Susan

Novato is really far from SF with very few amenities. If I were going to live in Marin, I would live in Mill Valley or Corte Madera area, which are unfortunately out of your price range. You should also consider Walnut Creek in the east bay. There is way more to do, good shopping and restaurants (for the suburbs mind you) and it is also family oriented. Walnut Creek also has 2 bart stations so you can easily get to the city in 35 min while avoiding the traffic and bridge. - Thu Aug 14 2008, 21:51

Hey S. Birnbaum,

I am looking for an agent with an attitude like yours. PM me. I am looking in Alamo, Lafayette, SWC, and Orinda. - Thu Aug 14 2008, 21:42

We havent bought a house yet, which is good because the prices are finally coming down from what I am seeing. I still think Blackhawk and many parts of Alamo are the nicest parts of the east bay, but my husband and I are pretty active and we like action around us. We need to be close to the city because we like to shop, eat at good restaurants and go to the theater. Unfortunately, Blackhawk just seems to remote...even though it is gorgeous and gated. Why does Blackhawk have to be so far from San Francisco??

We have narrowed down our choices to Lafayette(which still looks like a junkyard to me) and Alamo. I would definitely pick Blackhawk over both places if it had more amenities and was closer to the city. - Thu Aug 14 2008, 21:37

Oddly enough, everyone I meet up here from Chicago feels the same way about the bay area. The neighborhoods look like shanty towns and they are not well maintained, but still have inflated values. I think people dont maintain their properties here because they are hippies and stoned all the time. - Mon Mar 10 2008, 12:40

I agree with you which is why we dont want to buy an overpriced POS in these neighborhoods....especially when the prices are trending downwards. It also seems like many people do not maintain their properties and still want 1MM which is ridiculous.

There is a house in Alamo asking 1.350MM that has dry rot, no garage and other problems. It has been for sale for months. - Mon Jan 21 2008, 14:52

Do you think the prices will come down some more in these areas? I looked at homes in Alamo and they were disgusting. The ones I saw in Blackhawk were nicer for the same price or less even. All the homes have been for sale for a long time. - Mon Jan 21 2008, 13:20

Thanks Costello. I didnt see any nasty parts of Blackhawk compared to Danville, Alamo, and Lamorinda. There also arent old beater cars in the driveways like the other areas. I was having a fun discussion about "wealthy" areas of the bay area with another transplant from Chicago the other day, and she agreed that many of these areas appear to be a step above (barely) a shantytown.

What I cannot figure out is why people dont have pride of ownership up here. It is so strange that wealthy people dont take care of their properties.

This is why I felt Blackhawk was a nicer community because Im sure the HOA's make people take better care of their properties.

How do you like living in Alamo? We looked near the roundhill country club and it was pretty nice, but again, many old, unkept houses needing a lot of work.

I really dont think kids play in the street anymore like when I was growing up so I am not sure how important it will be to have babies living next door or on the same street, but it would be nice. We are having our first baby. - Sat Jan 19 2008, 22:00

I know the difference between old and new money. I find that people with "old money" in areas like Lamorinda and Alamo try to pass off their non-updated 1960's homes that smell like mothballs for far more than what they are worth, and are also more stubborn with their pricing even though their homes are very tacky, and unappealing to new buyers.

I did hear about the litigation with the HOA's, but I am not sure how that would affect buying a home in Blackhawk. - Thu Jan 3 2008, 20:55

I dont remember the exact address. I think there are a few available in that price range. Do some people list their home as Blackhawk and others as Danville?

I prefer an area with newer money because the people are younger and keep their properties updated and nice.

What ups and downs has blackhawk had? - Thu Jan 3 2008, 20:18

Do people poo poo Blackhawk because they are jelous they dont live there or is there something wrong with the community?

I think it looks so much nicer than the old houses in Lamorinda, Alamo and westside Danville. So many of the homes in those areas are dumps. - Thu Jan 3 2008, 19:01

There is a house in Blackhawk right now that I saw before Xmas listed at 1,125,000 for 3k sqft w/ nice kitchen and floors, but gets a little street noise from camino tassajara. It is corporate owned and been for sale a long time. The agent said they would entertain all offers so I was thinking about offering 875k.

I just cant decide if i want to live that far from SF or keep renting and wait for prices to go down some more as everyone is predicting. - Thu Jan 3 2008, 18:49

They are upside down? When did they buy their house? - Thu Jan 3 2008, 18:38

Are they going to move out of Blackhawk? Do they feel they overpaid for their house in Blackhawk compared to other parts of Danville? - Thu Jan 3 2008, 17:58

Sigorwoz,

How old are their kids? Where do they wish they bought instead? I thought there were lots of kids in Danville.

Is Blackhawk more like a retirement community? - Thu Jan 3 2008, 15:09

I really think Blackhawk is one of the nicest neighborhoods in the bay area that I have seen since moving here. Unlike many upscale bay area neighborhoods Ive seen since starting my search, in Blackhawk, all the properties are well maintained, there are no junky cars in the driveways, and the architecture is very nice and distinctive.

Maybe agents dont like it because it is a gated community or it is far from the freeway?

I think it is nicer than Alamo too, but my concern is the property holding its value.

We are also having a baby. Are there many young families in here? - Mon Dec 17 2007, 13:57

We just moved to Walnut Creek from San Francisco for my husbands career, and I just had a baby. We are trying to decide where to buy a house. I have narrowed down the neighborhoods to Lafayette, Alamo, and Blackhawk. - Wed Aug 6 2008, 23:19

Damon,

Today I had my Lamorinda mothers group meeting and one of the mothers from Orinda said that Lafayette has section 8 housing which affects the schools. Is this true? - Wed Aug 6 2008, 22:41

I am a member of the Lamorinda mothers group and this is what I am told about what is happening with the schools by parents who have school aged kids. I also read in the Contra Costa Times about the bomb at the highschool.

Im sure you could research it also. I think the prices have dropped a lot since I posted about the correction several months back. I am seeing several homes with prices being cut by 200k plus, and I didnt see that a year ago in Lafayette. - Wed Aug 6 2008, 14:09

Ive heard some pretty kooky things about the lafayette schools lately. For one, a student brought a working bomb to Acalanes HS this past week, and parents have begun patrolings elementary school restrooms because 5th graders are having sex in them, then advertising what they will do with colored bracelets.

5th grade???? - Fri Feb 22 2008, 17:58

I have noticed in my area, (Lamorinda, Alamo, and WC) the inventory is much higher than last year at the same time, and the prices are being cut much faster, and the homes are sitting around longer, but I still dont think the sellers are being realistic with what they are asking for the homes. Apparently even in these wealthy areas, there are foreclosures now, which wasnt the case last year. My husband and I want to buy, but a big part of me thinks we should just wait some more to see what happens. I HIGHLY doubt the prices would go up at this point. - Wed Aug 6 2008, 22:46