Job in Half Moon Bay. Suggestions on place to live in the Bay Area (San Jose: apartment, rental)

[MrSustainability]

I recently got myself a job in Half Moon Bay (HMB). Really feel lucky!! If all goes well, I should be starting this new gig sometime in Dec -13/Jan-14. So as I plan my move to the NorCal, I am looking for advice on the best place to rent in the region. I am not looking for great night life or anything of that sort. More of a jog in the park kind of guy (during weekdays). Just need a nice and descent place/community/neighborhood.

1. From my research so far, I understand that HMB is a small place and weather is generally foggy/gloomy (not my type). I also see that renting in this coastal community is insanely expensive. Considering my smallish pay check and my other financial obligations, my ideal rental budget would be 1500/month (1 bed room). Based on this, request folks to advice on the best rental places/cities. While ideally I would prefer to stay as close to work as possible, I am fine with a 30-40 min commute (each way).

FYI- I would need to commute to Central California (Tulare, Fresno, etc) 3-4 times a month for work related activities (I hope I get reimbursed )

2. How are Hayward, San Lorenzo, San Leandro, Union City, etc in terms of safety, ease of commute/commute time, etc. I see that rents in these areas falls within my budget. But I want to make sure I don’t screw up from a safety and commute perspective (Especially with the San Mateo bridge to cross).

3. The alternative to the above option would be to either look south (San Jose, Sunnyvale, etc) or look north (San Mateo, Pacifica, South SF, etc). Would rents in these places fall within my price band? And also how is the commute from these regions to HMB during usual office commute hours (7-8 am in the mornings and 4-6 pm in the evenings)?

Any other suggestions and inputs would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.

[5thgenSF]

Traffic in the bay area everywhere is insane. I had a Mountain View to San Mateo commute that wasn't bad. Going the other way looked like hell. Bridge tolls are high. One accident can add an hour.

[ccm123]

The better East Bay communities would be Castro Valley and Fremont. Hayward, San Lorenzo and Union City are spotty (some decent areas and some not). Commuting to HMB from the East Bay would be a tough commute, as you are going west, right into the traffic flow across the bridges.

Your commute from Pacifica, South SF and San Mateo would be better, but the rents would be higher, at least in San Mateo. You would not have daily bridge tolls to pay ($5 one way, westbound), which is something to consider.

[Azmordean]

I would rule out the East Bay off the bat. You don't want to have to cross the bay and the mountains two times a day, every day. The commute would be brutal.

How important is weather to you? Your easiest commutes are, I think, going to be from cities on the coast. Particularly if you live along the PCH, north of HMB, I suspect you'd have a relatively easy reverse commute south on the PCH.

The problem, of course, is all coastal locales are going to relatively cool and foggy, especially in the summer. Personally, I think I'd give this a go because living on / near the coast is kind of neat in its own right, and you can always do a day trip or hike in the South or East Bay if you want some sunshine .

Assuming the coast is OK - Pacifica may be a good option for you. Looking at a map, it's close to HMB, should be an easy commute. I think it's a nice area, though I don't know a whole lot about it. Rents for a 1br are a bit above your $1500, but under $2000, which is pretty good for the Bay Area. Many of the places even have ocean views at that price point. If you need to stay under $1500, it looks like there are perhaps some studio type places under that.

If you can't deal with the weather, your best bet commute wise would probably be San Mateo. It's on the peninsula, so still foggy at times, but it usually burns off during the day at least. The problem is, it's going to be a lot more expensive as you are in the the "SF-Peninsula-Silicon Valley" commute zone. The commute I'm not sure about - I'm not sure how traffic is crossing the mountains on 92 - probably not terrible most of the time, but really bad if there's an accident or something on 92.

You might want to come visit the area as well before you move!

[thecooler]

Personally I would not live in the East bay, your commute will be well over an hour if you have to cross a bridge. Note-all along the coast is foggy but not year round, mostly in the summer. I think the commute from Pacifica/San Bruno/SSF/Daly City would be fine, as most people will be driving the other way. Also San Mateo commute would be good, but rents are more expensive there, Redwood City might be a consideration if you can find a place near 280. You wouldn't want to go south of Palo Alto as traffic on 280 is bad from around there to SJ.

I'm not sure about current rents, but for $1500 on the peninsula I dont think you're going to find anything great, you might want to consider a studio or jr 1bd.

[MrSustainability]

Thanks 5thgenSF, thecooler, Azmordean and ccm123. Really appreciate all your inputs. Based on your inputs I am going to rule out east bay, somehow stretch my rental budget and also get over the weather factor. Actually I don’t mind the cool breeze and foggy settings. It’s my wife I am thinking about since she will stay home at least until she goes to grad school or finds a job. Will have to talk through this with her.

I'd love to come by and visit the area before the move. But considering that I am not in the States right now, that may not be a possibility.

I will try to narrow my search to Belmont, Pacifica, South SF and San Mateo. Any other places I should consider?

Quick question to you folks, what is the general rental scene during the beginning of the year. I mean are there generally any special rates, reduction in rents at the beginning of the year that property guys dangle to attract renters?

Also, in all likely hood I may come alone first to start up on the job and then my wife will join me in a month or two. So, I will probably just look at some paying guest/roommate to live with while I am alone. This will give me a good month or two to do a thorough apartment search. You think this time I will get along with the possible beginning of the year deals will help me find just the right place (price, location, etc) to rent ? This is the optimist in me speaking

One final question: My wife may end up joining grad school in fall-14. It may be either UC Berkeley (I hope) or SJSU or UCSC. Considering this, you think she i'd be able to commute to any of these schools from north HMB conveniently using public transport or do you think I will have to move closer to her school and then take the brutal commute to HMB?

Thanks for inputs all.

[ccm123]

The rental situation right now is very tight, meaning that it is a landlord's market, due to the strong technology based economy here.

Living in HMB, the commute to SJSU and Cal (UC Berkeley) should be fine, while UCSC would be pretty long (but against traffic, in the morning).

[imcurious]

Why on Earth would you not live in HMB?

[fashionguy]

Honestly HMB is your best bet. It is a nice coastal town and the rent is actually not as expensive as other places west of the bay. If you cross the mountains and go to San Mateo, the rent increases a lot. Your next best bets are Pacifica and Daly City, but their weather is not better than HMB.

Originally Posted by MrSustainability

I recently got myself a job in Half Moon Bay (HMB). Really feel lucky!! If all goes well, I should be starting this new gig sometime in Dec -13/Jan-14. So as I plan my move to the NorCal, I am looking for advice on the best place to rent in the region. I am not looking for great night life or anything of that sort. More of a jog in the park kind of guy (during weekdays). Just need a nice and descent place/community/neighborhood.

1. From my research so far, I understand that HMB is a small place and weather is generally foggy/gloomy (not my type). I also see that renting in this coastal community is insanely expensive. Considering my smallish pay check and my other financial obligations, my ideal rental budget would be 1500/month (1 bed room). Based on this, request folks to advice on the best rental places/cities. While ideally I would prefer to stay as close to work as possible, I am fine with a 30-40 min commute (each way).

FYI- I would need to commute to Central California (Tulare, Fresno, etc) 3-4 times a month for work related activities (I hope I get reimbursed )

2. How are Hayward, San Lorenzo, San Leandro, Union City, etc in terms of safety, ease of commute/commute time, etc. I see that rents in these areas falls within my budget. But I want to make sure I don’t screw up from a safety and commute perspective (Especially with the San Mateo bridge to cross).

3. The alternative to the above option would be to either look south (San Jose, Sunnyvale, etc) or look north (San Mateo, Pacifica, South SF, etc). Would rents in these places fall within my price band? And also how is the commute from these regions to HMB during usual office commute hours (7-8 am in the mornings and 4-6 pm in the evenings)?

Any other suggestions and inputs would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.

[MrSustainability]

Originally Posted by imcurious

Why on Earth would you not live in HMB?

I hope I get equally excited by HMB as and when I visit the place. The general advice I got after talking to folks (who are currently working in the HMB office) is that there is not really much to do in HMB, that the weather was not really great (foggy/dull, etc) and that renting within my budget in HMB would be next to impossible. Those were the major reasons for me. If you are from the HMB region and have some ideas on potential communities/ neighborhoods that would meet my criteria, please do let me know and I will definitely check them out. Thanks.