Looking to buy home in Bay Area (East Bay or Fremont) for <$500k (Oakland: for sale, real estate)

[knicks0819]

Hi all,

My parents are looking to move out here to the Bay Area from NJ and I was hoping I could get your suggestions on where to move based on what they are looking for:

1) Budget- maximum around $500k, but preferrably low $400s for a single-family home (at least 3 BR, 2 BA, 3000 sq ft)

2) Schools- my sister is currently an honor roll student in 7th grade at a competitve school system in NJ so good school system is important

3) Safe- looking for very safe, open, somewhat quiet suburbs to live in (as opposed to major cities such as SF or Oakland)

4) Commute- there won't be a daily commute, but my parents would be driving to Berkeley a few times a week (but not during rush hours), so it should be within a reasonable driving distance- say 30-40 minutes max

I know that may be asking for a lot based on the budget, but I figure it can't hurt to ask in case I've missed a few areas in my search.

So far, I've looked into:

Antioch- affordable, very nice houses of 4,000 sq ft for 400k, but surrounding area is too ghetto, too much crime (or at least that's what I've been reading)
Walnut Creek- nice area, safe, great schools-- ideal, but not sure if 500k is possible here?
Fremont- also really nice, but probably too expensive

What do you guys think of the surrounding areas like Concord, Lafayette, Orinda, Moraga, El Cerrito, etc (others I haven't mentioned?) based on what I am looking for.

Sorry about the long post, but your feedback is much appreciated. Thanks!

[Ceece]

Lafayette, Orinda, Moraga are probably out. I really don't know where you can get something that size, in decent shape, in a nice area. You may have to downsize a bit.

[NorCalLover]

Try Benicia. It's a nice, quiet, more affordable community, about 30-35 mins to Berkeley if they avoid rush hour traffic.

3/2.5 In Benicia (http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/reb/1781893451.html - broken link)

(ETA: just to be clear, I'm not a realtor, this is just a sample listing I saw on craigslist)

[LisainCalifornia]

Originally Posted by Ceece

Lafayette, Orinda, Moraga are probably out. I really don't know where you can get something that size, in decent shape, in a nice area. You may have to downsize a bit.

Yes--there is no way to buy a home (even a good sized condo) in Lafayette, Moraga or Orinda for that amount. They are beautiful towns with great schools, but more pricey than many of the other areas you mentioned. Walnut Creek can be a little less money than Lamorinda, but not by much. The best bet is to go to a real estate website (I don't know if I am suppose to give link that here, but there are a few really good ones) and look at the current homes for sale in the areas you mentioned. You will easily see a trend that will tell you how much you can expect to spend in a given area.

I think for the amount you want to spend, you need to widen your scope to outward areas--not so close into the East Bay. Also, 3,000 square feet is pretty big for a house in the Bay Area. We live in Moraga in a 4 bedroom, and it is 1899 square feet--which is very typical for the older homes around here. Here is a typical older home in Moraga/Orinda area:http://realestate.yahoo.com/California/Moraga/4-sparrow-ct:66b1c3e3b3c5188b332ea385d7b125e5;_ylt=ApZaIH4yX JWNo6ReH6REFHVn47Qs (broken link)

[mayorhaggar]

A friend of mine almost bought a house in El Cerrito that was something like $350,000. He said it would have needed about $20,000 in renovations but was in a very nice area. I don't know how big it was though.

But defininitely if you go to Solano County things will be cheaper.

[LisainCalifornia]

Originally Posted by mayorhaggar

A friend of mine almost bought a house in El Cerrito that was something like $350,000. He said it would have needed about $20,000 in renovations but was in a very nice area. I don't know how big it was though.

But defininitely if you go to Solano County things will be cheaper.

I'll bet it was really tiny for that price. Just go to a real estate website and search for homes there and you won't find a 3 bedroom 2 bath with even 1800 square feet for that much. Chances are if you did find something under 500,000--there would be some kind of red flag about it (close to a big powerline, foundation issues, etc...).

A lot of information can be quickly accessed online these days by just looking this information up on a real estate website.

[Mr. Fantastic]

Avoid Vallejo, Richmond, and Oakland despite what prices you see. All high crime areas with poor school performance.

[Frank99]

I recommend a condo/townhouse in San Ramon, Pleasanton, or Dublin.
I don't think you'll like the ghetto areas like Antioch or Hayward, and you probably will have a hard time fitting in the wealthy areas of Danville, etc. (I'm basing this off the housing budget you gave).

[knicks0819]

Thanks for everyone for the great replies.

[kgbnsf]

Oakland is a large city with many nice areas; I wouldn't rule it out categoricaly. It's ridiculous to suggest avoiding the entire city because of some bad areas. Alameda is nice but houses here start at your price range.