My family is relocating to SF area and I want to know which suburb is best for schools with quiet small town feel? (San Francisco: apartments, for rent)

[lisa_v23]

I have been doing a lot of research online but couldn't find any recent posts about this subject. We currently are living in the seattle area and will be relocating to the san francisco area in a couple months. We don't know much about the area yet. We would like to find a home to rent 4+ bedrooms for under $4000 a month. We would really like to know the best area that has a small town feel with good schools and that is safe for raising a family. My husband is used to a long communte now (1 1/2 to 2 hours) so that isn't a problem. Any help would be extremely appreciated! Thank you.

[beb0p]

If by "small town" you mean very quiet, almost dead, a bit rural, with only a small commercial corridor, tall thick trees everywhere, very dark at nite, looks like living in a forest from far; then I think you'll like the Lamorinda area (Lafayette, Moraga, and Orinda). But I think many suburbs outside of the city has that small community feel. Just that Lamorinda seems to take it to an extreme, but I reckon some people want to feel as though they're living in the middle of nowhere but only a short drive from urban centers.

[clongirl]

Yeah, I agree. Lamorinda would be a good place to start. You didn't really mention where your husband's job is located but most towns in Marin are also a good option (but perhaps a little pricier, I imagine). If your husband needs to commute to Silicon Valley, then San Carlos,Belmont, Burlingame, even more rural... Half Moon Bay...a lot of nice smaller towns out this way also.

[humboldtrat]

Originally Posted by lisa_v23

My husband is used to a long communte now (1 1/2 to 2 hours) so that isn't a problem.

So where is the job going to be? Traffic in the Bay Area can be horrible especialy if crossing a bridge is part of the commute and there is no need to commute 1 to 2 hours every day.

[Hemlock140]

Can you rent a 4 bedroom for $4,000 there? I grew up in Lafayette, and went through the schools there but couldn't afford it when on my own. We were in Castro Valley for 14 years, still good schools but not as good as Lamorinda, Walnut Creek or Danville. Lamorinda and Danville areas will remind you of Sammamish, Walnut Creek is more like Bellevue. Castro Valley is more like Duvall or Woodinville but you have to be careful not to be in the Hayward school district, roughly below highway 580.

[04kL4nD]

Marin Co.

Much more rural than CoCo County

[clongirl]

Originally Posted by Hemlock140

Can you rent a 4 bedroom for $4,000 there? I grew up in Lafayette, and went through the schools there but couldn't afford it when on my own. We were in Castro Valley for 14 years, still good schools but not as good as Lamorinda, Walnut Creek or Danville. Lamorinda and Danville areas will remind you of Sammamish, Walnut Creek is more like Bellevue. Castro Valley is more like Duvall or Woodinville but you have to be careful not to be in the Hayward school district, roughly below highway 580.

No doubt...it's incredibly difficult to find an actual house to rent here. I think the majority of people own so there just aren't many choices. There are apartments and condos but few larger houses. I have friends that rent and there were literally two houses for rent here when they needed to move...and they pay about 3k for a two bedroom. That was before the crazy San Francisco rents that seem to be pushing people outwards. OP should definitely keep options open in some of the nicer areas with the "better" schools since options are pretty limited.

[lisa_v23]

Well his office will be in downtown san francisco but the properties in his portfolio are in eastbay area spread out a little inluding berkley and san ramon.

[lisa_v23]

Yes, currently we have a 5 bedroom house on the golf course in arlington for under $2000 a month. I know we will need to downsize when we move there and pretty much double our budget but we are hoping to find a similar community at least. Do you think that it is possible to find something for that budget in a decent area? I appreciate the information sounds like you know the eastside of WA pretty well. We actually lived in sammamish for several years but moved to arlington for more house for our money. My husband really liked the Danville area he said it reminded him of Issaquah and gilman village.

[Hemlock140]

Unfortunately for Arlington prices you would have to go out to Concord, Pittsburg or Antioch and wouldn't like it. We still have family in Danville, Walnut Creek, and Castro Valley. Yes, you would love Danville but that's about the most expensive area and you add about 40 minutes to the commute compared to Orinda, Moraga and Lafayette. If he's in SF I would suggest looking at Marin county, or even south to Pacifica where you actually might find 4 bedrooms for $4,000. It has a more marine feel like Stanwood or Camano.