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Temescal is coming up and I think there are houses in your range starting around 40th Street, near MacArthur BART. A friend of mine bought a house in that area recently. It's not completely stellar but the whole area is being fixed up and they're trying to bring new businesses in. I would stay 40th Street and above (higher numbers) because below that gets increasingly more suspect. There are several nice places to eat and hang out around 51st and Telegraph, and near College and Claremont.

Alameda is a great little town. There are tons of little restaurants and shops all over as well as a Safeway, Nob Hill and Trader Joe's.

Granted, it's a bit of a pain to get to and from the island since you have to cross a bridge or go through a tunnel, but if you're working from home, it shouldn't be too much of a problem.

There's a ferry terminal at the north end of the island that goes into San Francisco, so that's always an option as well. Fruitvale BART is within biking distance as well.

Check out 94606 in the Oakland/Lake Merritt area. You should be able to find something in the $300,000k range. It's a lovely area with gorgeous homes and hip people. Grand Avenue and Lakeshore have a nice mix of bookstores and cafes and grocery stores and bars. It is safer than many think, but there is definitely more crime than you probably see in Santa Cruz. Good luck!

Now is not the time to buy a house - You're better off renting for the next few years because housing will not appreciate the way it has recently, and prices will probably go down even more.

Make sure you can get a loan before you get your hopes up. Banks are not giving out mortgages as easily as in the past (thank goodness) and you'll certainly need to have a 20% down payment. That said, I would try for the Rockridge area of Oakland but I have no idea whether it falls in your price range or not.

omg and wig3000 thank you for the tips. That is exactly the kind of advice I'm looking for! Now I'll just see if I can afford anything in the areas :) (I wish I could afford Alameda, but alas, it is still to pricey)
And I am okay for a loan after years of scrimping and polishing my credit.

-L-girl

http://walkscore.com/ is a great website that shows what is within walking distance of whatever address you give it.

Muirnin, that is the coolest website ever!!!! (second only to AP, of course)
it will be essential in my house hunt!
thank you!

Whatever you do, do NOT move to Berkeley....especially the area between the north side of campus up to Solano Ave. Trust me, even though it has everything you're asking for and more, you shouldn't buy a house there.

The reason?

I'm planning to move back to the Bay Area and buy a house as well. I don't need someone else trying to outbid me.

Thomas we just bought our first house and it's in Berkeley, between the north side of campus and Solano ave. We moved out of SF :) I'm not sure what your reason is but we couldn't be happier with the neighborhood, the local shops and restaurants, etc.

Berkeley is a town with a great community, great restaurants. Don't rule it out.

You can probably afford a condo in Emeryville, but beware that there is no community there. Emeryville is pretty much all hotels and businesses and Ikea, very few homes, dead at night, and I wouldn't recommend it.

u r welcome, L-Girl. If you end up in Temescal, do dine at Pizzaiolo! And Arizmendi is worth a visit on Lakeshore.

If you're willing to go a little further east, Walnut Creek and Pleasant Hill both are really nice areas, with easy access to Bart for commuting (when desired) and has the added bonus of having some very good schools (which is a plus for resale value, even if you don't intend to have kids of your own.)

Temescal all the way!

temescal is way overpriced despite the new gourmet restuarants popping up oakland tech is there and so is a really bad middle school with mcdonalds nearby...which means only one thing for non-black folks...your forehead has "target" written all over it. despite the seemingly peacfulness of the neighborhood there is a lot of crime especially becuase it is so easy to mug someon and get back on the highway on ramp nearby...take it from me i lived there for four years and once my husband has held up by gupoint to his head right infront of my apartment building it was all over.

Agreed with Delairen - Walnut Creek is fantastic! I live downtown (renting a condo), which is walking distance to Safeway, all the shops downtown, plenty of places to eat and some great bars! It's also easy to get into SF with Bart. I know that condos are going for about your price range, but housing has stayed relatively sound in the area, there's still a lot of future development going around. It's very safe too - I've left my car unlocked by accident for a whole week and nothing went missing!

-Ruth

I lived in the Emeryville/Berkeley/Oakland area off and on for four years. I will agree with others who say to stay above 40th; when I lived in the low 30s off of MLK, it was really tough. There were drug deals that went on outside my bedroom window every night and I used to get manhandled/called profanities if I walked down the street. There's something about that Ghost Town corridor that's just tough.

That said, the area only about 9 blocks up was welcoming and fun. Yes, there is some crime, but I and my home were never targeted; yes, some dude jumped over the fence into my backyard when I was gardening, but when I told him to leave, he did. (My advice: get a bigger dog if you are a single woman living here; it will make you feel safer, and it will keep potential crooks away due to barking/patrolling.)

There is also always Albany/El Cerrito. It's a little farther north than Oakland, but housing prices have held pretty steady over recent tough times and there are number of houses/condos available in your price range. The higher up the hills you go, the higher the price. But in the flats, especially the area around San Pablo Avenue/Solano Avenue and the area around the El Cerrito Plaza BART station are active and provide a lot of "getting out" opportunities.

I'm a BIG Oakland booster. The Temescal is great. I don't quite understand Debbie's comments as far as concerns "non-black" folks: it's been my experience that crime isn't a racial characteristic, as far as victims or perpetrators are concerned. That said, the Temescal is a neighborhood in transition, and the trend there is to more livable and inviting. For an absolutely great neighborhood, Piedmont Ave. is fantastic, there are a few condo projects in the neighborhood which may fit your budget. Hunters Point might also be a good place to look. Civic center is burgeoning with new condos and there's a vibrant scene brewing there. I have a friend who recently moved into the Dimond district, which is still rough around the edges, and she loves it for the Latino culture which is flourishing and the charming little bungalows on tree-lined streets.

I've lived in both Berkeley and Oakland, and I prefer Oakland. Try it: you'll like it.

p.s. Walnut Creek is typical suburbia.

@ebrown

... not that there's anything wrong with suburbia.

If you're planning on staying in the house over the long term and unless you can pay in cash, absolutely buy now. We could be heading into serious inflation over the next few years, requiring very high mortgage rates which will shut a lot of people out from buying a home.

I love right between Rockridge (Oakland) and Elmwood (Berkeley). The houses are expensive, but you can find great house converted condos around and in my opinion it's as good as neighborhoods get. I can walk to several markets, safeway, Trader Joes, a butcher shop, La Farine, and soooo many cute shops and restaurants. It's a super safe neighborhood. I also take the carpool or BART into the SF and it's sooo fast. I get to work faster than my co-workers who live in outer parts of SF. =) I looove it!

Another thumbs up to Walnut Creek

I second barbidahll...Rockridge and Elmwood are amazing. I currently live in Rockridge but am moving to Emeryville for more sq footage of a home and am reallllllllly going to miss the College Ave area.

The east bay is a really great treasure. Folks in SF don't know what they are missing but let's not tell them so we can keep it to ourselves.

South of 40th is fine as long as you're also east of Telegraph. What you really want to avoid is the numbered avenues.

Walnut Creek is nice in a yuppie kind of way (not that there's anything wrong with that), but it does get to be about a billion degrees in the summer. Depending on your heat tolerance, I'd suggest staying west of the hills.

"Check out 94606 in the Oakland/Lake Merritt area. You should be able to find something in the $300,000k range. It's a lovely area with gorgeous homes and hip people. Grand Avenue and Lakeshore have a nice mix of bookstores and cafes and grocery stores and bars. It is safer than many think, but there is definitely more crime than you probably see in Santa Cruz. Good luck!"
posted by wig3000

I completely agree this is such a great area, nice people, a community feel. I live in SF now but I miss this area. I use to walk Lake Merritt three-four times a week. You get more fo your money. There is casual car pooling if you work in the city a great way to go and take the bus back. I saved a tone of money doing this. I love Rockridge which is near by for a dinner out and shopping. Lots of great music and more diverse than SF. Good luck.

Hi, I live in Oakland (Piedmont Ave.) and am looking to buy a house in the E. Bay in your approximate price range (under 350K). I agree with many of the comments that say Temescal, Rockridge, Lake Merritt, Emeryville and Alameda are fantastic. The problem is the prices in all of the areas are crazy, even in this market. Unless you are looking for a condo, I doubt you’ll find a decent house in any of those locations for under 300k. I am currently looking in Pinole. It is a nice little town north of Berkeley and Richmond. It is safe, has decent grocery (Trader Joe’s), a couple of acceptable restaurants. Admittedly, it is not as hip as Oakland, but you will get a bang for your buck. If you’re not already doing it, check out www.zillow.com to find property values any e. bay locale. Best of luck to you….

I once lived in Santa Cruz and loved it! I'm now in San Leandro, and absolutely love it here as well, but for different reasons. Try the 94577 zip code, right behind the police station (they call it the Pond district)...bordered between E14 & San Leandro Blvd, Davis St. & Bristol Blvd. A collection of cute little post war bungalows. You can walk to either the little Mexican market or the big Safeway, Longs, Post Station and banks. There's a collection of small independently owned restaurants/cafes 1 mile away in our 'downtown', and BART is a 20 minute/exactly one mile walk away (and a 30 min. BART ride to SF). It's close enough to hipster Berkeley/Oakland that if you want a great dinner it's a short 20 minute drive, but far enough away from Berkely/Oakland that you get a smaller town feel...and when you own a house it's easier to deal with the smaller city gov. than it is with the big Oakland mess (permitting for new windows, etc.) I feel safe in my neighborhood, the neighbors are fantastic, and we still have parades and cheesy community happenings like that :) The houses have come down considerably, and my fabulous new neighbor just got a nice three bedroom just down the street for $309,000. It's also a great physical location...smack dab in between 580 and 880, and close enough to the San Mateo bridge that if you ever need to commute to the peninsula you won't be forced to move again. If you want to get a feel for San Leandro, go hang out at the Zocalo cafe on Bancroft and Dutton...a great socially minded business...reminds me of Santa Cruz in so many ways! And it's only 20 minute walk from my neighborhood! Best of luck in your search.

I'd try a great little area near Montclair/Peidmont, just off of the 13 (Joaquin Miller exit) it's called Woodminster. There is a midcentury condo building right there surrounded by $1M homes, that is very economical. But keep it quiet, it's a big secret!

defrancesco1,
yes, I've noticed that although most of the neighborhoods that have been mentioned, although appreciated, are out of my price range :(
which brings me to swirthy13's post which is exactly the advice I'm looking for!!!!!!
actually i looked at a house int eh EXACT neighborhood in San Leandro that you mentioned this weekend and was wondering about the crime?