What is it like in Marin County? (Santa Rosa, San Rafael: sales, lawyers) - California (CA) - City-Data Forum

GlobalArchitect · 08-08-2013, 01:38 PM

I have a job that allows me to work from home and I have done so successfully since 1999. Given this fact, I can live anywhere is the U.S. I want and that makes choosing a specific location extremely difficult. Without being forced to live in one area, it is hard to figure out what area works the best.

I currently live in New Jersey and I need out. The people are pretentious, superficial and just not remotely interested in being active. I have small children who I love more than anything in the world and yet most parents I know see their kids as, at most, an inconvenience and more commonly as some necessary evil.

Active lifestyle is a bad term here and people look at you funny if you suggest a bike ride or, gasp, actually walking for more than 20 feet. Sure there are tons of gyms but I generally detest gyms and very much prefer to be outside.

My wife and I are well educated professionals with my wife preferring to stay at home for now to focus on our kids. We want to live in an area with similar people where those people want to be outdoors and are social, active, educated and have a world view (as opposed to a secular U.S. viewpoint or a strong religious bent). We want to meet other parents of young kids who are devoted to their kids, plan to be active in their schools and, in general, want to build a strong and grounded community. My kids will be well-versed in technology given my profession but I would much rather that they be outdoors-focused and active with their friends when they get older as opposed to playing video games.

We have been through a LARGE number of locations over the years and we are now looking at places in Marin County - specifically Fairfax/San Anselmo/Larkspur and parts of Tiburon that are not elitist and disconnected from reality. I get the cost of living (after being in NJ nothing shocks me) but, outside of that, I am trying to figure out if these areas are a fit.

If you live in those areas, or in Marin County in general, can you please share some insights? Are there people there during the week (as opposed to the SF commuters)? Are people really open and social and outdoors-active?

Thank you for your time!

Mr5150 · 08-08-2013, 01:50 PM

What is it like in Marin? Why, it is Marvelous!

Ruth4Truth · 08-08-2013, 04:31 PM

Fairfax, and also look at Mill Valley, a bit more expensive than Fairfax, but beautiful, and very walkable/bikeable, with a nice beach nearby, and a regional park overlooking the ocean for walking/hiking.

Yes, there are people there during the week: SAHM's, retired couples, kids. Some of these places have a reputation for being pretentious, but I haven't found that to be the case at all in west Marin. There are walking/bike trails among the redwoods, a redwood park in the residential part of Mill Valley where kids play, it's a little like going back in time to small-town America when it was safe for kids to roam around unsupervised, neighbors were neighborly, shops were within walking distance. But the atmosphere is liberal/progressive, compared to what we think of now as small-town America.

GlobalArchitect · 08-08-2013, 05:42 PM

Thank you for responding! How about the guys - are they all commuting into the city each day or are there men in the 30's and 40's that either work local or work from home?

Liberal/progressive is good for us.

Thank you and have a great evening!

ccm123 · 08-08-2013, 05:52 PM

It's a mix, I know professionals commuting into the city daily and some work from home offices and locally. One of my sales managers lives in Marin and covers the SF Bay Area/Central California territory, all the way down south to the San Luis Obispo County line.

capoeira · 08-08-2013, 05:58 PM

Marin County is one of the last places I would choose to raise kids. It is famous for its high rate of drinking among high school kids.

http://www.marincounty.org/depts/gj/...hol_crisis.pdf

Grant funds war on teen binge drinking in San Rafael - Marin Independent Journal

Novato Teens Drink More Than Peers Nationwide - Count Me In - Count Me In

Video asks parents to take responsibility for teen drinking - Marin Independent Journal

Also look at the map of Marin. Notice the 101 is about the only way to get around,especially from Novato to places in southern Marin county. Only move there if you love daily traffic jams.

GlobalArchitect · 08-08-2013, 06:29 PM

Wow that really flies in the face of everything I have been told so far. I keep getting told that places such as San Anselmo and northern Tiburon are awesome for kids and that many of the areas are throwbacks to small towns in the past. You make it seem like it is the opposite of that...do you live there now?

Mr5150 · 08-08-2013, 08:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GlobalArchitect

Wow that really flies in the face of everything I have been told so far. I keep getting told that places such as San Anselmo and northern Tiburon are awesome for kids and that many of the areas are throwbacks to small towns in the past. You make it seem like it is the opposite of that...do you live there now?

Note that he said "the 101". capoeira is from southern CA. One can tell because instead of saying Hwy 101 or Highway 6 they say the 101 or the 6. It's a SoCal thing.

Marin is above average and a great place to live if you can afford it. And they have lots of roads. No need to drive "on the 101" to get around. SoCal folk are too freeway oriented. They forget that side/county roads exist.

Ruth4Truth · 08-08-2013, 10:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GlobalArchitect

Wow that really flies in the face of everything I have been told so far. I keep getting told that places such as San Anselmo and northern Tiburon are awesome for kids and that many of the areas are throwbacks to small towns in the past. You make it seem like it is the opposite of that...do you live there now?

Novato and San Rafael are not Mill Valley or Fairfax. And not all kids follow the rowdy crowd, anyway. I wonder if you could find out some info by going onto the local schools' websites.

Not everyone in Marin commutes to SF. Some work locally (writers, clergy, local lawyers, College of Marin faculty and staff, Zen center staff, local health care providers), some commute to Santa Rosa, others work at home. There are a few writers tucked away in the small communities, working from home, artists, and so forth.

capoeira · 08-08-2013, 11:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr5150

Marin is above average and a great place to live if you can afford it. And they have lots of roads. No need to drive "on the 101" to get around. SoCal folk are too freeway oriented. They forget that side/county roads exist.

Please reveal the secret route from Novato to Mill Valley that does not involve the 101. I know it is theoretically possible but I have never heard of anyone who tried it.