Oakland CA

[Anonymous]

We may be relocating, and are now working the numbers. Anyone familiar with Piedmont? Is it worth spending the extra money to buy in the Piedmont or Chabot (Rockridge) school district? I think these are some of the better districts in CA, but I'm not sure how they stack up relative to our current district here (Westbrook/Westland/BCC). Or should we look at "cheaper" real estate and go private. We're looking at Head Royce and Bentley. Anyone familiar with these?

[Anonymous]

I lived there while in grad school 15 years ago, and was childless at the time, so anything I could offer would be awfully out of date. I do know that Bentley and Head Royce were well though of.

There's a Berkeley Parents' Forum online -- could probably google and find it -- that might be a good resource to check. It includes parents from the whole Bay Area.

Good luck -- I'm a bit jealous, I loved it out there!

[Anonymous]

defnitely worth it to buy in piedmont/chabot/rockridge districts, but i would go private longterm. why oakland (which i love, but would avoid bc of the schools) and not in one of the more desirable districts a little further out (lafayette, moraga, etc.?).

[Anonymous]

Thanks, I'll check out Lafayette and Moraga. We're really trying to manage the commute. Hubby (primary reason for the move) will be working in San Francisco (which we definitely can't afford). There's a potential job opportunity for me in Oakland (near College Avenue).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I lived there while in grad school 15 years ago, and was childless at the time, so anything I could offer would be awfully out of date. I do know that Bentley and Head Royce were well though of.

There's a Berkeley Parents' Forum online -- could probably google and find it -- that might be a good resource to check. It includes parents from the whole Bay Area.

Good luck -- I'm a bit jealous, I loved it out there!

Thanks so much. I did find it. In case anyone else is interested, it's http://parents.berkeley.edu/ .

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thanks, I'll check out Lafayette and Moraga. We're really trying to manage the commute. Hubby (primary reason for the move) will be working in San Francisco (which we definitely can't afford). There's a potential job opportunity for me in Oakland (near College Avenue).

if you can buy near BART you should be pretty set w/ a city commute. housing in oakland is cheaper but not enough to offset private school tuition. also check kensington, albany, el cerrito areas - less than lafayette, moraga, and walnut creek, but still in the east bay/BART accessible. the schools comparable to where you are now are in southern marin co. (tiburon, corte madera, larkspur, mill valley) - which is very $ but very close in to the city and public transport accessible (to SF, not oak - you would have to drive there). good luck!

[Anonymous]

I grew up in Piedmont and attended schools there - loved it. Wonderful public schools, coined by residents as "private" because of the tremendous wealth and resources provided them by town residents. I would definitely 100% recommend purchasing a home there - it's worth the extra investment up front because you would save so much money by not placing your kids in the pricier private schools like Head Royce or CPS. Lafayette and Moraga are wonderful as well --- BUT the commute into San Francisco for your husband would be a nightmare (unless he took BART) - getting through the tunnel by car and then over the Bay Bridge takes over an hour - sometimes more - and the commute home is worse. I lived in the Bay Area most of my life so if you have any questions let me know! I'm happy to talk with you about it. Good luck in your decision making process.