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Old 03-16-2015, 08:28 PM
 
Location: Houston
960 posts, read 2,741,230 times
Reputation: 876

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Because of a job prospect at California State University-Fresno and we've never been through this city, based on what I've been reading and about Fresno, it got us feeling discouraged. I haven't been able to find many positive comments about Fresno or is it really that bad as they say?

In a few weeks since the arrangements have already been made, my wife will be visiting for the job. She would like to have a realistic view of the city where we may live. We are a family with four children from elementary to high school. We are big city people where we are pretty tolerant about different views, opinions, and used to diversity. Naturally, we need the best we can get out of Fresno in regards to housing, schools, sports, and recreational activities.

I've read that Clovis North HS is one of the best in the city but I don't want to rule out the 2nd or 3rd best schools if the housing is more suitable to our taste in the $250K to $400K range. We currently live in a Mid-century home so we generally like older homes with more attention to details. But from what I've read, it seems like these would be in a bad area. I'm also noticing a lot of foreclosure homes, what happened to the local economy? Where should we look at? Is this a crazy idea to consider moving there?
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Old 03-16-2015, 08:42 PM
 
Location: Living rent free in your head
42,758 posts, read 25,996,463 times
Reputation: 33867
It's been quite a long time since I have been to Fresno, it was pretty bad last time I was there but I have heard it has improved. Clovis is really nice, so if I was going to move to that area it would definitely be to Clovis. The entire area is just too hot in the summer for me but if you can get past that and find a good area to live in you should be fine. I have no idea of the home prices there, but I'm sure you could figure that out by going to one of the online real estate sites.
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Old 03-16-2015, 09:45 PM
 
Location: Living rent free in your head
42,758 posts, read 25,996,463 times
Reputation: 33867
I don't know about mid century modern homes in Fresno, we have one in Sacramento and love it..but I did find a MCM facebook group for Fresno so they might know of areas where you could find homes https://www.facebook.com/MidModFresno
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Old 03-16-2015, 09:49 PM
 
Location: Living rent free in your head
42,758 posts, read 25,996,463 times
Reputation: 33867
and here is a gorgeous Eichler in Fresno (I know nothing about the area that it's in but there are some Fresnoites on the forum who will probably give you some feedback on that. Eichler homes are in great demand, a house like this one would go for well over a million closer to the SF Bay Area

https://www.redfin.com/CA/Fresno/540.../home/58288226
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Old 03-17-2015, 01:19 AM
 
Location: In Your Head
1,359 posts, read 1,165,584 times
Reputation: 1492
I think the general rule of thumb in fresno is to stay north of nees ave and stay out of southwest clovis.
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Old 03-17-2015, 02:35 AM
 
Location: Oroville, California
3,477 posts, read 6,476,586 times
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Shaw Ave is a more realistic dividing line. I haven't lived in Fresno since the 90s and I really enjoyed it as a single person back then. I've had family in the Fresno area my entire life though and visit fairly frequently. Clovis does have the better school system in the area (there really are only two municipalities of any consequence - Fresno and Clovis with 600,000 people between the two of them. One thing about the Clovis Unified map - it does include a portion of north Fresno in addition to the city of Clovis, so it makes for more opportunities to find a suitable home (your budget is completely fine). Here's a district map:

http://www.cusd.com/_media/parents/2...rict%20Map.pdf

Fresno is definitely not on par with a huge city like Houston, but its large enough to have the shopping, dining and recreation to keep from being "small town" bored. Plus its physical location is pretty convenient to a lot of really great things. There are three national parks in the Sierra Nevada within 90 minutes (Yosemite, Kings Canyon and Sequoia) and the ocean is about two hours away. Los Angeles is four hours and the Bay Area is three. In other words, its centrally located for weekend trips.

Keep an open mind. Its not the glamour spot of California, but its pretty easy to deal with for day to day living. Traffic is NOTHING like Houston for example! People are friendly too - pretty down to earth compared to the rest of the state. Oh, forgot to mention the air quality. Is pretty poor thanks to the geography and climate of the Central Valley, but I understand Houston is pretty bad as well so hopefully it won't be a problem.
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Old 03-17-2015, 01:04 PM
 
Location: I'm around town...
764 posts, read 2,027,534 times
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Many, many people are happy and thriving in Fresno. I lived in Fresno/Clovis for 28 years (grew up there, moved away, lived there again as an adult and parent).

Working at Fresno State, you'd probably want to live in NE Fresno (93720) or NW Clovis (93611, 93619) (both of these areas are in Clovis Unified School District). Fresno State is a great school with a surprising sense of community for a commuter school.

There are mid-century homes in NW Fresno (93711) and in Old Fig Garden (93704) (around Maroa and Van Ness between Shaw and McKinley). These are lovely neighborhoods. They are in Fresno Unified School District which might be less preferable, but FUSD has good schools, too, including some charter options like University High School and the IB program at Fresno high..

But you also might find a mid-century home you like in NE Fresno. Just depends on what's on the market. Homes in Clovis will generally be newer.

Sports are big in Fresno/Clovis--there are lots of options for kids' sports (both school-related and private teams). Fresno State athletics are great fun for watching. You'll always see people out on the trail system that runs through NE Fresno and Clovis, especially around Woodward Park. There are several lakes within 1-2 hours of Fresno, too. If you have specific sports or activities in mind, I can probably steer you in the right direction.

I've spent a fair amount of time in Houston visiting family. I think the big differences are traffic (much more in Houston), weather (no humidity in Fresno), and of course overall population/city size. Both cities have god areas and bad areas, just need some knowledge.

I can recommend some areas to check out for your wife's trip, if you'd like.
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Old 03-19-2015, 01:42 AM
 
Location: USA
1 posts, read 3,511 times
Reputation: 15
Smile USA Entertainment News

I agree with Adriatica , everyone has their own experience of living in a place. Some people find it good and some bad. Fresno State is a nice place to stay...........

Last edited by MiseeHarris; 03-19-2015 at 01:52 AM..
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Old 03-19-2015, 04:57 PM
 
Location: Houston
960 posts, read 2,741,230 times
Reputation: 876
Thank you all for your input. It seems like N. Clovis is the area for educated families which is fine. But there seems to be a lot of cookie-cutter homes with 3 car garages in the front. This is something I'd like to avoid if possible and we don't want to live out in the country either. I don't mind an older neighborhood.

Are there gang problems where teenagers like to hang out? My concern is there is only one mall or recreational park for the entire city, people from different part of town will cross paths. Is there a smell problem from nearby agriculture grazing and cow manure?
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Old 03-19-2015, 05:31 PM
 
Location: I'm around town...
764 posts, read 2,027,534 times
Reputation: 979
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bike4Life View Post
Thank you all for your input. It seems like N. Clovis is the area for educated families which is fine. But there seems to be a lot of cookie-cutter homes with 3 car garages in the front. This is something I'd like to avoid if possible and we don't want to live out in the country either. I don't mind an older neighborhood.

Are there gang problems where teenagers like to hang out? My concern is there is only one mall or recreational park for the entire city, people from different part of town will cross paths. Is there a smell problem from nearby agriculture grazing and cow manure?
In NE Fresno (which is in the Clovis school district) there are lots of custom homes near Woodward Park. You might prefer these. Look in 93720 and 92730 in the Woodward Lake development and near Audobon Drive. Also near the intersection of Friant and Shepherd.

There's more than 1 mall and more than 1 park, so I'm not sure what you mean. Generally, your teens living in the north end of things are not going to encounter gangs. Fresno is very spread out.

The only place you'll smell ag stuff is in the fields north of Fresno State, only along Chestnut between Barstow and Bullard where the University's cattle are.
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