Best place to live between Santa Rosa and the Golden Gate bridge (San Diego: to rent)

[fabe]

Hi there,

I will be relocating from San Diego to SF north bay area.
I am a surgeon and will be working in Santa Rosa (east side). My wife and I are in our late 30's, we don't have any kids, so schools are not important.

We would like to live in a nice, "affluent" area, with a real garden (at least 1/3 to 1/2 acre...or more), mature trees and vegetation...no track housing socal style.

Our budget to rent: max $4000
Our budget to buy: max $1.3 million
Commute:somewhere in the middle, probably closer to SF because we will go against traffic (going north)

We like outdoor stuff like MTBiking, road cycling, hiking and indoor stuff like, dining out in SF etc..

Thanks

Fabe

[CarlosAtun]

You could consider Penngrove or parts of Petaluma or Sebastapol if you want nice areas with some land around a house south of Santa Rosa. If you look in Santa Rosa, the hills around Fountaingrove and Mark West Springs areas have larger lots. At least you have a realistic budget for the area. Many people from the east, midwest, and south expect large properties for much less than they go for here.

In Marin County, a bit of a drive to Santa Rosa, 30-40 minutes but you would have a reverse commute, Novato has some nice non-tract areas with larger lots in the Atherton Ave. area east of 101. All of Marin and Sonoma counties are close to wonderful open space areas for hiking, going to the beach, or enjoying the wine country. Lots of country roads in the undeveloped parts off the 101 corridor for biking.

San Francisco is reachable by Golden Gate Transit or driving in from time to time for dinner and cultural events is doable. Get a FasTrak pass for the bridge toll and you will be all set.

[sonarrat]

Glen Ellen. You'll get a lot more than 1/2 acre, and it meets all your other requirements. It's part of the wine country, but still close to Santa Rosa.

[nmnita]

I agree with the suggestions, but they are not between Santa Rosa and the GG bridge.

I will add one thing, to the OP, if you are going to buy, schools are important, someday you will want to sell and schools can be the decider for many people. If you are renting that is different.

Nita

[prairie guy]

Trouble is, if you are literally "between" SF and Santa Rosa, then you are located on HWY 101, always subject to traffic congestion (even both ways, in Sonoma County, it's not just "south to the city" anymore.) They just finished adding a lane, but it won't help much.

I think anything south of Petaluma will be too far a commute, and even then it won't be quick, having to schlepp from 101 (west side of Santa Rosa) to your work on the east side. And the HWY 101 corridor is doomed to get more crowded, and it's drudgey; a spirit-sapping freeway drive--you did not move to "rural" Northern California just to drive on "southern California-lite freeways", did you!

My suggestion--lean in favor of staying closer to work than closer to the city. You have a good budget, so if you buy a bit of land in a beautiful area, you'll find you won't want to go to the city that often anyway.

In which case, Glen Ellen is an excellent suggestion--close to Sonoma town, but Glen Ellen has homes with large lots/acreage/tucked into hillsides. And the town is not at all "tract like" or McMansion in feeling. Sebastopol area is a good choice too, but scout the commute, you are traveling west-east across a populated area. Any places north of Santa Rosa can be nice, but then you are really getting far away from SF.

Enjoy the search!

[lrmsd]

I know this thread is old, but just want to mention for future interested people-Sonoma and Marin county seriously have perhaps BETTER food ch oices than SFO. I lived in the city for a few years and while it is great and fun, I would hands down rather live in sonoma county and drive to the city.
But between Sonoma City, Healdsburg, Sebastopol and even Santa Rosa now, along with Geyserville, Calistoga, St. Helena, etc. in Napa, as well as Napa city itself, I could eat for months and not grow bored or tired. And the setting and vibe are often far more charming and pleasant than SFO. For things like thai, any asian, really, of course you want to go to the city from time to time (generally speaking)...but beyond that Marin also has soo many fantastic options-mill valley has a reknowned burger joint, homemade gelato, best icecream i've eaten is in sebastopol, etc.

So, fear not, people who enjoy good food need not panic if they live north of the golden gate bridge.