Susan M

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! - Sat Aug 8 2009, 23:43