San Mateo (Sunnyvale, Alameda, Saratoga: apartments, rentals, neighborhoods)

[robinorul]

My husband is in the process of accepting a job in the San Mateo and we are looking for a good rental in the area. From what I have been able to find, people say that the westside of San Mateo is best. My question is:

Is the entire westside okay or does it vary street to street?

Are there good and bad neighborhoods?

Which resources are best for finding rentals there?

We are coming from out of state and do not know the area at all, so any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

[BayAreaHillbilly]

Everything west of Alameda De Las Pulgas is superb.

Everything West of El Camino is OK, although there are areas where there are high densities of post WW2 apartments (especially south of 92) where there are parking issues and obviously the atmosphere is not as high end - not ghetto or anything, but just not as aesthetically pleasing. East of El Camino, and West of 101, a mixed bag - in general:
- From the Belmont border to Hillsdale, a solidly middle class well kept family vibe
- From Hillsdale to 92 - a bit more mixed but up and coming (exception - the newer densepack development between Hillsdale, Saratoga, 101 and an imaginary line about 1/2 mile north of Hillsdale is more like Silicon Valley - think Sunnyvale. Certainly neat, clean and affluent.
- From 92 to downtown - a formerly mixed, gentrified area that is decent.
- From downtown to the Burlingame border - good West of the Cal Train tracks.

Anything I did not include would require street by street evaluation (not only the street you are considering but the nearby ones as well) - there are some sketchy areas East of the places I listed. Specifically avoid everything East of 101 that is north of the major waterway that runs from Redwood Shores and curves around the the Bay near the water treatment plant. There is a small enclave physically attached to Foster City, of which Mariner's Island is the main component, that is good, but that is the only area East of 101 I would recommend.

[BayAreaHillbilly]

Oh, also the area north of 92 and West of El Camino yet east of Alameda is very expensive, at its north end it's essentially overflow from Hillsborough.