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SAN FRANSISCO, ALAMEDA, BERKELY OAKLAND, HELP US DECIDE WHERE TO LIVE!


NatureMomma
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My husband got a job downtown in San Fransiscos Financial area, and right now he's commuting and it's tough on him. We currently live a couple of hours South of SF.

We know virtually NOTHING about any of these cities at all. I'm not thrilled about his job there, and don't like the Bay Area, but after being out of work for over a year, this was what was available.

 

Im not sure of the pros and cons of living in the city, versus something like Alameda, other than the price difference. I also really don't know if logistically I would do well in a city. We have 2 cars, and his is a lease, so unfortunately we have to keep his, but it's an electric car and just doesn't go very far - so I want to be able to take off outside the city often, but I hear parking is extremely difficult, so not sure we could even keep mine.

I'm also worried about housing. He's making 135k a year, (not enough I know for the area) and we have a 13 year old, who wants some space, but we also don't want to spend all of our money on rent. We have a lot of debt to pay off, and also traveling is a big thing for us. We just don't want to sink our money into outrageous prices for rent!! We are the type that's very creative when it comes to housing. Right now, we live full time in a 100 SF Rv so small spaces don't bother me if they can be worked with, or divisioned off.

 

Do any of these cities have RV parks? Or tiny home living, or other creative outside the box options for cheaper rent?

 

I also don't want to spend all my time lugging laundry, groceries, etc around a city, and to tell the truth, the Bay Area in general just doesn't appeal to me, it's so industrial looking and cold.

 

On the other hand, we like walking, cultural things, history, architecture, we like fun things to do that are easily accessible, and good restaurants, lots to look at, etc. so it could be rather fun living in SF.

Is there families that live in studios? And is there ways to put up temporary walls, so that we can still live there if that was out choice, but not pay so much for rent for a 1 or 2 bedroom apt?

 

But tell me options for Alameda, Berkely, and Oakland. What do you love or not about these cities, and which would you choose to live in? I have no experience with any of them- and have only visited SF. He could take the BART train in to work, but does NOT want to commute by car. What would be the most ideal for cummute time?

 

My husband could also take the ferry to work from Alameda- any personal experience with the Island itself? I would still be able to have my car living there, and have access to more stores potentially, and the housing is cheaper there, but does it feel like you're 'stuck' and is traffic bad getting on and off? Does it feel confined and too separate?

What is Berkely like?

 

I also like sun, and green spaces, and beautiful nature spots to visit, so that's also something that's important to throw in the mix. And we don't like traffic, and he really doesn't want much longer than a 25 minute commute...

 

My daughters in 7th right now, and we aren't sure if we are homeschooling her next year or not. What areas have the best schools? And my searches are not pulling up ANY homeschool centers in the area. She wouldn't be doing any co-ops, park days, etc. but the area we live in now has charter schools, and also private homeschool centers where she can attend a few days a week. Are there not as many homeschoolers in the area?

 

All these decisions, and we just don't know how to narrow the choices down. I'm trying to put all the pieces together with not knowing anything about the area at all, and it's such a hard decicion to live in or out of the city. My dh would prefer to live in SF because of the lifestyle, and accessibility, but I'm not sure how I feel about it. We have a couple of months to make our decision, and we don't really know what each area entails, so please give me the scoop!

Thanks!

Edited by NatureMomma
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Let me make a pitch for Southern Marin, specifically Mill Valley and Corte Madera. Let's start with the cons. Expensive and homogenous. But you can get a decent 1 bedroom apartment for under $2000. Pros? Great schools. Amazing nature. So many trees. Easy bus commute to downtown SF. (And these are nice buses full of quiet professionals.). The East Bay also has good options. If you like sunshine and nature I would just forget about SF proper. It's an interesting city but you can do so much better weather wise.

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I grew up in the East Bay suburbs -- and my dad commuted by BART into the financial district for thirty years.

 

Feel free to PM me if you have questions about Walnut Creek, Lafayette, or Orinda.

 

As teens we'd spend weekends in Berkeley and San Fran.

 

In retrospect, I always wished my parents had lived in Half Moon Bay. I'm not super clear on what that commute would have been like for my dad, but the Half Moon Bay community would have been much more my style.

 

PM me if you want more info.

 

Alley

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I grew up in the East Bay suburbs -- and my dad commuted by BART into the financial district for thirty years.

 

Alley

I taught school and lived in the East Bay (Concord) for a couple of years. I liked it well enough. Personally, I stay away from the Bay Area, but I haven't heard a lot of good about Oakland, Berkely or Alameda. Taking BART into the City from the East Bay works pretty well.
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We are 45 miles outside of SF, but we are east coast NYC/NJ people so I am slightly jaded and disappointed in the whole SF area in comparasion, so take it for what it's worth.  We have been here almost two years.  The nice thing is we're military we move to an area and tend to know people, or people who know people there, so we get the hook ups and the low downs quick.  And because we are all short timers, we tend to go out and explore a lot more than locals who can go do stuff 'one of these weekends'.     But we  were super disappointed in SF.  And I will take my NJ/NYC traffic over the traffic here any day.

 

I have been to Berkley a few times.  I was expecting a cool college town that had that artsy post college vibe.  Not what we saw at all.  A LOT of homeless.  A lot of crazy homeless as well.  We worried about the cars each time.  My kid, who has wandered all over NYC and was comfortable everywhere and usually did his thing 15 feet in front or behind me as we walked streets, never left my side as we walked in Berkley.  

 

And the word around base is to avoid Oakland due to gangs and general crime.  

Edited by Renthead Mommy
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We are 45 miles outside of SF, but we are east coast NYC/NJ people so I am slightly jaded and disappointed in the whole SF area in comparasion, so take it for what it's worth.  We have been here almost two years.  The nice thing is we're military we move to an area and tend to know people, or people who know people there, so we get the hook ups and the low downs quick.  And because we are all short timers, we tend to go out and explore a lot more than locals who can go do stuff 'one of these weekends'.     But we  were super disappointed in SF.  And I will take my NJ/NYC traffic over the traffic here any day.

 

I have been to Berkley a few times.  I was expecting a cool college town that had that artsy post college vibe.  Not what we saw at all.  A LOT of homeless.  A lot of crazy homeless as well.  We worried about the cars each time.  My kid, who has wandered all over NYC and was comfortable everywhere and usually did his thing 15 feet in front or behind me as we walked streets, never left my side as we walked in Berkley.  

 

It word around base is to avoid Oakland due to gangs and general crime.  

 

Yep. Agree with everything you've said. This is why we finally moved to VA and then onto GA. LOVE the East Coast. Miss VA terribly.

 

Alley

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I'm also worried about housing. He's making 135k a year, (not enough I know for the area) and we have a 13 year old, who wants some space, but we also don't want to spend all of our money on rent. We have a lot of debt to pay off, and also traveling is a big thing for us. We just don't want to sink our money into outrageous prices for rent!!

 

On that budget, I would avoid S.F. entirely. Berkeley and Alameda you might be able to find something decent but it'll be tough. Oakland, Emeryville, El Cerrito, the nicer parts of Richmond or into Contra Costa County like Concord would give you a lot more options for housing.

 

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And the word around base is to avoid Oakland due to gangs and general crime.  

 

There are nice parts of Oakland and a LOT more neighborhoods have become gentrified over the past few years because of everybody who has gotten priced out of S.F. I know a bunch of upper-middle-class folks who wound up leaving S.F. for Oakland because of increasing rents (basically everyone who wasn't in a rent-controlled apartment).

 

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Another plug for Marin. It's gorgeous. Nothing at all like the east bay. There is an RV park in Larkspur/Corte Madera and another one in Novato. There might be more, but those are the 2 I know. He could take the ferry in. We make less than you and live comfortably (though no debt or travel, so there's that).

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On that budget, I would avoid S.F. entirely. Berkeley and Alameda you might be able to find something decent but it'll be tough. Oakland, Emeryville, El Cerrito, the nicer parts of Richmond or into Contra Costa County like Concord would give you a lot more options for housing.

 

Agreed. That is just not enough money to find anything in SF that isn't awful. Unless you're working and pulling a decent salary too? 70-100k more would make things more comfortable. El Cerrito would be a good choice, and Alameda would be lovely but more expensive.

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Native Californian here (although stuck in Illinois past couple decades now) - may I add my two cents that you make sure anyplace you end up, is very earth-quake proof (as much as is possible?)  And, the closer you are to the ocean, the more you will live with coastal fogginess.

I spent one semester at SF State and it was fun, I'd drive to park in Daly City at the old mall and take public transportation downtown often. I think you need to check on what public transportation there is, where it extends to, and look to live in one of those places.

Edited by JFSinIL
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If you want easy access to nature and to feel less urban, I'd agree with taking a look at the towns across the Golden Gate. IMO (and I'll admit I'm biased) it's a much more lovely and peaceful area than the east bay.

 

Marin is lovely but the OP said she wanted to use public transit and that's much more feasible in the East Bay than the North Bay because of BART.

 

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Does Golden Gate Transit not service the north bay anymore? Plus there is the ferry.

 

Mostly I was hearing "nothing too urban!" and IMO that area would be the only one to consider, with Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Pt. Reyes, etc just outside the doorstep as it were. But hey, like I said, I'm biased, as most of these types of responses are.

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Does Golden Gate Transit not service the north bay anymore? Plus there is the ferry.

 

Buses are infrequent and unreliable compared to BART. We used to live on the Peninsula and for 15 months I was carless during the week since DH needed the 1 car we owned at the time for his job. I had to take the bus all the time and it was horrible. It wasn't just SamTrans either because we've had bad experiences with Muni, AC Transit and (Contra Costa) County Connection as well.

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Buses in Marin are great at one thing, going into and out of SF during commute hours. Transit within Marin? Not so much.

This. Half the people I know commute via bus and ferry, so I really don't think that's an issue. Getting around within Marin wouldn't be as easy, but they do have 2 cars. I think they'd be fine.

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Another plug for Marin. It's gorgeous. Nothing at all like the east bay. There is an RV park in Larkspur/Corte Madera and another one in Novato. There might be more, but those are the 2 I know. He could take the ferry in. We make less than you and live comfortably (though no debt or travel, so there's that).

The traffic from north bay, that is north of the GG bridge, is ridiculous during rush hour if you do not live in either Sausalito or Mill Valley near Hwy 101. Taking the Ferry into SF is the way to go. No bridge toll or parking fees. Ferry terminals are in Larkspur, Sausalito, and Tiburon.  Rents are high in south Marin, but access to outdoor activity is high too. An auto in CA is a must. There are auto share programs.

 

Sausalito rents are highest, Mill Valley your get more room and more outdoor space. Corte Madera can be cheaper.

 

 

Bus in Marin are fine. It is public transit subject to traffic delays. Golden Gate Transit goes far north into Sonoma county.

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I like North Berkeley, and there is a  BART station. Very liveable, walkable, shops, parks, bike lanes etc. Many quiet streets,  friendly, peaceful library, & nice neighborhoods.   I would agree that as a young family you probably don't want to live downtown.  There is a good Farmer's Market downtown on Sat. I love the (very urban) downtown library. Has a wonderful children's floor. The nearby Trader Joe's is my favorite TJs. :)

 

Check East Bay Housing on SF Craigslist to  get a feel for pricing and availability. It is a fast-paced rental market. You have to go to open houses, with check, references, etc and be prepared to move if you have opportunity,  as its rare for availability to last longer than the morning of a showing. It's pretty crazy.  

 

Oakland has some very nice areas. I like Rockridge, which borders the Elmwood area of Berkeley. There is a BART station in Rockridge.  Lake Merrit is nice, and also has a BART station.

 

Other considerations: Albany (one whole square mile!)  Very friendly, neighborly, liveable, walkable, w/Solano Ave - a nice area of shops, restaurants, dentists, dry cleaners,Y, library, post office etc. Family- friendly.  BART station is in El Cerrito , which boarders Albany. There is also the Kennsington neighborhood. Very nice, family area. 

 

Walnut Creek. Downtown Walnut Creek has a BART station.  Very suburban, more spread out, only downtown WC is walkable.  People a little more fancy & fashionable. 

 

I like Alameda. Nice, beachy feel.  Can take the ferry into SF.

Edited by LibraryLover
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The traffic from north bay, that is north of the GG bridge, is ridiculous during rush hour if you do not live in either Sausalito or Mill Valley near Hwy 101. Taking the Ferry into SF is the way to go. No bridge toll or parking fees. Ferry terminals are in Larkspur, Sausalito, and Tiburon.  Rents are high in south Marin, but access to outdoor activity is high too. An auto in CA is a must. There are auto share programs.

 

Sausalito rents are highest, Mill Valley your get more room and more outdoor space. Corte Madera can be cheaper.

 

 

Bus in Marin are fine. It is public transit subject to traffic delays. Golden Gate Transit goes far north into Sonoma county.

There's also park and rides where you can park for free and get a free bus ride to the ferry terminal. 

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If you are considering public school, I think Berkeley is a really good option- all schools are funded equally and is lottery.  I used to volunteer in several schools, and I like them all.  Nothing is perfect.  Albany schools are all decent, but it depends on what you think is decent.   Oakland schools are more in transition. I would suggest visiting all before you make a decision.  Walnut Creek schools are mostly wealthy and suburban.

 

There are a lot of hsers! I see them all the time in parks etc.  I think it's a great area to hs. It's a little convoluted for high school if you want to attend a UC college, but people do it.

Edited by LibraryLover
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