Taking an offer in Cupertino - where to live? (San Jose: extended stay, apartment)

[morpheus1234]

Hi Guys,

I'm taking an offer in Cupertino, near the memorial park. and wondering in which area should I look for an apartment.
I'm single, so I'm looking for a reasonably priced studio\1BR apartment, in a safe area.
Ideally, It would be walking\biking distance from work, but I'm also open to 15-20 mins commute on public transportation (is there a cal-train station near the memorial park).

Would appreciate your suggestions!

Thanks!

[marcopolo666]

Try searching this forum for "Cupertino" or "Apple". Many topics of interest can be found that way.

Good luck with your move!

[Azmordean]

Cupertino itself is very safe and is a nice area, though it is very suburban (read: a bit boring). That said, it's well located to the rest of what Silicon Valley has to offer. I'm not sure it fits the reasonably priced criteria though.

Surrounding Cupertino is Mountain View, Los Altos, and Sunnyvale. Of the three, you might save some money if you went to the "less good school district" section of Sunnyvale, at the price of a slightly longer commute.

Public transport probably is not going to be a very good commute option as Cupertino is nowhere near the CalTrain line really. I'm not sure where you are working, but some companies run shuttles, that may be worth looking into. Biking is possible of course, but you'd need to consider both distance and routes (e.g., a viable non-highway route).

My recommendation would be, at least at first, see if you can swing a 1br or studio very close to work. Give yourself the gift of an easy commute. Do that for a year, then, once you know the area, you can decide if you want to trade a longer commute to save some money (somewhere like Santa Clara) and/or live somewhere a bit "hipper" like downtown San Jose.

[marcopolo666]

Originally Posted by Azmordean

Public transport probably is not going to be a very good commute option as Cupertino is nowhere near the CalTrain line really. I'm not sure where you are working, but some companies run shuttles, that may be worth looking into. Biking is possible of course, but you'd need to consider both distance and routes (e.g., a viable non-highway route).

You don't HAVE to use CalTrain, if you live within 5-10 miles of your work; you can take the bus. All VTA buses have bike racks, so you can bike a half mile (or whatever) to your bus stop and then take the bus 6 miles (or whatever) to near where you are going, and bike the last bit - it's rather convenient. So you might want to look at housing near a direct bus line that brings you close to your work (so you don't have to switch lines, which is what really eats up time). Since memorial park is basically across the street from De Anza college, there are lots of bus lines that pass close-by : 23, 25, 51, 53, 54, 55.

You can find the VTA (public transport) map here : Bus & Rail Map

You can find schedules here : By Type

And once you start work and settle in, many companies have a vibrant carpool population, so you might be able to car-commute with co-workers.

[80skeys]

since you don't define "reasonably priced", then how about living in .... Cupertino

[marcopolo666]

One BR appts in Cupertino are over $3000/mo.

[morpheus1234]

Thank you all for replying!

I'll be arriving in mid August, and right now I'm looking for a place to stay for the first month.
It's really scary to rent something from craigslist without seeing it.
Are there any extended stay hotels in the south bay area?

Regarding long term rent - Is it possible to find a studio apt in Cupertino for $1500? or 1BD for $2K?

Where should I look if to find cheaper prices so that the commute each way wont have to be more than 30mins (preferably by bus)? Santa Clara? Sunnyvale?

Thank you! I'm staring to be frustrated.

[marcopolo666]

Originally Posted by morpheus1234

Where should I look if to find cheaper prices so that the commute each way wont have to be more than 30mins (preferably by bus)? Santa Clara? Sunnyvale?

Look at one of my previous posts on this thread - it contains a link to the web site for pub trans (VTA)- specifically, the bus map and bus schedules. Then, trace the direct bus lines that pass by (or close to) work, and VOILA! you question is answered.

[morpheus1234]

Originally Posted by marcopolo666

Look at one of my previous posts on this thread - it contains a link to the web site for pub trans (VTA)- specifically, the bus map and bus schedules. Then, trace the direct bus lines that pass by (or close to) work, and VOILA! you question is answered.

Thanks marcopolo666! what are the "less good school district" section of Sunnyvale that I should look into?

[NoMoreSnowForMe]

Originally Posted by morpheus1234

Thank you all for replying!

I'll be arriving in mid August, and right now I'm looking for a place to stay for the first month.
It's really scary to rent something from craigslist without seeing it.
Are there any extended stay hotels in the south bay area?

Regarding long term rent - Is it possible to find a studio apt in Cupertino for $1500? or 1BD for $2K?

Where should I look if to find cheaper prices so that the commute each way wont have to be more than 30mins (preferably by bus)? Santa Clara? Sunnyvale?

Thank you! I'm staring to be frustrated.

Originally Posted by morpheus1234

Thanks marcopolo666! what are the "less good school district" section of Sunnyvale that I should look into?

Do you really not know how to use Craigslist? And Google Maps?

Sorry but you are feeling frustrated, as am I by people who get jobs in SV who supposedly can't use Google Maps and Craigslist.

If you want to walk or ride your bike to work in Cupertino, then, hello, you need to live in Cupertino.

If you want to know what you can afford, look on Craiglist for rentals in Cupertino.

Sorry, but it's just hard to believe that people who can get jobs in Cupertino (assuming a techie job here) can't use Google maps or Craigslist.

And if, after looking at Google Maps you decide you are willing to walk or ride your bike from Sunnyvale, then look on Craigslist for rentals you can afford in Sunnyvale.

It's really as simple as that. You don't need to know where school districts are, if you don't have kids. You just need to find a place you can afford, and where you can commute from.

And this can all be done with Google maps (or mapquest or the mapping software of your choice) and Craigslist, which is where 99.9% of landlords in SV list their rentals.