Moving to the Sacramento area in February, need recommendations for where to LIVE, and MIDWIVES!

[filiadeluna]

We are most likely moving to Sacramento (from Nashville) in February.  We are researching where to live there... preferably 30-45 miles from downtown at the most, so if DH ends up getting a job in-town later, he won't have a terrible commute.  We are looking for a good area to RENT a house or apartment in for now, as we don't want to buy again until we can afford a place that we'd be willing to stay in for several years or more.  

We can't afford an expensive area, but would like to be somewhere that is safe, quiet, and family friendly.  Davis, for example, would be an ideal place to live, but it is out of our price range.  We will need a minimum of 1,000 square feet, 2-3 bedrooms, and 2 baths, but are hoping to not pay more than $1,000-$1,200/month.  I know that's a long shot in a safe neighborhood.  What are towns or areas of towns that would be nice, and where should we avoid?  We have been researching Natomas, Elk Grove, Rocklin, Fair Oaks, Folsom, Lincoln, Greenhaven, and Arden/Arcade, but I've found conflicting info.  

Also, I need to find a new midwife.  I will be around 30+ weeks pregnant then.  I have a homebirth midwife here, but I need to find a new one who will be willing to take me in late pregnancy, and services the greater Sacramento area.  I'm also open to Birth Center recommendations, just in case I can't find a homebirth midwife so late in the game.  

[journeymom]

All of those are great options. 

BIL and family live in Natomas and love it.  He works downtown (blocks from the Capital) and his commute is less than 10 minutes.  His kids go to the performing arts charter school and love it.

My sister lives near Cosumnes River Community College, which is between Elk Grove and Sac, and it's a really lovely neighborhood.  Just lots of nice, mid-range priced homes.  A little further north is the Pocket Area, which is really nice, has some expensive homes but some more affordable places can be found. 

Land Park, Curtis Park, parts of Oak Park are great.  I don't know what the public schools are like. Dh and I want to retire to a tiny home in Curtis Park if we can. 

I live in Fair Oaks.  The San Juan Unified schools out here are excellent. This is a great place to live. A mix of rural horse property and suburbia. There are actually a fair number of homes to rent, if you don't have dogs. Dh's commute can be long, depending on what time he hits the road.  Before 5pm or after 6pm it's OK. 

Parts of Arden/Arcade and Ardent Town would be perfect for you, they meet all the criteria you list, except the price. Rio Americano High School is one of the best high schools in California.

Huh! Apparently Greenhaven is the same as the Pocket Area. Did not know that. 

I don't know specifics about Rocklin or Lincoln, but generally they're considered desirable.  Google Maps indicates Rocklin is 30 minutes to the Capitol, but count on adding 10 to 20 minutes in real traffic.

Rental prices range all over.  Check out Zillow.com. It's pretty useful for getting an idea of rental prices by neighborhood or zip code.

I am not familiar with home birth and midwife options in Sacramento, sorry! 

Edited to add, $1,000 to $1,200 a month is doable but tough, for the quality of neighborhood you need. If you can go up to $1,500 many more options open up. After you've been here a while and are more familiar with neighborhoods you might find a house with lower rent that still fits your criteria. 

By the way, welcome to Sacramento!

Edited by journeymom - 10/1/12 at 9:14am

[filiadeluna]

Thanks for all the info!  How funny - my husband graduated from Rio Americano.  He never mentioned that it was a particularly good school, but who really enjoyed high school anyway?  LOL.

[journeymom]

You know, I've been going on a reputation I got stuck in my head 35 years ago, and apparently it's not very accurate.  For what it's worth, on the Cal academic performance index report, Rio Americano's score was 807 and Bella Vista's (in Fair Oaks) was 828.  Neener neener, Rio.  (My kid is at BV).  :D

[GinaMama]

Do not look in the Arden Arcade area now. There are some nice pockets but VERY spotty. I think the reason you are getting conflicting advice is that most neighborhoods around Sac can be spotty....I'm going to get you some more info in that price range with your specs. You'll have a hard time finding a rental in East Sac/Land Park/Curtis Park in that price range and with 2 bathrooms because the homes are older and charming but smaller and 2-3 bdrms most have only 1 bath. I'll be back in touch.

[GinaMama]

El Dorado Hills is about 25 minutes with no traffic up highway 50 - and Folsom might be a nice choice too. 

[filiadeluna]

GinaMama - we could deal with 1-1.5 bathrooms (even though we will be a family of 4 soon), but 2 bathrooms would be preferable so we don't have to wait in line.  LOL.  My biggest concern is bedroom space, overall square footage, and safety within our price range.

RE: El Dorado Hills - I've heard it's nice, but there is naturally occurring asbestos that apparently comes through when they do construction & such...?  So that concerns me.

[grethel]

I grew up in Fair Oaks (Bella Vista hs) and lived there for a lot of my life. In college and after, I lived downtown and in East Sac. Fair Oaks is a very nice area with a few small spotty neighborhoods. I do feel like the character of some parts of the town has changed a little in recent years -- some areas gotten a little more sketchy -- but it's still very nice generally, and most of the schools are great. My dd went to the Montessori charter school, California Montessori Project (she attended the American River branch, but there are several locations all over Sac... check it out, we really loved it).  In south Sac, I think you might find that a place in your price range would be hard to find in a safe neighborhood. Land Park/Curtis Park are great, but pretty expensive unless you're out on the edge, and that can be not so great. Let's see... Rocklin is nice but not cheap, and it's pretty far out there. Roseville has some nice neighborhoods, probably decent rental prices, and is a little closer into town (but still a pretty long drive in). Natomas is very new ... lots of big box stores, not a lot of character. Folsom is a nice town.

If you're looking at commutes to downtown, Fair Oaks is about half an hour out at non-peak times (20 minutes in the middle of the night), and up to an hour at rush hour. You'll find similar times for anything about the same distance from the city.

Another area you might consider is Carmichael. It's closer to Sac, has some great neighborhoods and some decent ones, and some good schools.

If you don't mind being out in the sticks a little, Elk Grove might fit your bill. I'm not a big fan, but I know some folks really like it out there. I think it depends on what you're looking for.

[journeymom]

Here is my perspective: we're actively looking for a rental in Fair Oaks, Orangevale, edges of Carmichael.  We're selling our great big Fair Oaks home and down-sizing, in fact we signed papers with a buyer last night.  So I'm in this right now.

Don't over-look Orangevale!!  In fact there is a 3 bed/2 bath 1,170 sqft home renting for $1,195 right now (for example).  It's walking distance to Pershing Elem, which is a rapid-learner, 'award winning' school. It looks to me like it's about 8 minutes from Hazel and hwy 50.  From there the commute to down town in rush hour traffic would be 40 to 60 minutes. 

So I've been looking at Google Maps and discovered that Carmichael is smaller and Arden Arcade is bigger than I thought.  The border between the two is at Walnut; I had this vague idea it's at Eastern. 

But that whole area of Carmichael and Arden is miles of family-oriented 'bedroom community', lots of pleasant scattered with not-so-pleasant. I don't know, maybe my standards are not very high? Unrealistic? Yes, you have to look carefully, but I don't think the OP should disregard a major portion of Sac's suburbia. At least according to Google Maps, Arden-Arcade goes from Walnut to Ethan Way, all the way from 80 to 50.  That's a really big area. If you want to stick to $1,200 a month, homes can be found, and they're not exactly ghetto, you know?   They're older, smaller perfectly good homes.  I'd stay away from portions of Auburn Blvd along Hwy 80. 

Not to nit-pick, but it can't be said that there's no traffic between down-town and El Dorado Hills, by any means.  Between Latrobe Rd and the Capitol is minimally 30 minutes, and much longer during rush-hour traffic.  And it's unlikely a single-family home can be found to rent for $1,200.

OP, good luck.  All the communities you listed are decent places to live.  Generally speaking, any one rental near a freeway or on a major thoroughfare or blvd is more likely to be noisier and less safe than rentals further away. That's probably true of anywhere in the US.  

This has been really interesting!  I learned a bit about my community.  

[filiadeluna]

Thanks again, everyone!  Well, now we're looking at Midtown, too, because a relative (our age) suggested it, as she lived there for a long time, although she and her husband don't have any kids.  It sounds awesome, but I'd still want to make sure we're in a safe area that we can afford, and not too close to bars.  I was looking online at some of the rentals, and while the high-rises are pretty awesome looking, they're pricier for a small space.  I really love the idea of the Victorians , personally, and some of those are a really reasonable cost.  I love the idea of the area having "character", and co-ops, coffee shops, being able to walk or ride a bike, or take the bus to most places, lots of parks and trees, etc.  I've been to Old Town and other parts of Sac, but I don't think I've been through Midtown.  So... tell me as much as you know about it!

[katiedidder]

I'm living in the bay area right now (going to midwifery school), but own a house in Sacramento and lived there much of my life.  With a kid, I'd look at Tahoe Park.  It's safe, relatively close to downtown and cheaper with TONS of awesome families.  Lots of homebirth families in that area.  Other family-friendly areas that are central include Med Center (bordering on a little more sketchy, but there are some great pockets and it's also close to downtown), South Land Park, Hollywood Park, and Midtown.  Of those, midtown is probably the most expensive (SLP would be close though). 

I know almost all of the midwives in Sacramento really well so feel free to PM me for details, but my plug would be for New Earth Midwifery.  I've spent a lot of time with both Jen & Tuesday and absolutely love them both. 
 

[filiadeluna]

Originally Posted by katiedidder 

I'm living in the bay area right now (going to midwifery school), but own a house in Sacramento and lived there much of my life.  With a kid, I'd look at Tahoe Park.  It's safe, relatively close to downtown and cheaper with TONS of awesome families.  Lots of homebirth families in that area.  Other family-friendly areas that are central include Med Center (bordering on a little more sketchy, but there are some great pockets and it's also close to downtown), South Land Park, Hollywood Park, and Midtown.  Of those, midtown is probably the most expensive (SLP would be close though). 

I know almost all of the midwives in Sacramento really well so feel free to PM me for details, but my plug would be for New Earth Midwifery.  I've spent a lot of time with both Jen & Tuesday and absolutely love them both. 
 

Thanks for the info!  I will check into those also.  As for the midwives, do you think they'd be open to taking a client that late in pregnancy (30+ weeks potentially)?  I know some of them may be booked anyway.  :/

[Wittyone]

There is also a free standing birth center in Sacramento that you may want to look into if you are not exclusively looking for a homebirth -  http://www.sactobirth.com/