Albany, Emeryville, Berkeley, Pt Richmond??

[ZhugeLiang]

"but they are just too suburban & far from SF/Peninsula."

Sounds like Albany would be the perfect fit. I liked it there. Albany provides peace of mind being just far enough removed from all the action for a good night's sleep while still being a convenient spot with it's proximity to a BART station let alone Berkeley, and it's not too far from the Bridge should you need to drive.

And yes, Solano Ave. is a nice touch.

[Bigwit54]

Do not live in Berkeley, unless you like being annoyed 24/7

[gizmo980]

Originally Posted by Bigwit54

Do not live in Berkeley, unless you like being annoyed 24/7

By whom/what?

For the record, I ended up deciding to stay in San Francisco for the time being (this is an old thread)... I just love it here too much, I have a great deal on rent, 2 great roommates, and I'm still close enough to my family. If I ever do decide to move, I'll probably end up in Berkeley, Albany or Point Richmond. I almost rented a house two blocks from my work, but just couldn't convince myself to leave SF quite yet.

[Jolly BG]

i'm going to ride along this thread if you don't mind ^. Thanks. I too, have been looking for property in East Bay. I've recently have taken a tour, since I'm not familiar to the area, but a lot of my friends are. I've stayed in Richmond, right off Bayview. Ghetto, yes. I'm used to it though. I've seen it all. Properties I was looking at were in Oakland (Pacific Cannery Lofts), where gentrification is currently taking place. It's a good investment property since developments of townhouses and affordable housing are planned. Although, with the recession, who knows when those will be fulfilled. More than likely within five years. Then I checked out a development in Emeryville. It was above my price range, but the views from the third floor on up where amazing. 360 view, from the city to Berkeley hills. The place is called Vue 46. They are pretty much lowering their prices by 15%. Last time I was there, they had a 3 bed/ 3 full bath 2300 sq ft town house for 680k original price was 800k. Open since April 2008, they have only sold 1 out of the 7 lofts, a few townhouses and more flats. Their lofts have decks located on the 3rd floor.

Now, I know it's not good to try to time the market. Since, the market hasn't hit the floor yet and since S.F. is one of the hardest hit markets, when is the optimal time to purchase? I'm guessing third quarter 2009. Originally I was hoping end of 1st quarter 2009. What do you guys think?