An impossible task? (San Jose, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara: mortgage, relocation, real estate)

[Don Corleone]

Hi everyone. I'm sure this question has been asked and answered numerous times before, so I apologize for seemingly asking it again. But I have some unique circumstances so I'd appreciate it if anyone could answer the 'age-old' litany that comes from out-of-towners.

Okay, so here's my situation. I work for a company headquartered in silcon valley, but I live on the East Coast. I just learned that I need to begin to prepare for a relocation to the valley, where I will be working in Santa Clara.

I 'think' I'll get a cost of living increase, but at most we're probably talking about an extra 10%, though it's hard to say for certain, as nothing has been relayed to me. We're a single income family and intend to stay that way if at all humanly possible (my wife will stay home with our children).

We live in rural New England, so we have 3 medium sized dogs. Yes, you read that right. So our needs are, in order:

-Good schools (let's say a 7 or better)
-Family friendly neighborhood (low crime, people socialize)
-At least 1600 square feet (preferably more)
-A fenced backyard of some size
-Less than 45 minute commute to Santa Clara (I can leave by 7AM or stay until 6:30, I usually do both now anyway).
-Not too much renovation work.

From crunching the numbers of a standard 30 year home mortgage at 6.375%, which seems achievable, I come out at about 500K. Thus far, what I've seen at 500K means something above in my list won't get met. Either I'll have to drive an hour each way or I'll be in a high crime area, or I'll have to get rid of the dogs.

Does this dreary scenario sound right to locals? I say dreary because as much as I love the Bay area, I don't want to have to make this choice just yet, but it's been made clear to me that it's non-negotiable, if I want to stay with this company, I have to go. And I always did want to move to the valley eventually, I think the later parts of my career will require it.

So, if anybody can offer any help or suggestions for something that would fit that I might have missed, I would be very appreciative.

Thanks!

P.S. I have to know... I don't make a bad salary... how DO you people afford these homes? Do both parents work 2 jobs apiece?

[Luke9686]

I checked mlslistings.com. I did 2 searches. One in Santa Clara and Sunnyvale. I put the price at $530K, 3 beds and didnt put in square footage. It came back with 46 listings. Most are good, and the schools are good in these areas. When I put 1600 square foot in, it came back with 0. You may have to sacrifice on the square feet.

The second search I did was in the San Jose city limits, in areas I know are good. I'm not sure on the schools though, not too familiar. The areas I searched were Blossom Valley, Almaden Valley, Cambrian, and Santa Teresa.

First I put in the price at $530K, 3 beds and no footage. It came back with 129 listings. When I put in the 1600 square foot, 15 listings. These are good areas. Some better than others.

You could even throw Willow Glen into the San Jose search and probably get a few more. Willow Glen, and the rose garden area are also great areas. Not sure how many below $530K listings they have though.

Honestly, I think on your budget, and with some patience, you will find what you are looking for. Probably in the city limits of San Jose though.

[Don Corleone]

Originally Posted by brokerty

Luke,

Im own a broker firm here in San Jose. I agree with the other guys response. In my opinion, San Jose is by far the best place. Great schools, great neighborhoods, very safe, abundance of police and plenty to do.
Look for bank owned foreclsures and I will search too. Are you here now? Call me at (323) 388-9073 cell or email me at brokerty@yahoo.com to further discuss your options and I can also give you ballpark payments.- Thanks, Tyler

Thank you both, very, very much. That's the first chance I've had to take a deep breath since I learned all of this last week. I did some more research, and you're both right, the City of San Jose itself, not just the surrounding suburbs, sounds rather pleasant. Perhaps the problem is what I think of when I hear "within the city limits". See, Northeastern cities don't generally have a middle class area, and they almost never have space for dogs. There are some nice areas, but they are very, very pricey.

San Jose sems to break that trend in that the nice areas within the city itself appear to be less expensive than nice areas in the surrounding areas. Odd.

Anyway, I'm going to have to keep a close eye on the housing market. I don't expect it to rebound within a week, it may even get lower, but I don't imagine I have a lot of time. I think 6 months is probably just about as long as I would want to wait (and I have to wait some, because without making a couple of changes, my current house back East won't have appreciated at all).

[sonarrat]

Originally Posted by Don Corleone

San Jose sems to break that trend in that the nice areas within the city itself appear to be less expensive than nice areas in the surrounding areas. Odd.

If you take into account the neighborhoods like Seven Trees or Alum Rock which are seriously economically distressed beyond the housing market, it starts to make more sense. Seven Trees in particular is like a little East Palo Alto.

[Luke9686]

Most neighborhoods in San Jose will be good for you. Just stay away from east San Jose. It's not horrible, but it's not the best part of town. Most anywhere else will be good.

Once you get to San Jose, you will notice there is no real difference between most of San Jose and the suburbs. You can be in San Jose on one block, and Santa Clara on the next and not even know it.

[Don Corleone]

I went to the MLS listing page you mentioned (thanks for that, by the way!) I found a couple of places in an area called alternately East Valley or East Foothills. It's squeezed in around Alum Rock and Evergreen. Any idea on how this neighborhood is? Thanks.

[socketz]

To answer your question, I think most things (especially Real Estate) in San Jose are based on a dual income family, each making six figures. Like you, I have little ones and my wife wants to continue to stay at home.

A 10% bump wont go far out here as housing is far worse that one would be led to believe coming from the outside. I picked up 15%, but still feel middle class here.

Also, be careful with the schools. There are many good schools, but many bad ones - often in the same school district.

What this means is that if one is impacted, they bus your kids to the 'marginal' overflow school. Many of them I've checked are impacted, so be careful.

Also, rental prices have gone up 30% in 3 months. Essentially, buying has slowed way down, yet the prices have not moved yet. What this means is that if you plan to rent, be prepared for intense competition, especially if the rental maps to good schools. Here, I treat rental appointments like job interviews. Odd, yet reality. Intense discrimination as well.

This is a pretty new scenario here in the Bay, so the locals are not much help in providing guidance.

I'm not trying to bring you down, just pointing out some realities that I was unaware of when I arrived a few weeks back. It's truly a humbling experience, even when you're making pretty good coin.

[sonarrat]

Originally Posted by Don Corleone

I went to the MLS listing page you mentioned (thanks for that, by the way!) I found a couple of places in an area called alternately East Valley or East Foothills. It's squeezed in around Alum Rock and Evergreen. Any idea on how this neighborhood is? Thanks.

My understanding is that area is unincorporated, and many of the properties there have septic systems, well water, and are basically quite primitive. It may be that many of those older properties have been replaced though.