Can people compare these two Berkeley locations for me... (Oakland: condo, neighborhoods)

[univ0681]

Hi,

Can people compare these to locations in Berkeley and Berkeley/Oakland for me, especially in terms of factors such as crime, noise, etc affecting quality of life.

Location one is in North Berkeley, corner of Virginia and Bonita Ave. This location I am very familiar with, so I offer it as a benchmark (this is where I live, and the neighborhood I know best. I really like North Berkeley).

Location two is the corner of 59 St and Canning St (not Channing), in the Upper Telegraph area. This area I am less familiar with, but there's a condo I am interested in.

What do I value? Good restaurants and good supermarkets within walking distance, quiet neighborhood without noise/crime/etc. I probably enjoy more than most a quiet/quaint/peaceful neighborhood.

Thanks many for your help.

[jade408]

They would be pretty equivalent in terms of safety and stuff. THe Berkeley locale has way more student focused stuff, than your Oakland locale.

I have never heard of upper telegraph, I would have put that corner in Rockridge.

Anyway, that is an easy walk to BART, trader joes and boatloads of restaurants that are not student focused. Less homeless people too.

But all in all, either is good from a transit and amenities perspective. You just need to ask if you like Berkeley being so close to campus. (Personally, that is way too close to student land for me at my age!)

[univ0681]

Thanks many for the information. Given our exact location in North Berkeley, we get very few undergraduates (plenty of graduate students I think, and some faculty and retired faculty). We most definitely do not want to be surrounded by undergraduates. And yes, you are right - I should have written Rockdridge area, not "Upper Telegraph" (that's what a Redfin map stated, and I had just looked at it, and it was thus salient in my mind). But you are right, we are essentially interested in either staying in North Berkeley (our impression is that north of Virginia or Cedar you start to get very few undergraduate students, especially if you are west of Shattuck) or moving to Rockridge. Our hunch is that the areas may not be all that different, but that Rockridge may be a little bit more vibrant and North Berkeley a little bit quieter (but we are not sure).

In any case, thanks many for your (and others') information.

[jade408]

Originally Posted by univ0681

Thanks many for the information. Given our exact location in North Berkeley, we get very few undergraduates (plenty of graduate students I think, and some faculty and retired faculty). We most definitely do not want to be surrounded by undergraduates. And yes, you are right - I should have written Rockdridge area, not "Upper Telegraph" (that's what a Redfin map stated, and I had just looked at it, and it was thus salient in my mind). But you are right, we are essentially interested in either staying in North Berkeley (our impression is that north of Virginia or Cedar you start to get very few undergraduate students, especially if you are west of Shattuck) or moving to Rockridge. Our hunch is that the areas may not be all that different, but that Rockridge may be a little bit more vibrant and North Berkeley a little bit quieter (but we are not sure).

In any case, thanks many for your (and others') information.

Both are excellent locations. The Rockridge one, if this is important to you, has much easier freeway access. It is a quick hop to 580, 80 and 24 and 980. The path to the Bay Bridge tends to be less congested than coming from 80.

[ragnarkar]

Both areas are good.. however, the 59th and Canning one, although in a good neighborhood (Rockridge), borders some not so good neighborhoods in Oakland while the Berkeley one should be fine in all directions in the vicinity.

[jade408]

Originally Posted by ragnarkar

Both areas are good.. however, the 59th and Canning one, although in a good neighborhood (Rockridge), borders some not so good neighborhoods in Oakland while the Berkeley one should be fine in all directions in the vicinity.

That border is pretty far away. The ones that aren't great are on the other side if the freeway. The immediately adjacent areas are decent and improving to good.


On an autocorrecting iDevice.