Yes…Albany is very close…
East Richmond is a nicer area than I thought it would be…considering East Richmond is east of Richmond. 
My brother paid up to buy a place there. He couldn’t afford Berkeley…
I am sure he looked at Point Richmond, that is nice and VERY safe, we have the monthly meeting there. The previous owner of Point Richmond is our member, he is very nice even he is a multi-billionaire.
Berkeley is crazy, I bid on a house asking $499 went for $670 and it is a tear down.
dstark, commuting within the city here can be a royal pain! The peak hour traffic around Amazon here is known as Amazombie Apocalypse. It does not help that the Gates Foundation built their headquarters upstream! But… your nephew will have a ton of choices! Seattle is still 50% off compared to SF.
BunsenBurner, 50 percent off? That is fantastic!
I don’t think my nephew wants to drive…
Artloversplus,
I have liked Berkeley for 40 years…I guess people finally figured out Berkeley is a pretty nice place to live. .
Berkeley is not landlord friendly…as you know. $670,000 for a teardown? Geez!
When my daughter started looking at places, she thought she could afford many places. Why? Because of the listing prices. Had no idea the listing prices and the selling prices are so different.
I think Point Richmond was too expensive. My brother overpaid for his place. Got sick of all the overbids. Bought 2 years ago and he is probably up a little bit right now. In 2013, prices were moving up quickly…
I live a very nice life based on real estate decisions made years ago by previous generations and some made my my spouse. On thing that stands out in my experience is that the neighborhood makes a difference. On the other hand I know people who have also made a great income by owning property in less desirable neighborhoods.
I also feel that for personal use and depreciation I would want my children to buy in an area that has consistently gained in value. The house I would buy for a long term rental would not be the same as the house I would advise my kids to buy as a primary residence. We did try to get our S to buy a low priced condo when the market was at its lowest but he wasn’t interested. We knew that the condo while not in a great location long term for him was in a great rental location.
In my opinion I would not want my kid to buy a house in a hot market that they otherwise would not have purchased in a normal market. I have known people who purchased places on busy roads or with weird layouts when the market was super hot or paid more because they were kept getting outbid. When the market fell they could not give those places away.
Dstark,
Berkeley rent control does not apply to most single family house.
http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/Rent_Stabilization_Board/Home/Guide_to_Rent_Control.aspx
So is the house I just bought. The town has a rent control but not for SFR.
Artloversplus, I did not know this. Thanks.
I agree with you mom60.
If we look back over 25 years, prices are up 3, 4, 5 percent a year in some areas.
These double digit increases are not going to last. That’s ok…
http://www.neighborhoodscout.com/ca/palo-alto/rates/
http://www.neighborhoodscout.com/ca/san-francisco/rates/
I am not sure how accurate this web site is. I like the web site anyway. 
People buy Palo Alto for a reason. It is the ground zero for Silicon Valley. When every thing crashed in 2008, even Hillsborough, the price of Palo Alto holds up, when the 2013 recover returns, it has the highest appreciation overall.
Palo Alto real estate is on its own.
I study the MLS a little bit regarding Palo Alto real estate.
ANY SFR that has 5000 sf lot is selling over 2.5 MILLION dollars. Regardless of location, it could be next to rail road on Elma st. or next to 101 Highway. The house could be a 2 bed 1 bath 800 sf bungalow. For 1 Million plus plus, you can buy an SFR with only 1500 sf lot. There are some condos selling around 1 million.
I remember driving around Palo Alto a few month ago, and what really struck me was that I did not see as single “for sale” sign.
At those prices, I would be tempted to bypass relators altogether. A good inspection, a trusted lawyer to review the papers…
Wait
What inspection
All those lower end homes (Sfr) quotes are tear downs
What constitutes a “lower end home” in SF?
Lowest priced home in the area
How big a house can you build on a 5,000 sq ft lot in palo alto?
It depends on the shape, location, frontage and zoning. I don’t know, but ppl into it do, so goes the price. I have seen 3000 sf homes on 5000 sf lot before.
I don’t think 3,000 sq ft homes on 5,000 sq ft lots looks good…
Maybe I am wrong.
I’m another who doesn’t care for the huge house built on a smaller lot.
Bunsenburner- I wonder if parts of Palo Alto don’t allow real estate signs. In my area a couple of different areas don’t allow signs. If you drove through Montecito you would think nothing was for sale.
me neither, I like large yard with plenty spaces between homes, but in the Bay Area, you cannot help it. Unless you have 10 million to throw around, you cannot buy a house in Palo Alto with one acre of land.
Have you been to those mansions on Pacific Heights?
Was invited to a University Trustee’s party at Pacific Heights when D was freshman, 10,000+ sf home, two kitchens, one for display only, several maids quarters, elevator served 4~5 floors, views. Over 10 million dollars… The lot is very small, less than 5000 sf.
There is a different look in Pacific Heights…
My expectations for housing in a city are a little different.
Was the lot really 5,000 sq ft?