Walnut Creek or Pleasanton? Family of 5 (Oakland, Berkeley: 2014, buying a home, neighborhood)

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by capoeira

Those Alameda homes are in a liquefaction zone!

http://www.arcgis.com/home/webmap/vi...er/0&source=sd

I would not even consider gambling on the purchase of a home in a liquefaction zone, especially with small children.

The OP isn't going to be buying any of those homes, anyway. They'll be sold by the time the OP gets to the Bay Area. The purpose of posting the links, was so the OP could see what the prices were in Alameda, for the size home s/he wants.

[capoeira]

Originally Posted by NewbieHere

I agree, most of the Bay Area is in liquefaction zone.

It is not most of the Bay area, the high risk red zones are the areas built on mud,sand and artificial fill.

San Fransico Bay Area Liquifaction Map | CSE for Landscape Architects

[likealady]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

The OP isn't going to be buying any of those homes, anyway. They'll be sold by the time the OP gets to the Bay Area. The purpose of posting the links, was so the OP could see what the prices were in Alameda, for the size home s/he wants.

But the OP said she narrowed her choice down to Pleasanton or Walnut Creek so why are you suggesting other areas anyway?

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by likealady

But the OP said she narrowed her choice down to Pleasanton or Walnut Creek so why are you suggesting other areas anyway?

Because she thinks she can't afford to be closer to SF, so a couple of people called Albany and Alameda to her attention, as locations that fit her budget and space needs. People who don't know the area often are unaware that there are more affordable enclaves among the more expensive areas like Berkeley and Oakland.

[marcopolo666]

Originally Posted by NewbieHere

I agree, most of the Bay Area is in liquefaction zone. More nonsense from people online to say I won’t buy house because of this reason.

Well, *I* didn't buy a house in a liquefaction zone. Mommy didn't raise no fool!

[tstieber]

Walnut Creek native here! I would vote WC over Pleasanton for several reasons:

-More house for the money (Pleasanton gets Silicon Valley spillover residents; why pay more for proximity you don't need?)
-Nicer, bigger, walkable downtown with way more to do; even mall shopping is much nicer walking outside on the street with trees and flowers than going to a big indoor mall. Sidewalk cafes, boutiques, restaurants all over the place.
-Easier, faster access to SF, Oakland, and Berkeley for lots of Cultural offerings like theater and museums (plus the Regional Center for the Arts in WC proper)
-Cute towns of Danville and Lafayette nearby
-Tons of outdoor recreation really close by: golf, tennis, horseback riding, swimming, hiking, mountain biking (Pleasanton is pretty good in this department too)

Schools are great in both cities. Albany also has great schools (Alameda less so), but Albany has a grittier vibe IMO, and it's also a terrible fog trap. If you love being in overcast and 65f all summer, then by all means move to Albany. Alameda is a cute small city with a real Americana vibe, and a beach! I love it, but it's quite different from the inland suburbs.

One downside to WC: older housing stock. And not historic, but just older tract homes. Upside: bigger lots. Now lest you worry about older neighborhoods not having the community pools, fear not! Much of the area has a network of private neighborhood "swim and tennis clubs" for which you pay a modest membership fee and can use recreationally and competitively. Plus, Heather Farms Park is huge, has two pools (one heated year round for lap swimming), tons of tennis courts, plus baseball fields, ponds, and gardens. Larkey Park offers a smaller version of this. So there are options. Plus, backyard pools are very common in homes from these eras; just check out Google satellite view, and you'll be shocked how pervasive it is. I knew fewer people without pools than with pools growing up.

WC all the way!

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by tstieber

Walnut Creek native here! I would vote WC over Pleasanton for several reasons:

-More house for the money (Pleasanton gets Silicon Valley spillover residents; why pay more for proximity you don't need?)
-Nicer, bigger, walkable downtown with way more to do; even mall shopping is much nicer walking outside on the street with trees and flowers than going to a big indoor mall. Sidewalk cafes, boutiques, restaurants all over the place.
-Easier, faster access to SF, Oakland, and Berkeley for lots of Cultural offerings like theater and museums (plus the Regional Center for the Arts in WC proper)
-Cute towns of Danville and Lafayette nearby
-Tons of outdoor recreation really close by: golf, tennis, horseback riding, swimming, hiking, mountain biking (Pleasanton is pretty good in this department too)

Schools are great in both cities. Albany also has great schools (Alameda less so), but Albany has a grittier vibe IMO, and it's also a terrible fog trap. If you love being in overcast and 65f all summer, then by all means move to Albany. Alameda is a cute small city with a real Americana vibe, and a beach! I love it, but it's quite different from the inland suburbs.

One downside to WC: older housing stock. And not historic, but just older tract homes. Upside: bigger lots. Now lest you worry about older neighborhoods not having the community pools, fear not! Much of the area has a network of private neighborhood "swim and tennis clubs" for which you pay a modest membership fee and can use recreationally and competitively. Plus, Heather Farms Park is huge, has two pools (one heated year round for lap swimming), tons of tennis courts, plus baseball fields, ponds, and gardens. Larkey Park offers a smaller version of this. So there are options. Plus, backyard pools are very common in homes from these eras; just check out Google satellite view, and you'll be shocked how pervasive it is. I knew fewer people without pools than with pools growing up.

WC all the way!

True about the pools, and the larger lots. My cousin's property there is adjacent to a neighborhood pool. She only has to go through her lower garden gate, and she's there. She also has a small stables; apparently her property used to have horses.

IDK about Albany being a fog trap. The part of Albany that's adjacent to Berkeley is as bright and sunny as the rest of Berkeley, once the fog burns off around mid-morning. That's what keeps the area cool, compared to WC. And that south part of Albany is walkable to Berkeley's Solano Avenue, full of shops, restaurants, etc.

But I can't deny that WC residential areas have a more rural feel, for those who want that, plus those neighborhood pool clubs. And its downtown is, indeed, nice, and fun to stroll and enjoy for an afternoon.

[marcopolo666]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

... And that south part of Albany is walkable to Berkeley's Solano Avenue, full of shops, restaurants, etc.

It's also walkable to Albany's Solano Avenue, full of shops, restaurants, etc. Not surprisingly, since it is the same street. (I am pretty sure that more of Solano Ave is in Albany than Berkeley, but I *could* be wrong.)

Damn! Now I am thinking of Zarri’s - used to go there all the time when I was a kid - one of my older brothers went to school with one of the Zarri kids. Damn good delicatessen (Italian) - great fresh-made sandwiches and they had the BEST frozen (fresh-frozen) Ravioli. You'd buy it by the "sheet" (two sheets in an old-style {1950's} small, flat, white, thin cardboard pizza-like box). I don't even know if it's there anymore, having moved away so many years ago.

[marcopolo666]

OP hasn't been back to check for info in about a week. How serious can they be about the info people are providing?

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by marcopolo666

It's also walkable to Albany's Solano Avenue, full of shops, restaurants, etc. Not surprisingly, since it is the same street. (I am pretty sure that more of Solano Ave is in Albany than Berkeley, but I *could* be wrong.)

. By gum, I think you're right! I always think of it as Berkeley. I can't help it.

Originally Posted by marcopolo666;

Damn! Now I am thinking of Zarri’s - used to go there all the time when I was a kid - one of my older brothers went to school with one of the Zarri kids. Damn good delicatessen (Italian) - great fresh-made sandwiches and they had the BEST frozen (fresh-frozen) Ravioli. You'd buy it by the "sheet" (two sheets in an old-style {1950's} small, flat, white, thin cardboard pizza-like box). I don't even know if it's there anymore, having moved away so many years ago.

Great street, nice nabe. Too bad Andronico's closed. Still a nice place to spend part of a day. Good bus service, and BART proximity, too. Ahhh, memories!