moving for job in Palo Alto; need shortest commute with affordable homes but good schools (San Diego: to rent, insurance)

[stoniest13]

Hi, we are relocating for a job in Palo Alto. We looked at home prices and they are too high there. We can afford maybe $500,000, and we need three bedrooms (we have kids). Also we need a place with good schools, and preferably not a horrible commute.

Do you have any suggestions for places to look for a home or condo?

Thank you.

[sonarrat]

Not possible - you'll have to endure a long commute, or else rent. There are many areas on the peninsula with great schools but none in that price range. It may be more convenient to buy in a more affordable area, like Redwood City, and enroll them in private schools, but it's so easy to wind up in a spot that will make you miserable.. why spend that much money when it won't buy enough to meet your family's requirements?

The problem with the Bay Area right now is that the prices have gone up, but the gentrification hasn't come with it.

[stoniest13]

well...thank you for the candid reply, but seriously you've depressed me now...no i don't think private schools are in the budget either

so, ok if we were going to endure a horrible commute, where would be a place with good schools then and 3 BR (even a small condo is okay, but need 3 BR so that our teen boy and preschool girl each get a bedroom)?

thanks

[sonarrat]

If you don't mind a townhouse or condo, then San Mateo would be the nearest place I could recommend to you knowing what you're after. It takes about 45 minutes to drive to or from Palo Alto during rush hour, a little less if you're closer to 92 and can get over to 280.

[skatealoneskatetogether]

your not going to get all those at the same time so you have to choose what means the most to you.

having a 3 bed room house
having a short commute
having safe schools.

[sara wise]

I feel for you... I think that living just about anywhere in coastal California is going to be financially depressing, unless you make really good money or are a dual-income family. 4 years ago, as a single income family with poor credit, we 4 (2 adults, 2 children- now 12 and almost 4) moved into a 2 bed/1 bath, 600 sq.ft. apt. over a garage, for which we pay 1000 a month. We're in Sunnyvale, and my husband works in SF- a 45 minute drive... but with only one car, he rides his bike (10 miles a day) to & from the train & has an hour and a half commute one-way to work every day. With a raise, we plan to move closer to SF, which will double our rent to find a modest 3 bedroom house. And with the added expense of insurance (is it really so high in other states???) and child support for my husband's other 3 kids (2 now grown- back child support) totalling nearly 1/3 of his income, we won't be living high on the hog. I would work, but my income would likely equal the cost of child care. The most depressing part I think, is that I don't really like city or suburban life... I'd love to live in a little town like where I grew up (Carmel Valley, Ca)... but the cost of living there is just as high, but no telecom jobs for my husband. Oh well. My highest hope is that in the next few years, my husband will find a great job in another state with a lower cost of living that will bring us a higher quality of life... wishful thinking???
And finally, my opinion regarding schools and community in the area(s)...
We live in the 'nicer' part of Sunnyvale, on the west side of El Camino close to a middle school, about a mile from an elementary school and a local park. The elementary school has a good community 'feel', but the middle school is quite unorganized when it comes to communicating with parents (parents have to make the effort)... but maybe that's because there are like 700 students (which seems HUGE to me, but is probably typical for area schools). Schools also suffer greatly when it comes to offering un-academic classes, like art, language, and certain sports. Plan to pay for your kids to attend these types of classes after school.
Houses on my street range from the 800's to 1.5 mil. from plain 3 bedrooms to giant cookie-cutter new-constructions. I'm sure it looks like a perfect neighborhood... but there are tons of registered pedophiles and sex offenders in the area, not to mention the 6 houses full of drug addicts in a 2-block radius. Oh, and the liquor store behind us has been robbed at gunpoint 3 times in the last 6 months, and a homeless person (many of whom travel along the alleys just behind the El Camino storefronts) was stabbed and murdered nearby less than a year ago. Yes, even in Sunnyvale... But it's true, this stuff happens everywhere, so, what can you do? And here I am, planning to move even closer to the city...
OK, that's my waaa-waaa, blah-blah for the day...
I guess my biggest advice would be to rent in the area you think you might want to buy in first, so you can find out for sure if it works for you

[skatealoneskatetogether]

well if you have bad credit, no job or desire to get one, thats not going to make living in the south bay any easier.

[sara wise]

That is an interesting reply.
However, I forget how easily things can be lost in translation when sending messages through cyberspace, and so, I hope that you can forgive me for sounding as pitiful as I must have.
Life is good, and getting better all the time.

[libbykt]

You might want to think about what is most important to you, and what your long term situation will be, and whether or not it even makes sense for you to own around here. When we sold out home in San Diego, we did the math and realized that it made more sense to rent here in the bay area and invest our money somewhere else. Rents are still expensive, but at least we can afford to rent a house in a town that we couldn't buy in or have enough money to send our son to private school when the time comes.

I guess what I'm saying is that it's not a given that people would automatically move here and buy, even if you've always owned a home.

[Gr33nArcher]

$500K in the South Bay/Peninsula is a bit stretching it. Would you consider renting first? If renting is not an option, I would recommend taking a look at the East Bay. Fremont might fit your needs. There are 3 bedroom condos for about $500K. Fremont schools are one of the better ones in the bay area. The commute might be a bit hellacious but there are always trade-offs.

Originally Posted by stoniest13

Do you have any suggestions for places to look for a home or condo?

Thank you.