planes are flying pretty low at that point. Go too far north and you'll actually be in Hillcrest, which could cause all sorts of problems for you with parking and noise. You probably want to be somewhere in the area where east-west streets are still named for trees. I've walked around there, and it's pretty nice. There's also a bunch of apartments down the hill to the west, but it's quite a hill to walk up. Living down there would put you closer to the trolley lines, though.
posted by LionIndex at 7:24 AM on October 3, 2008

Also: I don't know if your stated budget is for your hotel stay or for your apartment, but $1500 should be able to get you a pretty decent 2-bedroom in any of the areas around the synagogues I mentioned. I was looking for places back in April and didn't encounter many over that amount, and I currently live northwest of Hillcrest for less than $1200.
posted by LionIndex at 7:26 AM on October 3, 2008

This article has a bunch of info on the state of Jewish communties and their history in San Diego.
posted by LionIndex at 7:51 AM on October 3, 2008

As a data point, you should know that Hillcrest has a large homosexual population--kinda the Castro Street of SD. It has great old apartments, a cute shop/restaurant filled "mainstreet" area and is a very nice place to live. I lived there for a couple of years during my SD days and loved it. It is very walkable--there are lots of hilly neighborhoods but Hillcrest is mostly at the top of a mesa and therefore relatively flat.
posted by agatha_magatha at 8:12 AM on October 3, 2008

You could live in La Jolla or University City and be near Adat Yeshurun in La Jolla or the Chabad in University City.

I've never been to the Chabad center, but during my time in SD I went to Adat a few times. It's a wonderful synagogue. Both areas have a pretty strong Orthodox community.
posted by Arbac at 8:20 AM on October 3, 2008 [1 favorite has favorites]

A list of temples in San Diego. Why not call them and see if they have housing bulletin boards? I lived near the chabad on Governor because the neighborhood (North Clairemont/University City) was affordable but it isn't very pedestrian-friendly.
posted by billtron at 11:27 AM on October 3, 2008

I was going to suggest UTC as well.
posted by fillsthepews at 9:00 PM on October 3, 2008

Banker's Hill is a great choice; it's a completely different vibe than UTC, though. I currently live in UTC quite unhappily. It's a quiet, very suburban area with very little local flavor. Also, your budget might not fit the UTC mold. (And it's not pedestrian-friendly, as mentioned) Banker's Hill is central, urban, walkable, and well-designed. Little Italy is also a beautiful area that is affordable, central and walkable. Same with Hillcrest.

Areas to avoid: Chula Vista (far away), North Park (filled with dive bars - although, North Park is turning into the new "place to be"), East County.

San Diego is a very sprawled out "city."A good place to stay while you're searching is Hotel Circle, which is relatively central to different parts of San Diego.

Craigslist is the way to go.
posted by brynna at 2:38 PM on October 4, 2008

Where is your job located? Ideally, you'd like to be able to walk to synagogue and also have a pretty minimal commute to your job, right? Craig's List is basically the best resource for apartment rentals in San Diego. The Orthodox synagogues are pretty well spread out, but we could tell you which ones would be closest to your job and in the better neighborhoods, and you could scour CL with that info.
posted by booknerd at 10:57 AM on October 6, 2008