Plans to move to SF / Bay Area (San Francisco, Oakland: real estate, rent)

[mulliganx]

What are some nice suburban type neighborhoods in the Bay area? We currently live in the suburbs and love the views of the Bay area. I understand many homes in parts of Marin county are upwards of 2 million and on up up up - too much fornus. We are interested in the $550k-$900k pricing. We traveled to Sausalito which seemed to have some homes in the $600 - $700k range but it did not have the feel we were looking for. Any suggestions most appreciated. We would look for nicer family areas with decent commute for work, good schools, grid like blocks etc.

[Chuck5000]

You need to be more specific. Where are you coming from? How many bedrooms do you need, where is work located, and how good do you need the schools to be? On a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the best, do you need 8, 9, or 10 schools? Also, what is the maximum commute door-to-door. It is not easy to get around this region, it looks much easier on a map than it actually is in real life.

Sausalito, for example, has poor schools, and is useful only for commuting within Marin or to SF. You can't commute during peak hours from Marin to jobs in Santa Clara county (which is the largest job market in the Bay Area.) Also, anything in Sausalito under 1m will be tiny, or have a terrible location, or be in terrible condition.

500k to 900k is a huge range in the Bay Area, and even 900k does not get you that much if you need good public schools. Did you say you want views? You will not get views of anything in most of the region for under 2m. If you dont' need "great" schools, you will have decent options for 900k for a 2 or 3 bedroom home. In San Leandro or Hayward hills or Oakland (east Oakland) you could get a view home for $1m . Schools are not as good in those places. You could look at Richmond hills for views as well.

If you need good schools in your price range, most likely you need to be looking at Walnut Creek, San Ramon, Pleasanton in the East Bay. If you can tolerate fog, and can get a smaller house, and somewhat lesser schools, then Daly City, South San Francisco, Pacifica (the best schools of this group), and San Bruno are possible - these are well located for both major job markets. On the peninsula below these towns you are mostly priced out. The poster bmw below lists very nice towns that you are mostly priced out of, except maybe Foster City or lesser locations within San Mateo.

But I suspect your expectations about "feel" and esthetics are not going to be realistic even for 900 if you are from outside the area. It's hard for people to grasp. Are you from Long Island? I am also. You get far, far, far, far less house square feet, condition, and school quality for the dollar here. Decent school districts are abundant on Long Island compared to the Bay Area.

[bmw335xi]

Originally Posted by mulliganx

What are some nice suburban type neighborhoods in the Bay area? We currently live in the suburbs and love the views of the Bay area. I understand many homes in parts of Marin county are upwards of 2 million and on up up up - too much fornus. We are interested in the $550k-$900k pricing. We traveled to Sausalito which seemed to have some homes in the $600 - $700k range but it did not have the feel we were looking for. Any suggestions most appreciated. We would look for nicer family areas with decent commute for work, good schools, grid like blocks etc.

I love the towns along the Peninsula, check them out...

Millbrae
Burlingame
San Mateo
Foster City
Belmont
San Carlos

[mulliganx]

Thanks for your replies. Yes, we are currently residing in Long Island (massapequa) and would like to live in an area with a similar suburban feel. A house between 3-4 bedroom would be needed. In terms of the quality orbs cool district we would seek a strong 8. In terms of looks this may be a funny comparison but homes which are similar to the "Weeds" show from the fake city of agrestic would be an ideal feel in California. No idea If a particular town resembles this. Commuting time should be between 30 to 45 minutes. 60 minutes is a possibility,

[2sleepy]

Originally Posted by mulliganx

What are some nice suburban type neighborhoods in the Bay area? We currently live in the suburbs and love the views of the Bay area. I understand many homes in parts of Marin county are upwards of 2 million and on up up up - too much fornus. We are interested in the $550k-$900k pricing. We traveled to Sausalito which seemed to have some homes in the $600 - $700k range but it did not have the feel we were looking for. Any suggestions most appreciated. We would look for nicer family areas with decent commute for work, good schools, grid like blocks etc.

I'm not sure what you were looking at in Sausalito, but right now the cheapest single family home is 1.1 million, there are a few condos and "floating homes" for less than that though. Maybe you could set the parameters for the kind of house you are looking for in the Redfin link and then at the bottom of the page click 'remove outline' the search will update as you move the map around. At least you could narrow down your hunt to a few areas you like (and can afford)

[aramax666]

A 8 school - 900K is REALLY TOUGH.

We still don't know where you work.

8 school - 900K could get you townhouse in Milpitas maybe. Or a rundown 1960 SFH in terrible condition. Did you try redfin?

[NoMoreSnowForMe]

You need a real estate agent.

[Chuck5000]

What you want is not possible assuming you want to be able to commute to either San Francisco or Silicon Valley job centers within 60 minutes. You'd need well over $1m just to start, at a level probably below your current home. Probably your only hope is the East Bay cities I mentioned earlier, and even then you're talking 75 to 90 minutes.

People like you write in all the time - it's hard for outsiders to understand how high housing and family costs are in the Bay Area. It never makes financial sense to move here unless one is on a very high earnings trajectory, or is already wealthy, or is willing to move significantly downscale.

[clongirl]

San Ramon, parts of Danville, and maybe Pleasanton have the look/feel you want (like Agrestic), but it would be terribly unwise to just buy a house upon arrival. Rent first!!

You didn't mention where your job will be so these places may not even be the best choice for you.

[BayAreaHillbilly]

Bottom line there are no suburbs here equivalent to "good" Long Island, "middle class" Westchester, "nice" inner Rockland or suburban NE NJ.

Here you are either in a "high end" Westchester or "bad" NE NJ / LI.