Moving from Newark, CA to Sacramento area. Help me narrow down to an area! (Roseville: for sale, crime)

[mellygee]

So my husband and I are ready to purchase a home between 300-400k.. (cheaper the better) We currently live in Newark and love it here, but we cannot afford a home in this area.

My husbands company has an office in North Sacramento and we would like to purchase a home in a nice, safe neighborhood with a decent commute and good schools. We noticed Natomas has lots of new homes for sale well in our budget but I wanted to get a feel for the place since we have never even visited that area before. It seems to not be a very desirable place among sacramento natives. What are the cons of living in Natomas?

I also looked at Rocklin, Roseville, and Folsom as they seem to be the best places to raise a family but they are definitely a lot pricier. So what we are looking for is a home (newer or brand new) in a SAFE area, with good schools, decent commute to North Sacramento within our budget of 350-400k. Also, we are a young family and like to take our son to parks and play areas, dining out at least once a week and close proximity to shopping areas. We typically like to do our grocery shopping at sprouts, trader joes and whole foods so that would also be a plus. LASTLY- we currently live near an asian shopping center (with asian grocery store) which is important to me as well! We are just a modern, young family looking for a place to settle down that does not feel like we are moving to the boonies! I need suggestions! thank you!

PS: we are also looking at Carmichael and Ranch Cordova

[borninsac]

While perhaps not as close as you may like, I suggest homes in zip codes 95826 and 95827. And yes Sacramento is crowded as the last poster shared but there's always room for good people and families so welcome and best wishes that you will find your dream home.

[yolonative]

Is this a first home that can be smaller, or are you looking to grow into one with more bed/bath? I ask because you can find a 2 bed/1 bath in East Sacramento in the mid to upper 300s, but I understand you're trying to stay on the lower side. That has the amenities and the safety.


Land Park is close to asian markets on Freeport blvd, another safe place that you can get a 2/1 in that range. Hope that helps.


Curtis Park might be another area to consider, close to amenities, but you can get a little more size for your buck there.

All three of these neighborhoods are well-established and have character, close to downtown too. Take a look on the map to get an idea.

[49erfan916]

To the OP: Try folsom or roseville. You can probably get a house in your price range and those are good safe neighborhoods.

[derekjones]

Where in North Sac could your husband be working? How long of a commute is too far?

3-400k in a new/er home you're looking at 95834/35, Roseville, Rocklin and Folsom are doable but there aren't going to be many homes to choose from. There is also Elk Grove which should be easy to get into under $400k in a newer home.

[NoMoreSnowForMe]

The problem with Natomas is flooding.

If you can afford Folsom, the schools are exceptional.

[WestGuest]

Moderator cut: off-topic

Sacramento always seemed to have hot summers,but there's lots to do. Sacramento will continue to grow and get more crowded as many capital cities do- government always seems to get bigger.

[AlohafromSac]

If you are wanting to be close to an Asian grocery store and to stay within your budget, the areas you can consider are Upper Land park / Curtis Park, South Sacramento, Del Paso Neighborhood/ Natomas, Arden, and Roseville.

Elk grove is another are as well, depending on how far your Husband wants his commute to be.

Their websites online to help you determine the safety of the neighborhood is up to your standards, and of course driving by neighborhoods to see what you feel is bet for you

[w-mcfly22]

rancho cordova, antelope, areas out by sleep train arena, citrus heights but as last option...
west sac is also nice but homes go quick

[Sacto Export]

Hi there,

I'm a Natomas native (though I currently live in the Bay Are like you do), so I can help you out with a few issues you might want to be aware of before you move there.

#1 Crime. Granted, it has been a while since my family moved away, but I can tell you that you'll probably want to stay in North Natomas.

When my family first moved to South Natomas, it had one elementary school, one grocery store, and no gas stations. There were fields all over the place with wildflowers, jackrabbits, and thistles. Five years earlier than that there was sheep grazing. Fast forward just about 5 or 10 years and South Natomas was already starting to see gang activity and grafitti issues. In the early 90s, kids I went to school with (11 and 12 year olds!) were already talking about joining gangs, and the junior high already had issues with weapons on campus and kids coming to school wearing gang-coded clothing. Based on the crime issues, my family moved to Davis (which is what I'd recommend for you, but then your husband would be stuck with a commute over the Yolo Causeway every day). One of my aunts moved to Rocklin, and that area has managed to stay okay. My other aunt stayed in South Natomas into the early 2000s, and crime just got worse and worse. She worked in a restaurant that got held up 3 times in one year! The last time it was held up, they chloroformed the employees and she thought she was going to die (she didn't, thank goodness).

Anyway, crime is an issue. I presume that North Natomas is better in this respect, but be aware that it is hardly a separate community. Truxel Road runs from the Garden Highway through South Natomas and straight into North Natomas, so it's not like there's a wall between them if some punk is looking to break into a car or something. But if you choose Natomas you might use this as a guide: anything past the Albertson's on Truxel Rd is probably be too far south.

#2 Allergies. The Sacramento area can be really bad for hay fever / pollen allergies. When I was in Natomas, I always associated my allergies with the huge numbers of cottonwood trees along the Garden Hwy (which forms southern border of South Natomas). During the spring, the air is just thick with the cotton fluff from the trees, and my allergies would be so bad I'd be blinded by tears during the worst part of the season. Now I know that the fluff doesn't actually contain pollen (it is actually seeds), but wherever the pollen was actually from, there sure is a lot of it in Natomas. I never had hay fever in Davis, and I haven't in the Bay Area either.

Well, those are my two cents. And I might go ahead and add a third just for good measure... If your husband is willing to commute, consider Davis. The community is really safe, it finally got a Trader Joe's, and the demographics are a bit different. There is a much bigger Asian population, at least one big asian grocery store that I know of, a couple of sushi places that typically have lines out the door, good parks that aren't full of homeless people, and it is completely safe to let your kids bike to school. The schools have a super reputation, although I think the high test scores have less to do with actual quality of instruction, and more to do with the fact that the parents tend to be really driven and obsessed with polishing their "trophy" kids. If your kids are elementary school aged, you might consider putting them through Cesar Chavez Elementary (it has a Spanish immersion program for native English-speaking kids, so your kids will be bilingual by the time they get into Jr High (or trilingual if they already speak more than one language). My best friend's little sister went through that program when they first started it, and now she a linguistics professor.