May Be Relocating

[tunaman]

We decided that we may start long-term planning to relocate, and if it works out as we're thinking I'll probably be working in San Ramon. That would put me pretty close to the Delta , so I'd probably be looking for a new home somewhere in the vicinity, close enough to commute to San Ramon, but probably as close to the Delta as I could be.

I'd like to hear suggestions where we might want to look for housing... nice big house, decent lot, nice safe neighborhood, etc...

Also, how affected have housing prices been up there? I know down here in Southern California the housing prices have been shelled... many are now selling for a third of peak.

Thanks for your input guys!

Roger

[wccjanel]

I knew this would happen when you mentioned doing all that work around your house. It's like ordering business cards right before losing your job.

Good luck, Bro.

[GW]

Discovery Bay, cant get much closer to the delta and your still a shote drive to San Ramon

[sTony]

You've got a lot of options. Housing prices have been hit pretty hard in some of the areas, its a buyers market. All depends on how far you wanna be from work. San Ramon is spitting distance to the Delta. Local areas include Dublin, Pleasanton, Concord, Alamo, Pleasant Hill, Livermore, Walnut Creek, Clayton, Antioch, Oakley, Brentwood, Discovery Bay. All I would think are pretty easy commutes to San Ramon.

sTony

[DeltaDan]

Wish you the best Tuna if you get to Transition...


Another area to consider that is "new" is Mountain House -- Just North of Tracy and an expressway to hwy 580. We drove through there out last time to Tracy and the Forcloseres were mind boggling !! Houses go anywhere from 2200 - 3600+ sqf on average and some corner houses have mabey 10,000 or more sqf lots. There are some good deals out there -- and It is almost across the road from Rivers End.

But with anything up here now -- make sure you know what MelloRoos, Special taxes and assesments run as well. (landscape/lighting, parks/rec, fire, ect..)

-- Some places in Brentwood are just plain absurd in what they are currently paying for a newer home for just taxes/assesments alone in that city !!


If you are considering a home in the Brentwood, Oakley area and would like to talk to a realator that deals mostly in todays forecosures that are on the market. Feel free to send me a PM and I'll send you her #.

Cheers,
Dan

[tunaman]

Thanks for the input guys... keep the input coming!

DeltaDan... funny you should mention it, as I started looking a bit online this afternoon and, for whatever reason, started looking at Brentwood first. We saw some really nice properties for very reasonable prices... 3000-4000+ square foot homes with lots of amenities, all from $700K and down. We'd probably be looking for something in that range, size-wise.

I'd sure love to be able to call the Delta my new 'backyard'! We're really getting excited with the prospects, but a lot of stars will need to align before we are in position to make it happen.

Please feel free to PM the realtor information, as we may need to start making some weekend trips up to check out the areas... thanks in advance!

Roger

[ScottyJ]

Yea definitely make some trips to see the areas and while you are here make those commutes from where you would consider moving to, to the delta and to where you would work. There can be some nasty commute times on Hwy 4 and what one person might consider a decent commute, you might want to relocate back to Corona after a week of sitting in traffic. Best of luck!

Scott

[tunaman]

Thanks for the guidance... been used to So. Cal. traffic for years, so I don't think anything up there can compare. Still, traffic sucks so good suggestion for timing the commute.

Hopefully I can ride the Harley to work, which can make a bad commute a bit better. I put some wheels in motion today to see if I can get some inside career assistance, and am hopeful that I can get a bit of an inside track on a position.

I've been up in the area enough (had a position a couple of years ago that took me up to Walnut Creek every couple of weeks) to see some of what the roads had to offer, and never once encountered anything like the 91 or 405 down here.

Roger

[JustinD]

I live in Mt. House only 1 minute from theriver and trust me its worth the travel time. I love going anytime I want. PM if you have any ?'s. Justin

[drew]

I lived in the east bay for most of my late teens and early twenties. I'm no expert and I'm sure there are many that have more current info. I recommend you buy close to your work because commuting can be very difficult. I like Danville, San Ramon, Alamo and WC, but housing is very expensive in these area's. You might look into Pleasant Hill, Concord, on the north side and Pleasanton and Livermore to the south. The commute to SR is better from the south since most of the traffic is in the south direction in the am and north in the pm. If I were to move to the bay area again and housing cost was not an issue I would buy in Clayton or Danville. BTW I still own a house in Pinole and travel to the bay area 3-4 times annually. Good Luck, Andy

[fishwithron2]

Check into homes in Martines off hy4 and some newer ones off 680. Prices there are lot cheaper and easy access to the hyway.

[tunaman]

Thanks guys... really appreciate the input. We're checking the onlines using all the suggestions we've gotten, and have found some really nice deals. I've got to get my career options sorted out, and am waiting to hear on a couple of jobs with my current, and former, employer, then we'll know what we're working with.

Roger

[wccjanel]

Roger,

You do know you've got to come down and go offshore with me before you go.

[tunaman]

I'll get a hold of you James.

Looks like it is getting much closer to reality... spoke with my Manager today and he is supportive of me transferring to our Walnut Creek office, so the career part is mute (although I would have loved to have gotten some relocation assistance!).

Spoke with our tax lady, and our loan broker, and got very favorable news on those fronts, and we sat down last night and worked up some numbers and find it is feasible.

Now we have to find our ideal property, as well as a family to lease our house, and we'll be set. I'll be calling the realtors that were recommended to me, in the order that I received them, to see what they can dig up for us. In searching Craigslist and the online MLS, there are a ton of potential properties up there that are well within reach, but we have to find the right one... I'm sure it is out there.

And Cooch got me pumped up big-time today, talking a little about his recent trips on the Delta. Can't wait to have it 'in my backyard', so to speak!

Roger

[bassindon69]

I hope it works out for ya buddy.

Don.

[tunaman]

I'll be gettin' closer to you my friend! Then you won't have any excuse not to get together!

Roger

[bubba]

Tunaman,

I live in San Ramon. The Delta is about a 45 minute drive east from here. Housing prices have fallen about 30% from peak. San Ramon is a great community for families. Danville, Alamo are higher priced and right next door. Brentwood, Oakley, Discovery Bay are all right next to the Delta but morning commute to San Ramon and afternoon commute home is bad (maybe your use to the traffic but only 2 routes from San Ramon to Brentwood/Oakley/Discovery Bay and both are bumper to bumper during rush hour commute. Housing prices have fallen much more in those areas however so finding a house will be much cheaper but your neighbors may be non-existent (forclosures). If you can afford to live in the tri-valley area (Dublin, San Ramon, Pleasanton and even Livermore) its probably worth it in gas savings alone and short commute. Further north toward Walnut Creek, Concord and Pleasant Hill are also good and are a short distance to the Delta. Best bet is to call a realtor familar with the area and one who can point you in the right direction for your budget and needs (like my wife! Goodluck.

[Greg_Cornish]

What would the commute be like from Tracy? How far to the delta from there?

[tunaman]

Bubba,

Thanks for your input. I'm pretty familiar with both San Ramon, and Walnut Creek, as I used to work for Chevron and had many business trips to the San Ramon complex, and have since worked for Kaiser and have been to Walnut Creek many times - one position I had was based out of WC, so I was there every other week or so.

I am currently in the process of transferring my position to Walnut Creek, so the drive wouldn't be bad. I can ride the Harley on good days, and I drive a Vette so the ride on the bad days wouldn't be so bad... My ultimate goal is to get as close to the Delta as I can, so I don't have to trailer far to launch and go.

I've found one house that is to die for, within our means, and on the market... looks like we'll be heading up there on Friday to take a look around.

Greg - as far as Tracy goes, it is a great suggestion, and the commute (especially to San Ramone) wouldn't be bad at all. We'll certainly be looking towards that area also, but I'd really like to be closer to the Delta if possible.

Thanks to all for the input and suggestions!

Roger

[BIG DADDY BLUE RANGER]

What would the commute be like from Tracy? How far to the delta from there?

I'm on the south side of Tracy now and can be in the south Delta (River's end) in about 18 minutes,, russo's is about 40,, Ladds about 25........ my rental is on the North end of Tracy and when I was still there I could be at River's end in about 12 min

I grew up in Pleasanton and will always like the tri-valley,, but I prefer living this side of the Altamont these days and being closer to the river for my days off...

I really like Brentwood too,, but I'll take the commute over the Altamont from Tracy anyday over having to go the Vasco route to Brentwood or Disco. My friends who live in Brentwood / Disco ave about 10 minutes more commute time each way and occassionally hit some really nasty traffic issues if there'e ever a reck on Vasco.

There are definately some nice houses in Mountain House too,, my only issues would be most of the yards are a tad small (mostly cuz the houses are big) for my taste and it's seems to get a lot more wind (which gets old really fast) compared to either S. Tracy or Brentwwod.

Price wise, Tracy, Mountain House and Brentwood (especially Brentwood) have all taken huge hits..... I can tell you that upper end tract homes in Tracy peeked at over $1,000,000 and several recently sold in the 500's .... those are 3500-4500 sq ft w 1/2 - 1 acre lots....... a lot of nice houses can be had from $250's - $350's right now........ actually my dad just picked up a couple nice 2,200 - 2500 sq ft size houses at auction for rentals in the mid/hi 200's...... prices have gone backwards about 7 years overall in these areas

[Marty]

Roger,

What BIG DADDY BLUE RANGER said plus Vasco does suck but I have been commuting for 10 years from Brentwood to Sunnyvale and it takes me 1 and 15 minutes to 2 hours one way.

But If you have a Harley, Vette and a Ranger you need to live next door to me. I live in Brentwood across the 12 hole (5 par) in Shadow Lakes. The house next door has been open for about 6 months and was going for about 865k and is now down in the low 600K (I have not check in a while). The lot is not that big – no grass cutting. If you have means I bet you could get them down even more. I believe you get a lot more for you money in Brentwood. The house I talking about would go for over a few million in other places. By the way it takes me about 20 minutes from my house to Russo’s.

I’m sending you a PM.

[tunaman]

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU Marty my BrothA! Great talking with you, and we'll see you in a couple of days.

Also, thanks so much BDBR - really appreciate all the great suggestions and input my Northern brethren have provided!

Roger

[Jason P]

I moved out to Disco Bay a little over a year ago from Pleasanton. I miss the food, there's not a lot of good eats out here or shopping. If you golf, live where Marty lives, Shadow Lakes or Deer Ridge, both nice courses. I would try to stay around Pleasanton San Ramon area, much nicer and less Section 8 housing, I had to call the cops yesterday, there was a huge brawl here in the Lakes in Disco, although it is nice waking up and seeing the Delta from my bed.

Jason