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Well, we've made the move from our beautiful luxury 2 bed/1 bath condo near AT&T Park in SF to an older but charming 2 bed/2 bath condo in the Grand Lake area of Oakland.
Why on earth would we move to Oakland from SF when we already have a condo in SF and can afford to live there?! That is what our bank lender asked us when applying for a loan to purchase our new condo in Oakland.
What we told them was this: We were getting tired of the congestion in SF, living next to a busy freeway, and the polluting and noisy Caltrain rail yard. We were tired of the ballpark crowds. We were tired of all the restaurants being gourmet and expensive with not many very good ethnic options. We don't want to eat at a fancy restaurant every night! We were also tired of the workaholic, money-chasing culture that has changed the vibe of the city. Not that I have something against people who are ambitious and work hard to succeed and seek that way of life, I just don't want to be surrounded by it- which we were in our spot in SF. Also, we turned our old place into a rental property and so it was also a financial strategic move for us as our living costs are much lower in Oakland, while we can get more rental income for our place in SF.
It is amazing how much SF has changed in just a few years and I really applaud the city for its achievements. But SF and the Bay Area as a whole is changing and the new reality and expectations need to be adjusted. I think Oakland is becoming a lot more interesting now. In particular, I like the Grand Lake, Adams Point, Lakeshore area. It seems like most if not all establishments here have art on the walls from local artists. It reminds me of how SOMA used to be in SF, but is no longer. There is an awesome dining scene and the food, in my opinion, beats SF. It tastes better, fresher ingredients, better restaurant ambiance, cheaper prices, and more diverse options.
So food was one of the big reasons we moved to Oakland. We really felt we had limited options at our spot in Mission Bay. I think Tsunami there sucks and is a rip off. The other restaurants were expensive with mediocre food and catered to the ballpark/touristy crowd. Our new place in Oakland is steps from an endless array of restaurants. It is more than we could have hoped for and I feel totally spoiled by the options at our fingertips. I have never ate so well in America. That is saying a lot because I think food in America sucks compared to Europe.
But as with all things, realities can sink in and there are always some drawbacks to anything. Overall, I like living in Oakland. But there are some things that I am not used to yet.
One thing makes me recall that one quote that goes, "Be careful what you wish for." Well, there are so many restaurants near us, that some of the damn restaurant smell comes into our condo! I don't know why I never noticed it all those times I saw the condo when we were in the process of buying it, but now I am living with it and it is driving me crazy. I am trying to sleep in my bed and I get a whiff of oil mixed with teriyaki chicken and god knows what else. I can't stand it and we are thinking up ideas of how to keep the outside air from coming in on this side of the condo so we don't have to smell that food smell anymore. Any ideas anyone?
Another thing is the lack of luxury in our new situation. Okay, I didn't realize how spoiled I was in SF by the luxury amenities and service. Here, even our building management, which isn't even on-site offers us low level service. I almost feel discriminated against because I live in Oakland. The elevator in the building is not well maintained. The whole area just looks not as well maintained as our place in SF. It doesn't even seem like our money goes as far here not because it is expensive which it isn't, but because there isn't as much a system set up for luxury service/goods. I am not super rich by any means, but we have enough now we can afford some nice things. So despite that, no one seems to give a s****, unless maybe they want to rob us. I realize I moved to Oakland purposely for a more ordinary and less over-the-top luxury experience. So I know I need to suck it up. But I just had to share how the experience has been.
Oh by the way, we witnessed from our window a car window being smashed and contents stolen. We called the cops and they weren't too slow in responding. We had a plate number of the getaway vehicle. Sadly, the perpetrator fits the stereotype of the kind of person who would do that.
Now, sometimes I think to myself- what the hell did we just do here, moving to Oakland?? But other times, I think if I can just get the smell under control, I will love it.
Overall, I think Oakland is awesome and I love the restaurants here. I love the down to earth vibe. I love the weather and lack of annoying cold wind. Please Oakland boosters, remind me again about why Oakland is awesome. And if you have any tips on keeping the restaurant smell out, please share!
I love walking around and not feeling like I am the only black person.
I love that you can get high quality food at a variety of price points.
I can't tell you a whole lot about your building situation, mine is pretty nice (I am over in Piedmont Ave) and well maintained. The biggest issue was a took a little while to repaint the ceiling when the lights were updated into a different style.
People keep telling me about www.nextdoor.com, a social network for your neighborhood. To share info, plan events,etc. You should check it out. Enjoy!
And don't forget, there are many Oaklands. You can have a wildly different experience all over the Town, so don't forget to check out all of the different parts of town.
I lived in Cleveland Heights from 07-09 and while I really think the Lake has a lot to offer, it's one of the less expensive parts of Oakland for a reason. The housing stock is pretty old, so good luck finding a unit with a dishwasher or W/D. The other thing that made me wary of moving back this year instead of JLS where I am now, and this is AFTER living in a house in West Oakland for a number of years, was the prevalence of break ins/robberies that take place. So, when my partner and I couldn't find a house in our price range, we looked closely at Rockridge, JLS, and Piedmont Ave. JLS had more of what we wanted. It seems a lot safer with private security and heavy police presence and after living in a house for so many years, I didn't want to go back to coin operated laundry.
Honestly, the longer I live in my neighborhood the more I grow to love it. I don't drive anywhere except work these days- I'm steps from AWESOME restaurants in Chinatown, JLS, and a bit of walk to great spots downtown/uptown for more nightlife options when I feel like actually going out. I'm less than a 10 minute walk to the Lake, so I still get to enjoy walks around it on a regular basis. JLS is definitely more expensive and yuppfied than other parts of Oakland, but I'm honestly OK with it. The only noise I ever hear at night is the train, which really doesn't bother me.
If you expect Oakland to be SF lite, you're going to run into problems. They both share a lot of commonalities, but Oakland is much more laissez faire and rough around the edges. It doesn't have anything remotely close to the infrastructure that SF has, and it probably never well. Take solace in knowing there's better weather, less traffic, more breathing room, and it's more of an up and coming place. Get out of the Lake Merritt area every now and then and explore. Like jade said, there's whole other parts of Oakland that make the city so great.
I love walking around and not feeling like I am the only black person.
I love that you can get high quality food at a variety of price points.
I can't tell you a whole lot about your building situation, mine is pretty nice (I am over in Piedmont Ave) and well maintained. The biggest issue was a took a little while to repaint the ceiling when the lights were updated into a different style.
People keep telling me about www.nextdoor.com, a social network for your neighborhood. To share info, plan events,etc. You should check it out. Enjoy!
And don't forget, there are many Oaklands. You can have a wildly different experience all over the Town, so don't forget to check out all of the different parts of town.
Yeah, I also love the food- diverse and ethnic options, high quality food at a variety of prices. It's so good. The best Vietnamese sandwiches I ever ate in my life and that is saying a lot because I grew up in LA and had Vietnamese food in OC and the Little Saigon area.
I lived in Cleveland Heights from 07-09 and while I really think the Lake has a lot to offer, it's one of the less expensive parts of Oakland for a reason. The housing stock is pretty old, so good luck finding a unit with a dishwasher or W/D. The other thing that made me wary of moving back this year instead of JLS where I am now, and this is AFTER living in a house in West Oakland for a number of years, was the prevalence of break ins/robberies that take place. So, when my partner and I couldn't find a house in our price range, we looked closely at Rockridge, JLS, and Piedmont Ave. JLS had more of what we wanted. It seems a lot safer with private security and heavy police presence and after living in a house for so many years, I didn't want to go back to coin operated laundry.
Honestly, the longer I live in my neighborhood the more I grow to love it. I don't drive anywhere except work these days- I'm steps from AWESOME restaurants in Chinatown, JLS, and a bit of walk to great spots downtown/uptown for more nightlife options when I feel like actually going out. I'm less than a 10 minute walk to the Lake, so I still get to enjoy walks around it on a regular basis. JLS is definitely more expensive and yuppfied than other parts of Oakland, but I'm honestly OK with it. The only noise I ever hear at night is the train, which really doesn't bother me.
If you expect Oakland to be SF lite, you're going to run into problems. They both share a lot of commonalities, but Oakland is much more laissez faire and rough around the edges. It doesn't have anything remotely close to the infrastructure that SF has, and it probably never well. Take solace in knowing there's better weather, less traffic, more breathing room, and it's more of an up and coming place. Get out of the Lake Merritt area every now and then and explore. Like jade said, there's whole other parts of Oakland that make the city so great.
I hear the phrase "SF-lite" and I am curious about what is specifically meant by that. Does it mean like having rich people around? Fog? Cable cars? Techies?
Jack London Square seems nice, but I wanted to get away from the whole living by trains arrangement. Perhaps in our next move, we'll look more into it.
I hear the phrase "SF-lite" and I am curious about what is specifically meant by that. Does it mean like having rich people around? Fog? Cable cars? Techies?
Jack London Square seems nice, but I wanted to get away from the whole living by trains arrangement. Perhaps in our next move, we'll look more into it.
You can always live in my hood (piedmont ave/rose garden area). Good mix of diversity, accessibility and quietness.
Some ideas:
I read that opening your windows actually helps because it moves the air, I don't know.
Dryer sheets, (sick them in places like behind picture frames), or Fabreeze, or:
I hear the phrase "SF-lite" and I am curious about what is specifically meant by that. Does it mean like having rich people around? Fog? Cable cars? Techies?
Jack London Square seems nice, but I wanted to get away from the whole living by trains arrangement. Perhaps in our next move, we'll look more into it.
I've heard a lot of people call Oakland dumb things like "SF East" or "Brooklyn of the West" and I just laugh. I think Oakland's proximity to SF (it's 8 miles away!) and the fact that both cities share a fondness for food, art, and progressive/liberal ideology makes some people think that Oakland is just a cheaper substitution for the city life across the bay, but it's a lot more complicated than that. For one, Oakland is MUCH, MUCH more diverse- and I don't just mean racially. Pretty much everywhere you go in Oakland, you find a mix of people from all different walks of life, whereas SF tends to be a magnet for certain kinds of people. I also find Oakland to be much more relaxed and laid back than SF, and I don't mean just the pace. To answer your question, there are definitely rich people in Oakland, but not all of them are tucked away in their mansions up in the hills- they hang out in the same places the rest of us do when we're looking for a really great meal or drink. And Oakland most definitely has its share of tech workers, but I don't think they're nearly as ubiquitous as in SF- not having a Google bus (yet) probably has something to do with it.
I guess what I meant by "SF lite" is that a lot of people assume that Oakland mostly has its stuff together politically and economically like SF does. It really doesn't. Not even close. The city council and mayor are utterly incompetent, which means that a lot people are left with a deep distrust/dislike for the police and anything related to local government. It also means that a lot of people do whatever they feel like because there's nobody really around to stop them. Based on first-hand experience with landlords in Oakland, unless you are really proactive/aggressive/determined, nothing is ever going to get fixed unless you constantly bring it up and demand repairs (in person works best). While I'm not suggesting that SF is a perfectly run city with no problems (it has a MUCH worse problem with homelessness), it's a pretty well-oiled machine compared what we've got here. Don't expect the police to rush to come help you when you've got a problem, unless they happen to already be nearby. If there's a violent/radical protest, it's going to happen here, not in SF. Generally, you won't be directly affected by the REALLY bad stuff that goes on in Oakland, but you've got to be aware of it. If you choose to surround yourself with like-minded, vigilant individuals that have a vested interest in their neighborhood/community, you will be fine.
I've heard a lot of people call Oakland dumb things like "SF East" or "Brooklyn of the West" and I just laugh.
Perhaps not yet. But gentrification patterns have a strong inflection point, IMHO, where a certain "critical mass" and neighborhood benchmarks are reached -- and the rate of change accelerates dramatically.
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