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08-19-2012, 03:47 PM | #1 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 277175
Join Date: Mar 2011
Chapter/Region:
BAIC
Location: Pacifica, CA
Vehicle:2008 STi WRB |
Moving to Bay area in 2 weeks!
I'm moving south from Vancouver to the Bay area to start a new job in September. I've got two weeks (!!) to find a place to stay .. hopefully a short-term lease .. so I'm up against a bit of a wall. I'm hoping you guys can help.
The details: * I'm working in SF, at an office located near Embarcadero and Market. * I'll be commuting to work via BART * I've got a soft cap of about $2k/mnth for rent * I'm bringing my wife and her 2 cats; they aren't working * My wife is tiny and grew up in rural eastern Canada. Please help us stay away from high-crime areas. She prefers to walk to and from groceries. Given the option, she'd shop daily at the Berkeley Bowl. * Secure parking for my STI is a must. I'll also need info on best / worst places to buy gas, tuners, etc. .. but I can sort that out once I arrive. I find this kind of thing is best discussed over a few beers at the pub, yeah? Helpful posts earn beers.
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08-20-2012, 06:04 PM | #2 |
Scooby Specialist
Member#: 36154
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Santa Cruz County
Vehicle:2004 WRX Wagon White |
That's a HUGE area if you're looking to commute on BART.
If it's just the two of you are you looking for an apartment, house or condo? That will determine where you can look. A house for $2k that has say... 3 bedrooms. WAY fewer places are nice at that price. A townhouse or a house with say... 1/2 bedrooms... Quite a few more. An apartment/studio with 1/2 bedroom... pretty wide open. Want to be near water? As for tuners. When you narrow down your places I'd be happy to meet up with you over some beers and give you a run down of every tuner in the area to go to and to avoid including which ones are closest and which ones are better at certain things. If I were you I would look at a map of the bart lines. Then pick some key cities on the line and just do some random searches. I'll make a few assumptions and make a recommendation... 2 adults 2 cats (small yard) 1 car that must be in a garage Safe Nice Central Commute under an hour $2k Pleasanton> For about $1900-2200 you can find a pretty nice house or townhouse to rent. It's safe. It's nice. If you live close to old town you can have TONS to do within walking distance and BART is 10 minutes away along with a huge amount of chain stores. example http://www.trulia.com/rental/3015633...anton-CA-94566 If you were to go to say livermore close to the new down town it's not as nice as pleasanton and you have to drive farther to bart but you can get a nicer pad. Fremont> It's the end of another line. It's suburb central. Not a bad choice. |
08-20-2012, 06:23 PM | #3 |
Scooby Guru
Member#: 1904
Join Date: Jul 2000
Chapter/Region:
TXIC
Location: Austin, TX
Vehicle:2017 Impreza Sport E36 M3/4/5 |
I was told you have to be indian to live in Fremont, though
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08-20-2012, 07:11 PM | #4 | |||||
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 277175
Join Date: Mar 2011
Chapter/Region:
BAIC
Location: Pacifica, CA
Vehicle:2008 STi WRB |
Yeah .. I'm really impressed by the extent of the rail system in the Bay area.
I'd like to keep the train part of the commute under 30 minutes, if that helps. Under 15 would be awesome. Quote:
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The name 'Oakland' is a bit scary ... we're both used to urban life, but I suspect that a rough neighbourhood in Canada would make most urban Americans laugh. Quote:
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08-20-2012, 07:11 PM | #5 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 277175
Join Date: Mar 2011
Chapter/Region:
BAIC
Location: Pacifica, CA
Vehicle:2008 STi WRB |
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08-21-2012, 01:07 AM | #6 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 307041
Join Date: Jan 2012
Chapter/Region:
BAIC
Location: Nor*Cal
Vehicle:2002 impreza wrx psm |
I would have to agree with onemanarmy Pleasanton is a great place not to crowded and very nice.You have shopping if you drive north or if you want ot head south to san jose its close aswell. Oakland,emry/berk area are pretty crowded hate driving around and to find parking is just
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08-21-2012, 01:51 PM | #7 |
Scooby Guru
Member#: 1904
Join Date: Jul 2000
Chapter/Region:
TXIC
Location: Austin, TX
Vehicle:2017 Impreza Sport E36 M3/4/5 |
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08-21-2012, 04:06 PM | #8 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 311905
Join Date: Feb 2012
Chapter/Region:
South East
Location: Orlando
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I love how nobody recommends North Bay because there aren't any trains that run up here, lol.
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08-21-2012, 05:44 PM | #9 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 277175
Join Date: Mar 2011
Chapter/Region:
BAIC
Location: Pacifica, CA
Vehicle:2008 STi WRB |
Ha! Nope, I've got the feathers.
Anyway, it turns out that my visa won't go through until mid-Sept .. so I won't be moving down until October. I'm pretty happy about that, actually ... I don't like being rushed. I'll be coming down mid-Sept for a week of on-site orientation, so I'll have some time to dedicate to exploring neighbourhoods (sorry .. neighborhoods ... gotta learn to leave out the u) and looking at apts. Thanks for the help, fellas ... and onemanarmy ... I owe you beers. |
08-23-2012, 03:37 AM | #10 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 322198
Join Date: Jun 2012
Chapter/Region:
BAIC
Location: Bay Area, CA
Vehicle:2012 Impreza SL Black |
Try looking at Hillsdale Garden Apartments is San Mateo.
It's on the Peninsula so it doesn't get too hot. It's next to a mall and walking distance to Caltrain. http://www.essexapartmenthomes.com/a...a-4d02h0110473 |
08-23-2012, 02:40 PM | #11 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 277175
Join Date: Mar 2011
Chapter/Region:
BAIC
Location: Pacifica, CA
Vehicle:2008 STi WRB |
Hrm. I appreciate the help, 12ImprezaSL, but given the reviews (http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate...e-Gardens.html) ... I think I'll pass on that complex.
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08-24-2012, 01:21 AM | #12 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 322198
Join Date: Jun 2012
Chapter/Region:
BAIC
Location: Bay Area, CA
Vehicle:2012 Impreza SL Black |
Ah, OK. I didn't know about that site. Good to know. I was looking into moving there. Thanks for the info.
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08-24-2012, 10:54 AM | #13 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 329888
Join Date: Aug 2012
Vehicle:2008 FXT White |
lake merritt is a nice area for what it is, just be aware that it's still downtown and while it's not particularly unsafe, you'll see a bit of bull**** from time to time. Alameda is another option, super safe pleasantville like island. you'd have to drive to bart, but it's only about 5min away.
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08-24-2012, 11:15 AM | #14 | ||
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 277175
Join Date: Mar 2011
Chapter/Region:
BAIC
Location: Pacifica, CA
Vehicle:2008 STi WRB |
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I throw the name of the complex and the town + review into google and check the review sites ... it seems to help. Just bear in mind that there are always disgruntled people, so I've never seen a building get as high as 4 out of 5 stars. Heck, I've seen people give one star because the leasing agent was rude and they didn't get the apt. Still, some of the sites have quite a few (50+) reviews, so that gives you a decent picture of life in that building. Quote:
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08-24-2012, 10:58 PM | #15 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 94323
Join Date: Aug 2005
Chapter/Region:
BAIC
Location: 925
Vehicle:2016 STI |
The garage part is something that's a bit of a pain, especially if you mean a single car garage, not a large garage you share with an entire building. Not too many townhouse sort of places you can afford comfortably unless you live somewhere like Pleasanton or Dublin. Those cities are fairly nice and quiet, though.
There are some cool lofts in Emeryville, West Oakland, and Berkeley that might have garage space, but the rent tends to be closer to $2500. I'd personally stick to the East Bay for commuting, just because I like BART a lot more than CalTrain. |
08-25-2012, 01:12 AM | #16 | |
Scooby Specialist
Member#: 36154
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Santa Cruz County
Vehicle:2004 WRX Wagon White |
Quote:
I commuted on the Dublin line coming out of castro valley and hayward. The fremont line coming out of fremont, newark and union city. I drove and barted from san jose and milpitas. And I took a combination of driving/caltrain driving/bart out of Watsonville. Caltrain is more comfortable and it's fine if you're coming from BFE. But I wouldn't want to do it on the regular if I didn't have to. 30-45 minutes on BART is a snap. I used to just take a nap. Your body learns it's stops. Usually. LOL. It's old. It's out dated. But it works. I personally hate anything close to Oakland. 1... I just hate it. 2. I HATE driving on 880. So Hayward/Oakland, etc. No friggin way. Fremont is cool. It's closer to San Jose. It's kind of a hub of freeways so you have options for driving around. There are plenty of areas that are close to shopping and what not to live by/walk to. It's not super "hip" like some other options but it's alright. I liked living there. |
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08-25-2012, 01:13 AM | #17 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 277175
Join Date: Mar 2011
Chapter/Region:
BAIC
Location: Pacifica, CA
Vehicle:2008 STi WRB |
Oh, sorry .. I'm cool with a shared garage space. Obviously, my own garage where I can work on my car would be fantastic but that is probably asking a bit much given my budget.
Side note: are there places in the bay area where you can rent a bay in a garage for a day? When I was in the Forces back in Halifax, we had a garage that service personnel could rent ... tools and a lift included. I haven't found anything like that here in Vancouver, so I'm not going to bank on it, but it'd be great if that kind of thing was available. Anyone know? |
08-25-2012, 01:16 AM | #18 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 94323
Join Date: Aug 2005
Chapter/Region:
BAIC
Location: 925
Vehicle:2016 STI |
880 does suck. I avoid it at all costs. I'm house shopping right now and it HAS to be on the 580/680 side of things. So much more mellow and free of semi-trucks.
Welcome to the Bay Area, where it's almost always cheaper to rent than to buy unless you have $100k to drop as a down payment. |
08-25-2012, 01:23 AM | #19 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 277175
Join Date: Mar 2011
Chapter/Region:
BAIC
Location: Pacifica, CA
Vehicle:2008 STi WRB |
OneManArmy .. would you mind giving me a quick estimate of the times for those commutes you mentioned?
I've used google maps but it doesn't do a good job of taking traffic into consideration and, obviously, that is going to be a huge factor. |
08-25-2012, 01:25 AM | #20 | |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 277175
Join Date: Mar 2011
Chapter/Region:
BAIC
Location: Pacifica, CA
Vehicle:2008 STi WRB |
Quote:
Maybe I'll move back in 5 years when I can afford a home. |
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08-27-2012, 06:00 PM | #21 |
Scooby Specialist
Member#: 154586
Join Date: Jul 2007
Chapter/Region:
BAIC
Location: San Ramon
Vehicle:1996 Turbo Outback 9psi on 91 No EM |
Oh man, I'm in the same boat except I have 2 kids, not 2 cats. I'm moving up from Fresno to start Chiropractic College in October. Fremont is probably where we will land since my school is in Hayward. I've also looked in Pleasanton/Dublin and they are super nice but a little more expensive.
There are a few gems out there that come in under 2k and have a garage, 3 bedrooms, but they go very quickly. Nobody will want to deal with you long distance. I tried for 2 months before we moved down from Montana and we had to move in with the in-laws temporarily. The market is very competitive so if you have any marks against you (income too low, credit score, pets) it can get your application sent to the bottom of the stack. Almost everybody deals with a property management company so there's a third party that won't advocate for anybody. They just take your application fee and send the applications to the owner who then picks who they want. I've been up there every weekend for the last 6 weeks looking and haven't found anything yet. Nobody wants to rent to me because my only income is student loans right now (can't get a job til I move). Maybe it will be easier for you since you will have an income right away. If you want me to look at something I may be able to do it for you since I'm up there on the weekends anyway but my #1 priority will be finding a place for us right now. |
08-27-2012, 08:43 PM | #22 | ||||||
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 277175
Join Date: Mar 2011
Chapter/Region:
BAIC
Location: Pacifica, CA
Vehicle:2008 STi WRB |
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The thing is .. I'm not willing to put 30% of my salary into my rent. I know that the rule of thumb is 30% but damn ... that is a lot of money that I could instead put into my STI! Quote:
Thankfully, I'll be flying down for a week mid-Sept for orientation ... my wife is going to come with and do some apt hunting. That should make things a bit easier. Quote:
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Have you considered offering to pay for several months at once? When I had student loans, they just dumped the entire year's loan on me at once. Perhaps if you show up with 6 months rent in hand, they'll be more apt to rent to you? Quote:
Good luck finding a home for your family! When do you start school? |
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08-28-2012, 01:12 PM | #23 | |||||||
Scooby Specialist
Member#: 154586
Join Date: Jul 2007
Chapter/Region:
BAIC
Location: San Ramon
Vehicle:1996 Turbo Outback 9psi on 91 No EM |
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I start full time in October. I'm taking accelerated rate courses on the weekends to finish up my prerequisites. I've already taken Physics and Organic Chemistry I and am half way done with O-chem II. Each course is 5 weeks long. I'll be glad when I can get started on stuff that I will actually be using when I'm a chiropractor. |
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08-28-2012, 01:33 PM | #24 | ||||
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 277175
Join Date: Mar 2011
Chapter/Region:
BAIC
Location: Pacifica, CA
Vehicle:2008 STi WRB |
Let's hope it is that simple.
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[quote[No problem, If you're looking for upper end you should check out Menlo Park. It's on the peninsula and is pretty nice. I have friends there that work in the city and they love it. [/quote] I'll do that .. thanks again. Quote:
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09-23-2012, 02:44 PM | #25 |
Scooby Newbie
Member#: 277175
Join Date: Mar 2011
Chapter/Region:
BAIC
Location: Pacifica, CA
Vehicle:2008 STi WRB |
I just got back from a conference in San Fran .. spent the week pretending I know wtf I'm doing and apt hunting in my spare time.
I found a nice 1 bedroom that is right beside the Federal Building in downtown Oakland. It is a block away from a BART station, a 20 minute commute to work, and is a luxury building with all the fixings .. awesome. It costs over $2200 / mnth. Not so awesome. I'm moving down next weekend ... driving the 101 as far as possible and arriving on Sunday. See ya'll at the next meet! OneManArmy: i owe you beers. geronimo81: have you found a home? |
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