Where to move in the SF Bay Area?

Here are the places I would suggest looking into:

1. Martinez: Very underated because its close to the Chevron plant, but you get great deals on houses (both renting and buying), relatively low crime and good schools though the commute to the city is not great.

2. Lafayette: Much more expensive for renting homes but okay for renting apartments. Very good schools and safe and with its own BART station it couldn't be an easier commute into the city.

3. Walnut Creek: Relatively affordable, tons of apartments, great shopping and downtown area, has its own BART station for commuting and has great schools, little crime.

4. Dublin, Pleasanton and Livermore are also a possibility, but I have found the prices for renting there to be significantly higher than in Contra Costa County and you get much more traffic as well. (They also have their BART though the parking for it is nuts and walking to it doesn't quite work.)

5. Places in the northern Peninsula (south of SF) also have a suburban feel, but most are super expensive. Redwood City, I hear is more manageable.

Good luck Turtleshell!