Alright, so in this video I'm gonna go over the top five questions that I get asked from people that are thinking about making a move here to the city of Winchester, California. Hopefully it's good information for you guys and helps you and your family out with your move. So let's go ahead and get into it.

Hey guys. Hey again. My name is Justin Short. I'm a realtor and team leader with the short real estate team here at Keller Williams in Temecula. And this video's all about the top. Five questions that I get asked the most from people that are thinking about making a move here to the city of Winchester.

So I'm gonna go over my list. I hope it's good information for you guys, and, and hopefully it's a help to you and your, and your family if you are thinking about making a move to the city of Winchester. You know, Winchester's not quite as well known as some of those surrounding cities, but, you know, hopefully it's good information for you guys and I think for a lot of people it can be a great place and it can be a great value.

I mean, I lived there when I was younger, we probably lived there for like 7, 8 years. So I think I have some really good experience and tell you and give you some personal experience on what it's really like to live there. But before I get to all the information, if you are liking real estate videos like this, please do me a favor.

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each and every week. So from videos going over this over the cities of Temecula, Murrieta, and Menifee, obviously Winchester and Wildomar and some of the surrounding areas as well. Uh, but talking about, you know, best neighbors, worst neighborhoods, you know, the questions we get asked the most, um, you know, some, some different neighborhood tours, things like that.

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So cool. Alright, so I'm gonna go ahead and go ahead and get into my questions here. And again, we're gonna go over the top five questions that I get asked the most from people that are making a move to the city of Winchester. Uh, I guess before I get into it, just kind of general lay of the land, A lot of people I talk to are actually, are not super familiar with Winchester, really haven't heard of it before.

So kind of where we're at. You know, we are in Southwest Riverside County. Probably the most well known city in the area is the city of Temecula. And Temecula is located right off the 15 freeway that runs pretty, pretty north and south. So, um, if you take the freeway south, it takes you towards San Diego and Temecula is the Furthest city south in the county of Riverside.

So if you go any further south, you hit San Diego County. So Temecula is the most well known. It's the biggest, you know, it's most expensive and, uh, probably the most on the radar for people. A lot of it's because of Temecula wine country. So you have Temecula, the next city North is the city of Murrieta.

Uh, that is. Um, relatively well known. They're very, very similar. It's a little bit less expensive, but a very, very similar area. Um, and then so Winchester we're gonna talk about is a little bit more to the northeast. So Winchester does butt up to you. You have borders, the city of Murrieta and the city of Temecula in a few spots.

And then it also shares some borders with the city of Menifee up there as well. So it's a little bit more northeast. It can be a little confusing because. If you're looking at a map, there's also a road that's called Winchester Road It. That's a freeway. That's the main road. It's a freeway. It's an exit off the 15 freeway.

So it could be a little confusing, but basically if you were on that freeway, that 15 freeway, and you exited on Winchester Road and you took that northeast, that is eventually gonna take you to the city of Winchester. A little bit of a hike. It's probably 15, 20 minutes or so up the road, but that's where it's at.

So it's a little bit confusing for people. Uh, but when people are considering to make a move to Winchester, really the number one question I get is they ask me about French Valley. What is French Valley? Is French Valley a good area? Should I think about moving to French Valley? What does that mean?

Um, and so the answer is yes. I think French Valley is a really nice area. Um, and I, I think this will kinda help me too. Divulge or get into a little more info that I think Will will help. All right, so that takes me to the first question, and really the question I get asked the most when people are thinking about making a move to the city of Winchester, and that is, what about French Valley?

Should I move to French Valley? Is it a good area? Is it a bad area? And, and what is it? So, um, it's, it's, uh, it can be a little bit confusing, but basically the short answer is yes. You know, I think French Valley can be a really nice area for a lot of people. That's actually where I lived, you know, when I was younger.

It was actually my parents, my parents bought a house, you know, when I was a teenager or before I was a teenager. And we lived there for, I guess, 8 or 9 years until I was like 20 years old, right? So I grew up there. That's where I lived when I went to high school. And we were one of the first track homes out there, you know, a long time ago now, 25, 26 years ago.

And the area's changed a ton, um, but still have a lot of friends that live there and obviously a lot of clients and all that, all that different, different type of stuff. So, um, but if you look at a map and if you look at like Google, you know, the city of Winchester, California, if you look at the size of it, it's a very large footprint.

Uh, it's a lot of acreage, I guess is how you would, you would say that, but it's just, it's a very, very large area. And, but if you really start kind of looking at it. You know, they're really this area and the city of Winchester is divided up into two areas. So you have the northern city of Winchester and you have the southern city of Winchester.

And when people refer to French Valley, they are referring to the southern area and southern section of the city of Winchester. It's a little confusing 'cause a lot of it actually isn't within city limits. It's actually just a county. But for, it's kind of getting to the weeds, but. It is the southern area and the city of Winchester is French Valley.

And the reason that they differentiate so much is that the southern area is a Tracted home, largely Tracted home area. There's many, many different builders. They've been building there for like 25, 26 years. Um, but. That area feels very similar to the cities of Temecula and Murrieta. And that's because Temecula and Murrieta are big suburban areas, right?

Sprawled out, you know, shopping centers, all that different type of stuff. And so as those areas built out and prices went up and up, the builders started spreading out towards and into the city of Winchester, and you started seeing that area of French Valley developed. So basically French Valley is that southern section of Winchester, you know, suburban area.

There's a good amount of shopping centers now. That didn't used to be there. And it's an area that is continuing to grow as areas are built. Um, and I, I think it's a really good area. I think a lot of people will drive through there and they think it's part of Murrieta or Temecula, but that is actually Winchester and it's that French Valley area.

The second part of Winchester is that northern area. You have a bunch of rural land, uh, between these two areas that we're talking about. But on the other side of that rural land is the northern part of Winchester, and that becomes like off Dore Parkway or Newport Road. You'll kind of see those on a map and, and tho the areas are pretty disconnected.

Um. You know that that northern area is newer. Over the last 10, 11 years or so, uh, there is now a lot of tract homes that have been built out there. So there's probably, if I had to guess, about 3000 to 4,000 tract homes that have been built over the last decade, there is now. Over the last couple years, a few shopping centers that are finally being built, and it's an area that has definitely continued to grow.

It is less expensive. So if you're just looking at like pure price point, the area of Northern Winchester is quite a bit less expensive than the area of, uh, bus of, uh, French Valley in that southern Winchester area. And it is a pretty big disconnect. There could probably be 150 to a $200,000 price swing between the two.

And, uh, there, there's a lot of reasons for that. I think we'll talk about that as we get into some of these other questions, but, uh, in general, that's what French Valley is. It's that southern section of Winchester. I, that's where I have a lot of experience. That's where I lived. I have clients that live in both.

Um, and it is an area that I think is pretty nice and most people don't even realize that's not a part of Temecula or Murrieta. All right, so that's gonna take me to question number two, and that is what school district will my children belong to if we decide to move out to Winchester? And I guess like a lot of questions, the answer is, it depends.

So there're actually three different school districts that can service the city of Winchester. So again, we have kind of those two splits, Southern Winchester, that French Valley area, that Northern Winchester area. If you live in that Northern Winchester area, you will be assigned to the Paris Valley Unified School District.

So, uh, that district is not rated as highly as the other two that we're gonna talk about. So a lot of people do try to be in the higher rated school districts, which is gonna be more in that southern area, more in that French Valley area. So in the French Valley area, you, it's kind of, it's a unique situation, but most in that area.

It is zoned for the Temecula Valley School District, which is a very, very highly rated school district. And then a portion of that area is also zoned for the Murrieta Valley School District. So it can vary. Um, you know, if you look at, you can look at the school district lines on a map. Basically the divider is Winchester Road main road that runs through the city.

Anything on the, I guess that would be the. The south side of Winchester Road is going to be a part of Temecula School District. Anything on the north side of Winchester Road is gonna be in the Murrieta School District. So it just depends, you know, those, uh, three different districts. It could be Temecula, it could be Murrieta, or you could be Paris.

Uh, the two Temecula, Murrieta, the two lower schools, uh, for that, that service, that southern area are definitely rated higher. The, you know, just the, the, the ratings are higher there for sure. Uh, especially once you get up to the middle school and high school levels. Uh, and because of that, that, that, that is one of the major contributing factors to that French Valley area being more expensive.

We talked about the big price swing between French Valley and that Northern Winchester area. Um, homes in French Valley are quite a bit more expensive because of the school district. And then the other factor is it's just a heck of a lot closer to, you know, the, the, uh, the cities of Temecula and Murrieta.

Like the malls and the restaurants and all the, the freeways, all that different types of stuff. So, uh, that, that's the answer, the three different school districts. All right. And then the third question that I get asked the most is, what will my property taxes be and what is gonna be my property tax rate?

And again, it depends, uh, general rule of thumb, older homes are gonna have lower tax rates and newer homes are gonna have higher tax rates. So if you're not super familiar with this area, it's not just the city of Winchester, but really in most parts of Southern California. But newer construction homes tend to have higher taxes.

They tend to have more special assessments or what they used to call Mel-rose, and that affects how much you pay in property tax. Every year and every month. So if you're gonna go buy a home in Winchester, your tax rate could vary from an older home that is gonna have a tax rate, like 1.1%, almost 1.2%.

That'd be a very, very low tax home. And then if you go up to a newer home, like some brand new construction, you might be up to a home that's gonna be north of 2%. I've seen up to 2.2% in Winchester. That's a really big difference, right? That's a 1% swing. Uh, if you're looking at a 500,000 home, that is a difference of $5,000 a year in taxes.

So it is a big deal. It is something that you really, really want to pay attention to if you are gonna buy a home in Winchester, and that's that. Really the year built is your best rule of thumb. Of course, you know, the real estate agent can always, you know, check that for you and let you know what those taxes are gonna be.

They should be able to do that really, really quickly. It can be a little bit harder for you as a consumer to, to pull that up. But general rule of thumb, anything 2003 and older tends to be on that lower tax side. Then as you get 2004 and newer, you start to see higher and higher taxes. And then anything newer than 2010, we saw an even bigger increase.

And that's where you start to see a lot of 'em new north, that 2% area. So each neighborhood is different. There's not one solid, you know, hard and fast rule that, uh, you know, that you can necessarily pay attention to. But in general, year built really swings things a lot and there are some outliers on, on each side of that.

But on that, if you are gonna buy a home in Winchester. Because those taxes do vary so much. It is something that you really wanna pay attention to and make sure you know, you know what you're, what you're getting into. Alright. And then the next question I get, so question number four, when you are looking at homes in Winchester is, what about new builds?

Is buying a new construction home a good idea? Uh, should it be something that I do, something that I don't? And again, there are pros and cons. I think new construction can be a great option for people. Um, right now, most, not all of, but most of the new construction is gonna be more in that North Winchester area.

There is still some that is happening in that French Valley area and as that area is continuing to grow, uh, but it's not near as much. So most of the new construction is up in that North Winchester area. So before you decide if, if I have to have a new home, really think about the area, would I rather have something a little bit less expensive or a decent amount less expensive and be more that North Winchester area, or would I rather have something a little bit more expensive and be a part of that, that Southern French Valley area?

So I think that's probably more the question that you want to ask. Uh, but you know, I've bought, uh, two different new construction homes myself. Um, I've been really happy with him. So I think there are a lot of pros with new construction, but there's definitely some cons as well. So the pros would be you go with a new home, you're gonna see a lot of builder incentives right now.

I mean, this is now, it's early 2026, uh, that I'm, that I'm filming this and we're seeing more incentives from builders than ever. So we're seeing from closing cost credits to buying appliances. I've seen builders willing to, you know, build or I install, maybe install is the right word, but install a backyard for people, which is something that I've never seen before.

I've seen, you know, some rate buydown credits that they're offering. So temporarily, lower your interest rate, you know, 2% or 3%, and sometimes it's not even temporary. Sometimes it's, you're gonna, they're gonna lower the interest rate for the next 30 years. So, uh, there are a lot of really nice incentives that are out there.

Um, you can, you will also see a lot of times they're gonna offer some lower interest rates. And honestly, it's just kind of nice to, to. Move into a brand new home. I think most everybody likes the idea of that be able to move into something that nobody has ever lived in. No one's ever painted the walls.

No one's ever, you know, ever put their clothes in the closet. No one's ever dinged the drywall. And you, you get a, you know, it's a brand new home. So it's, uh, I think there's a lot to like with that. Um, but there's definitely some, some cons too. So when you move into a new construction home, you're gonna have to put some money into the backyard.

Unless, unless the builder does that, but that's still pretty rare. But if you're gonna have to do it yourself, it's always quite a bit more expensive than you think. Really. You're kind of a minimum $15,000. Uh, and up, you know, it could be well north of 50 depending on how fancy you want to go or what exactly it is it you wanna do there.

And then again, when we are looking at new construction, one of the other big cons are those higher taxes. Um, you're going to see pretty much across the board, everything's gonna be just about 2%, maybe a little bit over, maybe a little bit under, but quite a bit higher. And that's just gonna be, you know, the, one of the, the downsides of buying new constructions.

You're definitely gonna have, have those higher taxes. And then the fifth question that I get asked all the time is, is Winchester a good area and how does it compare to the bigger cities of Temecula, Murrieta, and even how does it compare to Menifee? And the answer that I give people is, yes, I do think Winchester is a really great area, uh, like.

Pretty much all my other, other answers. You know, I guess I'll have a caveat there. There's pros and cons, right? Um, not any one area's gonna be perfect for anybody. Uh, the pros to Winchester is it's less expensive. You can get more for your money. A lot of times a lot are a little bit bigger there as well.

Um, and you know, depending on what part, if you're gonna be in the French Valley area or the Winchester area. You can still be a part of a really good school district if that's important to you. I think school district's, I important, you know, I have young kids, so that's something that 's always been a big factor for us.

But you may not have kids or, you know, not necessarily care about that. Um, although school districts do help for resale values, that is something to to think about. Um, but on the flip side, you know, it's. Winchester does not have as many established businesses as Temecula or Murrieta for that matter.

Um, it is a little bit further out, so if you are commuting, it's gonna add some time to your commute for sure. You know, if you don't have to worry about that, you know, that takes away one of the biggest pain points from living in Winchester is just, you know, the location a little bit further out. Um, but it is also a developing area, so, you know, there are.

New shopping centers that are being built. Each year there's new stores that are going in and I, I think because of the quality of life, it gets better each and every year for people. Uh, but as that area continues to fill in, you know, it can be a little frustrating. Hey, uh. I don't have a dry cleaner I can go to.

Right? The nearest dry cleaner is 15 minutes away. You know, so there, there're just things that, uh, when you are living in a growing area, uh, that you don't necessarily have those conveniences today, but in 3, 4, 5 years, odds are that they're, they are gonna be there. Um, but it's definitely more affordable.

You can definitely get more for your money. Um, and, and then just even compared to the city of Menefee, Winchester's not quite established as much. Menifee is just bigger, has more business. Um, you know, Winchester is Building and it will eventually have more and more of that. But when you live in Winchester, you end up going to Temecula, you end up going to Murrieta.

You end up going even to Menifee for a lot of those amenities as Winchester continues to build. So anyways, I hope that's good information for you guys. Hopefully it helps you with your search. You have questions. Feel free to reach out. You can call, you can text, you can email, and hopefully talk to you soon.

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