Is Oakland a dangerous area?

Question

My husband is going to be starting Berkeley business school in the fall so we have to move to SF from NYC.

I have been dying to get a place with a yard, I'm so sick of being cramped up in a tiny NYC apartment.

The only rental houses with yards that I can find for under $2,000/month close to Berkeley are in Oakland. Is that a safe area?

It doesn't have to be pristine, I've lived on the South Side of Chicago for 5 years and in East Harlem in NYC for 4 years without incident but I'm worried about drive-bys. LOL I know that sounds so dumb and stereotypical but I know nothing about Oakland or the Bay Area!

Answer 1

There are safe areas as is being pointed out, and the bad parts of oakland and the bad reputation of the city actually works to keep some of them more affordable. Here's what's showing up on craigslist for today with my comments (I've lived in and around Oakland for about 20 years):

Feb- 5 $1500 / 3br - 2323 Market St, oakland CA 94607 ~ New house (oakland west)

Market St. has more bad than good parts, the fact that 2 bedroom apts near Chinatown nearly cost as much as this 3 bdr. house is a bad sign…


Feb- 5 $1650 / 4br - WEST OAKLAND VICTORIAN DUPLEX (oakland west) pic

West Oakland’s a pretty rough area that’s also been discovered by loft loving artists. You may be able to pull this off, but it’s risky.


Feb- 5 $1750 / 5br - RENT to OWN! (oakland east)

East Oakland is home to probably a majority of the city’s gang activity, for this big of a house to rent for so little is a pretty bad sign.


Feb- 5 $2000 / 3br - Cute 3bd house in Oakland Mills area {photos} 510-677-4344 (oakland hills / mills) img

Around Mills is iffy, you may or may not have problems.


Feb- 5 $1550 / 4br - Cozy 4 Bedroom With Hardwood Floors & Shared Backyard! (emeryville)

Emeryville’s a rich city between Oakland and Berkeley (lots of shops, high priced condos), but some of it’s land is in a rough area. Again, this low of a price doesn’t bode well, but you might be okay.


Feb- 3 $2000 / 3br - SPACIOUS, GORGEOUS W/VIEWS &GATED COMMUNITY (oakland hills / mills)

I think I know where this is, being gated it’s probably safe, don’t know if you’d have a yard though.


Feb- 3 $2000 / 3br - North Oakland 3 bedroom House (oakland north / temescal) pic

North Oakland’s a little iffy, some gang activity.

Feb- 3 $1595 / 4br - EXCELLENT VALUE IN OAKLAND'S FRUITVALE DISTRICT (oakland east)

Out of everything I’ve seen, this would be the one I’d be most interested in if I were looking. Fruitvale’s a working class kind of place with a lot of latin immigrants. It’s sort of east, but not as far east as the area where the most gang activity is.


Feb- 2 $1975 / 3br - Beautiful Marina Faire Corner Lot House! (san leandro) pic

This is the city next to Oakland, you might want to consider it.

If you can find something in your price range downtown, rockridge, or Chinatown I think you'd be pretty happy. My next choices (IN GENERAL) would be Fruitvale, or Lakeshore. There are pockets in probably every other neighborhood that you'd be okay in, but you really have to be careful.

Hope this helps.

Answer 2

It all depends. Oakland is very versatile. West (and especially East Oakland) are very dangerous. The Montclair, Claremont, Piedmont and Rockridge districts of Oakland are nice. The Oakland hills are nice too, but expensive.

You say that the place is in Oakland but close to Berkeley. If you live more towards the hillside of Oakland / Berkeley (near the Claremont Hotel) you should be fine. If it's lower and down from the hill... it's more dangerous there.

Surrounding cities include Orinda, Emeryville, San Leandro, and Alameda. Orinda is VERY safe. Emeryville is safe enough (although there are a couple neighborhoods that are on the Emervyille / Oakland borders that are dangerous). San Leandro is versatile like Oakland. Some is good, some is bad. Alameda is also pretty safe. The safest by far is Orinda.

Answer 3

I believe Berkeley and Columbia do have a joint MBA program that allows bi-coastal types to travel back-and-forth between SF and NYC. It might be worth looking into.

Generally, Oakland is considered ghetto. Although if you've lived in South Side Chicago and Harlem, it's nothing you haven't seen before.

Northeast Oakland is generally safe. If you live in the Oakland Hills, Rockridge, Temescal, or Piedmont -- then you should encounter no problems. Those neighborhoods are actually quite nice. Rockridge, in particular, is very convienent because it has a BART station.

The Southern Flatlands, especially between Interstate 580 and Interstate 880 are dangerous and impoverished.

West Oakland, especially near the Port of Oakland, is also very high-crime. Although technically part of West Oakland, Jack London Square and the areas near the bridges to Alameda are both safe.

Answer 4

It's not as dangerous as West Oakland or areas like that; I lived there up until a few months ago and had no bones about walking around there alone at night... albeit with a knife... but I never got hassled. My friend and I would walk around by the train tracks to get from one area to another and never once got bothered, hassled, or anything else... overall it's pretty safe. Just use common sense and don't wander too far. Stay in well-lit areas by main roads, you'll be fine. The Oakland Police central station is like four blocks away from Jack London Square and it's a popular dining and tourist area so it's well-patrolled.

Answer 5

It's a pretty big city so there are plenty of good, average, bad, and really bad neighborhoods. You should probably go visit the houses to make sure just how bad it is. But if there are a lot of speed bumps on a regular city street, and not some private development like a big apt complex, I would take that of a strong indication of drive by shootings occuring in that area. The flatlands near the Oakland Colesium are pretty bad.

Answer 6

Oakland is no worse than any of the areas you have described. It has a bad rep in the bay area because the news media chooses to cove only the gang issues. There are plenty of nice safe areas to rent and Oakland is an affordable choice.
http://www.oaklandnet.com/visiting.html

Answer 7

It really is going to depend on where in Oakland you're looking at. Just like any city, it has its better neighborhoods, and its slums.

Looking in Piedmont is a good suggestion...I'd also recommend Emeryville and Richmond. While I'm at it, I'll suggest looking at cities that are more inland...Orinda, Walnut Creek, and Pleasant Hill are all nice places, within a pretty reasonable commute. In general, the farther you get from the water, the cheaper the rent will be.

Answer 8

Oakland is a higher than average crime area. Consider living south of Oakland maybe Livermore or one of the smaller suburbs

Answer 9

Well im from the bay but it isnt dangerous, it depends what part of oakland ur north east west oakland...

Answer 10

As with any city, some parts of it are dangerous. However, those parts are really dangerous (2nd most dangerous city in California).

Look for areas in the hills or around Piedmont.