$225K budget - San Jose vs. Hayward vs. East Palo Alto (Oakland: rentals, loan)

[sonarrat]

I'm making a 1-year target to have enough money saved up to buy a house with a Fannie loan in the Bay Area. I work in San Jose by Montague/Trimble, but also have to visit the peninsula 3x a week - Los Altos and Belmont. Family is in Morgan Hill and I visit them twice a month. Schools are no concern. I'm currently renting a house in Evergreen, San Jose, and more than anything, I just want to own, because the rentals in my price range always have major issues that I couldn't resolve without a hammer and elbow grease. If I'm going to have to do that to live decently, I might as well just buy the place.

My impression is that in this price range, there's not much difference between what I can get in San Jose vs. Hayward or East Palo Alto in terms of housing stock. The commute is about the same from east SJ or EPA because of the congested traffic on SJ city streets and freeways, but EPA has nicer weather and is more convenient on days when I work on the peninsula, which is a lot. (There's also a couple properties in my price range in Redwood City and east Menlo Park, which are pretty similar to EPA and which I'm also considering.)

My biggest question is about Hayward, which I know very little about. Are there any neighborhoods in Hayward in this price range which are better enough than EPA or downtown/east San Jose to merit the extra distance? I see properties in my price range dotted all over every corner of the city, but I have no idea what's good or isn't. Are there decent neighborhoods close to the bridge?

Anywhere else I could afford seems to be too far away (Oakland, SF Bayview, Concord). Union City, Fremont, Milpitas, Castro Valley are not in my price range.

[My future is in SRV]

Hayward is ghetto as hell. I can't go anywhere in the city without hearing gangsters blaring their rap music loud as hell all day long. And the public schools are awful! If you ever do have children you'd have to send them to Moreau Catholic High School or other private schools for them to get a half-decent education.

[Oakland Uptown]

Originally Posted by My future is in SRV

Hayward is ghetto as hell. I can't go anywhere in the city without hearing gangsters blaring their rap music loud as hell all day long. And the public schools are awful! If you ever do have children you'd have to send them to Moreau Catholic High School or other private schools for them to get a half-decent education.

I remember I was in Beverly Hills and saw a man in hospital scrubs In a Ferrari listening to rap LOUD, must have be a thugged out Doctor. All of Haward is not bad. East Palo Alto is bad.

[sonarrat]

Originally Posted by My future is in SRV

Hayward is ghetto as hell. I can't go anywhere in the city without hearing gangsters blaring their rap music loud as hell all day long. And the public schools are awful! If you ever do have children you'd have to send them to Moreau Catholic High School or other private schools for them to get a half-decent education.

I hear "gangsters" blaring their rap and hip hop all day long in my "quiet" neighborhood in San Jose Evergreen, too, with their big flashy chrome wheels and puke-inducing two tone paint jobs. It bugs me, but I know I can't really get away from it because it's such a big part of pop culture now..

[daluu]

What kind of property you looking for as well? Size and # rooms, baths, etc.?

[sonarrat]

2 bedroom house of 900+ square feet, lot of 4000-5000 square feet. Nothing fancy at all.

[18Montclair]

If your not afraid of the hood, which it sounds like ur not, then EPA seems the most ideal wouldnt it?

Here's a 3bd/2bth in EPA for $199,000(900 sq ft on 5,000 sq ft lot)
320 E BELL St, East Palo Alto, CA 94303 | MLS# 81029602


to be honest, this looks exactly some a house you'd see in Tonga. LOL

Of all the houses in SJ in ur price range, this is the one that I like the most from pics...
2bd/1bth $225,000(1100 sq ft on 5700 sq ft lot)

http://media.cdn-redfin.com/photo/8/...81009751_0.jpg

1236 S 2ND St, San Jose, CA 95112 | MLS# 81009751

I personally wouldnt pay mind to the Hayward gang problem-to me its a non-issue. But then that's me.

[jbunniii]

Originally Posted by 18Montclair

Of all the houses in SJ in ur price range, this is the one that I like the most from pics...
2bd/1bth $225,000(1100 sq ft on 5700 sq ft lot)

http://media.cdn-redfin.com/photo/8/...81009751_0.jpg

1236 S 2ND St, San Jose, CA 95112 | MLS# 81009751

I'm trying to wrap my brain around the fact that someone paid $573k for that house in 2006! It doesn't look like a bad house, but how could it ever have been "worth" over half a million? $225k seems a lot closer to its real value. Notice, though, that it didn't sell at $160k (April 22, 2010 listing price), so they RAISED the price by 40%??

[sonarrat]

I've learned that San Jose's first time homebuyer program is quite robust.. I could get up to $50,000 in downpayment assistance, and only need to contribute 1% of the home value towards closing costs for my total out of pocket. So I've pretty well decided that San Jose is the way to go!

I like that house, 18Montclair, except for the little problem of being on the Monterey Highway!

[Sunnnee]

I grew up in the Evergreen Area in the 80's when a house price was it's real worth. That's a good area as long as its over by the Country Club (Silver Creek). I would look at Campbell. Its a nice area and the neighborhoods are very nice...EPA...BAD, Hayward...BAD!