Is Hayward That Bad? (San Francisco, Oakland: violent crime, neighborhoods, school)

[Cali 2 Tha South n Back]

I'm a young African American male (early 20's) lookin to make that move back to the Bay Area in months. I originally was born here but moved to Texas when I was a teen, but come back every two years to visit family since. Now I'm tryna figure out: is Hayward really that bad by city-data standards?? Plus I checked crime stats and it seemed fairly low, and a low killin rate. It has rough areas I've seen but I didn't think it was that bad; and based on previous threads lightly bashing Hayward I thought it was going to be better off than its other more ghetto counterparts such as Oakland, Richmond, Vallejo, Pittsburg, Marin City and EPA. I always thought unincorporated Alameda County (San Lorenzo, Ashland and cherryland) are worse off than Hayward. I kinda chose Hayward because it's close to family, it's affordable (by Bay Area standards) and it's diverse with a huge Black pop. percentage (20% Black; 30k Blacks out of 150k total); besides even if all y'all recommended other cities deemed safer than Hayward, sorry but those safe cities may not have the diversity I may want, plus the Black pop. percentage may be too low for me (less than 5-15% Black). It's a Black thang, y'all wouldn't understand, plus I'm from the East Bay. But more importantly, feedback would be appreciated.

[BerkeleyCali]

Hi,

A agree and I think you answered your own question. When you compare Hayward to a lot of other cities in the bay area, it does seem to have less crime, including violent crimes. Remember when reading other people's posts to try (if possible) to take into account *who* is making the comments. We all have different standards and ideas about what makes a cool neighborhood, and more so what suits our own individual needs.

Personally, I would not live in Hayward because I am really picky about what I am looking for in a neighborhood (some specific things that Hayward does not have) and what school my kids attend. However, I would not for one moment judge someone elses choice to live where they chose to live, whether it be East Oakland or Piedmont.

From everything you mentioned, Hayward sounds like a good fit. Welcome back to the bay :-)

[soundbreeze]

Hey there,
I'd visit one of my co-workers who was a network engineer who lived in Hayward back in the day. I never had any issues, and there are some interesting asian food markets out there. The housing complex he lived in was not exactly uber sexy, but it was affordable, and clean, and there were alot of asian families and whatnot living there. I never felt threatened.

I think that against standards from ACROSS the bridge to Foster City, etc.. it would seem not as nice, but heck, who cares?

Have fun back in the BA!

[skatealoneskatetogether]

Ahhh good ole hayward..a fine working to middle class area. I personally would choose hayward over places like richmond, oakland, san leandro. Hayward seems to stretch far enough south where some of the spill over is avoided. Just be wary of the neighborhoods you live in. Tell tale signs are always bars on the windows. also if im not mistaken mexicans are now the largest minority in hayward, but it shouldnt matter to much. folks seem to get along.

[rah]

Originally Posted by Cali 2 Tha South n Back

I'm a young African American male (early 20's) lookin to make that move back to the Bay Area in months. I originally was born here but moved to Texas when I was a teen, but come back every two years to visit family since. Now I'm tryna figure out: is Hayward really that bad by city-data standards?? Plus I checked crime stats and it seemed fairly low, and a low killin rate. It has rough areas I've seen but I didn't think it was that bad; and based on previous threads lightly bashing Hayward I thought it was going to be better off than its other more ghetto counterparts such as Oakland, Richmond, Vallejo, Pittsburg, Marin City and EPA. I always thought unincorporated Alameda County (San Lorenzo, Ashland and cherryland) are worse off than Hayward. I kinda chose Hayward because it's close to family, it's affordable (by Bay Area standards) and it's diverse with a huge Black pop. percentage (20% Black; 30k Blacks out of 150k total); besides even if all y'all recommended other cities deemed safer than Hayward, sorry but those safe cities may not have the diversity I may want, plus the Black pop. percentage may be too low for me (less than 5-15% Black). It's a Black thang, y'all wouldn't understand, plus I'm from the East Bay. But more importantly, feedback would be appreciated.

Overall, Hayward is pretty tame. Oakland, San Francisco and Richmond all have much higher crime and murder rates. Pittsburg, Antioch, and Vallejo have relatively high black populations too (for the bay), and higher murder rates than Hayward as well. EPA has a high black population, but it's turning more and more hispanic, and the crime can be pretty bad there. It was the per capita murder capitol of the US in 1993.

Marin city is tiny. It has something like 2-3,000 people.

[Dedalus]

Nothing fancy, no Frisco cachet, but plenty of nice working class neighborhoods that are plenty safe, and have lots of friendly people.

[Tallysmom]

One of favorite breakfast diners is in Hayward -- Anna's Family Coffee Shop on Jackson...

Hayward is fine -- just a family oriented town.

[bazuemague]

I live in S. Hayward, and for the first time in my life I'm in a neighborhood where I am the minority. I am white. Before I moved (out of San Francisco, thank you Jesus) I thought it would bother me, but it isn't even an issue.

Like any town, there are good and bad neighborhoods. South Hayward is pretty good, with a heavy Latino population near me, and all around it is mostly hardworking folks who don't screw around. You have gangbanger wannabes of every race stirring the **** now and then, but nothing you can't shrug off.

If you'll be close to family I'd say go for it. Affordable housing, tons of nearby cheap shopping, and decent weather. What's not to like.

Did somebody say 'Hayward Fault'?

[bazuemague]

PS - There is a bar at Huntwood and Tennyson that has rap/hiphop/reggae djs and bands on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights. It isn't some overpriced glitzy crap nightclub but a real neighborhood bar. The narrow minded would think that musical preference would draw a mostly black crowd, but it's a good mix, and sweet Jesus, some of the girls tending bar are really cute.

[18Montclair]

uh, no. Hayward is largely a middle class suburb that isnt perfect but neither is anywhere else.