Told you non-believers…this is exactly why say a neighborhood like Inner Sunset has lost some luster to the Central and even Outer Sunset. At the end of the day, good walk score is just another way of interpreting the ultimate mantra when it comes to real estate: location, location, location. Trust me, if you are not old yet, when you are you will thank me if you bought in on a home that is close to everything essential.
I don’t consider Starbucks and restaurants essential. …why not make coffee and cook at home?
You absolutely can, but what about needing to see your doctor when you can’t drive? Or, needing to buy FRESH groceries? Some older folks still like to hit the bank branch. Trust me, just because of technology and advances does not mean someone doesn’t want to do things themselves or the old way (as long as it is there, of course).
No need to go to branch brank or shopping…Even less need in future. .Thanks to Amazon…
We have Barton Hospital 5 min away by car…don’t plan on walking there in an emergency. …lol
1 Like
It is super convenient to have a good walk score. Now with zipcar, uber, lyft, etc not owning a car is a legitimate option in many cities.
1 Like
It is like anything else, you may not need it now (young, not visually or reaction impaired so can drive or DIY, etc) but when you are old and frail, don’t be calling me…
1 Like
I do not see old people flocking to the city. Mostly the young loves to live in the city.
Walking to every day needs is nice. Suburbs are dangerous to walk, I like a place where people can walk safely with no risk of running into cars.
If I have a large piece of land, I would dictate a pedestrian only design and no cars at all in the community’s pedestrian path.
It’s unbelievable that Americans were ruled by cars and favored suburbs for so long. After 50-100 years, suburbs will become cheap and only the poor will consider to live in suburbs
1 Like
There used to be this thing called a city bus. And this other thing called a taxi. I guess those are defunct now 
In all seriousness, no one in their right mind treks a family’s worth of groceries back in those wheelie carts. BTDT real pain. Lots of options nowadays from delivery (grubmarket, amazon, blue apron, munchery, etc.) to cabs or uber errr lyft. A walk score is for people who have free time and want to be “green” and not own a car and get some exercise on their way to Starbucks. It’s essentially a luxury.
Again, I was focusing more on when one is a senior and say unfortunately not able to drive anymore (which is probably most of us at some point). Presumably, at that age you only need to hopefully feed your husband and yourself. Sure, there are delivery services and such but that doesn’t mean you can get something at a snap of a finger. And these services will either cost you more money or you need to buy a minimum order. I have a Safeway close enough to go to in my bathrobe if I want to. That, is priceless and frankly makes my home worth more. There is a reason why proximity to things are mentioned in listings you know…
Millenials do not cook much. Restaurants and bars are important to them.
I prefer a high walk score and a low crime score. Currently crime rate is too high in SF, Oakland. Berkeley seems to be safer with good walk score. I think it could be a good idea for retirees to live close to UCB. It’s walkable and it has a lot of young energy to keep the old man young.
Remember to read that college town is popular with retirees. Berkeley is the only college town in BA, right? Is Davis and Santa Cruz considered college town?
The other “college town”: Stanford.
Actually, the crime rate around UC Berkeley is not exactly something to write home about. Even Stanford has recently been hit (granted more on campus) with a few sexual assault incidents. One would think outside, Palo Alto would be pretty safe but you never know. At night, the lighting is not great in many areas especially with all those trees and hedges. Keep in mind that with UC Berkeley there is a fair amount of homeless folks lingering around the fringes of the campus too.
1 Like
Palo Alto also has a significant homeless contingent (two VA hospitals nearby, and a fair number are vets). That said, I’m not sure who is doing the crime, but PA is surrounded by some lower income areas–East Palo Alto and North Fair Oaks. The crime downtown is fairly significant.
Interesting observations. It has to be outsiders who are committing the crimes. You know, I don’t recall ever hearing about PA’s police dept as being extra tough or lax on crime, like you do with some cities. With so much money and typically older residents there, one would think or expect the police to sort of have the “ok” to be extra tough so that people that shouldn’t be there won’t even try. But, as you mentioned, there is homeless there too though…
1 Like
There are different crimes. Violent crime is much worse than petty crimes.
Berkeley feels safer than SF and Oakland. Palo Alto feels safer than Berkeley. Stanford feels safer than Palo Alto.
Too blanket of a statement. Some neighborhoods in SF are extremely safe although others are not that safe.
1 Like
I think the point of living in a walkable community is to get out more. People do not want to be trapped inside their houses staring at themselves (or screens) when they spend a good portion of their days in the office. My parents moved to a college town and are learning to use public transport for the first time in their lives (happily so).