Dublin, Pleasanton, Tracey or Livermore? (Modesto, Tracy: 2015, houses, schools)

[HockeyMac18]

Budget?

[justinbro2002]

This is Ceefus and his brother Deefus the honorary mayors of Livermore They were born and raised a stones throw from Lawrence Livermore Lab. They told a lot of people worry about the lab but they have never heard of any trouble.

Really the lab doesn't have any problems I use to live across the street from the lab and sometime they will run some kind of terrorist exercises at night and there are loud explosions/gunfire from blanks. Livermore is a nice town and your commute would be the opposite of traffic for half of the trip. What is your budget you are probably looking at a minimum of low $600's to $700k there are some new homes selling now off Vasco or on 1st street near downtown I believe they both start in the mid $600's. They have almost non existent yards and I know the 1st street ones are 3 stories straight up. There are areas with older homes but those prices are about the same. I don't have kids but I know there is some kind of a controversy with the two charter schools in town something about misappropriation of funds and forcibly transferring a foreign exchange student to another school. So a lot of parents pulled their kids out of the charter schools and sent them to the public schools which is causing overcrowding. For some. Our friend just bought a house off of vasco going towards brentwood and said her daughter's kindergarten class has only 18 students. They bought their house for $720k it is 3 bed 2 bath 1600 spft with a pool.

Originally Posted by catmichelle

thank you @roadwarrior101. Much appreciated.

My husband made the trip this past week and did the commute during traffic hours from livermore to modesto and back (in the morning and back leaving modesto about 5:30), and said "it wasn't bad at all" (we live in la so obviously our perception of a bad commute is different than people coming from other areas).

I am interested in living in an area with good schools. My husband grew up in a really nice school district, and my district was a lot more turbulent with some gang problems, our experiences were totally different. If at all possible i would like the kids to grow up in a good and safe school district without known gang issues.

Does anyone have any feedback about livermore? It would be beneficial to me to be closer to the bay area for my work when i travel occasionally for day trips, although not required. I work remotely and our office is in la, but i would need to go to sf, berkley, and other bay area locations occasionally.

I saw there is a big nuclear lab in livermore, is there any negative impact on the community? I only ask because we bought a beautiful home 2 mies from a refinery that has had so many issues that now the us epa is getting involved. I know a lot of good information comes from those living in the area and really value feedback... Is livermore a nice place to live? Is there a better area to live within the city?

Thank you so much, i appreciate your time very much!!

[TR95]

Budget? Also, seems like you will buy from one of your posts? Where in the South Bay (Torrance?). Allergies likely won't be as much of a problem here compared to LA. Living here is the best my son has been since he was about 7. Every time we go back to SoCal he has a hard time. Doesn't matter if it's SD, LA, South Bay, Santa Barbara, Ventura. Of course, Pleasanton or Discovery Bay might be a bit worse than closer in to SF. Although, when we visit out by Pleasanton he's fine.

I used to work with a guy who moved to Discovery Bay out by Brentwood. He used to live in Pleasanton. If you still want a semblance of living in the Bay Area, you might want to check out those. Doubt you will find the diversity that you have in Torrance, Gardena, Hawthorne where you might be now.

[aslowdodge]

Originally Posted by catmichelle

Thank you @roadwarrior101. much appreciated.

my husband made the trip this past week and did the commute during traffic hours from livermore to modesto and back (in the morning and back leaving modesto about 5:30), and said "it wasn't bad at all" (we live in LA so obviously our perception of a bad commute is different than people coming from other areas).

I am interested in living in an area with good schools. My husband grew up in a really nice school district, and my district was a lot more turbulent with some gang problems, our experiences were totally different. If at all possible I would like the kids to grow up in a good and safe school district without known gang issues.

Does anyone have any feedback about livermore? It would be beneficial to me to be closer to the bay area for my work when I travel occasionally for day trips, although not required. I work remotely and our office is in LA, but I would need to go to SF, Berkley, and other Bay area locations occasionally.

I saw there is a big nuclear lab in Livermore, is there any negative impact on the community? I only ask because we bought a beautiful home 2 mies from a refinery that has had SO many issues that now the US EPA is getting involved. I know a lot of good information comes from those living in the area and really value feedback... is LIvermore a nice place to live? Is there a better area to live within the city?

Thank you SO MUCH, I appreciate your time VERY much!!

Having lived in the area many years, I would drop Tracy off the list, I lived in Pleasanton many years and recently moved to Atlanta to cut costs. I could have moved to Tracy, but went to atlanta instead. I'll let you draw your own conclusions as to me picking moving cross country vs just 30 miles over the hill to Tracy.

Pleasanton has the best schools, great sense of community, etc. Very safe and diverse. Little gang issues. Of course of all the areas is also the most expensive.

Both Dublin and Livermore have gotten better with Dublin's schools making good gains. Livermore has a great downtown where locals can meet and hang out. Pleasanton has a great downtown and I see a lot of families and people greeting each other there, but it tends to be more expensive than Livermore.Dublin not so much community feel as there is no downtown. Both of them are have added expensive housing stock. For your commute Dublin and Pleasanton are a tossup. Livermore a bit farther out and actually up to 20 minutes longer depending on how far south into Livermore you go.
While Livermore does have more gang presense, you hardly ever hear anything about it so I have no qualms about living in Livermore myself. The schools would be a deciding factor for you there.
I just reread your checklist and Pleasanton pretty much hits all of them.
Good luck

[simboticus]

Living "over the hill" (any of the towns east of Livermore) are in the central valley, and are not really part of the bay area. It's a very different vibe out there, a lot more migrant families, lower income demographic. Think of it like Riverside or San Berndino, vs. Pasadena. It'a also flat, hotter and not very visually appealing out there.

It's a lot cheaper out there for a reason, it's not nearly as desirable a place to live. If you can afford it, stay west of the Altamont pass. Pleasanton is a very nice upscale town, and would be my top pick from your list, it's also the most expensive.

Livermore has some nice parts, schools aren't as good as P-town. I wouldn't have any concerns about the lab. The air quality isn't as good in Livermore, the air flow off the ocean pushes the pollution up against the hills there, and traps it on hot days.

[bentobox34]

I think anyone would have to be insane to get a job in Modesto and commute all the way from the Bay Area, paying Bay Area housing prices, plus gas and 2 hours + in the car every day.

In my opinion, you should really evaluate whether living near Modesto would work for you. If not, maybe this isn't the right move.

Also, be advised that the area you are asking about is not really part of the Bay Area (as already mentioned). This being the forum for the Bay Area, people here don't know much about the Central Valley, and tend to think of it mainly as "drive through country" (on the way to/from the Sierras). Try the main California forum for more knowledgeable results.

[TR95]

Originally Posted by bentobox34

I think anyone would have to be insane to get a job in Modesto and commute all the way from the Bay Area, paying Bay Area housing prices, plus gas and 2 hours + in the car every day.

In my opinion, you should really evaluate whether living near Modesto would work for you. If not, maybe this isn't the right move.

Also, be advised that the area you are asking about is not really part of the Bay Area (as already mentioned). This being the forum for the Bay Area, people here don't know much about the Central Valley, and tend to think of it mainly as "drive through country" (on the way to/from the Sierras). Try the main California forum for more knowledgeable results.

Not all that crazy. She telecommutes, he will work in Modesto. That's about an hour drive from Pleasanton. I assume it's against traffic. They live in the South Bay in LA area now, and they don't want to live in the Central Valley so they are asking about Pleasanton and the surrounding areas. Not all that far fetched in my opinion. You don't need to live where you work.

[capoeira]

Originally Posted by bentobox34

I think anyone would have to be insane to get a job in Modesto and commute all the way from the Bay Area, paying Bay Area housing prices, plus gas and 2 hours + in the car every day.

Excellent advice!

Originally Posted by TR95

Not all that crazy. She telecommutes, he will work in Modesto. Not all that far fetched in my opinion. You don't need to live where you work.

Is the Pleasanton house really worth an extra 100 miles a day on the road?

Pleasanton example 1

Pleasanton example 2

Compared to an average house near Modesto?

Ripon example 1

Ripon example 2

[capoeira]

Originally Posted by simboticus

Livermore has some nice parts, schools aren't as good as P-town. I wouldn't have any concerns about the lab.

Tri-Valley CAREs

http://www.trivalleycares.org/factSh...sheet_text.pdf

LIVERMORE - SFGate

[Maceart]

If you're working in Modesto, stay in the Central Valley.

There is really no point commuting over the Altamont Pass. Besides, you save a lot of money getting a house in Ripon/Turlock/Oakdale/Ceres. Or even Modesto itself (north part of the city is better than the south side).