Best area in SJ to buy a condo under $150K

[mysticaltyger]

Originally Posted by asnlc

Blossom Hill & Snell (Judith Dr, Tyhurst, Spinnaker, Tradewinds, Coy)
Senter & Capitol Expy (Sieber)
Berryessa & Capital Ave (Wyman)
Monterey Hwy & Blossom Hill (Monterey Hwy)
McQuesten (near the Tropicana area which I heard was kinda run down?)
San Carlos & Meridian (Chiechi)
Jackson Ave & Alum Rock (Castlebridge, Alexian)

Does anyone have comments on these areas or have suggestions on other locations? I'd greatly appreciate any info!

Thanks!

Here's how I'd rank order those:

#1 San Carlos/Meridian (near downtown, an up an coming area...they have really fixed it up a lot with new condos, etc)

#2 Blossom Hill/Snell...As one poster said, it is rather bland/utilitarian, but an ok neighborhood

#3 Berryessa/Capitol. Some might say this one is as good or better than #2 neigbhorhood wise...It's a close call.

The rest, I'm not sure how I would rank order, but I wouldn't want to live in any of those areas. As another poster said, the crime is not all that horrible compared to other 'bad' neighbhorhoods in other cities...but the quality of life just isn't there (litter, shopping carts on the sidewalks, too many cars parked out front, paved over front yards, yards enclosed with those ugly wrought iron gates (ICK!), and stores that cater to immigrants from the 3rd world instead of native born Americans).

[nr5667]

I suppose this is as good a thread to bump as any...

A condo in the vicinity of the Capitol Expressway/101 interchange (down the street from target), is this an okay neighborhood? I plan to drive through it, but such a cursory glance can't really tell the whole story.

The condo itself is pretty nice, and is in a gated community (if you have to have gates...). So what's the area like? Everyone says to pretty much avoid East San Jose, but then again the Berryasa area didn't seem so bad, so I do wonder...

Thanks so much!

[bigdumbgod]

Originally Posted by BayAreaHillbilly

San Carlos / Meridian - classic.

Ding Ding Ding!

[mysticaltyger]

Originally Posted by nr5667

I suppose this is as good a thread to bump as any...

A condo in the vicinity of the Capitol Expressway/101 interchange (down the street from target), is this an okay neighborhood? I plan to drive through it, but such a cursory glance can't really tell the whole story.

The condo itself is pretty nice, and is in a gated community (if you have to have gates...). So what's the area like? Everyone says to pretty much avoid East San Jose, but then again the Berryasa area didn't seem so bad, so I do wonder...

Thanks so much!

I don't go to that area on a regular basis, but in general its an ok area. Berryessa is generally nicer than East SJ (it's on the east side of SJ but not considered East SJ if that makes sense). As another poster said, go to the neighborhood stores (like the Target) at different times of day and see if you like the vibe.

I would still prefer other areas of SJ myself (95118, 95119, 95120, 95123, 95124, 95125, 95126). But with the possible exception of 95123, these areas are all generally more expensive.

[bigdumbgod]

Originally Posted by mysticaltyger

Berryessa is generally nicer than East SJ (it's on the east side of SJ but not considered East SJ if that makes sense).

Berryessa rivals Cupertino for being the South Bay area with the highest concentration of Asian homeowners, so when you're talking vibe, that would be it.

[Ludachris]

Originally Posted by nr5667

I suppose this is as good a thread to bump as any...

A condo in the vicinity of the Capitol Expressway/101 interchange (down the street from target), is this an okay neighborhood? I plan to drive through it, but such a cursory glance can't really tell the whole story.

The condo itself is pretty nice, and is in a gated community (if you have to have gates...). So what's the area like? Everyone says to pretty much avoid East San Jose, but then again the Berryasa area didn't seem so bad, so I do wonder...

Thanks so much!

We used to live in that area for 5 years. I can't say it's very nice. The traffic getting on and off 101 at Capitol is enough to drive you insane. The Safeway and Target in the area are pretty run down inside. And overall, the people in the area are not very friendly or outgoing - which is probably mostly attributed to many of them not being able to speak English. The new shopping centers that just popped up are 95% catered to Asians, as you'll see by their storefront signage - which doesn't necessarily make the area not nice, but it makes it difficult to communicate with people in the area.

We were pretty happy to leave the area to be honest. Even though it's not widely considered to be East San Jose (it's typically referred to as Evergreen), there's little distinction between the two areas these days. And the language barriers are enough to frustrate you whenever you shop in the area. We found ourselves having to leave the area for a good selection of restaurants and we never used Eastridge mall for shopping, instead traveling to Valley Fair.

I'd probably suggest something on the west side of town in the Cambrian area instead - or maybe down in the Santa Teresa area by the Oakridge mall. Those tend to generally be considered nicer areas.

[Freezer41]

Makati Circle off Cottle Road in South San Jose is a pretty decent area and the price is right for 1 br

[sonarrat]

Originally Posted by Ludachris

We used to live in that area for 5 years. I can't say it's very nice. The traffic getting on and off 101 at Capitol is enough to drive you insane. The Safeway and Target in the area are pretty run down inside. And overall, the people in the area are not very friendly or outgoing - which is probably mostly attributed to many of them not being able to speak English. The new shopping centers that just popped up are 95% catered to Asians, as you'll see by their storefront signage - which doesn't necessarily make the area not nice, but it makes it difficult to communicate with people in the area.

We were pretty happy to leave the area to be honest. Even though it's not widely considered to be East San Jose (it's typically referred to as Evergreen), there's little distinction between the two areas these days. And the language barriers are enough to frustrate you whenever you shop in the area. We found ourselves having to leave the area for a good selection of restaurants and we never used Eastridge mall for shopping, instead traveling to Valley Fair.

I'd probably suggest something on the west side of town in the Cambrian area instead - or maybe down in the Santa Teresa area by the Oakridge mall. Those tend to generally be considered nicer areas.

You're right about the traffic, but compared to other areas that are similarly priced, 101/Capitol is pretty good. Santa Teresa and Cambrian are considerably more expensive. Blossom Valley traffic is pretty awful too.