Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I agree with most people here. The homes are relatively new and nice. The streets are safe. The nearby commercial areas, such as the Plant and Capitol Expressway (around that area), are nice and safe. And, yes, 87 onramps and off ramps are totally inadequate to the task; in fact, I'd even say that 87 is inadequate and needs more lanes to serve this area. So, rush hour traffic is hell.
The houses are mostly built to be tall with a modest footprint so it's typical to have 4 floors: garage (on bottom), living/dining room/kitchen, bedrooms and master bedroom (on top). That gives a great view. That also means that lots of going up and down stairs. That's something to consider, especially if you have kids, and, even if you don't, that that's a lot of stairs to vacuum.
I don't see why you would bother to go down to the Fairgrounds so I'd say that it doesn't matter whether it is safe or not.
Do a thorough check on the HOA. HOAs start out with new houses so practically no maintenance. So, fees are low for 10 years or more. Even with low fees, savings builds up and the HOA starts spending it on new landscaping, new lights, new playground equipment and overpaying contractors. After 10 - 20 years, the HOA isn't that new and needs more maintenance. But there aren't enough savings and nobody wants to raise fees. So, the HOA falls apart some more; low fees nearly always wins over maintenance. So, the HOA looks even worse and fees will have to be raised even higher to get back to the "looks like new" look. I have no inside information but really look reserves and maintenance plan (if any). See if the HOA fees are low now such that they are backloading fees and maintenance. If you consider buying a place, really look to see if any flaw in the maintenance of the landscaping, sidewalks and surrounding area. If a few leaves accumulate or the sidewalk has cracks, realize that those problems are intentionally unfixed, not accidentally unfixed. The HOA or contractor doesn't care about that problem so they will be left to get worse on their own. Ideally, choose a place that looks nice while having lots of stuff that doesn't need much maintenance, like concrete. If not that, choose a place where problems impact a lot of other homes so they will complain about it, too. Be wary (but don't avoid completely) of parks: now it may look nice but, in 10 years, it might be a jungle with dead grass.
If you buy in Comm Hill, it's fair to say that you wanted a newly built house at a reasonable price were willing to accept a fairly bad car commute in exchange.
Campbell might be an alternative but it'll probably be an older house.
If you don't jump on the lane to get into 87, Almaden going into downtown is pretty smooth. If you have to jump on 87, I agree it will be a necessary pain.
That's why I switched over to lightrail 2 years ago and only drive to the office once a week
I work in the East Bay. I've tried several different ways to do the drive, and I can't find a better one than Almaden > 87 > Taylor > First > 880. If I really want to avoid either of those, I can take Almaden Ave > 280/680 > Auto Mall > 880, but the difference is just psychological.. it doesn't save any time.
You raised some excellent points... and this aligns with the home blueprints I've seen. New to me means little maintenance (for now) - a big attraction for a first time buyer/non-handyman like me! I didn't even consider how they'd handle/need to raise HOA fees as the community ages. I know in San Jose (vs. where my parents live in Naples Fl) there's less appetite in general for HOA fees.
You hit the nail on the head in terms of the tradeoff at 650k:
1. Up and coming/farther-out area of SJ and afford a nice townhouse.
2. Crappy part of SJ and afford a decent small single family home.
3. Closer to my Palo Alto office but "shadier" parts of Mountain View or Sunnyvale and live in a dumpier townhouse.
I'm still dreaming there's a middle ground of say North San Jose. There's some beautiful townhomes behind Rivermark Safeway (Santa Clara border). So so schools and surrounded by tech campuses, but that's just fine with me. I like the more urban feel and companies means quiet on weekends and evenings. Similar to where we are now in Sunnyvale, by 237 and N Fair Oaks.
Any other areas I can consider? My wife really prefers a single family home- even 2bd, tiny. I do too as from renting for so many yearsk, I can easily imagine the nightmare OWNING a place with shared walls and noisy neighbors. There's only so much due diligence you can do - and anyway, neighbors can change.
Best,
Todd
Quote:
Originally Posted by nagleepark
I agree with most people here. The homes are relatively new and nice. The streets are safe. The nearby commercial areas, such as the Plant and Capitol Expressway (around that area), are nice and safe. And, yes, 87 onramps and off ramps are totally inadequate to the task; in fact, I'd even say that 87 is inadequate and needs more lanes to serve this area. So, rush hour traffic is hell.
The houses are mostly built to be tall with a modest footprint so it's typical to have 4 floors: garage (on bottom), living/dining room/kitchen, bedrooms and master bedroom (on top). That gives a great view. That also means that lots of going up and down stairs. That's something to consider, especially if you have kids, and, even if you don't, that that's a lot of stairs to vacuum.
I don't see why you would bother to go down to the Fairgrounds so I'd say that it doesn't matter whether it is safe or not.
Do a thorough check on the HOA. HOAs start out with new houses so practically no maintenance. So, fees are low for 10 years or more. Even with low fees, savings builds up and the HOA starts spending it on new landscaping, new lights, new playground equipment and overpaying contractors. After 10 - 20 years, the HOA isn't that new and needs more maintenance. But there aren't enough savings and nobody wants to raise fees. So, the HOA falls apart some more; low fees nearly always wins over maintenance. So, the HOA looks even worse and fees will have to be raised even higher to get back to the "looks like new" look. I have no inside information but really look reserves and maintenance plan (if any). See if the HOA fees are low now such that they are backloading fees and maintenance. If you consider buying a place, really look to see if any flaw in the maintenance of the landscaping, sidewalks and surrounding area. If a few leaves accumulate or the sidewalk has cracks, realize that those problems are intentionally unfixed, not accidentally unfixed. The HOA or contractor doesn't care about that problem so they will be left to get worse on their own. Ideally, choose a place that looks nice while having lots of stuff that doesn't need much maintenance, like concrete. If not that, choose a place where problems impact a lot of other homes so they will complain about it, too. Be wary (but don't avoid completely) of parks: now it may look nice but, in 10 years, it might be a jungle with dead grass.
If you buy in Comm Hill, it's fair to say that you wanted a newly built house at a reasonable price were willing to accept a fairly bad car commute in exchange.
Campbell might be an alternative but it'll probably be an older house.
You raised some excellent points... and this aligns with the home blueprints I've seen. New to me means little maintenance (for now) - a big attraction for a first time buyer/non-handyman like me! I didn't even consider how they'd handle/need to raise HOA fees as the community ages. I know in San Jose (vs. where my parents live in Naples Fl) there's less appetite in general for HOA fees.
You hit the nail on the head in terms of the tradeoff at 650k:
1. Up and coming/farther-out area of SJ and afford a nice townhouse.
2. Crappy part of SJ and afford a decent small single family home.
3. Closer to my Palo Alto office but "shadier" parts of Mountain View or Sunnyvale and live in a dumpier townhouse.
I'm still dreaming there's a middle ground of say North San Jose. There's some beautiful townhomes behind Rivermark Safeway (Santa Clara border). So so schools and surrounded by tech campuses, but that's just fine with me. I like the more urban feel and companies means quiet on weekends and evenings. Similar to where we are now in Sunnyvale, by 237 and N Fair Oaks.
Any other areas I can consider? My wife really prefers a single family home- even 2bd, tiny. I do too as from renting for so many yearsk, I can easily imagine the nightmare OWNING a place with shared walls and noisy neighbors. There's only so much due diligence you can do - and anyway, neighbors can change.
Best,
Todd
I still think Comm Hill works great for you. You can also try South San Jose in Blossom Valley, there are still many homes under 650k in very nice, quiet, suburban neighborhoods. Schools are decent. There will be commute issues, but if you don't live right next door to your workplace, you pretty much have a commute issue anyway no matter where you are.
I'll check South SJ too. I've always liked Blossom Hill/Almaden... just concerned about trekking to Palo Alto 3-4 days/week. HP is pretty good about what time you show up--as long as you do so several days/week.
Have you ever had issues in a townhouse (shared walls~noisy neighbors)?
Quote:
Originally Posted by bobby_guz_man
I still think Comm Hill works great for you. You can also try South San Jose in Blossom Valley, there are still many homes under 650k in very nice, quiet, suburban neighborhoods. Schools are decent. There will be commute issues, but if you don't live right next door to your workplace, you pretty much have a commute issue anyway no matter where you are.
The 87 traffic thing is a little overstated, though. The really bad part of the freeway is between Taylor and Hwy 101, and you can avoid that entirely when going to Palo Alto by taking 280 instead. And even that is only congested for a couple hours a day, unlike 880.
I'll check South SJ too. I've always liked Blossom Hill/Almaden... just concerned about trekking to Palo Alto 3-4 days/week. HP is pretty good about what time you show up--as long as you do so several days/week.
Have you ever had issues in a townhouse (shared walls~noisy neighbors)?
There are express buses that pick up workers in South San Jose at the Snell and Ohlone/Chynoweth lightrail stations and take them into Palo Alto. A friend of mine works in a company next door to HP in PA, and the company pays her bus fare. The bus delivers her to the door of the company, she drives into South San Jose from the Eastside to take the bus. You can check with HP to see if they have something similar?
No ideas about townhouse wall-sharing as I've never lived in one. I guess it's better than condo or apartments where someone might live above you AND around you
Comm Hill does have a few single family homes up there, though. Basically they're 3-4 stories "townhouse" that stand separated from the other townhouses with about two meter of separation from wall to wall. HOA is $70 a month for single family homes in Comm Hill.
I'll try to find an open house. I think a single family townhome would work just fine. A good compromise between affordability and quiet. Well, relative quiet vs. something with shared walls.
If you happen to know a realtor covering Comm Hill let me know. We're early in the process (read: want to save up another 40k for the down payment!). But it's never too early to see what's out there and get an idea what we can afford (read: consider moving back to Boston :-)).
We don't have express buses, though I'd heard HP is considering as they consolidate offices. I took one of those when I worked in Santa Cruz. Even then it was hard because you have to align with their schedule. And it usually means waking up way earlier to do so. Course saves a lot of gas and energy.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bobby_guz_man
There are express buses that pick up workers in South San Jose at the Snell and Ohlone/Chynoweth lightrail stations and take them into Palo Alto. A friend of mine works in a company next door to HP in PA, and the company pays her bus fare. The bus delivers her to the door of the company, she drives into South San Jose from the Eastside to take the bus. You can check with HP to see if they have something similar?
No ideas about townhouse wall-sharing as I've never lived in one. I guess it's better than condo or apartments where someone might live above you AND around you
Comm Hill does have a few single family homes up there, though. Basically they're 3-4 stories "townhouse" that stand separated from the other townhouses with about two meter of separation from wall to wall. HOA is $70 a month for single family homes in Comm Hill.
This is a good point. It's getting to 280 that will be the pain; once on it, it seems going up to Page Mill isn't bad. Page Mill itself can be congested at peak times but not completely stop and go. Plus it's a nice drive.
Quote:
Originally Posted by sonarrat
The 87 traffic thing is a little overstated, though. The really bad part of the freeway is between Taylor and Hwy 101, and you can avoid that entirely when going to Palo Alto by taking 280 instead. And even that is only congested for a couple hours a day, unlike 880.
This is a good point. It's getting to 280 that will be the pain; once on it, it seems going up to Page Mill isn't bad. Page Mill itself can be congested at peak times but not completely stop and go. Plus it's a nice drive.
I drove 280 from 87 to 85 and back for 10 years in rush hour until my company moved a few weeks ago. My home and my job were both less than four blocks from the freeway.
Don't underestimate 280. My commute was less than 15 miles but it routinely took 30 minutes to go from 85 to 87 on 280 to get home. About once a month, there'd be a serious accident near 87 that practically stop 280 and back it up into Palo Alto such that it would take me over an hour to get home (from 85 to 87). Once you've passed 85 and committed to 280, there are NO ALTERNATE ROUTES. If you get off, very few surface streets parallel the freeway and they have horribly long stoplights (5+ minutes).
I'm not saying don't buy but realize that 280 isn't a cakewalk. You really have 3 commute "danger zones": 87 to 280, 280 to Page Mill and Page Mill (to a lesser extent).
Quote:
Originally Posted by thorvitz
I'll try to find an open house. I think a single family townhome would work just fine. A good compromise between affordability and quiet. Well, relative quiet vs. something with shared walls.
If you happen to know a realtor covering Comm Hill let me know. We're early in the process (read: want to save up another 40k for the down payment!). But it's never too early to see what's out there and get an idea what we can afford (read: consider moving back to Boston :-)).
We don't have express buses, though I'd heard HP is considering as they consolidate offices. I took one of those when I worked in Santa Cruz. Even then it was hard because you have to align with their schedule. And it usually means waking up way earlier to do so. Course saves a lot of gas and energy.
I lived in a townhouse for 5+ years. I never heard my neighbors. Most people don't walk on or bump into or do much of anything with walls so it was rare to hear anything.
I've bought new and old houses but not a newish house which I think is the best. A new house is good because it's new and you can choose options and features. But the downside is that you have to chase around the builder to correct all the mistakes (which takes a solid year) and you just don't know what housing prices, your neighbors and the neighborhood will be like when all is said and done (so you may wildly overpay for something that is located in a neighborhood which isn't what you imagined it to be). The nice thing about a newish house is that you are buying an almost new house but it's in a neighborhood were you can already see the pros and cons, have a (short) history of truly comparable house sales and, basically, know what you're buying.
I know people go gaga over the brand new homes. My wife went gaga over the brand new home. But, from our experience, our next home will probably be newish rather than new. Newish homes are less maintenance and a better investment than new homes.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
