

Ask HN: Where to Live in San Francisco Bay Area? - iamanna

Hi ,<p>I am from India and in 12 days from now I am moving to San Francisco. I would like to know where can I find apartment in quiet area ?  I am married and my wife would travel with me. No kids. 
I have been to US in the past and lived in NC. In Raleigh we were renting 1 BR&#x2F;1 BA for $950. 
This is first time we would live in Bay Area. 
We don&#x27;t plan on staying too long in SF just one or two years. We both don&#x27;t like in US but my company is pushing me a lot to go for couple of years.<p>I am looking for place that is available up to $1200 rent max. I am aware of fact that rents are extremely high in Bay Area but this may be rent we can afford.<p>We don&#x27;t want to live in downtown or in SF for that matter. We are okay to live on east bay and travel to SF. My job will be in downtown. I am okay to travel as much as 25 miles one way.<p>I am basically looking for place with no drugs , no violence.  Neither me or my wife drink. 
My wife won&#x27;t work and will stay home.<p>I have done some research so far.  Here are things I found -
1. Oakland is not so good area. There are some good neighborhoods but drugs and violence and loot is too large.
2. Some advised me to strictly avoid Tenderloin and Sacramento. 
3. I don&#x27;t know about Rockridge. Can anyone confirm if area is good &#x2F; bad ?
4. Walnut creek is good but very very expensive. How about Concord ?  Is Concord good area ?
5. What about Alameda ?  Is it good ?  Even if I have to pay $100 extra I am fine if its good area.<p>All other towns that are nice and quiet even though little far ?<p>Please comment any neighborhoods to strictly avoid.<p>Thank you very much for reading and helping us !
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thoughtshelp
Hello Iamanna,

You definitely have some parameters that will make this difficult, but as we
Bay Area people can sometimes prove... some amazing things are achievable if
we get creative or a little flexible. What I mean by that is: if you could do
a share-rental, you'd find a lot more places would become in your price range.
The downside of course is, you must live with more people than you'd like to.
It can be a challenge, but if the house is large or you get your own wing, it
could be pretty livable, at least for a set time period. The other thing you
might do would be consult with a local real estate specialist who could do
some quick leg-work for you here. (Sure, they will charge you, but maybe it
won't be too much. :/ It's just meant as a possible idea for you.) Short of
that, definitely look at Craigslist, but keep in mind, things could go (become
rented) very, very fast. The $1200 limit is very tough to work with, because
rents are shockingly high in the Bay Area. A small town you might find
something in might be: Port Costa. Someone else mentioned Crockett (where I
originally found your post referenced). If you look on a map, you'll see these
two enclaves are close to each other. Crockett is known for being eccentric,
artistic, having a huge sugar factory, and being located on the water (the
Carquinez Straits). The houses are generally old, and some are sweet and
interesting. You would feel like you were in a 'real' small town, but at the
same time still not too terribly far from what you need, mileage-wise. Port
Costa is just a little beyond Crockett, down a small road, off of Highway 4.
It is also known for being an out-of-the-way artsy and eccentric place. I
would say Port Costa is generally quite safe. You still will probably have
trouble finding anything that is at your $1200 mark, but it will be only a few
hundred over. (This might seem like too much still. I'm sorry!) I'm talking
about HOMES — not apartments — so you may find cheaper for an apartment,
specifically up there, but the towns are mostly comprised of homes (not
apartments). I am sorry some people are laughing, but it's easy for us to
forget how insane our pricing is here. We have endured it for so long! Please
consider looking in to the share-rental idea. You can find things like that
also on Craigslist! You also might try Martinez. It is the County Seat of
Contra Costa County. No place will be completely free of crime or undesirable
activity, but for your price range you'll do well to try these. I would be
careful about apartments in Martinez, only because some buildings focus on
'low income' renters and (I'm not trying to disparage low-income
people...)there can be 'a few bad apples' so to speak. I see someone else
mentioned Concord. I would say the areas with a high concentration of
apartments in {many parts of} Concord could have more undesirable incidences
of activity you are trying to avoid. Best of luck to you, and let us all know
what happens!

------
JackK
Tenderloin is a district inside of San Francisco. Urban and probably higher
crime than what you want. Rockridge is essentially Oakland.

Concord is safe but hot. Good BART commute to the city, tho (one train). Same
with Walnut Creek, but more expensive than Concord. Another city like Concord
would be Pleasant Hill. Many parts of Alameda are nice, but you might be
pushing your budget, and some parts are like Oakland (to be fair, the Oakland
hills are beautiful, but likely outside your price range).

I'd look at Fremont, which is in the South East Bay Area, is cooler than
Concord, and at the end of another BART line that goes directly to The City.
Fremont also has strong Asian and South Asian communities. There are a wide
variety of ethnic markets for those otherwise-hard-to-find foods, utensils,
and spices and a wonderful selection of restaurants that have great food but
aren't too fancy for weeknight dining.

Public transportation in the Bay Area is concentrated in the larger cities and
along the BART line, tho. If you are more than a few blocks away from BART in
the East Bay, you can expect to need a car, and are likely to need a car to go
grocery shopping as well, due to the sprawl of suburban living that also makes
it lower crime and quieter than The City. Many suburbs are large enough that
it might be easy for a wife to become practically housebound without access to
a car. Every place she might want to go might easily be too far to reasonably
walk.

If you look at a map, Sacramento is way too far, though I have seen some
people try to car commute from there.

Oh, and don't expect to drive into the city! Parking is a nightmare and very
expensive. It's really easy to get towed or have your car damaged (or stolen)
there as well. Best to expect to ride BART to a downtown SF job coming from
the East Bay, and to use a car to get to BART, because the more suburban parts
of the East Bay have unreliable bus service that tends to be ~ once an hour
and not on time enough to use for work commute.

------
silencio
I want to laugh too but I know you're probably stressed out by trying to find
a new place to live.

You can't live in SF for that little. Just, no. It most likely won't be a good
size or it'll be in a terrible neighborhood. Sacramento is absurd to commute
from, same with the Tracy/Manteca/Stockton area (unless you're commuting to
San Jose, in which case you can take the ACE train). Oakland is getting much
better, but in exchange for gentrification, rents are rising quickly. So
that's probably out for you.

I highly recommend you look into San Leandro, Castro Valley,
Dublin/Pleasanton, Hayward, and Fremont. You've got a reasonable idea with
Concord too. I might throw in like Daly City maybe, or the San
Mateo/Millbrae/... area. A lot of areas in those neighborhoods will be more
affordable, fairly quiet, not too bad in terms of drugs/violence, they're
located right on a Caltrain, BART, or AC Transit Transbay bus line so you
don't have to drive too much, and did I mention they're affordable? Just be
careful when you look around for a place to rent - there are definitely some
shitty areas in all those places too.

My parents live in San Leandro and have a nice 2br townhouse in a gated
area+amenities for around $1500 while they're looking for a house to buy. It's
pretty doable. The good places are all waitlisted though, so you have to get
right on it if possible.

If you're from India, I even think you'll enjoy East Bay more than SF. I'm
East Asian and I think ethnic food is way better east/south than in SF, where
I live, where it's all full of fancy and Californian/Italian/French cuisine
with a dash of sushi and Thai.

Be warned though, you will probably want to get a car if you live out east so
budget for it. It's hard to travel without one - but don't travel into SF with
it if you can since parking blows and bridge tolls add up. AC Transit is great
and so is BART for long distance, not so much for nearby
shopping/restaurants/personal needs.

------
subrat_rout
This is a very vague question with lots of facts not useful for a Bay Area
person for giving you some inputs.

1.SF Bay Area is a very spread area. Just a quick Google will give a fair
idea. (For example from San Pablo to San Jose span around 50 miles).

2\. It will depend on where you will work. I believe initially you will prefer
to a location close to your work place. If you have driven before in US and
are willing to buy a car to make a long commute then it is possible to stay at
a distant place with cheap rent from your work. But prepare to spend at least
1 hour each way on the road. Else you are going stay near a BART(Bay Area
Rapid Transit) or Bus route.

3\. In every part of Bay area there are some bad pockets/neighborhoods and
good areas. You have to spend a bit more if you want to stay in a decent
neighborhood. There is a good reason why those areas are pricey. But if you
spend enough time looking around you may be able to find some good place at a
reasonable price near to your work.

4\. Before renting any place go to to Yelp, or apartment reviews sites and
read other people's feedback. It is not always reliable. But if you are seeing
an apartment or housing having several negative reviews in a row then you know
there is something wrong with the place.

Hope this helps.

------
hashtag
What you're asking for is most likely unrealistic...

Even tiny studios in bad neighborhoods tend to go for more than $1200 in
majority of the bay area much less what you are asking for. The only way I can
see you landing a place that meets your requirements is sharing a place with
other renters or getting insanely lucky

------
GoldenMonkey
Vallejo has affordable housing and it's a nice city. This works well if the
job is downtown. I used to take the ferry to downtown SF from Vallejo. Ferry
runs about $300/mo. Ferry is comfortable and you can sit down and get work
done with wifi.

You can find rentals in your budget:
[http://sfbay.craigslist.org/search/apa?query=vallejo](http://sfbay.craigslist.org/search/apa?query=vallejo)

------
MalcolmDiggs
Making gross generalizations about entire neighborhoods and cities is
generally a bad idea. The bay area is extremely diverse, and neighborhoods
themselves can _feel_ quite different from block to block.

My suggestion is that you simply visit these neighborhoods (both during the
day and at night) and see how you feel. It might be tempting to line up an
apartment sight-unseen, but its really impossible to gauge a neighborhood's
energy remotely.

The only cardinal rule is: stay reasonably close to the BART line if you
expect to commute into SF from your home.

~~~
dllthomas
_" The only cardinal rule is: stay reasonably close to the BART line if you
expect to commute into SF from your home."_

If your destination is reasonably close to Embarcadero, being on the NL line
might also be doable. Still better to commute within SF or from SF or outside
SF than _into_ SF.

------
hackajack
A $1200 rent for a one BR (or even a studio) in the Bay Area is
impossible...or nearly so. Look at craigslist.com/apa and decide how far
outside the city you are willing to live.

[http://www.businessinsider.com/san-francisco-
neighborhoods-w...](http://www.businessinsider.com/san-francisco-
neighborhoods-where-one-bedrooms-are-expensive-2014-8)

~~~
dllthomas
My wife and I are paying $1200 for a one BR in Oakland, pretty close to BART.
I've no idea whether it's possible to find similar now - we're certainly
grateful that our landlady hasn't raised the rent in the 3 years we've been
here.

------
dllthomas
Rockridge is a "good neighborhood" in Oakland. There are others as well. I
would highly recommend living in Oakland; I would weakly recommend _against_
living in Oakland to work in SF - it's certainly possible but that's a crowded
commute.

------
andymoe
Alameda is nice and quiet and the commute is good to SF. Rockridge is a good
choice too. Oakland is workable if you can stay near lake Merritt or downtown.
Your budget is pretty low but look around. Concord is a trek but could work.
Same with Dublin/Pleasanton. Sacromento is way too far.

~~~
dllthomas
_" Alameda is nice and quiet and the commute is good to SF."_

By what means? Just getting out of Alameda by public transit seemed hard on
Google Maps when last I looked, and there's no way I would call driving into
the city a "good commute". Is there an option I've missed?

Dublin/Pleasanton is going to feel safer than Concord; whether it will _be_
safer depends on just what you're doing.

Sacramento is ridiculous if you're going to be in the office every day. I know
people who've done it telecommuting 2 days a week, but I still think that's
crazy. If you can telecommute 4 (or more) days a week, I can more reasonably
see it being the best option with the right set of other constraints.

~~~
c0011
Maybe the commute from Alameda by ferry? I don't know too much about it, but I
have a friend who took the ferry often from Alameda to SF.

~~~
dllthomas
Oh, right! A bit spaced out (30-40 minute gaps, irregular, it seems) - but
trip is only 20 minutes in the mornings. Not a bad option at all! Anyone know
how crowded it is?

------
onedev
"No drugs" is unrealistic. Chances are, a lot of people around you will do
drugs, but they're completely normal people with good careers and lives. You
have to understand that to an extent.

------
divoxx
Be aware of scams. If you find apartments listed at a price similar to this,
it's likely a scam. Never pay deposit upfront without actually visiting the
unit.

------
dllthomas
One thing to keep in mind is that people _frequently_ underestimate the impact
that a bad commute has on their day-to-day happiness.

------
pinkman
Are you sure on the "no drugs" thing? Because you are on drugs if you think
such an apartment exists.

------
iamanna
@All - Thanks everyone. I really don't know if $1200 did sound as a joke ,
although it might be if you are already in SF, but I would consider it as high
rent. I added $$250 to what we were paying in NC. I could be terribly wrong. I
could go up until $1500 but I can't grasp idea of paying $2k or $2.5k for 1
bd/ba. I don't care / mind what everyone is doing in their home but I just
don't want to get robbed at gun point.

Many of you have provided very nice information which will help me narrow down
the area.

Just one last question on living on Oakland after researching further. Is
Oakland really runs that scary ? I am asking because even though I might rent
in some good neighborhood I might have to pass through Oakland. Do people
literally get robbed or shot in broad daylight or by 8pm / 9pm ?

Thanks very much again for helping me out and excellent info.

------
greggawatt
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~~~
dllthomas
In the future, please add some line breaks...

~~~
dang
If this happens and you let us know (hn@ycombinator.com), we'll fix it.

(We'll deal with a permanent fix after we roll out the new markup we've been
working on.)

~~~
dllthomas
Awesome, thanks!

