Is the area around Berryessa Road and N. Capitol Ave. a decent neighborhood? (San Jose: foreclosures)

[joyousjoyness]

I'm seriously looking to buy my first home near this area. The condo price is unbelievable! I'm a single gal, so I'm not interested in school districts too much, but I do want to live in a reasonably safe neighborhood, with some good housing values. Advice?

[sonarrat]

San Jose condos can indeed be dirt cheap. That area has a lot of little fourplex condos, which consist of one bungalow-style single level, two townhouse-style two level units, and one second-level unit over parking. It's kind of nice because no one is directly below or above anyone else.

However, they are old, of marginal construction, and in a traditionally lower-income area. You may not be concerned with schools, but they affect the resale value as well. There also happen to be a lot of foreclosures in the area. Those things all combine to depress the value of all condos in that particular corner of Berryessa, whether you're looking at these older condos, or one of the newer developments. I would suggest trying to get a unit in a more desirable area where there isn't so much inventory - like Morrill & Cropley or on Landess Avenue on the Milpitas border.

[bluebeard]

If she's buying, wouldn't she want somewhere with excess inventory? That's why its cheap. The forclosures shouldn't be a problem in a number of years, so while it may never be as expensive as other areas, its still pretty safe and the high forclosure and vacancies in the area is surely temporary, and so the prices should rise after she's bought the property.

[Heidi60]

Hi All, Our condo is in Blossom Valley and has real grass and 288 units which border a county park. This area is near Hwy 85/87 split and a block from light rail. Just for the transportation alone, this is a convenient area. Although there aren't many units in my complex on the market today, many neighbors are just waiting for the market to pick up so could probably find a good deal now, if you have the money. We also have a Trader Joes just a few miles away and interestingly, a Whole Foods will be moving directly across the street from them. How did you chose N. Capitol area?

[sanjose1990]

I lived near that exact spot!
There is a elementary school called cherrywood nearby, a cool park, safeway, lightrail and such.
it is a nice place to live. but i agree with above poster, the morill landess area can be nice too. however if you go up berryessa toward the mountain area that gets nice too. if you go down berryessa toward downtown = worsens.