Moving to Sacramento in a month or two: Any Help? (Los Angeles: for sale, apartment)

[lmbmkr1]

Moving from Las Vegas to Sacramento. We are in our 40's; 4 kids, 2 in college & 2 at home H.S. girl and middle school boy. Looking for good schools and safe neighborhoods that won't break the bank. Kids are sports minded but great students. Like parks and shopping.

Thanks

[NickB1967]

What part of Vegas did you come from? If you want a Summerlin like existence, Placer County cities, Folsom or El Dorado Hills would be recommended. Rancho Cordova would be more Henderson like (minus the casinos and raunchy billboards of nekkid women with stars over their hoo-hahs, of course). This area is a tad more pricey here however. What is your budget?

[ryuns]

Where are you working?

[u225615]

There are several areas that combine good schools and safe neighborhoods at affordable prices.

Are you renting or buying?

If buying, be aware that the housing inventory is low at the moment

Renting may be a better option while you familiarize yourself with the area.

Commuting may also be a factor as Sacramento is so spread out and highways become congested during peak hours.

Do you have a housing budget and general location of employment (i.e downtown, North Sacramento, South Sac, etc)?

[lmbmkr1]

Well, yes I agree. Renting would be best for now. I understand the banks will be releasing foreclosed homes next year. For sale homes are tight here in Vegas as well. I do have one to sell in Vegas. (Not a horrible time to sell in LV.) If I can not sell I will be forced to work there and family in Vegas until future date.

I will most likely be working near Folsom & Alhambra Blvd. I am assuming a commute will be in order. I've lived in LA & Houston (2 of the worst) so not a complete issue. Family more important than drive.

I do not have any idea of where to look in Sac. I do not know anybody there except the people I am in negotiations with and those negotiations can certainly alter when housing cost are more focused.

Any help in this area would be great!

[u225615]

Originally Posted by lmbmkr1

Well, yes I agree. Renting would be best for now. I understand the banks will be releasing foreclosed homes next year. For sale homes are tight here in Vegas as well. I do have one to sell in Vegas. (Not a horrible time to sell in LV.) If I can not sell I will be forced to work there and family in Vegas until future date.

I will most likely be working near Folsom & Alhambra Blvd. I am assuming a commute will be in order. I've lived in LA & Houston (2 of the worst) so not a complete issue. Family more important than drive.

I do not have any idea of where to look in Sac. I do not know anybody there except the people I am in negotiations with and those negotiations can certainly alter when housing cost are more focused.

Any help in this area would be great!

With priorities focused on family versus commuting I'd suggest the following:

Folsom-low crime, great schools (even the one or two lower performing ones are decent), decent amount of retail, most neighborhoods are fine and Folsom is near Highway 50 (congested but traffic moves along) which is the highway used to commute to your job locale.

Roseville-low crime (particularly east Roseville), tons of retail, great schools (some not as good as others so double check school attendance boundaries), some neighborhoods are iffy. Main freeway for commuting is Interstate 80 which branches off to Business 80 or the Capitol City freeway which you'll use to commute from Roseville (very congested stretch during rush hour).

Elk Grove-Lots of retail, many neighborhoods are fine but stay away from problem areas near South Sacramento along Highway 99. Lots of school choices (some better than others so check attendance boundaries). Crime not as low as Folsom or Roseville. Highway 99 heading north will take you to your job (very congested).

San Juan Unified School District encompasses neighborhoods closer to Folsom/Alhambra compared to the above cities and has some excellent schools. Retail would be less centralized and as far as crime its best to check the neighborhood stats.

Here's a link for checking on crime:
CrimeView Community Incident Map

Here's a way to check on area schools (SAT scores, API (Academic Performance Index/ scores etc):
California Schools Guide - Los Angeles Times

Hope you find it useful

[wburg]

Schools in East Sacramento (the neighborhood just east of Old Sacramento) are highly rated and the neighborhood very safe and family-oriented, it's a bit expensive but could be your cup of tea.

[NickB1967]

Originally Posted by lmbmkr1

I will most likely be working near Folsom & Alhambra Blvd. I am assuming a commute will be in order.

Folsom (city of) would be best, El Dorado Hills if you can afford it. US 50 is jammed up in the AM, but there is a trolley line that runs from Folsom that stops very close to your workplace. In the AM, it is just commuters and not winos and street people.

[shelato]

You still haven't given us enough information to provide useful information. How much space do you need, how much is your budget, how long are you willing to commute, is living in a newer home important or not?

The New York Times has maps of income, educational attainment and ethnicity for every census tract in the country. Generally the areas with the areas with highest educational attainment areas are also generally the safest with the better schools. You can use this to screen in and screen out some neighborhoods in Sacramento, but if you are looking for better feedback you really do need to provide more for us to go on.

Mapping America ? Census Bureau 2005-9 American Community Survey - NYTimes.com

[caligirlz]

Originally Posted by lmbmkr1

I will most likely be working near Folsom & Alhambra Blvd. I am assuming a commute will be in order. I've lived in LA & Houston (2 of the worst) so not a complete issue. Family more important than drive.

Folsom (Blvd) & Alhambra is in East Sac, right at Hwy 80 & Hwy 50...so you could commute in from any direction. However, driving in from the outlying distant communities will not be fun, unless you can ride light rail. On Hwy 50, there is now a carpool lane from above El Dorado Hills (EDH) all the way, I believe to Howe Ave (Sac State area). This essentially eliminates one whole lane for everyone else, so Hwy 50 does have points where the general traffic only has 2 lines, and is very slow, and frequently stops due to accidents. I have friends & family who do the daily commute from Folsom, and most of them take light rail as often as they possible, even daily, due to the headache of the commute, and damage to their vehicles from road debris. I used to do the backwards commute from East Sac to EDH, and that was an average of 30-45 minutes. I can't really say what the commute time is from Folsom to East Sac because I avoid it if at possible during commute hours. Last year, I could make it from Folsom to Howe, and down to the Home Depot area in 25-35 minutes at 5 pm but it was nerve-racking.

I'd suggest you start looking in the neighborhoods closest to your employer, and then moving outwards from there. Start with East Sac, Elmhurst, Riverpark, midtown, Land Park. I like this website for rentals: Sacramento rental house for rent Sacramento rentals home for lease property management Folsom managers renting leasing rental property Mckinley Park East Sacramento Midtown grid, Landpark , Folson, Elk Grove, Roseville, duplex, condo and apartment re