Ideal location in Irvine (or OC) for single young professional to purchase a 3000 sf house?

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Trooper,





Just one time real entry.


I was out of the country, came back found a broken window and a sliding glass door opened from inside. Because I was out of the country, I really could not tell the police the exact date it happened.





A week after I reported the break in, a neighbor saw a guy trying to jump over my back yard wall. She called the police and an army of officers showed up. I was totally embarrassed.





Third time, just this year two police offers showed up at midnight just to tell me that my neighbor reported "suspicious persons" around my house. I freak out and moved to a hotel for the night.





I really feel like posting a sign in my backyard telling burglars that I don't have anything valuable in my home so please don't break my window. Honestly the only expensive thing I have in the house is the 6'4" grand piano.
 
<p>Effen is right, a well lit area is a great deterrent to crime. Since you go out of town, would you consider those roll down security screens for the vulnerable side of the home? Audible alarms are great too.</p>

<p>Most people aren't aware that the vast majority of burglaries occur during daylight hours. The burglar assumes you and your neighbors are at work and they can operate without being seen. </p>
 
I did put in flood light (is that how it's called?).





The police investigator said the burglar(s) broke it. I fixed it shortly after, only to find it broken again, the cord had been cut.


My parents, who live out of town but visit often, insisted that I installed alarm system. The first policeman I talked to said it probably would not help much. He said most homeowner who had the alarm installed only ended up scarying themselves.





Also, he said there were some very skillful burglars in Irvine. Some of them they suspected may have help from 1, real estate agents. 2, landscape workers, and 3, post office workers.





I don't know how real estate agents get involved. Though I hate to suspect my local postal service, it did alert me. The reason being that for the first three years I lived here, everything was fine. I had my friends pick up mails for me. The 4th year I found out I actually could have my mails stopped when I was out of town, I used the service and I got my first break in. Coincidence? Maybe, I don't know.
 
<p>Motion sensor lighting higher up and security cameras might do the trick. THe officer who told you that is an idiot, especially if you had break ins. There are a few idiots that work for IPD, many are great, dont take their words to heart.</p>

<p>NOw that you bring up the subject, do you live in a gated community?</p>
 
Don't you hate it when you try and do the right thing like stop your mail. Only to find out it might have been why you were burglarized. Very annoying.
 
<p>Even if you put a "dummy" camera - that might help. It's a lot cheaper than the real thing - but it looks real. It might help deter burglars. Good luck.</p>
 
<p>Costco has a 4 camera system with dvr which can record for up to the 30 days for about $600, put them all around the perimeter of your house. Place them high up burglars cant reach them and have them visible, you should be good to go </p>

<p> Nothing is 100%, if they want to get in they will, but if you provide a challenge they will simply go to the neighbors "unprotected house".</p>

<p>Take your pick:</p>

<p>http://www.costco.com/Common/Search.aspx?whse=BC&topnav=&search=camera%20dvr&N=0&Ntt=camera%20dvr&cm_re=1_en-_-Top_Left_Nav-_-Top_search&lang=en-US</p>
 
<p>Cal, the dummy cameras with a battery operated "glowing" red LED light are great. Also, hardwire in the motion sensor light so the cord is not exposed, and cannot be cut by the suspect.</p>

<p>The IPD officer that told you the alarm probably wouldn't do much good, was for the most part, right. I've been doing this for 20 years and have responded to thousands of alarm calls. I have never caught one burglar due to an alarm activation. If it's loud enough, it will scare him/her away faster though...but they'll still grab stuff. They know that they have plenty of time before police are actually notified of the alarm, and respond. I would guestimate about 15 minutes. (Alarm goes off, Alarm company gets alert, alarm company calls home first to see if it's an accidental trip, alarm company calls police dispatch, police types info into computer and generates a radio call, dispatch waits to find an available unit to respond, unit may be 10 minutes away when assigned the call.)</p>

<p>So, it stinks but it's the truth. They'll just plug their ears and keep rooting around in your stuff. They know the time lag. </p>

<p>Your best bet is alert neighbors and a dog. </p>
 
<p><em>>>"Cal, the dummy cameras with a battery operated "glowing" red LED light are great"</em></p>

<p>Good to know about the "glowing" red LED light - thanks, troop!</p>
 
hmm, I think my best bet is a security camera, dummy or not.





Forget about dogs because I am often gone for two to three weeks at a time. Can't leave the dogs out in the yard. I often hear coyote fights at nights, sounds really scary. I might come home find my dog missing.





Thanks for the camera idea. I will consult my HOA about it.
 
For a second I thought I read "homeboy roommate."





My home has only three bedrooms, one for myself, one for my piano and one I am using as a guest room for my visiting family members. Though my family did not help me to buy this place, I do feel obligated to let them stay whenever they are in town. I would not have bought a 3- bedroom if I had choices. This was the smallest place I could find then that also fit in a grand piano. Now that I have a 3-bedroom home, I have to play host.
 
Kali,





Okay here are my questions to you:





1) Are you conducting business at your house involving employees or large electrical pull from servers? If you have employees go for a house with large bedrooms and large windows. If you have many servers in your house check the amperage of the house and determine if you need to upgrade it. If you teleconference a lot from your house please dress at minimum a sloppy business casual. You would not believe how many women show up on video conferences dressed really inappropriately as they are working from home. As a guy you will have less of a risk of wearing a night robe and lingerie and being really immodest but...it does help immeasurably to be in dockers and a polo or something.





2) Map out commute distances to where you actually go during the times you actually go there. It may be that it doesn't really matter how close you are to LB/LA/Huntington that much since traffic is pretty light at night. That has been my experience. The places I tend to go during morning and afternoon rush hours are where I typically plan where I live around. If you live somewhere you end up in taking the 55 or 5 with traffic frequently you will be building substantially less karma.





3) Do you plan to use your place as a lure to girls to settle down with you? If so look for a good school district and pick furniture that is aesthetically appealing. If you want the gold digging gals pick something that looks as ostentatious as possible preferably with Jacuzzi in the master bath. Square feet really doesn't impress girls that much in my opinion. It just may signal you want lots of kids to girls...is that the impression you wish to provide?





4) Decide how much lot size you really desire. Larger lots bring more peace and less neighbors prying on you but also higher landscaping bills and/or more time gardening/supervising gardening.





5) Why wait 20 years to settle down? Parenting in your 50s is both strenuous on your body as your not as nimble as in your younger years and quite frankly expensive. You need to consider many girls have had abortions and girls are less likely to be able to bear children as they grow older so you are likely to have to do IVF which is very expensive. If your planning to hook up with a 20 year old girl at 50 be really prepared to deal with a complete gold digger. Those girls really burn through money. In OC/SD there seem to be a mountain of 40 something girls with stellar backgrounds though so...the dice is in your favor if that is what your goal is.





6) Do you work in consulting since you mentioned you travel a lot? Can you take the gruel of 50% or 75% travel at 40 or 50? Is your family willing to be relocated at a whim? Most senior partners at Accenture I know run up massive nannying bills. Will your children be fine with seeing you infrequently as you are elsewhere working on client business? Will your wife be fine with seeing you 2 days a week for a few hours per day if the project you are working on gets crunched?
 
<p>Wow. #5 ? ? ? Bishie may have thought about Kali's life more than he has. I think Kali is just thinking about this weekend. </p>
 
Wow at which element of #5? I'm guessing Kali is in his 30s if he is a current Irvine homeowner. So add 20 years and you're thinking 50s?





Probability of using IVF increases with whether the girl had an abortion at some point in their life since that tends to lead to miscarriages and substantially higher sterility. Fertility also declines significantly with age not to mention menopause.





It is a fact many dating services pay for 20 something girls to join and 50 something men to join. Guys tend to want younger girls in their 50s so you tend to get a severe imbalance with both a paucity and horrendous quality of 50 something guys willing to date 40+ girls. That is the open secret of dating services.
 
<p>The part about many girls had abortions. ? ? ? ? Again - Wow. </p>

<p>and . . . <em>"Probability of using IVF increases with whether the girl had an abortion at some point in their life since that tends to lead to miscarriages and substantially higher sterility."</em></p>

<p>Plus, maybe he doesn't want kids. </p>
 
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