What is the best Bay Area city for low-income living

[sarahhorselover]

Originally Posted by Misty108

I'm sorry, I should have mentioned, kids and schools aren't an issue, and neither is a daily commute. Thanks everyone for all of this info.

Oh, then that opens your options way up!

Antioch has plenty of areas that are safe. Antioch also has Kaiser (two locations) and Sutter hospitals and lots of shopping. Eventually there will be an E-BART station around Hillcrest which will make traveling into the rest of the Bay Area easier if the need ever arises. You just have to make sure to visit any areas you're interested in to make sure you feel safe. Definitely stay away from the immediate area around Deer Valley High School and the greater area around Antioch High School (Sycamore is a bad neighborhood).

Oakley and Brentwood both have better reputations for safety than Antioch, but are both more expensive, with Brentwood the most expensive.

But you still can't beat the prices in East Contra Costa County. We bought a new construction house in 2014 for $120/sq ft (compare that to the thread about the prices per BART stop!). It only sucks if you have to commute for a job, which it sounds like you don't.

[NoMoreSnowForMe]

Google different cities and counties and "housing authority," then look for family affordable housing apartment complexes. If you're 55+ you can also look at those facilities. If you can deal with noise and a Mexican/Vietnamese neighborhood, this place only had a 6 month waiting list when I checked it out:

Timberwood Apartments - Apartments - Seven Trees - San Jose, CA - Yelp

Pretty much any town in the SF Bay Area will have all the amenities you would want as far as shopping and healthcare, etc. If you needed public transportation, you'd have to look into that for any different apartment you'd be looking at.

[vdy1985]

Fairfield and Vallejo are probably your best bets for cheap living by far.