LGBT and Cheap neighborhood: SF or Oakland? (Piedmont: apartments, neighborhoods)

[Lazermazer]

Hey!

searching craigslist and apartment listings online is overwhelming! the results are either too expensive or I feel clueless about the neighborhood.

So far I feel the Mission is the only place in SF I could afford, but has the mission district been completely overrun by hipsters?

Oakland prices sound reasonable, do ***** friendly and cheap neighborhoods exist there?

Thank you in advance for any help!

[Lazermazer]

Hey!

searching craigslist and apartment listings online is overwhelming! the results are either too expensive or I feel clueless about the neighborhood.

So far I feel the Mission is the only place in SF I could afford, but has the mission district been completely overrun by hipsters?

Oakland prices sound reasonable, do que3r (accurate spelling of the word is censored) friendly and cheap neighborhoods exist there?

Thank you in advance for any help!

[ssmaster]

adams point is very LBGT friendly but it seems to be family and couple oriented

[mayorhaggar]

Not sure what you mean by "*****."

The Mission isn't really that much cheaper than other parts of SF, but it's pretty grungy and crime-ridden especially on or east of Mission Street. But it is warmer than other parts of SF, has a lot going on, lots of cheap restaurants and grocery stores, and it's close to downtown on BART if you work there. The only parts of SF that are really cheaper than other areas are really crappy areas like the Tenderloin or around Hunter's Point. Otherwise pretty much anywhere in SF is similarly priced no matter where you are. It gets a bit cheaper the further west you go towards the beach, but often it just means that you see bigger apartments for the same price out there than around somewhere like the Mission.

Anyway, the nice parts of Oakland are about 20-40% cheaper than SF. A basic 1 bedroom that is $1400 in the Mission would be $1100 in Rockridge in Oakland, maybe $1000 or a bit less in the Temescal, and sometimes you see 1br's for around $850 in Adam's Point.

Keep in mind though that BART is expensive and adds up. If you ride every day from Rockridge to downtown SF that is $140 a month, so that eats into your savings from living in Oakland instead of SF--a transit pass in SF is $60 a month at minimum.

[Gentoo]

This is a troll thread haggar. Check his other post. Who uses qu33r to describe LGBT if they're sincere?

[mayorhaggar]

To get around the auto-censor? We'll see.

[Lazermazer]

Not a troll! Thank you for replying! I was trying to get around the auto censor

[mayorhaggar]

As far as gay-friendly areas, pretty much anywhere in the Bay Area that is at least middle class or upper middle class will be gay friendly, but different areas are more likely to have gay activist groups or gay bars, gay stores, etc. The Castro is really tiny, really only a few blocks, but the area around there definitely has a lot of gay residents. SOMA has some gay nightclubs. Bernal Heights is kind of a lesbian area I guess. In Oakland, the Temescal has a reputation for having a lot of lesbian residents but it doesn't really feel particularly gay/lesbian, and I don't think Oakland or anywhere else in the Bay Area has anything like the heart of the Castro with all of its bars and clubs and novelty shops and so on.

But if you just want somewhere affordable in Oakland where you can feel comfortable, check out Rockridge, the Piedmont Ave area, the Temescal, Adam's Point, and Cleveland Heights.

[llowllevellowll]

Agreed. Adam's Point has the highest concentration of LBGT in Oakland. It's also one of of Oakland's best values. 1-bedrooms as low as $900, 2-bedrooms as low as $1150. Great neighborhood within walking distance of Grand Lake and right off 580.

[rah]

Originally Posted by Lazermazer

So far I feel the Mission is the only place in SF I could afford, but has the mission district been completely overrun by hipsters?

There are cheaper parts of SF than the Mission (which has gotten more expensive because of increasing popularity/trendiness from increasing gentrification), and no, the Mission is not completely overrun with hipsters. Parts of it are though, such as Valencia Street, Dolores Park...the part west of Mission street in general is gentrified Hipster central, while the rest is still heavily working class and Latino, with large numbers of immigrants, and only some hipsters here and there. Also, despite this being SF, still be prepared for possibly a little extra homophobia if you live in a poorer area...it unfortunately seems to come with the territory. That said, there is a lesbian bar in the Mission District (the Lexington), as well as a gay Latino bar (Esta Noche) that i know of (and in the Mission spirit, they're both dive bars), and the Castro District borders the Mission as well.