Thinking about buying in Carmichael... (Fair Oaks: apartment complexes, buying a house, neighborhood)

[omnibob]

Hi all,

I've been reading the forum for awhile now, and always find it interesting and informative. Finally have a reason to post for the first time!

My wife and I are thinking about buying a house in Carmichael, and were driving around today in a neighborhood which seems to be known as Cameron Ranch. We liked the feel of the area along Winding Way, up behind American River College, and the prices suit us pretty well.

However, I also noticed that there are some apartment complexes, etc. in the area, and we don't know much about the neighborhood yet in terms of safety, schools, and those kinds of issues. (It certainly seemed pleasant and quiet as we were wandering through.)

Does anybody have any thoughts (pros/cons) on buying in this area? Should I have concerns about the effect of nearby apartments or duplexes on the future value of single-family detached homes? Or do you think it's a pretty safe bet to hold value over the long haul?

We would be planning to live in the house long-term (at least 10-15 years and quite possibly as long as we manage to keep breathing).

Thanks for your input!

[NewToCA]

I can't answer a lot of your concerns, but my own personal point of view is Carmichael is a decent area with good access to many communities, an advantage of being centrally located. Regarding stuff like safety and home appreciation, I don't see it as any better than just OK, mostly due to the mix of inexpensive apartments and housing along with being an area with little future development. Finally, the fact it isn't an incorporated area kind of leaves it hanging as far as future direction.

Overall, I think you can get a nice place at a good price. You also have easy access to most places in the metro area. But, I think appreciation will lag, and I'd get a good home alarm system (and keep the bushes around your property nicely trimmed).

If it were me, I'd probably take a close look at the Fair Oaks area, and see if I could find an acceptable property in my price range.

Just my impressions.

[MamaToThree]

I think that area is fine. As for the public schools, you may want to see what your neighborhood is zoned for. Depends on what you are looking for with a school. If test scores are important to you, then you may want to look at Deterding, Del Dayo, or Mission Open. If care of the whole child is important to you, than there are also good choices of charter schools (Waldorf, Montessori, etc.)

[genuwin]

check the property on bench street, drove by it and it was not too bad... close to the american river

good luck