Just east of San Francisco, where can I buy a house, w/ a bit of acreage, at a good price?
Answers:
I just want to caution you about commuting to downtown SF. It is a very rough commute if you live outside the City, especially across the Bay.
Your best bet would be to look for houses in neighborhoods that are accessible to Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART), which is the regional commuter train. BART provides a much faster way of getting into downtown SF from outlying areas than driving. Driving into SF often means waiting in long lines of traffic for 30 minutes to an hour or more.
As for the East Bay, some residential neighborhoods in Berkeley have homes with small yards, but at a high price. Homes in El Cerrito run slightly lower. You may also consider living south of SF, down the peninsula. While it is not cheap, you will likely find homes on larger lots.
It really depends on what you are willing to spend.
Other answers:
California real estate has its own version of a good price. Their version involves suspending your disbelief.
California real estate has its own version of a good price. Their version involves suspending your disbelief.
You're SOL as far as "a good price" goes. But if you want acreage east of SF, I suggest looking at Orinda, Martinez, Lafayette, Rossmore, San Ramon, Danville, or, even further, at Brentwood, Concord, and Clayton.
can you add details as to how much you want to spend?
now is that hour driving distance during commute hours ? because that's going to make a difference in your range.
if you want a reasoanble price you're going to have to look into the san joaquin valley: tracy, manteca, mountain house.tracy would be about 70 miles but as far as timewise commute during normal rush hour - you'd be driving for hours. but if you want acreage - that's prob where you'll find it.
You can try the Delta area - like Rio Vista ... probably a bit less expensive than anything near the Bay. About 70 miles to SF ... but you only have to drive as far as Pittsburg, then catch BART. It's do-able if your critera are inflexible.