<p>Someone had posted in the area around Vellejo if I remember right. No $400,000 victorians in SJ!</p>
<p>Bullet, my whole family, many from around DC, can’t believe our prices. My cousin thought he could swap something in Chevy Chase for something in Palo Alto but no dice. It’s hard to imagine if you don’t live here. A one hour commute plus is typical here for average wage earners. </p>
<p>30 minutes out of most cities and you can get an affordable house on an acre!</p>
<p>Cee, wow Chevy Chase is big time bucks! Average workers in DC also commute 1 hr+. For NoVA you will not get an acre for under 1-2 million, with at least a 30 minute mass transit commute, on a good day. Closest you can find on the VA side with 1 acre would put you at the 1.5 mil.</p>
<p>Mortgage rates headed DOWN. I am seeing quotes have dropped from over 6% to around 5.5% for good credit qualifying 30 yr fixed loans. Short term rate drops are flowing through to the LT rates. Look for rates close to 5% in the next month ceteris paribus. May pump some life into sales in better markets.</p>
<p>bulletandpima & everyone, I do want to move to the boonies. the short story of a very long one is when DS was in high school he went to an amazing summer program in Amherst, MA (HCiSSiM). I feel in love with Northhampton(2 h’s or 1?). When DS was accepted to MIT & Caltech, I kept my mouth shut but hoped he’d decide on MIT - and then I was moving out of CA and moving to Northhampton or Amherst. But he didn’t want the snow even though he loves to snowboard and now he’s at Caltech. I didn’t want to move to the other side of the country with DS here but can’t wait to get out of Oakland - the crime here is too much - the latest, a 10 year old boy shot while taking a piano lesson in one of the nicest parts of town (an armed robbery at a gas station across the street gone bad). The boy will most likely never walk again, his spine was shattered by the bullet. I have friends in Davis, CA and connections. Housing prices in Davis are similar to the Bay Area so looking a little further out, I found the lovely little town of Winters and hoped to find something there - but the houses are mostly 50’s -60’s - very bland but Woodland, CA has wonderful architecture & great prices. So for now, that’s where I’m looking though I do keep an eye out for properties in Davis and Winters. Vallejo is not appealing nor is anything in Sacramento(though prices in Sacramento have dropped further than Yolo county where I’m looking).</p>
<p>Aha! This IS the boonies! BTW, in the '90s I met someone in Martha’s Vineyard who lived in Winters. A son of Robert McNamara if you can believe it and he and his wife owned, umm, I’m thinking it was an almond orchard? BTW, my house is a 50’s rancher but I gutted it almost and renovated and it’s modern and cool (IMO of course) so never underestimate the power of a good remodel to make someone icky feel like home in the long run…</p>
<p>And it’s true. Where we are, an acre+house is apt to cost you $4M. Fun for us, huh?</p>
<p>Oaklandmom,
Some of our closest friends live in Oroville (now THAT’s the boonies) – though things are going up there because Chico is booming. We visit that area every summer. Gotta say, though, Oroville and that area bear no resemblance to Northampton! (no yellow pigs, either!)</p>
<p>Oakland find a place you can be happy with, if you have the ability to not worry about to and fro for work than you can have a life we are all jealous of…</p>
<p>My very very best wishes for you !</p>
<p>Life looks great, son is at a great school and you are finding a new home :)</p>
<p>I thought of you and your finance disaster today, Oaklandmom…
I was heading back into my office after a meeting, and I saw a sheriff’s car and an open flat bed truck with some office sruff in it out front. Then I saw our maintenance guy. I looked at him and said “Glenn, is somebody getting evicted?” He said “Yup… a mortgage company…”
I guess there is justice…</p>
<p>I bet they sold too many MTA’s :D</p>
<p>A year or so somebody here mentioned their S/D got a job as a mortgage broker. I warned them it was a volatile business and not to be surprised if the kid was OOW in a short time. Always been that way.</p>
<p>The bright side of all of this is there are phenomenal deals in many markets around the Country. Young people with good salaries and credit can get into homes with little or no down payment (seller financing). Those who’ve been conservative can comfortably move up getting more than they ever expected for their money.</p>
<p>bumping this back up – was there a new thread that I missed?</p>
<p>Some of our closest friends live in Oroville (now THAT’s the boonies)</p>
<p>One of my instructors is going to live “off the grid”, in a few years when he retires- this Oroville really is the boonies 
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