Im currently in the Navy and it's almost time to seperate. I plan on attending De Anza (CC) and work part/full time to pay of the Z and living expenses. As a new student and 4 years experience in the navy supply world, I would also like to network with some of you folks here for job opportunities, investment ideas, or someone just to shoot the breeze with.

I've lived in WA for about 6 years now and its about time for me to find a place that makes me "happy". Summer here is amazing, but it gets really depressing during winter/fall seasons. Plus, I've always wanted to live in Cali anyway.

I've looked on various websites about the stats and demographics of the areas (mainly craigslist/google maps), but I'd like some first-hand perspective of what it's like to live in this area. Some things I'd like to know:

- cost of living/housing market in general
- attitude of the people in general - friendly, snobbish, open-minded, etc.
- traffic
- does it really stay cloudy most of the time?
- any unusual growth or decline of the population, businesses, etc.
- spots to stay away from at night
etc.

Any other tidbits of info you could pass on to me would be great.

Thanks!

Ron

 

your in luck. a few people here on the forums attend or attended De Anza so they should be able to tell you everything you need. they should be posting in here soon welcome!

 

- cost of living/housing market in general
*Buyer's market right now. Assuming you live near where you plan to go to school, expect to rent a 1BR/1BA for $1200+/month.
- attitude of the people in general - friendly, snobbish, open-minded, etc.
*A mix of people, but generally friendly.
- traffic
*One of the worst in the US
- does it really stay cloudy most of the time?
*Absolutely not. The southbay area is typically SUNNY for 8 straight months after the "rainy season".
- any unusual growth or decline of the population, businesses, etc.
*Not as crowded as it was in the dot com crazy 10 years ago, but still crowded
- spots to stay away from at night etc.
*East Palo Alto comes to mind, but I wouldn't limit the avoidance to just at night. Some areas of San Jose are sketchy at night as well.

There are so many cons that they all can't be listed. A few or my favorites:
*4 road courses within a 3 hour drive
*Access to beach life, hiking terrain, skiing, wine country, and gambling
*Easy cross-country direct flights
*Lots of Zs, meets, etc.

 

I would say traffic in San Jose proper is manageable (since you plan to attend De Anza). SF is horrible, but Boston or NYC or Los Angeles are worse. I lived in Almaden Valley (South SJ, near Los Gatos) when I went to De Anza and my commute was ~30 mins during the peak hours (I took backroads).

De Anza is an excellent CC by the way. I've attended it, transfered to a university without any issues and still finished college (all together; both CC and University) a quarter early.

Stay away from EPA (although it's getting gentrified), certain parts of East Bay, Bayview Hunters point in SF, parts of East San Jose (though overall East San Jose is not that bad).

And the sweet thing about the weather is you can drive your G/Z all year long sans any worries about snow or too much rain with performance tires.

 

The weather is the best... you got cold/ you got hot and everything else in between...

Laid back yet busy (but not as buys as the SoCal Scene)... just perfect

 

lol i attend de anza, if you need someone to show you around, i'm happy to do so.

 

Great place to live. There aren't too many other places I would choose.
But then again, I've lived here most of my life.

- cost of living/housing market in general

Expensive. You've looked at Craigslist, so you know what prices are like already.

Jobs here will pay you more than other places, but regardless, buying a house down the line will be tough unless you've got lots of money.

- attitude of the people in general - friendly, snobbish, open-minded, etc.

Like anywhere else, you've got a mix of everything, but for the most part, people here are laid back and friendly.

- traffic

Not as bad as LA or NY, but it can get crappy. You'll learn what freeways to avoid during rush hour. I live close to work, so my commute is only 30 mins each way. If you're gonna live in an apt, find one close to work/school.

- does it really stay cloudy most of the time?

SF is cloudy and cold a lot of the time. The rest of the area gets lots of sun. Summer weather for about 8 months, fall and winter the other 4.

- spots to stay away from at night

East Palo Alto is ghetto, don't walk around there at night. However, I grab lunch in that area from time to time. Drive through there at night with no worries either.

Parts of Oakland and San Jose can be bad as well. You'll learn the spots as you go along.

If you've got a place in mind to live, let us know and we'll tell you if it's good/bad.

 

North Richmond is one of the most (if not the most) dangerous places in the bay area.

 

I love the Bay Area, especially the peninsula and south bay, where I grew up.
I also attended DeAnza before transferring to UC Davis. It is a great CC!
Weather anywhere south of the S.F. airport is warm, bright and beautiful!

 

living in cali is the best, you got snow in lake tahoe, you got the beaches at santa cruz and you got the city. the weather is always good here. its kinda expensive here, but im pretty sure that we pay more then other states. well anyways welcome!

 

South Bay is definitely da bomb. Grew up in the Cupertino area. Weather's great and food's great. The only bad thing besides the living cost is the girl scene. They don't call it Man Jose for no reason!

 

I live in So Cal now and grew up in Nor Cal....and loved it up there.
Demographics wise, a lot of Asian people like everywhere in California, pretty much
Cost of living is ok, but California is high in general, compared to the rest of the US. But housing prices are dropping but still doubt you can buy right now, if you're still in college unless your family is loaded..
Attitudes of people? That really depends on which part of Nor Cal you're planning on visit. You've got the Earth-friendy and forward minded people in Berkely area, you've got the Big City mindset in San Francisco, and you've got the chill and hippie mindset of the people in Santa Cruz, and everywhere in between is pretty much average.
Traffic is manageble and nothing compared to So Cal, and pretty much only existent during rush hours... If you're planning on living near De Anza, 85, 280 and 101 will be used pretty often for you.
No it's not cloudy most of the time, unless you visit the North Bay a lot like SF, Berkely, or Oakland. It's actually never really cloudy in the South Bay area or anywhere away from the ocean.
There's definitly a lot of people working hi-tech industry down there, but that's kinda slowly declining, not as booming as the late 90s.
Nightlife there is not the best, most of it popping in SF, and Downtown San Jose, and some in between. Definitly try and avoid East Palo Alto(although it's gotten better since the 90s, used to be one of the highest homicide cities in the country. I'm in my late 20s now, but remember back in high school, that's where me and my friends would usually go to score some "party favors" and I was pretty cool with some of the hook-ups down there, so never really had a problem, but then again, I didn't drive a Z back then... Come to think of it, I did almost get mugged down there one time, but I was street smart enough to get myself out of it), Richmond, and Oakland.
I love Nor Cal, and wish I can move back, but because of family issues have to stay here in So Cal for the time being. Let me know if you have any more questions about Nor Cal.
BTW: you'll have fun in De Anza, one of the best CCs in Nor Cal with a wide variety of demographic from the students.

 

And we have happy cows here in California.

 

Once you get over the shock of real estate prices i.e. rent or mortgage, you'll enjoy it. Plus you'll see Z's everywhere you go.

 

i thank everyone for your responses. can't wait to move! The main important thing for me is landing a job that pays well.

 

do norcal people think theyre better than socal people and vice versa? (just asking b/c its the same way with houston and dallas)

 

+1

stay away from there. hahaha