What do you think of Clayton? (San Francisco, Concord: house hunting, apartment complex, houses)

[staceybeth]

Looking at how close Concord is to Clayton (and Concord got bad write-ups in here) what is Clayton like? We are about to move there and I just noticed the bad postings on Concord. Clayton is the neighboring community, I believe? The name of the community is oakhurst cc?

[ImRandy]

Clayton is a small community. I think they have something like 13,000 residents. Concord is almost 10x bigger so you can't really compare the two on equal grounds.

Clayton is considered a more upscale area. I've heard Clayton has better schools but I'm not certain. The homes are mostly larger and you can find some really large properties the further down Marsh Creek you go.

Clayton is pretty much a bedroom community. It's not a place you'd go looking for excitement but it's a decent place to raise a family.

[staceybeth]

I personally like Concord just as much as Clayton. I was just looking to get information on Clayton (there isn't too much out there) I would have lived in Concord, but couldnt find anything that we really liked. I was just curious...because the write ups are so sketchy.

[18Montclair]

For the most part, Concord is fine. I dont know what people want? We cant all be Walnut Creek!

Anyway,
Clayton is an upscale, affluent area that seems quite separate from Concord so whatever little issues some might have in Concord, are largely non-issues in Clayton. I like the sense of open space out there and the fact that its right at the base of Mt Diablo provides for spectacular scenery.

[staceybeth]

Thanks 18Montclair! This has been a tough road (i'm not into house hunting) I think we did well- time will tell. I got a good feel driving up to the house. My ears popped a little...I'm excited! I would have loved to be in walnut Creek, but forget about it....there was nothing to rent at all- and the stuff we saw would make your head spin for the price they wanted. I'll stick with Clayton and drive to walnut creek for shopping (YAY!) I was just shocked at what people say about Concord- i didnt think it was all that bad.

Clayton doesnt have many shops or much of a downtown -so i thought being that Concord was next door- we would go there....?

One more thing....walnut creek was nice- but i don't get what the difference is between the cities---is it the main street? shopping?

well thanks!

[ImRandy]

We were looking in Concord/Pacheco/Martinez. We decided to stay put for the time being and continue to rent.

My in-laws live in Concord and my wife grew up there so the area is comfortable to us. There's only a few areas that I think are sketchy and they're pretty much certain apartment complexes rather than whole neighborhoods. By my standards, the houses in Concord are small (really small for the more reasonably priced homes anyway). The schools aren't considered good. Her parents put her into schools in Pleasant Hill rather than Concord. That was 20 years ago but from what we hear the situation hasn't changed much.

Probably the main reason there's not too much information about Clayton is that it's small. It's a quite community without a lot happening. For entertainment people drive into Concord or really anywhere between there and San Francisco. From a resale value point of view I would say Clayton homes are going to rise faster than Concord whenever the market finishes its slide but that isn't what I'd base the decision on.

[18Montclair]

Good Luck staceybeth, Im sure you'll be quite happy there!