Most of our relatives are in Oceanside and further inland. San Diego *is* beautiful. Love it. Talked to my hubby this evening about the possibilities of relocating through his work. Always a possibility. But you're right about the real estate prices. While our home price in the Sac area has zoomed upwards I'm sure it's not enough to buy a decent little cottage in the surrounding area. Never know though.
It all depends - if you go inland from the coast, say to Vista or Poway, it's going to be more reasonable. Oceanside is really pretty, too, but it's gotten really pricy.