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Old 02-07-2008, 12:42 AM
 
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We live in lovely Vancouver Canada. I'm 55, wife 47, kids 4 & 6. We own a ski vacation internet business so dont need to comute to work. We love Vancouver, but are tired of the rain and cold winters. We love the San Fran area. We can afford about $800k for a 3 BR house. We prefer a nice sized lot with trees, a short drive to water (were sailors). We also love to ski, so access to Tahoe (2-3 hrs) is a consideration. We hate hot weather & congestion/traffic. We're looking for a cute suburb with great schools, minimal crime, trees, that's not too far from occasional (once a week) cosmopolitain great restaurants, the odd play. From threads, and housing stats I see, it sounds like Pacifica, Half Moon Bay, Novato, San Rafael, Sausilo are nice & affordable, but we really dont have a clue. I just booked 4 days to scout around in April, but need some guidance on where to look. Santa Cruz, Marin & San Mateo "Counties" look good, but they are likely a mix of good & bad. Thanks
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Old 02-07-2008, 12:54 AM
 
Location: In the Redwoods
30,237 posts, read 51,140,504 times
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First, Sausalito is definitely NOT affordable! It's a beautiful little town, right on the water above San Francisco, and has plenty of trees... but sadly, $800K would barely get you a small home there.

The other towns you mentioned are more "affordable," but each very different. Pacifica is great - I lived there for a while, and totally loved it! It's right on the ocean, only 15 minutes from San Francisco, and has a cool 1950s-60s vibe to it. It's VERY foggy, though you did mention hating heat, so that's perfect! However, it doesn't have many trees to speak of (too darned cold, probably), and you'll have to deal with a little traffic. Half Moon Bay is an adorable town west of San Mateo, also on the coast & has that old-fashioned feeling... much smaller & less accessible than Pacifica, and the weather is just a tad warmer but still foggy. Trees? Dunno, but I think it's pretty similar to Pacifica in that sense too.

Finally, I don't know much about Novato and San Rafael, aside from driving past them a bunch of times. Novato is where they used to have the Renaissance faire, and I always remember it being super HOT - so maybe not a good place for you, at least weather-wise. San Rafael is nearby, so it has very similar (warmer) weather, but I think it's more of the tree-lined suburb you're looking for. Got all of that?

Other ideas are Menlo Park, Palo Alto, Burlingame, Foster City, Cupertino, Los Gatos (possibly too expensive), Mountain View, Mill Valley, Santa Rosa, Alameda, and San Mateo. The ones on the southern Peninsula might be too warm, though, and ALL of them will have some traffic issues - 'tis life in a major metropolitan area. I'd also suggest a few up near Sacramento, like Vacaville, Elk Grove, Davis, etc., if not for your dislike of heat... it gets scorching up there. Good luck, and I hope this helps!

P.S. I've been to Vancouver a few times, and absolutely loved it... I'd happily move there if I ever left the US.

Last edited by gizmo980; 02-07-2008 at 01:04 AM..
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Old 02-07-2008, 01:46 AM
 
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Default Towns like Pacifica, but less fog, warmer?

Great info Gizmo. This site rocks... so much stat info, and the forum adds the personal side. Pacifica sounds & looks great, with good access to downtown SF in the evening.. I think? Fog could be a pain. What % of the time is it foggy? Certain seasons? Access to ski Lake Tahoe could be a pain so something with easier access to 80 is better. We can live anywhere. We love the Sausilito idea. We love a walk to village town core, that dont feel congested. Similar to parts of Vancouver. We can afford up to 1.5 mill, due to good luck on some real estate in vancouver. So, if you could live anywhere around SF that was good for raising young kids, and met our criteria, and perhaps warmer, less fog than Pacifica...
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Old 02-07-2008, 07:54 AM
 
Location: Los Altos Hills, CA
36,409 posts, read 65,926,493 times
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It would be more accurate to say that Sausalito is $800,000 x 2

A good bet for your money is Alameda over in the East Bay. Its an island that is smack in the middle of the Bay Area yet it feels isolated and has a small town feel. There are miles of bayshore and much of Alameda is under a canopy of mature trees, although I'll be the first to admit that its not nearly as woodsy as BC, but then that's the price we gladly pay for such superb weather. Anyway, $800,000 is very doable there.

However,
Alameda can be very congested as far as traffic as its residents stream out of the island to work on a few bridges and tunnels that connect it to the mainland.
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Old 02-07-2008, 10:31 AM
 
Location: San Jose, CA
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Take advantage of that Canadian dollar while our guys are still running scared..
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Old 02-07-2008, 11:57 AM
 
Location: Northern California
3,712 posts, read 14,525,656 times
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Check out Benicia. It's on the river (Carquinez Strait/Suisun Bay) and has a boat marina Benicia Marina- Benicia Chamber of Commerce & Visitor Center and Benicia is close to I-80 for trips to Tahoe.

Some of the newer homes built in recent years are up on a hill north of Benicia and some sites have nice views. I think you could find something for $800K.
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Old 02-07-2008, 06:46 PM
 
Location: earth
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Stay away from the penninsula. If you want a nice 800,000$ house move to castro valley or pleasanton or somthing.
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Old 02-07-2008, 10:39 PM
 
4 posts, read 14,841 times
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Question Novato, Petaluma, Napa?

As a non resident I'm not up on the lingo, so please excuse my assumptions. I'm guessing Don Vito's peninsula is San Fran to Palo Alto rather than the mini Marin peninsula. Sounds like it's also very pricey though. We can afford more than $800k, but prefer not to since we dont need to drive to work. We would love to be within 30-45 drive to SF for dinners, etc. so that would elimate South Eastern areas like Castro Valley to Fremont. Earlier posts suggest Benicia could be ideal. Lafayette & Pleasant Hill sound nice, but in summer could be too hot. I spent a month in San Jose in August and thought I would die. Pacifica sounds lovely but perhaps too cool/foggy in winter.

Given we also like access to Lake Tahoe... north of SF is better than South. Anyone know Novato, Petaluma, Napa ? Do they get hot in summer? I'll look up the stats, but any help would be great. This is a major life decision. Given all the variables and big $, we're thinking of renting a house for a year. Any idea on rent for a nice 3 BR in these areas?
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Old 02-08-2008, 12:20 AM
 
Location: In the Redwoods
30,237 posts, read 51,140,504 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by vancouver canada View Post
Great info Gizmo. This site rocks... so much stat info, and the forum adds the personal side. Pacifica sounds & looks great, with good access to downtown SF in the evening.. I think? Fog could be a pain. What % of the time is it foggy? Certain seasons?
Pacifica can be foggy any time of the year, but the official foggy season is from August-October (approx). They even have a celebration for it in September, called the Pacific Coast Fog Fest: www.pacificcoastfogfest.com/
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Old 02-08-2008, 12:31 AM
 
28,028 posts, read 62,502,286 times
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Default Oakland's Monclair District?

I'm going to out on a limb here... I think the Montclair District of Oakland would be exactly what you are looking for. Eastbay home prices are down and inventory is up... not the case until recently.

Montclair has some good public elementary schools, very low crime, LOTS OF TREES, easy 30 minutes to the SF at all but commute times and Montclair has a very nice shopping/restaurant district called Montclair Village...

Time to Tahoe will also be 30 to 60 minutes less then leaving from San Francisco/Peninsula
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