Im looking to move to the Bay Area NEED ADVISE!! (San Francisco: budget, apartments)

[Numb1ne]

My Girlfriend, Our 1 1/2 year old and myself are looking to make the move from Michigan to the Bay Area. We were looking in the Berkley/Richmond area and possibly Oakland. We are looking for a 2 bd. house/apt for 900/1100. Can anyone help us on where else would be a good place to look.

AND> we are from Michigan, we would like to be by/near/close to water if possible.

[brewer2930]

Hi. We are also from Michigan and love the Fremont area. Close to both SF and SJC. Only about 3 or 4 minutes from the water which doesn't matter since you want swim in it. But it keeps it cool.

[humboldtrat]

Originally Posted by Numb1ne

We are looking for a 2 bd. house/apt for 900/1100.

You won't find a 2 bed house for $900 - $1100 anywhere in the Bay Area unless it's a crack house in a ghetto. You'll need to spend double that and probably more for anything decent (especially if you want to live near water). Things are much more expensive in California than in Michigan.

[NorthernCalifornia]

humboldtrat is a bit severe for the East Bay. He is correct about the city of San Francisco in terms of prices. check sfbay.craigslist.org for pricing in the bay area and you'll find quite a bit of fluctuation. Some parts of Richmond are quite nice, much of it is OK and some if it is dreadful. You may want to get to know the area better before choosing a place in Richmond.

[artemis78]

Ditto what NorthernCalifornia said--and that goes for Berkeley and Oakland too, in that price range. Certainly don't sign a lease without checking out a neighborhood (and apartment) in person, and possibly consider subletting for a month or two to learn more about those cities.

Without knowing where you're commuting to, I'd guess your best bet to be close to the water in that range is to look at large one-bedroom apartments (sometimes you'll find some with studies, etc.) in West Berkeley, Albany, or the eastern edge of El Cerrito. Rents tend to be a little lower there in part because you're near the freeway in addition to being near the water. But there's the Berkeley Marina, easy access to Transbay buses, BART (in some areas), and I-80, and interesting things to see and do along San Pablo, University, Solano, and Berkeley's 4th Street.

The nice parts of Richmond that are near the water are probably out of your price range, but you could always look. Parts of Oakland might also qualify depending on your commute (and also what type of water you want nearby--for instance, would Lake Merritt qualify as water, or do you need the Bay?)

[gizmo980]

If you can raise that budget a little, you might try looking in Point Richmond or the Marina Bay (Richmond) area. I work in Richmond, so I'm pretty familiar with the good & bad parts - and these are among the nicest. I looked at a 1-bedroom in Marina Bay for $1200, so like the others said, you'll have to spend more than you're planning (maybe $1500-1600). Only way you'd get into a 2-bedroom for $900-1000 is if you live in the ghetto, and even that would be a stretch... since I've seen homes go for $2000+ in the worst neighborhoods! You could also find something "cheap" if you go farther from the Bay, like Vallejo or Farfield, but that could be a bad commute depending on where you work. Speaking of which, do you know where you'll be working? Good luck!

[humboldtrat]

The OP is looking for a 2 bed HOUSE - not an apartment and I still say you won't find that in the East Bay for $900+/month.

[gizmo980]

Originally Posted by humboldtrat

The OP is looking for a 2 bed HOUSE - not an apartment and I still say you won't find that in the East Bay for $900+/month.

Actually, they said either one would be OK - "We are looking for a 2 bd. house/apt for 900/1100"

But regardless, I think you are correct... a 2-bedroom apt. would be more than $900, even in the bad neighborhoods. 'Tis life in the Bay Area.

[Numb1ne]

thank you all for the great advice. When i say "water" I just mean we dont want to live Sacramento or Modesto far from the water. We should be able to do 1200. We have been looking on Craigslist, Rent.com, and some other sites. we've accually found some decent apartments all over the east bay for anywhere from 950 to 1150. we will have a few K to get going so it shouldnt be hard to get settled. We have some friends we might be able to stay with and check out some places/neighborhoods before we sign anything. All the neighborhoods you can tell us to look in that are decent for a starting would be great...whether its a 30 minute commute to the water...all advice please!
We were going to move to LA....

[S.Bartlett]

Hello everyone (I'm the girlfriend and mother of the 1.5 year old..) Thanks for the great advice! We have JUST decided to move to Bay Area instead of LA because reality finally caught up to us. Maybe one day if we become wealthy we can do so.. But for now we'll focus on starting out and raising our daughter. Anyway water IS important to us, but so is living in a decent neighborhood within our budget. So if we happen to have to drive just to spend a day at the beach, that's okay.

If anyone can steer us in the right direction along the lines of a good neighborhood to raise a toddler in with jobs and great day cares near by, that would be wonderful! It's a hard commute but we're determined to travel and get out of Michigan before our daughter starts school.