Taking a Job In Richmond, Ca where should I live? (Oakland: real estate, for rent)

[Sunnysdad]

I am a single father, my son is 9 years old. I have been offered a job in Richmond but everything I hear about Richmond has been awful. I’m thinking there has to be a good, safe area in Richmond right? What are some good areas to raise kids in around, or in Richmond. Someone mentioned Walnut Creek, Montclair, Rockridge and Hercules as options. Wherever I choose I’d like to be no further than a few minutes away If I have to pick my son up from school for any reason. Right now I live in a suburb in Arizona called Surprise, looking for something like that out in the Richmond area. The zip code where I will be working is 94804 if this helps. Thanks!

[mayorhaggar]

This info might help:

- what's your budget
- how big of a place do you want, and do you want to rent or buy

Read the second post in this topic, where PR, a real estate agent, describes the East Bay and the housing prices there:

http://www.city-data.com/forum/san-f...putations.html

Hercules/Pinole/El Sobrante are supposed to have nice houses for pretty cheap, like 200-300K, and I think the schools are good there but I'm not super sure. Walnut Creek area is good for schools but would be more expensive and the commute would probably be bad. Areas north of the Carquinez bridge could work, maybe as far as Fairfield, but you'd have to pay a toll.

Rockridge in Oakland is really nice but the public schools in Oakland are really iffy once you get to around middle school classes. Berkeley is similar. Albany is just north of Berkeley and has pretty good schools, it can be expensive though, houses are probably around 600K and up. El Cerrito is next to Richmond, I'm really not familar with it though, it's supposed to be pretty safe but I don't know what the schools are like at all.

Unless somewhere like Hercules is a great fit, you might have to end up commuting a while to work, like 30-60 minutes. It's very rare for people in the Bay Area to live close to where they work, and your job will be in a place you definitely won't want to live in. Somewhere around Hercules could really work though, just make sure the schools and crime rate there are what you want.

[bmw335xi]

I'd consider San Rafael or Alameda. San Rafael is the shorter commute.

[Sunnysdad]

Thank you for your response. I will be renting, and from what ive seen so far, WOW! rent is unbelieveable out there. So from what Im hearing there is no "nice, family friendly" area in Richmond?

[lmk1707]

Point Richmond or the hills east of 80 are pretty nice areas. Otherwise, try El Cerrito, Berkeley, Albany, or Pinole if proximity is the most important criterion.

[ssmaster]

keep in mind richmond has a number of refineries and occasional chemical spills.


i find these posts useless without a budget.
kentfield in marin is the BEST choice hands down great commute(10-15 min) great schools ,nice weather.
but it would be hard to find a home for less than 1 million+.
i don't even like suburbs but kentfield is nice place to live if working in richmond.

[mayorhaggar]

Originally Posted by Sunnysdad

Thank you for your response. I will be renting, and from what ive seen so far, WOW! rent is unbelieveable out there. So from what Im hearing there is no "nice, family friendly" area in Richmond?

There are some small parts of Richmond that aren't so bad [lmk listed them], the problem is the public schools there. Go for a nearby town if you can afford the rent but again we don't know what you can afford if you don't tell us your budget.

[jade408]

Originally Posted by lmk1707

Point Richmond or the hills east of 80 are pretty nice areas. Otherwise, try El Cerrito, Berkeley, Albany, or Pinole if proximity is the most important criterion.

I'd skip Berkeley, it is great for high achievers, not so much for average students.

Albany, Pinole or El Cerrito are probably your best bets.

[Sunnysdad]

I’m a federal employee so I’m looking at something relatively inexpensive. I still have my house in Az ill be paying on until I find renters. I guess I’m looking at about $1000 per month. If It were just me, I really wouldn’t care where I live but I have to think about my son, the schools, environment...Thanks for all your help, keep it coming!

[lmk1707]

$1000/mo. is a pretty low amount for a 2 bedroom in the Bay Area. Here is a craigslist search to give you an idea:

SF bay area apts/housing for rent classifieds - craigslist

San Pablo and El Sobrante aren't as nice as some of the others, but you may have to expand your search to include them if you can't find anything in a nicer area.