Work in Campbell, Commute from "Where"? (San Jose, Fremont: rentals, townhouse)

[Searching-01]

Hi All,
If one were to land a job in Campbell, where do folks commute from to afford a home?

A quick look at zillow shows everything is in the millions.

Is there any commutable escape from that situation?

[Ruth4Truth]

Morgan Hill? Gilroy?

[NoMoreSnowForMe]

Nothing easy. I did meet someone who works in San Jose, and they bought in Los Banos. I asked him isn't that a horrible commute, and he said yes, but they're thinking about retirement and wanted to buy and that was their best option.

You can find a place you can afford, but you'll have a commute you'll have to deal with. Some people go to the gym and wait for the traffic to be better, some get audio books and just sit in traffic.

[jdhpa]

Try to telecommute once you've been there for a year or two.

[WeezulMaster]

I have a friend, former co-worker, who lived in Los Gatos and commuted to Fremont. He said he had a reverse commute doing this, which saved him a good chunk of time. If you're working in Campbell, investigate a reverse commute, and look for housing along that route. Saratoga, parts of Sunnyvale, or Morgan Hill maybe. Morgan Hill would be cheaper.

Though I also second on the telecommuting. Used to have a job in Campbell but lived in Dublin. Had to threaten to quit, but they let me telecommute. Helped immensely.

[dogandcat]

Originally Posted by Searching-01

Hi All,
If one were to land a job in Campbell, where do folks commute from to afford a home?

A quick look at zillow shows everything is in the millions.

Is there any commutable escape from that situation?

zipcode 95123. Million point one or so and up. Not millions.

[tehsquishmeister]

You can try up here too. Commute to Campbell is 35 minutes or so, depending on where in BC you live.

[Wintermomma]

South San Jose. It's not a reverse commute, but Campbell isn't so far, you could even take streets if you have more patience for stoplights than freeway traffic. Along the same lines of not being too far, there are communities off of the 17, but there are less alternative routes available if something happens on the highway.

A more pleasant, semi-reverse commute would be from North San Jose. Avoid East San Jose.

Also how big/new of a house are you looking for? Are schools important? You only mentioned commute. If these are important, they will of course play in, too, to the cost of the home. You didn't say a price or size, but I popped 3+2 under $900K into redfin and found some areas with options. Commuting to Campbell really isn't a bad situation, not like MV or PA.

You may wish to check craigslist to look at rentals first, to get a feel for the area.

[dogandcat]

Originally Posted by Wintermomma

I popped 3+2 under $900K into redfin and found some areas with options.

You can not buy 3/2 detached house in San Jose for this price anymore. Only bad areas in East San Jose. Townhouse yes, detached no way.


Using Redfin or Zillow, always look on recently "Sold" inventory to understand the market not starting price for bidding wars..

[skygazer1]

Originally Posted by dogandcat

You can not buy 3/2 detached house in San Jose for this price anymore. Only bad areas in East San Jose. Townhouse yes, detached no way.

Using Redfin or Zillow, always look on recently "Sold" inventory to understand the market not starting price for bidding wars..

Yeah, that's about it, bad areas for nearly $1M anywhere near silicone valley. If it wasn't so sad, it would be hilarious.

Don't bother going up 17 to Santa Cruz, or the mountains in between. Those narrow, curvy hill roads will drive you nuts, if not kill you, with the totally insane people who drive 60mph around the hairpin turns!