Petaluma - demographics (San Jose, Sacramento, Fremont: 2014, affordable houses, tech job)

[sks656]

Hi,
I am looking for information from residents, on demographics - primarily on South Asian Indian. We are a fairly liberal family, and would like to be among a diverse population - not necessarily all south asian indians, but if there is presence of them, it will help fit culturally as my kids will have exposure to the culture that we are from. I understand that Petaluma may not be very diverse, but we are looking at a possible move from the east coast to Petaluma, as it's the only affordable area. I work from home, and so does my husband. I have 2 little kids who will be entering PK and kinder.
I looked online, but the census data is outdated, and not to mention, the websites mention Asian (but Asians is a very broad term) I'm really lookng to see how many south asian indians (from India) are there. Will we see none at all?

[capoeira]

Originally Posted by sks656

I understand that Petaluma may not be very diverse, but we are looking at a possible move from the east coast to Petaluma, as it's the only affordable area. I work from home, and so does my husband. I have 2 little kids who will be entering PK and kinder.

Why Petaluma? It has bad traffic even on the weekends since 101 is the only viable north/south route. Its one of the last places I would look at in the Bay area. It is also very far away from any Indian culture.

The main Indian areas are Sunnyvale and Fremont. Dublin is rapidly becoming a third Indian area. You could live in Livermore and be a short drive away from Indian culture in Dublin or even drive to Fremont. The potential downside of Livermore is the hot summer temperatures. It is also a too long of a commute to most job centers but since you work at home that is not an issue.

Originally Posted by sks656

I looked online, but the census data is outdated, and not to mention, the websites mention Asian (but Asians is a very broad term) I'm really lookng to see how many south asian indians (from India) are there. Will we see none at all?

The outdated 2010 census data on Wikipedia lists Petaluma as only 0.4% Asian Indian.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petaluma,_California

If you don't need to be in the bay area due to a tech or biotech job, there are other areas in CA that are a much better value.

[sks656]

the main reason of living there is affordability. we want atleast a 2,000 sq foot home - and we want to purchase and raise our family. the places you are suggesting are in south bay or near there, and the homes are tiny, cost a lot, and are in bad shape. Here in the east coast, am used to 3000+ sq foot homes (including basements, which btw are not accounted in the footage - that's just extra space), and am willing to go smaller, but not under 2000 sq.
I don't need a TON of indians (which the south bay has), but having a some will be nice... so my kids grow up with different races, in diverse area, where they other that just white. I heard its a nice small town.
Can you tell me nmore about it - is it very remote? Is it boring?

So getting out of Petaluma will be hard on the weekends - i know you mentioned the 101. will be hard.

What else can people tell me about petaluma? We picked this area, as it's really the most affordable, with decent schools.... but i don't know much about it, except for a trip my husband took out there.

[LaylaM]

Originally Posted by sks656

the main reason of living there is affordability. we want atleast a 2,000 sq foot home - and we want to purchase and raise our family. the places you are suggesting are in south bay or near there, and the homes are tiny, cost a lot, and are in bad shape. Here in the east coast, am used to 3000+ sq foot homes (including basements, which btw are not accounted in the footage - that's just extra space), and am willing to go smaller, but not under 2000 sq.
I don't need a TON of indians (which the south bay has), but having a some will be nice... so my kids grow up with different races, in diverse area, where they other that just white. I heard its a nice small town.
Can you tell me nmore about it - is it very remote? Is it boring?

So getting out of Petaluma will be hard on the weekends - i know you mentioned the 101. will be hard.

What else can people tell me about petaluma? We picked this area, as it's really the most affordable, with decent schools.... but i don't know much about it, except for a trip my husband took out there.

Petaluma is a very nice, friendly little town and certainly close enough to commute into the Bay Area for work. It is one of the most expensive housing communities in Sonoma County so, if there is any chance that you can extend your commute or work from home, you may want to consider other cities. Regarding racial diversity, the city is predominantly Caucasian.

Regarding the East Indian population, there is a very small community within the County and families are, most likely, concentrated within the Santa Rosa area which is our largest city and the county seat. Santa Rosa is also the most culturally diverse city as well.

Here's a local organization that will help answer your questions and help you connect with local East Indian residents: https://northbayindia.org/Home

In addition, this article was written a few years ago about the local Diwali festival:
https://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/6...brates?sba=AAS

Best of Luck

[capoeira]

Originally Posted by sks656

the main reason of living there is affordability. we want atleast a 2,000 sq foot home - and we want to purchase and raise our family. the places you are suggesting are in south bay or near there, and the homes are tiny, cost a lot, and are in bad shape.

Livermore is far East Bay and is only slightly more expensive than Petaluma. Livermore has a median home price of 752k vs 680k for Petaluma.

https://www.trulia.com/real_estate/L...re-California/

https://www.trulia.com/real_estate/Petaluma-California/

Originally Posted by sks656

Can you tell me nmore about it - is it very remote? Is it boring?
.

If you like wineries and hiking you will be in heaven. If you like a wide variety of ethnic restaurants and tons of shopping it will be boring.

Originally Posted by sks656

So getting out of Petaluma will be hard on the weekends - i know you mentioned the 101. will be hard.

The Graton Casino brings a lot of traffic to the area on weekends. Also I do not like the rural type two lane roads without streetlights. Sonoma & Napa Counties have the highest accident rate in the bay area.

https://napavalleyregister.com/news/...a4bcf887a.html

https://www.sonomanews.com/news/8688...alley-petaluma

Originally Posted by sks656

.

What else can people tell me about petaluma?

It is vulnerable to flooding. Every couple of years there is a news story about floods in Petaluma.

2012

https://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/2...es-flood-stage

2014

https://patch.com/california/petalum...ooding-areas-0

2016

https://www.petaluma360.com/news/643...-through-north

2019

https://www.petaluma360.com/news/917...ing-issued-for

For excellent schools and more affordable houses I suggest looking in Folsom in the Sacramento area. Folsom also has an Indian presence due to the Intel location in Folsom. The downside of Folsom is summer heat.

Here is a search for houses >2000 sq ft and < 600k.

https://www.trulia.com/for_sale/Fols...ILY_HOME_type/

[davdaven]

Petaluma (and Sonoma County in general) has a very small Indian population. Yes, you'll find the highest concentrations in Sunnyvale and Fremont, but literally any part of the Bay Area that isn't the North Bay (Marin, Napa, Solano, and Sonoma Counties) will have a much larger Indian presence. Have you looked at more affordable areas in the East Bay (Alameda and Contra Costa Counties)? For example, there is a Sikh temple in El Sobrante just north of Richmond where I live, and the Indian population is spread throughout the area running from roughly Hercules south all the way to Silicon Valley.

[sks656]

Thanks everyone for your responses.
El sobrante and hercules have terrible schools. So that is out. Private schools are not an option as affordability in bay area for housing is sky high - so if we pay that much, we want to get schools out of it atleast.

Are there a lot of professionals llivng in Petaluma - by that I mean, IT, doctors, engineers, finance professionals. Or is there a different makeup? Basically I'm interested to know if the folks there are well educated, as that's what gets passed on to your kids/ community. It seems like the newer homes that are about 2000 sq feet are in the mid 800s - so I'm thinking you have to be in a field that pays well, to buy those homes. (i know there are million and up homes tucked into the mountains - i'm not thinking of those - as those are probably for the uber rich )

My husband does not want to go to Sacramento area. What about Novato? It is more expensive, but maybe we get smaller house - it will be WAY smaller - i don't know if I can live with that...there. hows diversity there - especially for south asian indians. how are the elementary schools? I know that the high school is good. but rest seem like a hit or miss.

[capoeira]

Originally Posted by sks656

Are there a lot of professionals llivng in Petaluma - by that I mean, IT, doctors, engineers, finance professionals. Or is there a different makeup?

A lot of people there work in the wine industry. Check out this map of 80 Petaluma wineries.

http://petalumagap.com/wp-content/up...6_Map_Only.pdf

[portugamerifinn]

This thread reminds me of a short anecdote from my time living in Petaluma (~7 years until this March) that at least hints at the lack of diversity in the North Bay:

My girlfriend and I made a quick stop together at a 7/11 in downtown Petaluma that was always operated by a couple Indian men. We stepped toward the register to make our purchase and the guy on the other side lit up upon seeing my partner, who is Sri Lankan. His pleasure at seeing and speaking with her didn't subside upon learning that she's not Indian, he was just thrilled to see someone of South Asian descent in Petaluma. He may as well have seen a unicorn.

Anyway, Petaluma isn't diverse at all by Bay Area standards and what cultural/ethnic diversity it does have is almost entirely confined to the latinx community. I'm from Humboldt County, which is a sparsely populated, rural, not-diverse area hours north of the North Bay - my hometown there is still more diverse than Petaluma, which says a lot.

If you truly want to live in a culturally diverse part of the Bay Area any other region will do: East Bay, South Bay, Peninsula... There are good schools there as well, though they're expensive too. Even if you were in a nice area of the east East Bay like Walnut Creek that isn't as diverse as, say, the thick of the South Bay, you'd still have much easier access to the South Indian community by being in the middle of the Bay Area.

That issue aside, Petaluma is a very nice place to live. The weather is perfect, the downtown area has lots of good restaurants and you've got easy access to the outdoors (beaches, river, woods, etc.). It is the worst place for getting to other parts of the Bay Area, though. The morning commute into the city is bad and the commute home in the evening is worse. Getting to the East Bay, for instance, requires either a two-lane road (Highways 12/37) or a bridge (580) that is frequently backed up, and there's no BART access. If you want to do something in San Jose, that's a 90-mile drive.

The North Bay is lovely, but it's not the least bit diverse and it's usually a pain-in-the-ass drive (in one direction or the other) from other parts of the Bay Area.

[sks656]

Thank capoeira - so these people who work in the wine industry can afford these ~ 800 K homes - east of 101? Does the wine industry pay that much?

The schools for these (the calle ranchero one and trinity one ) is rated a 4 & 5 for elementary. What's the reason? I usually see a direct correlation between the cost of homes and schools, and considering this is way north, hard to commute, but home prices are still high, and the schools are not good! What gives? Who is buying these pricy homes, and if they make decent money to afford these homes, why don't they care about the schools? I don't understand it? I work as an IT professional , and my husband is a architect (building) so we are both professionals, and these home are pricey for us, and we have a hefty down payment (about 40% on a 800K home) but I am worried that I may not get the school system out of it. I grew up in a city with a terrible school system, so my parents scraped to send me to private (high school only), which was also mediocre - and when I went to college, I had a tough time, as the people there were way way smarter. I eventually worked hard and caught up.



Like these below :



https://www.realtor.com/realestatean...-62639?view=qv

https://www.realtor.com/realestatean...-45667?view=qv

Thanks portugamerifinn. That anecdote, really gives me a sense of the presence of south asian community there!