Moving to SF, seeking advice on neighborhoods and apartments

August 12, 2010 10:38 PM

Moving into San Francisco. Advice on neighborhoods, and finding a place to rent?

My wife and I are moving from Oakland into San Francisco for a new job. Work will be at Turk & Van Ness. I'd like to live within 2 to 3 miles of that location, but the closer the better.

Our budget is about $3k/month. We need at least 2 BR, preferably with parking for one car.

Any advice on the best neighborhoods within those constraints, and how to go about finding a place in them? I'd like to live in a lively, thriving neighborhood where pretty much everything I need is within 3 to 4 blocks. We're in our 40s, so the nightclub/partying scene is not critical, but everything else matters (restaurants, shops, food/groceries, culture, etc.)

I'm watching Craigslist of course, but I don't know enough about the city to know the best locations in that price range. Any place else where I should look, or other things I should know?

Thanks,
Mike

posted by mikeand1 to Home & Garden (7 answers total)

I lived in Hayes Valley near Fell and Laguna for 5 years and I absolutely loved the area... yummy restaurants, awesome shops, a friendly little park, a small neighborhood grocery with organic foods, within walking distance of Safeway, and centrally located near good bus lines/bart/muni to take you anywhere else in the city. Street parking is absolutely insane there, but with your budget, you can probably get an apartment with a parking space. Last time I drove by there, it looked like they were starting a community garden too, and it's making me a little sad I ever moved.
posted by logic vs love at 10:50 PM on August 12, 2010

Noe Valley. 24th Street is a charming collection of shops and boutiques including a Whole Foods. Stay close to Church Street and you can get the J-Church to Civic Center station. The neighborhood is mainly families with kids and rich yuppies so not a lot of crime or partying. A 2 or 3 bedroom can pretty easily be found for under $3K.
posted by bendy at 10:54 PM on August 12, 2010

You shouldn't have a problem finding a place in almost any neighborhood.

I really would suggest that since you're in Oakland you spend your weekends/weeknights coming to SF and deciding what neighborhoods you like for yourselves.

Aside from the that I would say the Mission (and I don't even live there). I'd aim for closer to the 24th st BART than the 16th, but really anything right outside a 2 block radius of the 16th BART station is good. Or maybe Hayes Valley, or Noe Valley.

Oh and Craigslist. really. That or walking around neighborhoods you want to live in and calling #s from signs.

If you like your Oakland neighborhood it would help if you say which it is, so we can do the comparison neighborhood thing.
posted by grapesaresour at 11:03 PM on August 12, 2010

SFRentStats pulls from craigslist listings; they're googlemapped, and you can see how the average and median rents have changed in the neighborhood over the last 90 days/1 year. (I made a post about it about three years ago. Glad to see the site's still going.)
posted by rtha at 5:57 AM on August 13, 2010

For the actually searching, I really like PadMapper. It pulls mostly from Craiglist but also a couple other sources, puts them on Google Maps and gives you a *bunch* of filters. So you can easily look at exactly what you want.
posted by alaijmw at 6:42 AM on August 13, 2010

*actual searching, doh!
posted by alaijmw at 6:42 AM on August 13, 2010

Hayes Valley, Noe Valley, Cole Valley (why are they all Valleys?). Duboce triangle. Possibly Western Addition along the Panhandle, or on a nice block of McAllister. $3K a month is plenty to live in any of those places; $2500 should be more than enough. If you have 3 grand to spend, maybe you should even look into buying a cheaper condo or a TIC.

The one main issue will be transit - Turk & Van Ness is only along the north-south bus lines (47 & 49), whereas most of the nice nice neighborhoods you'll be looking at are east or west of there. It's also a relatively short walk from the Civic Center BART/Muni stop, although it can be a dodgy walk if you're doing it too late in the evening.
posted by rkent at 9:13 AM on August 13, 2010