Bursting out of the big Orange bubble

I was standing in a new housing development with a realtor. I walked

over to the large picture window. The view was enough to make me

gasp. I gazed over the valley to the foothills. We were up on a hill,

and I looked out over open land, green, wild and quiet.

“Is this view protected?” I asked Karen, the realtor.

“Yes, it’s wilderness.” She smiled and waited while I stared some

more at the “back yard.”

Looming over the foothills were the mountains. A couple of larger

peaks still held snow. The sky was ever-changing. I had just

complained that I would not see any rain in Southern California until

November when I saw thunderheads rolling our way. Almost as if I had

wished for it, a light rain started to fall.

I turned reluctantly from the view and wandered through the

kitchen. The counters were dark granite and the cupboards were a fine

wood, as was the floor. I peered into the bathrooms, one of which had

an overlarge whirlpool tub. Karen just waited. I poked around the

rest of the large place. Three bedrooms, a huge amount of space. A

fully finished basement.

The moment had come. “How much?” I asked her.

“$350,000.”

My only answer was to laugh. I wandered back over to the view and

laughed and laughed.

“Do you know how much this townhouse would cost in Orange County?”

I was still giggling. “Around $800,000 or $900,000, maybe more.”

For two days, I had the unusual opportunity to tour a Colorado

town on the east side of the Rockies by invading 20 houses in the

area. Some were occupied; a few were new.

I own a small condo in Costa Mesa; it’s a two bedroom/two bath.

It’s older and small, but it was a good buy for this area for a

middle-income school teacher.

I could buy one the same size and better looking for about

one-third the price in Colorado. I kept the folder of listings to

show my friends when I got home. Of course, the wages you make in

this town are also lower. But if you are retired and have recently

sold a place in Newport Beach, then it’s something to think about

The homes around this little college town go for $250,000 to

around $350,000. There are some that go for more, but those are

mansion-like. Since I was looking at townhomes and condos, this was

the price range I saw.

The traffic that was considered a “jam” in this town would be a

momentary irritant around Orange County and nothing like the 405 on

any given day. The people were down-to-earth and friendly.

And always, looking over me, were the mountains. I went five

minutes from the city to a foothill canyon and watched rafters careen

down the river. People out cycling and jogging were down-to-earth and

friendly. I considered my next retirement, the “real” one, in which I

didn’t work.

On the way to the airport, I listened to a conversation between

two women sitting behind me on the shuttle. They talked about

quilting and real estate. They knew someone who had sold their home

to one of us.

“Oh, that was one of those Californians. They have money.”

This was news to me. But when it comes to real estate, I suppose

we do

Being “rich” for a few days: fun.

Knowing that the Rockies are available: priceless.

* SUE CLARK is a Costa Mesa resident and a high school guidance

counselor at Creekside High School in Irvine. She can be reached at

o7tallteacher @comcast.netf7.