Place place to live for family and commute to San Jose

[jnghiem]

Well gmkarr, Fremont is diverse. I'm sure very city is diverse in a way. It doesn't have the small town feel like Los Gatos but it's not big city feel either like SF. It's more in-between. I think majority of the homes are older with the newer homes in the hills.

The reason I suggested Fremont was the your job in San Jose and your parents in Berkeley. Fremont would be the ideal half way point. Shoot down 880 to San Jose. Shoot up 880 to Berkeley. One freeway. The commute is not too bad. Yes, I've driven it during commute hours.

I don't really know why my friends didn't send their kids to the Morgan Hill schools. I remember them mentioning that they had a carpool going with some other families driving the kids from MH to SJ. I do know that the school they went to was in the Cupertino area. I can't really comment on how good the schools are in MH because I don't know all the facts.

[wimchatta]

Originally Posted by Palindromed

San Jose is a big city. Going from South San Jose (Almaden McKean) to North San Jose (trimble) could take as much as 45 minutes. A guideline is for every 5 miles it will take 20 minutes per in commute.

Here are some commute estimates from what I done the last 5 years.

Morgan Hill to downtown San Jose - 40 minutes
Downtown San Jose to University Avenue Palo Alto - 40 minutes
Silver Creek Estates to downtown San Jose - 30 minutes
Downtown Campbell to downtown San Jose - 25 minutes
Santana Row to downtown San Jose - 15 minutes
Pleasanton to downtown San Jose - 1 hour
Downtown Milpitas to downtown San Jose - 35 minutes
Gilroy to downtown San Jose - 1 hour
Downtown San Jose to Santa Cruz - 50 minutes
Santa Clara University to downtown San Jose - 15 minutes
Downtown San Jose to downtown San Francisco - 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours

Hi Palindromed,

Great info there...

Would you know if the commute from Pleasanton is shorter if done before 6:30am / after 7pm?

Am considering Pleasanton for a new job in Santa Clara. The price of housing in the Bay area is a big shock, would prefer to live closer but cannot afford. Am willing to get out early / return late if that is what it takes.

Pleasanton seems to have lots of room for children to play based on Google maps. Also decent elementary schools. In reading through Fremont discussion threads, appeared quality of teaching is not as consistent, but academic peer pressure gets some school districts better ratings.

Thanks,
wimchatta

[sonarrat]

Originally Posted by wimchatta

Hi Palindromed,

Great info there...

Would you know if the commute from Pleasanton is shorter if done before 6:30am / after 7pm?

The commute starts very early on 580 and 680 because so many people have to drive so far - to San Francisco or San Jose especially, and from as far out as Modesto and Sacramento.

[MichaelinWA]

To the OP - you might also want to check out Hollister, in San Benito County, for a "small town feel." Quite a few Silicon Valley workers live down there. It's kinda far out, though, and I would guess that the commute wouldn't be easy.

[sirhelm]

Hi

I would have to agree that you need to factor in traffic patterns in and around San Jose. I used to work in Pleasanton and lived in South San Jose just next to Los Gatos. Reverse commute took approx 35-40 minutes heading to Pleasanton and about 45-50 minutes back. However living in Pleasanton and driving to San Jose will take you at least an hour during rush hour, and that is if there are no accidents, etc.....

It is a tough commute.

I also used to live in Fremont, and loved it. Fremont is generally safe, diverse, and is close to a lot of ammenities. However it is a nightmare on 880 South and getting to 280 depending on where you live in Fremont can also cause a lot of issues. Either way plan on a lot of commuting to and from San Jose.

Honestly I would look for a nice area in greater San Jose. As was mentioned before, Campbell, or areas bordering Los Gatos (anything near 85/union area). Union and Campbell school district are great. There is also Willow Glen to consider. Older homes and a bit more expensive. If budget is an issue you can rule out Los Gatos, Los Gatos hills, Saratoga.

There is also the Santa Cruz mountains as well. Something on HWY 17. It is S, SE of San Jose, and could be a possibility. However HWY 17 can be a nightmare in the Commute direction, especially if an accident occurs, or it is raining or snowing.

Hope this helps

SH

[madt]

I commuted from Berkeley to Sunnyvale (north of san jose) and I lasted about 6 months before I moved to Fremont. It would take me 1 hour when I left at 5AM every day. Fremont used to be nice (I grew up there), but lately it seems to have gone down hill. Alot of gangs and drugs and the surface street traffic has gotten RIDICULOUS compared to just 5 years ago.