Job Offer in Foster City (Fremont, Hayward: apartment, rentals, condos)

[new_to_forums]

My dh got a job offer in Foster City. We would be moving from CO, so yeah big change. Can you guys help me narrow down the area we could rent in?

First and foremost, we need to rent in a great school area. I have four kids, 2 girls in elementary school, a 4 yr old and 2 yr old. Oh I just realised that our 3rd child could start Kinder next fall. In CO, the cut off was Oct 1st and his birthday is Oct 3rd. Do CA schools bus the kids? Yeah, the girls take the bus and we dont pay anything.

Rent wise, we want to keep to 2k for a 3 bedroom house.
A yard would be fantastic but open to renting an apartment or condos.
Dh would have to take public transport to work because we are one car family.

Oh and if it makes any difference, we are from Asia. and yes we get a lot of comments because of our family size.

TIA

[sonarrat]

Originally Posted by new_to_forums

My dh got a job offer in Foster City. We would be moving from CO, so yeah big change. Can you guys help me narrow down the area we could rent in?

First and foremost, we need to rent in a great school area. I have four kids, 2 girls in elementary school, a 4 yr old and 2 yr old. Oh I just realised that our 3rd child could start Kinder next fall. In CO, the cut off was Oct 1st and his birthday is Oct 3rd. Do CA schools bus the kids? Yeah, the girls take the bus and we dont pay anything.

Rent wise, we want to keep to 2k for a 3 bedroom house.
A yard would be fantastic but open to renting an apartment or condos.
Dh would have to take public transport to work because we are one car family.

Oh and if it makes any difference, we are from Asia. and yes we get a lot of comments because of our family size.

TIA

Not possible. $2K might get you a 3-bedroom apartment or townhouse in a lousy school district. Go up to $2500, and you'll have better options, but fully detached units carry a premium and you'll have to expect stiff competition for rentals. Look into San Carlos, Belmont, Foster City, Hayward Park area of San Mateo.

[ElleBebe]

School cut off is Dec. 2nd, so your 4yo could start Kindergarten this year. My elementary school district growing up in Menlo Park/Redwood City/Portola Valley sent buses; when I got to high school I had to take the public bus.

I don't have much experience renting around there, but I agree with sonarrat, $2000/month for a 3 bdr house seems pretty low; if you managed to find anything, it'd probably be in a sketchy area. It might be more doable for an apartment, but would still probably be difficult. You'd have more luck pushing up your rent to $2500.

Amtrak can be good for commuting; maybe research where Amtrak stations are, and look into the neighborhoods near them.

[sonarrat]

Originally Posted by sonarrat

Not possible. $2K might get you a 3-bedroom apartment or townhouse in a lousy school district. Go up to $2500, and you'll have better options, but fully detached units carry a premium and you'll have to expect stiff competition for rentals. Look into San Carlos, Belmont, Foster City, Hayward Park area of San Mateo.

I should add that this only applies if you stay west of the bridge. If you don't mind a few miles of stop and go getting out to 92 and a $4 bridge toll once a day, then you could look into Castro Valley and save a good chunk of change on your rent.

[new_to_forums]

Originally Posted by ElleBebe

School cut off is Dec. 2nd, so your 4yo could start Kindergarten this year. My elementary school district growing up in Menlo Park/Redwood City/Portola Valley sent buses; when I got to high school I had to take the public bus.

I don't have much experience renting around there, but I agree with sonarrat, $2000/month for a 3 bdr house seems pretty low; if you managed to find anything, it'd probably be in a sketchy area. It might be more doable for an apartment, but would still probably be difficult. You'd have more luck pushing up your rent to $2500.

Amtrak can be good for commuting; maybe research where Amtrak stations are, and look into the neighborhoods near them.

He turns 4 this Oct so he will start next year right?What about Fremont area?

Anyhow, Dh starts in 2 weeks and he will scout for areas when he is there. We'll come end of the month. Thanks for your help

[tennis368fan]

Fremont is a city with good schools. Download a map of Fremont Unified School District's school zones and match that up with this list form the California Department of Education.

2008 Growth API LEA List of Schools Report (CA Department of Education)

API 800+ means the school is "proficient", and that is the gauge that I use when searching for elementary and middle schools. In fact, elementary and middle schools should be much higher than 800, say 815-820 and above, to be a better selection. High schools can be slightly lower than 800, but no lower than the mid 800's, to be of good quality. This is because a high school can be at API 750 and still get a 7 or 8 out of 10, or the top 20% - 30% of all high schools in the state; while an elementary school can get a 7 out of 10 with an API of 800.

You should still consider Castro Valley neighborhood served by Castro Valley Unified School District, in which all schools are rated over API 800 regardless of neighborhood. However, Castro Valley Unified School District does not serve residents west of Rolando Avenue or south of I-580. However, the Five Canyons subdivision south of I-580 is served by Castro Valley USD. It is also a little closer to Foster City and you can take a commuter bus, the AC Transit "M", directly to Foster City. This way you can avoid stress by relaxing on the bus, which is usually a tour bus, or you can do work using the bus' WIFI.

Fremont does not have direct transit to Foster City and takes longer on the freeway with traffic, especially in the good areas at the southern end.

[ElleBebe]

Originally Posted by new_to_forums

He turns 4 this Oct so he will start next year right?

If he's still 3, then yes, he can start next year; it will be your choice, though, whether to have him start next year or wait another year until he is 5.

In any case, you should probably just talk to the school district and see what they say; don't people usually recommend holding boys back a year and starting kindergarten later?

[humboldtrat]

Originally Posted by new_to_forums

Dh would have to take public transport to work because we are one car family.

In that case, live in Foster City or nearby San Mateo. Living across the bay as others have suggested would make for a long commute on public transit. The bad news is that you won't find a 3 bedroom house for $2000 in the area.

[sonarrat]

Originally Posted by humboldtrat

In that case, live in Foster City or nearby San Mateo. Living across the bay as others have suggested would make for a long commute on public transit. The bad news is that you won't find a 3 bedroom house for $2000 in the area.

AC Transit M line starts in Castro Valley and makes stops in Foster City, as well as going on over the other bridge (Dumbarton) and hitting Union City. I don't know if you can count on its permanence, though, because the ridership is pretty low.

[new_to_forums]

Originally Posted by sonarrat

AC Transit M line starts in Castro Valley and makes stops in Foster City, as well as going on over the other bridge (Dumbarton) and hitting Union City. I don't know if you can count on its permanence, though, because the ridership is pretty low.

Okay so does Castro valley include Hayward? Thanks for the API link. Am going to research that as well.