What is the best suburb for growing families in the San Francisco Area?

Question

My fiance and I are considering moving to the San Francisco Area from Boston, MA after we get married. I would like to know where the best place to raise children is (best schools, low crime, welcoming people, etc.).
We are also an interracial couple (I am Irish/Italian and my fiance is Frech Canadian/Haitian) and I would like to expose my children to both races so I would prefer to be in a diverse area. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thank you for all of the great responses. To give you some more information, I currently own a home in one of the nicest suburbs of Boston that is valued at $850,000 (which is not bad for our trying economy). I have other real estate investments as well so I would be interested in the best area possible and something that will appreciate. Price comes second to schools and safety for me.

Thanks for the feedback!

Answer 1

Others have already mentioned the expensive of living close to San Francisco.

Nearly all of Marin county is very safe and has some of the best towns in the area, but it's also the most expensive county in Northern California.

Often, it's not the town, but what area of the town. As an example, the Rockridge area of Oakland is one of the most interesting neighborhoods in the area and is safe. There are people in the streets at night and places with sidewalk dining. Other parts of the city are equally safe, but in others one needs to be extremely cautious at night.

Richmond was mention earlier. While the center and north are not safe places, the east including the hills are safe. Point Richmond is one of the quaintest neighborhood in the Bay Area and is part of the city, but geographically separated from the rest of town and is safe.

An example of an interesting city wiyh a good school system is Berkeley. Most places in the Bay Area are tolrerant of racial difference, but Berkeley is the most tolerant. While a couple of small areas are a little questionable, most are safe, an due to the university and cultural activities many streets are lively at night. But it isn't cheap. Nearby towns like El Cerrito are cheaper and in 10-15 minutes you can be in downtown Berkeley. I like the town, others don't.

Being near a Bart station is something I like about some of the places I have lived including now.

Suggesting place for you depends on interest or finances and interests. If you are rich and have horses, then Woodside is the town for you. Now that's an extremely example to some, but more info is needed from you.There are some areas that are safe, but to my taste, are extremely boring.

So fill us in a little more.

Answer 2

Cost will be your biggest driving factor. The farther from San Francisco you go the cheaper it is but the costs are shocking. The area is very liberal and ethnically diverse everywhere. The area from San Francisco to San Jose is called the Peninsula. From So. San Francisco south it is very nice weather and outside of a couple spots the schools are excellent. North of San Francisco is Marin which is fantastic but very expensive until you go way up into more of the rural areas. The East Bay is a little more blue collar and has some areas that are a little less family friendly but even more diverse. The farther south you go the better the schools. The far East bay over the hills is where most new families are settling. The farther you go the more affordable it is. In general all the schools out there are solid.

Start with the prices to determine what you can afford and go from there. Good Luck.

Answer 3

Public schools in CA are not very good unfortunately. I think the best mixed race, safe suburbs are Union City and Fremont. Hayward and San Leandro are okay but have more gangsta wannabes (not too bad, but now and then they get out of hand). There are safe parts of Oakland, but most of the schools are pretty rough. Piedmont is safe but very expensive and I doubt if it's very mixed. I get the impression El Cerrito is pretty mixed, but I really only shop there so I'm not sure. Pittsburg is mixed but a long commute from SF. Not so mixed places where you'll still probably be okay are Concord, Pleasant Hill, Walnut Creek, Dublin, Pleasanton, Alamo but they are really suburban and it takes work to get to a city from those places. Orinda, Moraga and Lafayette are expensive and vast majority white, but they're not known as hotbeds for klan activity either.

Of course there's also SF which is hugely diverse but as you must know it is very expensive and it's hard to say what school your children will end up in because of an amazing plan by the last supervisor that I believe is still in place that required students to be bussed to places an hour away instead of going to the school down the street. Some suburbs to the south are pretty diverse, Daly City (huge Philipino population), & South San Francisco, San Mateo..., others are largely white (brisbane, millbrae, burlingame). They get a lot of fog in this area (San Francisco too). so if you like sunny summers this won't be the place for you.

Hope this helps....

PS Stay away from Richmond it is largely unsafe.

UPDATE: Based on your updated info I would probably recommend Orinda, their schools have a very good reputation and it's very safe. The downside is it's not that diverse, but I doubt you'd feel discriminated against there. Piedmont is an enclave of Oakland which is safe and should have good schools (I'm not sure). It's not that diverse, but very close to a lot of diversity.

Answer 4

I live in Benicia, about 40 miles NE of San Francisco, this is an absolutely great town for families. The schools are good, there is some diversity in the city of 30K and we are very welcoming to all ethnic groups. Crime is almost non existent. There are many parks for a small town including dog parks and skate parks. The tax rate is one of the lowest in the Bay Area.
But one of the best things about Benicia is the small town atmosphere. There seem to be parades, festivals every month, we have outdoor Friday night movies at the City park during the summer, every Thursday is Farmers Market day at the bottom of First St. near the water. When you come out to the Bay Area you really should check out our town, most people who visit here love it. Have dinner at the Union Hotel. Good Luck

Answer 5

Albany or Kensington. Awesome schools, diversed, nice people, low crime rate. They are near Berkeley. let me know and I will hook you up with a real estate person. As a matter of fact, up in the hills of Berkeley, there is a house for sale that has an awesome view of San Francisco and the Golden Gate bridge.

Answer 6

The city of Hercules is a great place for families, and very safe.
It is actually down the hwy 80 corridor, east of San Francisco
Housing is still affordable (under 1 million) unlike San Francisco
You can also look into homes in Albany,El Cerrito or Walnut Creek. (Walnut Creek is not as diverse as the other cities, but very safe with good schools
Good luck in your search !!!