Clueless soon to be resident (San Francisco, Oakland: apartments, rentals, appliances)

[SmashedPumpkins]

I'm hoping that you guys and gals will be able to narrow down a couple locations for us. I may be spitting more information out than you care to read, but hopefully it gives you an idea of what we're looking for.

My wife and I are moving from a very low cost town in Idaho to San Francisco. I've been in Idaho for about 6 years going to school but before that grew up in the valley. With that said, it's just the two of us with no debt to worry about. My income will be starting at about $68k and the job is located near the Embarcadero BART stop. My wife's salary may be around $20-$30k but we don't know yet. She's a cosmetologist and will have to work her way up. We prefer to rely on my income for getting started.

We would much prefer the smaller town feel but enjoy a short stroll to the city occasionally. With the option to telecommute a couple days each week I'm willing to commute about an 1 1/2 hours each way for the days I do go in. I won't hit rush hour as my shift is noon to 8 but I still assume I'll drive to the nearest BART station. That leaves us a lot of room but even more unknowns.

Ideally, we would love to live in a townhouse with 2 to 3 bedrooms, 1 to 2 baths, and a garage. At minimum, a 2 bed, 1 bath with outside parking. Modern style and newer appliances is a preference. We really don't want to spend more than $2k a month for rent. We have two cars, 1 motorcycle, and a cat. We're aiming for a friendly neighborhood with people who have similar salaries or higher. I suppose we simply want to avoid ghetto neighborhoods. We've never been the type of people to go to bars, parties, concerts etc... We're more like the couple who goes to the movies, a restaurant here and there, bowling, sport events etc... We don't drink so we're saving a bit there.

With such a far away commute, are our expectations crazy? What cities might fit what we're looking for?

[Ruth4Truth]

No, your expectations aren't crazy. I'm not sure what you mean by "a short stroll to the city", though. Do you mean, easy access to San Francisco? Or you want to live in a smaller town in a location where you could walk to downtown?

You can get a townhouse as you describe in Fremont, but that doesn't have a small town feel. It is on BART, however, and is on the Bay (East Bay). You should look up local burgs on Craigslist rentals: north Berkeley, El Cerrito, Oakland, Walnut Creek, and Alameda, for starters. Well, I guess El Cerrito might not fit your small-town-feel, good downtown criteria. North Oakland though, i.e. Rockridge, would, and it has a BART station. If you're not able to find anything you like there, come back and we'll give you more suggestions.

Would your commute be during traditional commute hours? If not, that opens up the North Bay, to you: Mill Valley (PERFECT for you, and they may have 2 br. apts. within your budget. I don't think they have townhomes, but maybe there are some nearby), San Rafael.

[SmashedPumpkins]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

No, your expectations aren't crazy. I'm not sure what you mean by "a short stroll to the city", though. Do you mean, easy access to San Francisco? Or you want to live in a smaller town in a location where you could walk to downtown?

You can get a townhouse as you describe in Fremont, but that doesn't have a small town feel. It is on BART, however, and is on the Bay (East Bay). You should look up local burgs on Craigslist rentals: north Berkeley, El Cerrito, Oakland, Walnut Creek, and Alameda, for starters. Well, I guess El Cerrito might not fit your small-town-feel, good downtown criteria. North Oakland though, i.e. Rockridge, would, and it has a BART station. If you're not able to find anything you like there, come back and we'll give you more suggestions.

Would your commute be during traditional commute hours? If not, that opens up the North Bay, to you: Mill Valley (PERFECT for you, and they may have 2 br. apts. within your budget. I don't think they have townhomes, but maybe there are some nearby), San Rafael.

Thanks for the quick response. By short stroll I mean within a couple hours. (Length of my commute really) Just if we want to head into San Francisco occasionally. We have no need to live by the water. We're happy inland. Livermore/Pleaston and the Pleasant Hill area looks nice. By small town, I mean a town that has 1 or 2 of the main large chain restaurant/stores. For example, driving to the movies or Cosco isn't a massive feat.

My shift is from 12PM to 8PM so I assume I'll miss most of the rush. I hadn't even considered the North Bay as the BART doesn't run up there. I assume with the toll for the bridge and parking it would be costly. (But I don't know so correct me if I'm wrong!) I'll start researching this option as it's one I haven't explored.

[Ruth4Truth]

OK, well, it sounds like you've already identified some likely candidates. You'll get more space for your money in the areas you mentioned. If you check out the north Bay, driving to work would involve free parking at work, I assume, so you'd only pay for parking when you go into the city for weekend jaunts. And even then, there would be free parking in some venues (some museums, for example, Golden Gate Park, the beach). Rents will be higher, but the towns would be a lot more scenic than Livermore, etc. But if you like chain restaurants and chain stores, Pleasanton, Livermore, etc. might be your thing. It's hot the farther inland you go, btw, if that matters.

[bmw335xi]

@SmashedPumpkins

Your expectations are more than fine. Can you go into more detail when you say a small town? Do you want mostly houses and town homes with yards where everything has parking or do you want a small walkable urban environment?

[SmashedPumpkins]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

OK, well, it sounds like you've already identified some likely candidates. You'll get more space for your money in the areas you mentioned. If you check out the north Bay, driving to work would involve free parking at work, I assume, so you'd only pay for parking when you go into the city for weekend jaunts. And even then, there would be free parking in some venues (some museums, for example, Golden Gate Park, the beach). Rents will be higher, but the towns would be a lot more scenic than Livermore, etc. But if you like chain restaurants and chain stores, Pleasanton, Livermore, etc. might be your thing. It's hot the farther inland you go, btw, if that matters.

Okay good to know. I'll ask my employer about parking and see what that entails. Good point on the heat. We'll keep that in mind as well.

Originally Posted by bmw335xi

@SmashedPumpkins
Your expectations are more than fine. Can you go into more detail when you say a small town? Do you want mostly houses and town homes with yards where everything has parking or do you want a small walkable urban environment?

We're kind of on the fence actually between a town house that may have a yard VS an apartment that offers many amenities. We don't want to rent a home as that often means its aged and requires a bit more upkeep. Apartments however don't have garages and it would be mighty convenient to have one. For a small town, we're thinking more of one with yards and a less dense population. We prefer an environment where we drive to the restaurants and movies rather than walk.

[norbertsf]

There are some nice places in the North Bay that are more small town feel than areas of the East Bay. You would have to drive. I have a friend who lives in Fairfax. Look up the location. Has a nice small town feel, and a downtown walkable area.

[Ruth4Truth]

Apartments do have garages. I've scouted the listings in various parts of the Bay, both for myself, and for people posting here about relocations. Every listing I've taken a close look at has had parking. In fact, I think many municipalities require that buildings provide parking. Most have covered parking with a storage unit.

[SmashedPumpkins]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

Apartments do have garages. I've scouted the listings in various parts of the Bay, both for myself, and for people posting here about relocations. Every listing I've taken a close look at has had parking. In fact, I think many municipalities require that buildings provide parking. Most have covered parking with a storage unit.

I suppose by garage I mean a personal garage. I enjoy working on my car as a hobby and have yet to ever have a garage of my own for it. It's not completely necessary though. I do expect some form of parking whether it be by car ports, parking structures or just a small lot.

Originally Posted by norbertsf

There are some nice places in the North Bay that are more small town feel than areas of the East Bay. You would have to drive. I have a friend who lives in Fairfax. Look up the location. Has a nice small town feel, and a downtown walkable area.

Thanks, I'll look it up.

Thanks again for all of the advice everyone. It's a big change and we're looking for a way to approach it as smoothly as possible.

[bmw335xi]

Originally Posted by SmashedPumpkins

We're kind of on the fence actually between a town house that may have a yard VS an apartment that offers many amenities. We don't want to rent a home as that often means its aged and requires a bit more upkeep. Apartments however don't have garages and it would be mighty convenient to have one. For a small town, we're thinking more of one with yards and a less dense population. We prefer an environment where we drive to the restaurants and movies rather than walk.

If you don't mind driving to work, I think Marin County would be best. You could look around San Rafael, Mill Valley, and Fairfax. These towns are small, charming, and safe. You could also look into Walnut Creek, which is outside of the crowded part of East Bay.