Moving to Mountain View, CA (San Jose, Sunnyvale: real estate, apartment complexes, rent)

[sbasu]

I am planning to move to Mountain View, CA for a new job. I am looking for a safe family neighborhood with good schools. I can live within 25 miles of Mountain View area. Can you suggest me a good neighborhood / area? I don't need to be close to theater or shopping malls. I am not planning to buy now and looking for an apartment.

[sonarrat]

Budget? Otherwise everyone is just going to say Los Altos or Cupertino and it might be way out of your price range.

[sbasu]

Preferably 2 bed (2 or 1 bath). Budget $1400-$1900

[sonarrat]

That's not enough for Los Altos, but it is enough for Cupertino. All of the schools perform extremely well, due in large part to a booming Asian population. Even the real estate brokers in places like Hong Kong and Taiwan will advertise Cupertino.

[Luke9686]

I recommend Cupertino on that budget. I rented a nice 2 bedroom townhouse in Cupertino for $1350 per month. It's definately do-able.

[sandy7]

You will definitely find lot of apartments for your budget. Check out craigslist because a lot of apartment complexes in mountain view dont show up on rent.com

it's a really quiet and safe city compared to the areas further south. Just bear in mind that gas prices are a bit more in MV compared to santa clara/san jose and thereabouts. Downtown is pretty cool and has an excellent array of places for eating out.

[humboldtrat]

I would reccomend living in Mountain View where you're going to work. It's a nice, safe middle class town with lots of apartment buildings to choose from.

[gooski]

You can't go wrong with the schools in Cupertino. West San Jose near Lynbrook High School is a good area also and borders Cupertino. Just make sure you confirm with the school districts to ensure that you're in their zone before you rent.

Sunnyvale near Homestead High is an alternative.

[mysticaltyger]

Originally Posted by Luke9686

I recommend Cupertino on that budget. I rented a nice 2 bedroom townhouse in Cupertino for $1350 per month. It's definately do-able.

Beware...the rents have been jacked up a lot in the last few months. Now you are lucky to get a 1BR apartment in San Jose for $1350 a month let alone Cupertino.

I have a friend in SJ who rents a nice 1BR for around $1350 a month. Another rents a 1BR in Milpitas (nice) for $1550 (which he negotiated down....they were going to raise his rent to over $1600).

[Alexus]

Check out Sunnyvale. There is a portion that is in the Cupertino school district. Cheaper to live in than Cupertino proper, but with the benefit of Cupertino school reputation. Cupertino heavily asian, accounting for the good school reputation (which seems to be based solely on the high scores).