San Bernardino, California

Realtors will tell you that a house has “great bones” when it has some rough edges, but underneath, and in some obvious ways, it could blossom to become a beautiful home. People say the same thing about San Bernardino. It is built on the edge of several mountains and the San Bernardino National Forest, so the view is spectacular. It has beautiful neighborhoods on the north side of the city nearest these mountains and forest. It also has plenty of inventory of unique mid-century homes ripe for conversion at, for California, inexpensive prices. Again, while the city has some rough elements, it feels like a place with great bones.

As was noted, when a realtor tells you a house has “great bones,” there is also a downside. If the house is in perfect condition, no one has to note that it has these great bones, you can see them. When we say San Bernardino has great bones, the same qualifier is in place because depending on what part of the city you’re in, you might not see them. San Bernardino is rated one of the most dangerous cities in California, and the cause and impact of this crime are evident in much of the city. People from LA or SF might not be stunned by the “city” qualities of poverty and homelessness, but if you’re coming from a small town, the visual impact and the feeling of being unsafe can be profound.

Your lifestyle in San Bernardino is going to depend in part on where in the city you live. The northern neighborhoods are in the foothills of the mountains and the national forest, so your lifestyle can be very centered on the outdoors. You have three ski mountains: Lake Arrowhead, Snow Valley, and Big Bear, all within an hour’s drive. You’re also similarly close to other outdoor resorts whether you ski or want to simply hike, ride trails, or do anything else the great outdoors might beckon you to do. The northern neighborhoods are also linked across the northern neighborhoods of the cities of Highland Redlands and Fontana. This stretch has its own shopping bars and restaurants isolated from the downtown areas that some might want to avoid.

If, on the other hand, you are looking for lower cost and living closer to downtown, then you trade some grit for access to three performing arts venues and a beautiful theater. It is the greatest concentration of access to arts in the Inland Empire. Downtown San Bernardino is going through a major economic redevelopment, so if you have patience and likely some experience living in cities, then you can construct an urban lifestyle with some downtown energy.

If you want to see what's happening in San Berdoo, check out the calendar of events.

We highly recommend visiting San Bernardino and staying in the community in a VRBO rather than a hotel to get a feel for what it's like to live among the locals. You can receive discounted fares on travel via our partnership with Expedia as well.

Work in San Bernardino is a mix of industries including: Grocers like Stater Bros. Markets, Tech like Aegis Communications, Health and Education. While some brave folks do make the commute into Los Angeles most residents work somewhere in the Inland Empire. The “middle class” San Bernardino housing prices (by California standards) means more residents are working more blue collar jobs but the rising wfh culture could drive more white collar workers to the northern neighborhoods where great homes, tree-lined streets and easy access to the mountains prove irresistible compared to the traffic of LA.