Life on Balboa Peninsula?

Hi all, looking to move to OC for a new job in the next month or two. Wife & I have been looking on Balboa peninsula as the short walk to the beach is extremely tempting. However, I have seen some people say it is a hellscape living there (especially in busy months). Can anyone else confirm or deny this? If not balboa peninsula, any other recommendations? For reference: love to walk, bike & swim, will be commuting to long beach 2-3x a week, wife is extremely safety-conscious (previous close-call experiences in bad areas) so needs to be safe for walking/exploring solo, not into nightlife or anything, budget is pretty flexible, never been to California so completely unfamiliar w/ the area. Thanks in advance!