Live in SF, Commute to Menlo Park (Hayward, San Mateo: apartment, rentals)

[imissyoupumpkin]

So a bit of background information first...

I am a 23 year old recent college grad with a full-time, decent salary job in Menlo Park. My boyfriend and I are thinking about moving to SF for several reasons
1) We want to live together and in the city for ~1-2 years while we're still young;
2) I currently live in the east bay and have to commute 50 minutes by car, plus I pay $220/month in travel expenses ($100 for toll and $120 for gas)
3) He may attend grad school in SF

I plan to drive to work (against traffic) and I want to be able to get to work in 35 minutes max. Which neighborhood is best for us to live that is a) close to a freeway without a lot of traffic b) affordable ($1300 to $1500) and safe? I am thinking of a 1 bed/1 bath, but a studio will be okay. Any other recommendations will be appreciated!

[thecooler]

Originally Posted by imissyoupumpkin

I plan to drive to work (against traffic) and I want to be able to get to work in 35 minutes max. Which neighborhood is best for us to live that is a) close to a freeway without a lot of traffic b) affordable ($1300 to $1500) and safe? I am thinking of a 1 bed/1 bath, but a studio will be okay. Any other recommendations will be appreciated!

What you're asking for doesn't exist. You are not "against traffic" driving from SF to Menlo Park, a large number of people commute from the city to the peninsula for work (Apple, Google, Genentech, Oracle, Yahoo, eBay etc). There is a lot of traffic getting out of the city in the morning, the first backup is usually around the 280/101 merge, then there are off and on backups pretty much the entire way down 101, the worst section being where 92 hits 101. 280 has less traffic, but its a longer route and there is still is traffic and usually a backup around 380. I used to live in Noe Valley/Castro area and to get to Redwood Shores it took me about 45 min, that included about 5-10 minutes to get to the freeway.

I have heard the rental market in SF is really tight right now, so it might be difficult to find an affordable place in a good neighborhood. Some neighborhoods that are close to the freeway that are safe are: South beach/Mission bay, Hayes Valley, parts of the Mission (Valencia st and west is safer), the southeast part of Noe Valley, Glen park, Sunnyside, Westportal, south section of Sunset.

[imissyoupumpkin]

Originally Posted by thecooler

There is a lot of traffic getting out of the city in the morning, the first backup is usually around the 280/101 merge, then there are off and on backups pretty much the entire way down 101, the worst section being where 92 hits 101. 280 has less traffic, but its a longer route and there is still is traffic and usually a backup around 380.

What time did you leave SF? Because I plan to leave really early around 6:30-6:45am so I can get in early and leave early.

[thecooler]

Leaving that early you will miss a lot of the traffic, I left around 8 am.

[NorCal44]

Originally Posted by thecooler

Leaving that early you will miss a lot of the traffic, I left around 8 am.

Agreed. I am on 280 South every morning and avoid lots of traffic leaving at 6 or 6:30. Truthfully, it's a breeze as commutes go, even leaving at 7 or 8. Traffic may slow down at 380, and 92 if you have to head east. It starts to pick up the right around 92 probably because you then are dealing with more commuters to the south bay. Avoid 101 if possible. But it all depends on where your office is...

We used to live in Noe Valley, a wonderful neighborhood, and paid 1400.00 for a one bedroom. I'm sure it's more now. But I was five minutes from 280, and a total of 40 minutes from work in Atherton. (Leaving early of course.) Honestly, the worst traffic you will encounter is once you exit 280 and make your way to work, because by then, it's 40 minutes later and those roads (Woodside, Alameda de las Pulgas, El Camino, etc.) start coming alive with students and commuters.

Try to find a good place in Glen Park. You will be extremely close to 280, and your commute will be a piece of cake. Good luck, and good for you for getting a job in this market!

[sonarrat]

Re: the above, bear in mind most of the affordable rentals in "Glen Park" are actually in a neighborhood called Sunnyside which is not as nice.

[sliverbox]

I'd say that 35 minutes from SF to Menlo park would be wishful thinking. There's a lot of traffic congestion from the city to the Silicon Valley environs. I used to commute to Menlo Park myself and the problem is not only the traffic on the freeway, but the traffic you run into getting off the freeway and getting to Menlo Park: Its always a mad rush with all the parents taking their kids to school. Just getting to work from the freeway to Menlo Park for me was an additional 10-15 minutes. Keep in mind this was at 7:00 in the morning too.

[teknodudes]

If you want to shorten the commute time, then you want to live in an area where you don't have to deal with the 101 and 280 splits.

When I lived in the Marina district, I used to commute to San Mateo and Redwood City and it usually took 1 hour to 1 ½ hr depending how long it took me to get to the freeway through congested Van Ness. Most of the time it took me 20-30 min to get to the freeway leaving at about 6:45 am and 8:45am. The other 2 alternatives like Polk st, and Gough were no better. Note this was before, the Octavia st entrance opened up.

Getting onto the freeway is another matter. When I used the 101 central freeway entrance from south van ness, the city constantly changed it from 1 lane to 2 lane and back and forth over the years. Therefore you get traffic from people having to merge. Also that entrance eventually splits to 80 and 101, and 101 ramp was usually always backed up from being 1 lane until you get onto it. After that, there can be more congestion up until the 101 and 280 split.

Once on 280, you have possible congestion around serramonte or later. This was always caused by the 280 to 101 exit with mix of people getting to work or heading to SFO. Hopefully you don’t have to take 92 east…That’s usually backed up with people getting to work and students who attend college of san mateo.

If you’re trying to avoid a long commute, don’t live in that part of the city I just described. It’s a really nice area, but damn the commute sucked in the morning as well as parking.

I eventually moved to the outer sunset area, where getting to the freeway was alot easier. Mostly because I didn't have to deal with 101 and 280 merges from downtown SF. 19th ave and sunset blvd aren't too congested heading south, but you'll deal with traffic when you head home.

[sonarrat]

When I (briefly) lived in the Outer Sunset, I routinely took Sunset Blvd instead of 19th Ave and never regretted it, although the lanes are quite narrow, so accidents were not uncommon. It's really a two-lane road that has been striped into three, and with no shoulder whatsoever.

[imissyoupumpkin]

Thanks everybody. It sounds like traffic is inevitable even if I move to the city...I guess it depends where the apartment is situated in relation to freeway entrances.

When I first started working, I left my house at 7:00 and it took me 1 1/2 to get to work (the horror...). Leaving at 6:30-6:40 cut my commute time by half. I was also able to avoid everybody trying to get off 101 S (my office is near 101 right off 114). On the other hand, there is always bad traffic around Hayward on 880 south regardless if I leave early or not (there always seem to be accidents in that area...wtf). But I digress..

As for the rent, I know that my budget is pretty tight, but I guess I've just been used to paying really cheap rent for a spacious apartment. How much are 1 bed/1 baths in Glen Park, Noe Valley, Outer Sunset? And what about the studios? Will I really feel like I'm living in a box? Especially sharing a studio with another person?