K-Wu

My husband and I bought our house in the Bayview district of San Francisco about four years ago, back in 2010. I am white and my husband is Chinese...our next door neighbors on one side are Latino and our neighbors on our other side, are white. The neighbors across the street are black and two doors down are Asian. One of the things I love about Bayview is the diversity...I feel completely at home there and love the friendliness between all the neighbors on our block. We borrow power tools from each other, share the occasional beer while chatting out on the sidewalk, and sweep out each others garage alcoves. We know who lives on our block and we keep an eye out for one another. We got in right before the housing in Bayview dramatically increased in price and are so happy we bought when we did. If you are more comfortable in the Marina, Pac Heights, or Nob Hill, Bayview might not be for you...it's gritty and rough around the edges. And, yes, there is higher crime in Bayview than other parts of the city. However, I feel safe living there and in the short four years that I have lived there, I have seen improvement regarding the safety of the area. I take the 24 line and T line daily and have never had a problem. I walk home by myself, at night, after getting off the T line stop at Palou and 3rd all the time...and have had no problems. On a regular basis, I walk to both Walgreens locations in Bayview (a decent walk from my house) and have always been fine. Yes, there is the rare crime where innocent bystanders are involved, but for the most part, if you are not involved in any trouble, trouble will leave you well enough alone here in Bayview. There are more families and children living in Bayview than in any other part of the city as it is an affordable option for families. The schools do need improvement and if we were to eventually raise a family in Bayview, we would not send them to any Bayview schools. However, we believe in Bayview. If the schools show improvement, we would reconsider this. The neighborhood is slowly getting better and better. The criminals in Bayview are a small percentage of people that have unfortunately marred the image of a neighborhood that is mostly made up of decent, hardworking, and law-abiding citizens. My husband and I are confident in the bright future of Bayview and we are very content with our little piece of San Francisco real estate. We also encourage people to come on down and check out Bayview for themselves...we have great Peruvian food at Limon and tasty chicken and waffles at Auntie Aprils. We also have delicious pizza at All Good Pizza and some great coffee at both Trouble Coffee and Ritual Coffee. They are remodeling the YMCA, have completely remodeled the library, and new start-up businesses are springing up along the 3rd street corridor. All in all, Bayview is an up and coming neighborhood that continues to grow and change for the better, one small step at a time.