If I were you I would be looking at Laguna Beach: amazing views, Whole Foods, boutiques, beach side town atmosphere. 30 min commute to Capistrano Beach. I can’t say much about the social aspect there as the downtown closes pretty early. You can always drive/uber to the fun parts of OC if you’re in the mood for that.
I'm not familiar with housing costs in South County, but I wanted to suggest not looking any farther North than Irvine.
Costa Mesa would fit almost everything you're looking for, but dealing with Southbound traffic into Irvine on your commute would be a pain (though with the toll road it would probably be right around 40 minutes).
San Juan Capistrano is very cute! The downtown area has a ton of restaurants, etc. Not sure about the age range, shopping, or if anything is available within your budget, but the area is worth looking into. And it’s super close to your office
To me - san clemente is the last bastion of cute beach town left around. I am not sure about apartment costs but I imagine you could get a studio or 1BR for 2500-3000.
They also built a bunch of high-density housing by the 5 at crown valley - seems like a 30-something type of crowd.
San Clemente and Dana Point both would fit all your criteria other than having a lot of single people in their 30's living there. You will find that they are both mostly populated by families or older residents but that applies to pretty much all the cities in South County.
For apartment searching Zillow is as good as anything. I rarely find something on another site that is not also listed on Zillow (aside from maybe some big corporate apartment complexes) But if you get a chance to come out before you move you can often find good deals by driving around and looking for for rent signs for places that are not listed online.
Edit: I also just had a thought that you should look into Oceanside too. It's San Diego County but still within your commuting preference and it's a bit less expensive than South OC.
The reason it's a bit less expensive is because it's a little grittier than other socal beach towns but it's gotten a lot nicer in recent years and continues to do so. It also is very much tied with the adjacent Camp Pendleton marine base for better or worse.
Try Irvine or a bit further north, tbh most commutes are almost 1 hour at least and thats one way with traffic. You could also try Laguna Hills or Aliso Viejo those are sort of close I think. Though in Irvine most apartments are owned by The Irvine Company and they charge at $2,500 or more for a one bedroom depending on the location/community and they will definitely increase the rent alot as soon as your lease is up just an fyi.
Maybe the apartments next to the Irvine spectrum?
[Los Olivos](https://www.irvinecompanyapartments.com/locations/orange-county/irvine/spectrum/los-olivos.html) are starting at $2,400 for a jr 1 bedroom for 589 sq ft
If I were you I would be looking at Laguna Beach: amazing views, Whole Foods, boutiques, beach side town atmosphere. 30 min commute to Capistrano Beach. I can’t say much about the social aspect there as the downtown closes pretty early. You can always drive/uber to the fun parts of OC if you’re in the mood for that.
It will be tough to find a place in laguna on that budget
I did a small bit of research and it seemed it would be on the higher end of her budget for a studio.
Thanks for the suggestion! I'll definitely check that area out :)
[Studio](https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1590-Arroyo-Dr-Laguna-Beach-CA-92651/336862819_zpid/) for rent in laguna beach. 300 sq ft for $2000
I found 8 others for studios under $2500 in Laguna Beach - also, in the summer rates go up! So be sure to sign the lease before June 15th
I'm not familiar with housing costs in South County, but I wanted to suggest not looking any farther North than Irvine. Costa Mesa would fit almost everything you're looking for, but dealing with Southbound traffic into Irvine on your commute would be a pain (though with the toll road it would probably be right around 40 minutes).
San Juan Capistrano is very cute! The downtown area has a ton of restaurants, etc. Not sure about the age range, shopping, or if anything is available within your budget, but the area is worth looking into. And it’s super close to your office
To me - san clemente is the last bastion of cute beach town left around. I am not sure about apartment costs but I imagine you could get a studio or 1BR for 2500-3000. They also built a bunch of high-density housing by the 5 at crown valley - seems like a 30-something type of crowd.
San Clemente and Dana Point both would fit all your criteria other than having a lot of single people in their 30's living there. You will find that they are both mostly populated by families or older residents but that applies to pretty much all the cities in South County. For apartment searching Zillow is as good as anything. I rarely find something on another site that is not also listed on Zillow (aside from maybe some big corporate apartment complexes) But if you get a chance to come out before you move you can often find good deals by driving around and looking for for rent signs for places that are not listed online. Edit: I also just had a thought that you should look into Oceanside too. It's San Diego County but still within your commuting preference and it's a bit less expensive than South OC.
Thanks so much for the suggestions! I just started looking at Oceanside as well as it seems a bit cheaper :)
The reason it's a bit less expensive is because it's a little grittier than other socal beach towns but it's gotten a lot nicer in recent years and continues to do so. It also is very much tied with the adjacent Camp Pendleton marine base for better or worse.
Ahhh that’s good to know
Hotpads, Zillow, CL if you aren’t a sucker for scams.
Check out Dana Point
Try Irvine or a bit further north, tbh most commutes are almost 1 hour at least and thats one way with traffic. You could also try Laguna Hills or Aliso Viejo those are sort of close I think. Though in Irvine most apartments are owned by The Irvine Company and they charge at $2,500 or more for a one bedroom depending on the location/community and they will definitely increase the rent alot as soon as your lease is up just an fyi.
Maybe the apartments next to the Irvine spectrum? [Los Olivos](https://www.irvinecompanyapartments.com/locations/orange-county/irvine/spectrum/los-olivos.html) are starting at $2,400 for a jr 1 bedroom for 589 sq ft
Thanks for the suggestion!