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Oakland, CA [City not teams] (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter wbaaoz
- Start date
Quint
Footballguy
living further east of the water is better (Walnut Creek, Danville, Brentwood), and will cost you more. i'd be leery of living in Oakland proper, unless it's the Oakland Hills. Berkeley is ok if you don't mind the more-than-occasional dirty hippie.
traffic is fairly bad on 580/680/880 during commute times. BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) actually works pretty well for getting around the east bay and into SF.
plenty of good places to eat...lots of variety and styles of cuisine.
traffic is fairly bad on 580/680/880 during commute times. BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) actually works pretty well for getting around the east bay and into SF.
plenty of good places to eat...lots of variety and styles of cuisine.
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mr. furley
Footballguy
Truck can tell you where not to ride your bike if you don't like rotten fruits and vegetables 
butcher boy
Footballguy
I'm an east bay resident. The nicest places are going to be some parts of Oakland itself, then alameda and Berkeley. House prices go down the further south you go, but so does quality. If you prefer traditional suburbs, consider the concord/walnut creek area or the Pleasanton/San Ramon area but if accessibility to SF is important to you, it's probably not worth it to live that far. Traffic from those areas to Oakland/SF can be horrid.
The best restaurants and things to do in general are going to be in Oakland/Berkeley and SF.
The best restaurants and things to do in general are going to be in Oakland/Berkeley and SF.
Controller
Footballguy
Born in Oakland, raised in Alameda, and have been living in Alameda & raised my 3 kids there over the last 21 years. Before that, lived in San Leandro and Pittsburg (CA).
Also feel free to ask me anything, as -jb- said. And please to let us know your age, marital status, where your job is, etc. and will help as much as possible.
Also feel free to ask me anything, as -jb- said. And please to let us know your age, marital status, where your job is, etc. and will help as much as possible.
Thanks for the response!
Married. Early/Mid 30s. Coming from LA. Our immediate preference would be not "traditional suburbs" Wife will be working in the Rockridge area. I'm a teacher so will be somewhat open for location wise. No kids yet but hope so in the near future.
We looked around at Berkeley. We didn't really like Berkeley in terms of living there.
Where exactly in Oakland proper would you recommend staying?
What is Alameda like?
Good Posting Judge
Footballguy
Alameda might be tough for your wife, given the lack of public transportation. Driving from the island is going to be a hassle.
Anything east of the Lake and between the two freeways should be ruled out immediately. Pretty bad in there.
My wife and I lived near the lake in the Adams Point neighborhood (Parkview Terrace, specifically) before we moved to the suburbs and we loved it. Short walk to the 19th St. BART and a Whole Foods, and uptown Oakland's developed quite a bit even since we left. It's not a great place to live (IMO) with kids, not because it's unsafe, it's just harder to go for walks and such. The schools are decent in Oakland up until jr. high I think, then it gets pretty hairy. The Grand Lake area (near the theatre) is pretty nice too.
Anything east of the Lake and between the two freeways should be ruled out immediately. Pretty bad in there.
My wife and I lived near the lake in the Adams Point neighborhood (Parkview Terrace, specifically) before we moved to the suburbs and we loved it. Short walk to the 19th St. BART and a Whole Foods, and uptown Oakland's developed quite a bit even since we left. It's not a great place to live (IMO) with kids, not because it's unsafe, it's just harder to go for walks and such. The schools are decent in Oakland up until jr. high I think, then it gets pretty hairy. The Grand Lake area (near the theatre) is pretty nice too.
butcher boy
Footballguy
Rockridge is nice but similar in many ways to Berkeley which you didn't like. The area around Piedmont Ave is nice as well. Anywhere in the hills is also going to be decent especially Montclair if you have the money. The main areas to avoid are West Oakland and East Oakland near the ballpark.
Alameda has a more small town feel but it neighbors Oakland. It's actually an island and you get to it via drawbridges or a tunnel on the west side. It has a very nice downtown main street with decent restaurants and shops, a beach (kind of an underwhelming beach, but still a beach), and a huge old navy base that one day will be redeveloped. Housing ranges from regular suburbs to old, beautiful Victorians if you're rich.
butcher boy
Footballguy
She can take an AC Transit bus from Alameda to Rockridge. Unless she's like my wife and has a fear of public transportation.
-jb-
Footballguy
With Rockridge essentially being your epicenter, it would be interesting to see what you think of that area. Lots within walking distance, including some great restaurants, a few decent dive bars, and BART. I will disagree with Quint that further east is better (and it certainly won't cost you more, relatively speaking). A lot depends on where you are in your life, and even then it's debatable. I have lived in the Oakland Hills since 2004, after living in San Francisco for about ten years. We love it, for a lot of reasons. When we first started searching for a house, we were looking as far east as Livermore, and as far north as Novato. Through the process, we determined that proximity was a big deal for us. We wanted to be close to good food, the airport, and some modicum of a metropolitan life. That narrowed the area, and we just kept coming back to where we are now. We're now on our second house in the area, after having looked on the other side of the culture filter (Caldecott Tunnel). We thought for sure we were ready to move to Orinda or Lafayette, and once again felt the draw back to Oakland.
Things to like about Oakland:
- Proximity to San Francisco
- Proximity to air travel
- Best restaurants in the bay, outside of San Francisco
- Proximity to unbelievable park land (Redwood Park, Tilden, etc.)
- Great public elementary and independent schools
Things to dislike about Oakland:
- You share a police force with the notorious areas of Oakland (probably my biggest gripe, but it has gotten better)
- Schools beyond elementary school are the suck (given your lack of kids currently, you've got some time before this becomes an issue)
- Jean Quan (she'll be gone in a few months)
Questions, let me know...jb
Things to like about Oakland:
- Proximity to San Francisco
- Proximity to air travel
- Best restaurants in the bay, outside of San Francisco
- Proximity to unbelievable park land (Redwood Park, Tilden, etc.)
- Great public elementary and independent schools
Things to dislike about Oakland:
- You share a police force with the notorious areas of Oakland (probably my biggest gripe, but it has gotten better)
- Schools beyond elementary school are the suck (given your lack of kids currently, you've got some time before this becomes an issue)
- Jean Quan (she'll be gone in a few months)
Questions, let me know...jb
⚡DEADHEAD⚡
Footballguy
Not necessarily true for the areas you mention. Oakland can be very expensive away from the Oakland hills/Montclair area. Expect to pay $500/sf in the Trestle Glen/Crocker/Grand Lake areas, for example.
Orinda, Lafayette, Moraga and Piedmont are the priciest places in the East Bay.
Get ready for sticker shock, whether buying or renting.
Good Posting Judge
Footballguy
⚡DEADHEAD⚡
Footballguy
You have to live in an expensive neighborhood to get into a good elementary school. As someone said, you can forget about public junior high and high schools, at least right now. They're awful for many reasons.
Jean Quan. I hope she goes but with ranked choice voting, I would not rule out a second term.
⚡DEADHEAD⚡
Footballguy
Love Adams Point although there's a fair bit of petty crime there these days. Cleveland Heights is also nice. Very understated. These areas will be a bit less expensive than, say, renting near Rockridge. Brother lived there for many years. I currently live near there in the Grand Lake area.
To the OP, I've lived in the hills on/off for 25 years, I'm a homeowner, got kids in daycare in Oakland and Piedmont, actively follow local politics and school board developments, have friends and family all over the East Bay (Piedmont, Piedmont Avenue, Montclair, Orinda, Crocker, Cleveland Heights, Rockridge). I can give you a sense of just about all neighborhoods worth living in that are relatively safe.
Oakland is a tale of two cities. One part is the best the Bay Area has to offer, the other truly is the worst possibly in the whole country.
The Z Machine
Footballguy
I lived in Rockridge for 4 years or so and really enjoyed it. I think it's a great spot.
-jb-
Footballguy
To some extent, your elementary school point is true - but the options process appears to be decent. Agreed on jr/sr high - see #2 in things to dislike.
Jean Quan sucks. So. Bad.
jonessed
Footballguy
Be careful with commute times. You can get large variations within neighborhoods/cities simply based on your commute time and proximity to freeways/mass transit. I'm more familiar with driving in Marin since I largely BART from East Bay, but there are always choke points that will destroy an otherwise reasonable commute.
Doctor Detroit
Please remove your headgear
Here is a crime map for the Oakland area.
The intention is not to scare you but to make you aware of the places with the most crime in the city. GPJ seems to be correct in saying the areas east of the lake and between the highways is the diciest (Especially 14th av to 38th av), but Berkeley also has a lot of crime. Being a city guy myself I think they are generally all the same. Stay away from areas with homicides obviously, but also avoid any areas with a high incident of home invasions and strong-armed robberies on citizens. Burlaries in lower numbers are fine, many of those crimes are due to home owners being easy pray for opportunistic thieves.
If you find neighborhoods with lots of car theft or vandalism but a small number of violent crimes, then you are generally going to be ok. Personal safety is the number 1 consideration and you'll find neighborhoods in any big city that will surprise you. There are a lot of islands of relatively crime-free zones, the key is finding the biggest possible island and getting as close to the center as possible. Hope this helps.
The intention is not to scare you but to make you aware of the places with the most crime in the city. GPJ seems to be correct in saying the areas east of the lake and between the highways is the diciest (Especially 14th av to 38th av), but Berkeley also has a lot of crime. Being a city guy myself I think they are generally all the same. Stay away from areas with homicides obviously, but also avoid any areas with a high incident of home invasions and strong-armed robberies on citizens. Burlaries in lower numbers are fine, many of those crimes are due to home owners being easy pray for opportunistic thieves.
If you find neighborhoods with lots of car theft or vandalism but a small number of violent crimes, then you are generally going to be ok. Personal safety is the number 1 consideration and you'll find neighborhoods in any big city that will surprise you. There are a lot of islands of relatively crime-free zones, the key is finding the biggest possible island and getting as close to the center as possible. Hope this helps.
Doctor Detroit
Please remove your headgear
Controller
Footballguy
Agree 100% with this.
If your wife can take the AC transit bus from Alameda to Rockridge, I would definitely recommend Alameda, provided you can find something affordable. Check the SF Bay Area Craigslist.org ads for Housing to get a feel of what houses/apartments are going for. (You can search Craigslist by neighborhood/town once you drill down to the "east bay".)
I raised my kids in Alameda, which has very highly rated public schools. Nowadays, the Alameda schools are about 50% Asian-American kids which is way different than it was when I was a kid (probably 80% white back then). Alameda is known for its small-town feel, its low crime (don't even think about driving over 32mph anywhere in the city) and it's strong Little League program. Lots of restaurants to choose from. And it's centrally located for visiting/commuting to Oakland, San Francisco or the greater East Bay.
I guess I'm just used to it after living here all these years, but to people coming here from other places, the cost of living is extremely high. Food, housing and gasoline are always higher here than just about anyplace else, except maybe NYC & Hawaii. That said, to me it costs more but it's worth it.
Now, if we could just get the Raiders back to their winning ways of yesteryear.
Good Posting Judge
Footballguy
Yeah, Cleveland Heights is nice too, we had some friends who lived over there and they loved it. That area (immediately east of the Lake) is OK, I think probably around Park and beyond is where it gets scary. The only downside is that you're further away from BART. Roughly speaking, how close is your wife to the Rockridge BART station?
The downside I see with Alameda is that I think it would probably fit OP's definition of a "traditional suburb." If you still want some semblance of city life, Alameda might be an option down the road, but you might get a bit bored there before the kids come.
Good Posting Judge
Footballguy
If you re-zoom on that map, it's pretty scary beyond 38th ave. too, all the way to the San Leandro border. I don't think the map can display all of the crimes.
⚡DEADHEAD⚡
Footballguy
If you're a teacher, I'm going to guess that you'll be driving to work since schools might not be easy to reach with mass public transit. And if your wife is going to work in Rockridge, BART is not so valuable because I don't think you'll live on the BART line given what you're looking for. This suggests she'll need a car too unless you share or she takes a bus (not a fan) or rides a bike (Oakland is more and more bike friendly; paved lanes and such).
Seems to me you should focus on living in the Rockridge area (College Avenue is fantastic). One bedroom apartments are available, although a nice one might run you north of $2k.
Here's a Craigslist search of the area. More expensive than I thought.
LINK
Really appreciate everyone's insight and assistance!
Please keep them coming. I will definitely have follow up questions later tonight/tomorrow. So much to think about.
Have any of you lived in LA? Just looking at ways to compare/contrast these areas of Oakland/suburbs to places in the LA/SoCal area.
Please keep them coming. I will definitely have follow up questions later tonight/tomorrow. So much to think about.
Have any of you lived in LA? Just looking at ways to compare/contrast these areas of Oakland/suburbs to places in the LA/SoCal area.
saintfool
Dead sexy
not to hijack the thread but my gf and i are coming to San Fran next week. Doing AirBnB while we're there at an apartment in Nob Hill stretch. We're looking for good recommendations for things to do - bars, restaurants, theater, whatever - to take in while we're there. Anyone have any? We're coming from Chicago and not hillbillies from BFE.
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saintfool
Dead sexy
El Floppo
Footballguy
lol.at some point, i'll get back out to NYC. cool your jets...
I didn't even see you there until after I posted.
Just looking around at other options for next year when they throw me and the kids in debtor's prison.
eta: but dammit- yes- you need a trip to NYC stat.
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⚡DEADHEAD⚡
Footballguy
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Jefferson the Caregiver
Rebel Without A Pause
Oakland is great. Easy commute if you work in SF. Sure, there are parts of Oakland that are undesirable but I imagine you are not going to live in them.
Check out Adams Point, right near Lake Merritt, great neighborhood.
Check out Adams Point, right near Lake Merritt, great neighborhood.
Bob Loblaw
Footballguy
I, too, was born in Oakland and raised in Alameda. I've lived all over the Bay Area (Alameda, Oakland, SF, Moraga, WC, Danville, Brentwood, Concord and now Novato. This is a fantastic area to live. If you're looking in Oakland, the Piedmont area or Rockridge are probably you're best bet. I absolutely love living in Novato, but for your situation, I'd go with Alameda. Small town feel, close proximity to everywhere else.
I know there are easier ways of obtaining mj now, but growing up, I frequented 84th - 89th Ave of east Oakland for a dime or twomp sack. So, if mj's your thing, it's way better up here than socal stuff.
I know there are easier ways of obtaining mj now, but growing up, I frequented 84th - 89th Ave of east Oakland for a dime or twomp sack. So, if mj's your thing, it's way better up here than socal stuff.
Good Posting Judge
Footballguy
Yeah, that's crazy these days. Now you just have to go to the right doctor, tell him you have "headaches", and get your card. No reason to go into the belly of the beast, except maybe for burritos in Fruitvale.
Adams Point is closer to uptown, which has some burgeoning nightlife. It's also close to the 19th St. BART.
⚡DEADHEAD⚡
Footballguy
Here's a map.
LINK
Each of these spots are in excellent locations close to cool Oakland stuff (Lakeshore, Grand Lake, Uptown). There's probably more to do in Adams Point, whereas Cleveland Heights is a bit more family oriented, but in now way does that mean it's suburban. There are no suburban neighborhoods in Oakland in the classic, perjorative sense.
I think you'll find many more apartments in Adams Point than in Cleveland Heights so that may be where you lean. Note there's a fair amount of small crime in Adams Point (car theft, break-ins, occasional mugging).
For Adams Point, try to live closer to the rim of the Lake, away from Macarthur and away from Vernon. As for Cleveland Heights, try to live closer to the lake and closer to the freeway and far away from 18th.
mr. furley
Footballguy
the Tenderloin is nicesaintfool said:
CGRdrJoe
Footballguy
⚡DEADHEAD⚡
Footballguy
Unfortunately ten years on, this thread hasn't aged well. Oakland is a mess.
Woke up last night at 3:00 a.m. to hear a sideshow in progress, accompanied by fireworks. I live in the hills now, Piedmont to be exact. And this activity was a stone's throw away in Oakland. They happen often, and cops have few tools to do anything about it. Coupled with crime, minor and major, absolutely awful leadership (there are recalls in progress for the mayor and the district attorney), significant unaddressed infrastructure needs (you could name a pothole for just about every resident, all 400,000), departing businesses and sports teams (Warriors, Raiders, soon the A's), and you have a case study on how progressive politics can destroy a city.
I've often said, Oakland is a wonderful place in spite of itself. But even that's less and less the case. You can't have anything nice in Oakland anymore. Really sad.
Woke up last night at 3:00 a.m. to hear a sideshow in progress, accompanied by fireworks. I live in the hills now, Piedmont to be exact. And this activity was a stone's throw away in Oakland. They happen often, and cops have few tools to do anything about it. Coupled with crime, minor and major, absolutely awful leadership (there are recalls in progress for the mayor and the district attorney), significant unaddressed infrastructure needs (you could name a pothole for just about every resident, all 400,000), departing businesses and sports teams (Warriors, Raiders, soon the A's), and you have a case study on how progressive politics can destroy a city.
I've often said, Oakland is a wonderful place in spite of itself. But even that's less and less the case. You can't have anything nice in Oakland anymore. Really sad.
titusbramble
Footballguy
Shame, I quite liked a lot of it when watching a Raiders game in '19, but yeah, choices have consequences I guess
The Z Machine
Footballguy
Ugh, that really sucks to hear. Is it still gentrifying? That was the trend in 2010 when I left. Tons of folks were getting priced out of housing. Did that continue and what sort of consequences did it have?
FreeBaGeL
Footballguy
My brother lives in Rockridge and loves it, and it always seems really nice when we visit. Is it just that some areas are bad and some not? We've definitely been driving before and he's said something like "now this is REAL Oakland, don't want to break down here" or the like, lol.
HomerSimpson
Footballguy
I was at the Oakland A's parking lot protest Thursday. Literally thousands of people having fun and no issues.
⚡DEADHEAD⚡
Footballguy
Can't say I hear the word gentrification as much as 10-15 years ago. Doesn't mean it isn't happening. Prices have stabilized, but at a very high baseline. Folks are priced out, but that's been an issue here for nearly 3 decades.
The most impactful things to happen here that's got us where we are, aside from negligence and incompetence, include the Occupy movement, the George Floyd event, ensuing DEI movement, and defund-the-police efforts, homelessness and access to fentanyl, rank choice voting, and COVID. Race relations are a constant challenge in the Bay Area, and there's real truth in minorities being underserved and disregarded. Tough problem.
Additional policy issues, like Prop 13, which set up fixed property tax rates however many decades ago, has severely impacted the ebb and flow of housing across generations. Nobody wants to sell because they're locked in to a property tax rate based on the purchase price, and selling would mean needing to buy at a higher price and taking on a higher property tax rate (my property tax is a good bit more than $30k). California is north of 40 million people and development isn't happening at nearly the pace it needs to serve the community.
California is a mess on many fronts, and Oakland exhibits all of them amplified a thousand times.
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