First time home buyer - Fremont / Almden Valley/Cambrian ? 1.5M budget

Bay Area
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Wait… where’s your trophy??? Do show… :rofl:

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Excellent. They have to balance Work, kids support and life balance. Commute is a super kill for life, esp during the kids school days until 8th grade. High school students can drive, but elementary and Middle school needs lot of support and either of parents needs to dedicate time for them. I am daily seeing people take at least two excuses per week for school related work. If two kids or three kids are there, it further adds stress.

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I once compare the SF Case Shiller for condos and SFH. If I remember right over the life of the index the compound growth rate is higher for condos than SFHs.

SFH now cost around 3m in PA and TH 1.5. Which would more likely double in price?

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Don’t assume the HS students can drive either–some schools are requiring or encouraging the kids to use public transportation.

[Edited to add: ]

http://www.designtechhighschool.org/faqs-2/

“How do students get to Redwood Shores when the new campus is built? Many students will take the train to Belmont or San Carlos, and take a shuttle to Oracle. Other students may cycle, walk or carpool depending on where they live. Students will not be allowed to drive to campus - except in special circumstances - in an effort to reduce traffic on Marina Parkway.”

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Neither… :rofl:

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I predict townhomes and condos will appreciate more than SFHs in the near future. Why? Because normal people can’t afford homes anymore.

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Absolutely… that’s why I’m laughing all the way to the bank with my East Bay condos and SFHs… :rofl:

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Exactly. How many can pull off a 3M “entry level” house in PA?

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Enough so that people like you and me are currently being priced out… :wink:

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Not everyone gets the privilege to live in PA!!! I mean, who wants to live in an area void of crime and is the envy of practically everyone?

Yes, both of my hands are raised…

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You are jealous of your sister’s (or was it sis-in-law???) fortune again… :rofl:

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Just buy in EPA and forget to mention the East part when you tell people where you live.

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But can you tell people that you are a billionaire because you merely mispronounced the “m” for a “b”… :rofl:

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Some people do. You can tell people your grandpa was a billionaire :joy:

There was some skepticism on whether Trump was really a billionaire

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Uhm. Hate to break it to you, but PA is not void of crime.

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I always like Almaden Valley, ever since I landed there in 2001. Schools are excellent. It is away from all noise pollution as well.

For buyers with kids, Almaden Valley can still be a good choice if:

  1. One of the parents stays home.
  2. One of the parents works in South San Jose, West San Jose or even Cupertino.

Traffic is of course a major issue, and it is the only negative side. Other issues are probably caused by the commute issue: it has appreciated less than other parts of the San Jose.

Even with that, for 1.5M budget, it is relatively difficult to get a decent house within Bret Harte Middle boundary there. That’s the east side of the Valley. You may be able to get some houses at the Sunrise Almaden where houses are relatively small.

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Did we scare away the OP?

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Of course, everything is relative… shoot, my Big Bro used to (not sure anymore) leave his garage in Saratoga wide open. He had nice expensive bikes in there too…

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We are a bit too enthusiastic in spending their 1.5M. :smile:

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