After living all over the Bay Area the best city in my opinion is.... (San Francisco: for sale, real estate)

[PixelatedTherapy]

CONCORD!!!

i know you were expecting a different answer, but Concord has all the best things the Bay Area has to offer without a lot of the negative things. Concord has diversity, low crime rate (by Bay Area standards), Affordable housing (Bay standards),two Bart Stations and it's close to upscale shopping like you'd find in SF in Walnut Creek. Monument BLVD gets a bad rap, but it's really not as ghetto as everyone makes it out to be. Monument/Four Corners area is basically the Suburban equivalent to the Mission District pre gentrification.


What are your thoughts City Data?


I've lived in: Oakland, San Francisco, Daly City, Lafayette and Concord

[Bayarea4]

It sounds like a pretty decent area. I know a couple who sold their condo in San Francisco and bought a SFH in Concord after they started their family. Personally the summer weather is a little too hot for my taste, and I would feel uneasy living right on the Hayward Fault.

The real estate site Curbed SF had a story recently on an Eichler, a real 60s time capsule with a pool, that's for sale in Concord. The furniture is a bit too Jetsons for my taste, but I wouldn't mind living here:

Poolside Eichler Wants to Make a Splash for $595K in Concord - We Like Eich - Curbed SF

[PixelatedTherapy]

I guess I'll give a mini review of every city I've lived in and why I think Concord is better.



Oakland: Great city, lots of culture, great restaurants, 10 minutes from SF... BUT! Crime is a problem to the point where unless I was with people no going out after 9 PM. Also, hearing gunshots a few times a month is unsettling.

San Francisco: World class city, lots of stuff to do, lots of culture, BUT it's the true definition of a clusterf**k, traffic is horrible,Rent prices are horrendous, tourists are annoying and there seems to be a lot of snobs especially in the Nob Hill area...

Daly City: Close to SF, Safe, Beautiful... BUT no real diversity it's pretty much all Asian all the time.

Lafayette: Safe, beautiful, charming downtown... BUT snobs, snobs everywhere. No diversity all White.

[clongirl]

My guess is that you're a real estate agent?

[LoriBee62]

Interesting insights. I've only lived in the North Bay: San Rafael, Novato, Petaluma and Rohnert Park. From this side of the bay, the whole East Bay is rather stigmatized (bad traffic and crime). If I had to move there for some reason, I wouldn't know where to start, though you've made a good case for Concord.

[justmeinca]

Originally Posted by PixelatedTherapy

CONCORD!!!

i know you were expecting a different answer, but Concord has all the best things the Bay Area has to offer without a lot of the negative things. Concord has diversity, low crime rate (by Bay Area standards), Affordable housing (Bay standards),two Bart Stations and it's close to upscale shopping like you'd find in SF in Walnut Creek. Monument BLVD gets a bad rap, but it's really not as ghetto as everyone makes it out to be. Monument/Four Corners area is basically the Suburban equivalent to the Mission District pre gentrification.


What are your thoughts City Data?


I've lived in: Oakland, San Francisco, Daly City, Lafayette and Concord

That is the only thing that matter. Concord's weather is too hot in the summer for me.
Concord is not a hidden gem. It has 'affordable' housing for a reason.

[jade408]

Originally Posted by PixelatedTherapy

Oakland: Great city, lots of culture, great restaurants, 10 minutes from SF... BUT! Crime is a problem to the point where unless I was with people no going out after 9 PM. Also, hearing gunshots a few times a month is unsettling.

I've lived in Oakland for about 11 years. I have heard gunshots for sure once. Maybe a handful of other times, but I am pretty sure it wasn't gunfire. Definitely not at the frequency you are discussing. A hear some unidentifiable popping noises a few times a year, mostly in the summer, late June and early July.

Oakland is a huge (geographically speaking) city at ~80 square miles. Your mileage may vary as there are many Oaklands. Where I live, I have no problems going out after 9, walking home and biking home. I probably wouldn't walk home alone on some of the quiet residential streets with no foot traffic alone. My street is pretty busy till later in the evening, so going out late is no big deal on foot. I generally take the bus once it gets dark if I am not on my bike.

I feel safer biking home for sure, and do it after 10 pretty often (alone even). No issues walking late in my 3 mile radius in an area with foot traffic.

[jade408]

Originally Posted by justmeinca

That is the only thing that matter. Concord's weather is too hot in the summer for me.
Concord is not a hidden gem. It has 'affordable' housing for a reason.

Concord is not for me. Too far out. Too suburban. Too hot.

[PixelatedTherapy]

Originally Posted by jade408

I've lived in Oakland for about 11 years. I have heard gunshots for sure once. Maybe a handful of other times, but I am pretty sure it wasn't gunfire. Definitely not at the frequency you are discussing. A hear some unidentifiable popping noises a few times a year, mostly in the summer, late June and early July.

Oakland is a huge (geographically speaking) city at ~80 square miles. Your mileage may vary as there are many Oaklands. Where I live, I have no problems going out after 9, walking home and biking home. I probably wouldn't walk home alone on some of the quiet residential streets with no foot traffic alone. My street is pretty busy till later in the evening, so going out late is no big deal on foot. I generally take the bus once it gets dark if I am not on my bike.

I feel safer biking home for sure, and do it after 10 pretty often (alone even). No issues walking late in my 3 mile radius in an area with foot traffic.

I lived by seminary In East Oakland. I'm not trying to demonize Oakland, around that area at night it was a scary place.

[roadwarrior101]

I lived in SF for 4 years, in Mountain View for 5 and in Danville for the past year. Here's my take on these locations and others:

1. SF - Really the only place to be if you're young and single or possibly even a young couple. It is where everything is happening in terms of nightlife and such. You have to do that for a few years, or you'll probably regret not doing so. But, once you're ready to settle down and raise a family, its not the easiest place to be.
2. Silicon Valley - Great for jobs and there are some good places to raise a family, but its become ridiculously expensive, overcrowded and lacking of culture. It is almost having all the traffic/congestion of a major city, without the excitement. Very transient there. Other than a shorter commute, it wasn't my favorite place to be. I think I'd have to be able to afford a $3M+ house in Palo Alto/Los Gatos to really be happy raising a family there. For me, it wasn't in the cards
3. Danville/Tri-Valley Area - Probably not the most exciting place for a young professional, but a GREAT place to raise a family. Great schools, you can buy more for your money, better weather (in my opinion) and enough to do (cute downtowns with lots of restaurants, lots of outdoor/recreation, etc). After looking around, we thought this was the best place to be in the Bay Area.

Here are my thoughts on other areas of the Bay (note, I haven't lived in any of these, but spent a lot of time in each):

-Peninsula - Sort of similar to my comments on the Silicon Valley, only easier access to the city and even more expensive. You really need to be wealthy to have a good quality of life here, once you want to raise a family
-Inner East Bay - There are some areas of character in Oakland/Berkeley and I could see living there as a young professional, if I wasn't able to afford SF. But, in general, most areas are just not as nice, closer to high crime areas and such. Not the best place to be, in my opinion. I will say that there are some VERY nice places in the Oakland hills, but then again, those are extremely pricey.
-North Bay - I LOVE Marin. Only problem is that there are really no jobs there and the commutes are very bad and limited. If you can make it work, I can see the appeal though and that would probably have been our 2nd choice behind the tri-valley. I also think the Napa Valley would be a great place to retire, but too far removed from Bay Area jobs and I'm not so sure about the school quality, if looking to raise a family.