Attending cal berkeley next spring, trying to decide where to live

[SandyCo]

Have you looked into the Berkeley Student Co-ops? Looks like they have two houses for grad students:

The Convent (Grad and Reentry Students)

Hillegass Parker House (Grad and Reentry Students)

My daughter was at UC Berkeley for two years as an undergrad student, and the co-op worked very well for her.

[BayAreaHillbilly]

If I were in the OP's shoes I would live somewhere between College Ave and 24, and, the Albany - El Cerrito border area around Colusa. North of Gilman anything between 80 and the hills would be game. Between Gilman and University, anything between San Pablo and the Hills. South of University, anything between MLK and the Hills.

[InterestedinSC]

[FONT=Verdana]San Francisco[/FONT][FONT=Verdana] -- way more expensive. Walnut Creek -- boring, not cheap. Oakland -- increasingly more dangerous, in the areas that are cheaper than Berkeley. There are nice areas in Oakland, but they are not cheap. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana]El Cerrito[/FONT][FONT=Verdana] -- hard to find anything next to BART, and see Walnut Creek above.[/FONT]
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[FONT=Verdana]If you are looking to save $100 or $200 a month by renting farther away keep in mind that you could easily spend them of transportation.[/FONT]
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[FONT=Verdana]Get an apartment in Berkeley and be in the heart of it. Enjoy your college years, have fun and avoid commute. Check out Craig’s list and you will find something downtown, even.[/FONT]
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[FONT=Verdana]Oh yes, get a bike! I agree with this suggestion.[/FONT]
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[FONT=Verdana]Best.[/FONT]

[fizbin]

Originally Posted by 18Montclair

Just stay in Berkeley.

Closer to classes, closer to campus life, closer to where you need to be.

What he said. The two-hour daily WC commute you mentioned is going to get real old real fast.

[Joe_Ryder]

Remember that mass transit in the Bay Area, and CA in general tends to be quite expensive compared to East coast cities. The $400 you save will get chewed up in time and out of pocket expense. There are many more expenses involved in commuting than the cost of fuel or mass transit.