Hi Jessica: I am not a realtor, but I am a Goleta native. First of all, there are no houses in Goleta or Santa Barbara fit to live in for $450k, even in this market. If you want a house, you're looking at $700k and up. If your price cap is $450, I would look for a 2 bedroom condo, even though condos may still fall a bit further in price this year. Goleta is more convenient to UCSB (well, there's always Isla Vista, but IV has a very unique culture that you need to experience before buying property there) and has grocery stores, drug stores, very decent sushi (try the Goleta Sushi House Restaurant on Hollister Ave) a small farmer's market twice a week, beautiful parks (check out Lake Los Carneros and Stow Park, both within five minutes of UCSB) and bowling (Zodo's on Calle Real). Santa Barbara has a real nightflife (mostly undergrads and city college kids), fabulous restaurants, several very good museums, a bigger farmer's market, fancy retail shops, etc. But, most grad students have little time (or money) to enjoy most of what SB offers -- and you will pay $100k more for the same house just to be in an SB zip code. If she was my kid, I'd want her in Goleta -- it's quiet, safe, convenient to school and close enough to SB to visit. Good Realtors for Goleta -- Randy Freed (he sold us our home and our neighbors' across the street) and Mark Mosely (spelled?) --both have been around a long time and really know the neighborhoods. Both are good guys. Mark's kids go to Montessori school with our son. I'm sure you can find them both on google. Also, you might consider leasing a house for a year first . You can lease a decent house in Goleta for $2500-3000/mo. SB is a bit higher overall. Stay away from the big property management firms if you can. You will get better rental terms and fairer treatment from an individual owner. Hope this is helpful info!

Jessica,

Congrats on the PhD program. You will love the UCSB experience. I graduated in 1992 and loved my time there. As far as Goleta vs. SB, there is a big difference which we could talked about as far as quality of life. So depeding on your needs and who you are I would recommend one or the other. As far as price, Goleta will be a little cheaper for sure. I grew up in Santa Barbara and lived the first 9 years of my life in Goleta...so I am very familiar with both areas.

Let me know if you want to touch base. You can also take a look at my blog to learn a little more about me and search property.

Look forward to hearing from you.

Take care
Kevin Schmidtchen
805-689-6877
Sotehby's Int'l Realty

My wife is taking a few more minutes to get ready, so here are the 20+ properties in your price range in SB and Goleta: http://www.flexmls.com/link.html?op53douibuq,1,1. The Willow Creek condo is the one located on Kellog for $449k, but the pictures truly don't do it justice. If you have any questions about any of the other units, please let me know. The ones located on the 7000 block of Hollister are in the Grove complex, and that is often a popular choice for UCSB grad students and faculty.

I hope that helps.

Good morning Jessica,

First of all, please pass along a hearty congratulations to your daughter for making it into the PHD program at UCSB. Most people who attend or work at UCSB will focus there search on the Southern part of Goleta as that offers the shortest commute time with the additional possibility of an easy bike ride to the university via the numerous bike trails on that part of Goleta. That said, anywhere in SB or Goleta should put you within a 15-20 minute drive of the University, which for most people relocating to the area is fine. In the $300-450k range, you will be mostly looking at 2-3 bedroom condo/townhouses, with a very few fixer single family homes in that higher price range as well. If you can go up to the higher end of your price range, I'd strongly recommend the remodeled 2 bedroom on Mills Way near the university or the last 2 bedroom unit in Willow Creek, which is a gorgeous new townhome development where you get a lot of bang for the buck. I have to run to church, but please give me a call at 805-637-7148 or send me an email Daniel@ZiaGroup.com, and I'll tell you more about these options, as well as some others that may be a good fit on the lower end of your price range.

Another service that may be helpful is our automatic email home finder, where we create a custom search in the MLS for you using your specific criteria. Then, every week, or at a frequency of your choosing all of the new listings that match your criteria will be emailed to you. It's a great way to learn about, or keep up-to-date on the current inventory in our market and gives you a leg-up on other potential buyers who only hear about a property through the newspaper.

Often times I learn about properties, that are "quietly for sale" or are not yet listed in the MLS or online, called "pocket listings". If you tell me more about what you are looking for, I may be able to recommend a pocket listing or two that may fit your needs. My clients really appreciate the opportunity to buy a home without the competition of it being on the open market yet. Let me know if you are interested, and I'll give you some more info.

I look forward to speaking with you Jessica and being a real estate resource in this area. Have a good afternoon.