I couldn't agree more. I lived at 2nd & California for four years and 10th & Clement for four more. Clement Street is everything I love about San Francisco.

I'm going to be doing an internship for 3 months this summer in downtown Mountain View (Castro St), so will be looking to rent/sublet a 1/2/3 BR furnished apartment/house depending on whether a couple of my friends decide to take up the internship.

1. Is it possible to find something within walking distance of my work location?
2. What would be the range of rentals are for this area? I've seen 1BR sublets on craigslist for $800-850 per month in the Mountain View area.
3. Whats the availability of cabs like in the south bay area - for those drunken evenings?

Prez Bush,

Consider being environmentally aware and not have a long commute. It only adds to pollution and global warming. I'm serious! Don't be an ugly American, live closer to your job in San Mateo county.

Thanks for your input 50 J. I actually do plan on being environmentally conscious, by NOT owning a car and using group transportation to work. While hopping on a bike obviously creates less pollution...I found Palo Alto/Mountain View/Sunnyvale to be a little too "suburban" for my tastes. I like living close to or in a very active/vibrant area, and while the South Bay area does have a lot going for it...its just not my cup of tea.

-W

Have you considered Burlingame or San Mateo? Not too far from the city and almost halfway between San Francisco and Mountainview. Very accessible to the city and the airport in case you want to do some Mileage runs.

I think Burlingame is cute but I don't think it fits the OP's criteria of urban. It's definitely more suburban, albeit with a cute little downtown and at least one great restaurant (Pisces). San Mateo is even more suburban feeling.

I'm not the best source for this, but have been spending the last few weekends helping a friend look around Mountain View for a place to buy. There are a few condo and townhouses complexes near Castro, and a few houses and apartments a couple of blocks away. So yes, it's possible to find something within walking distance. But the local transportation to downtown MV is quite good for a suburb - they have several buses, the light rail, and Caltrain - so you can easily expand your search zone if you choose.

As for pricing, $800-$850 seems very low. I haven't researched it, but over $1000 seems much more likely for a one-bedroom. You should be able to get a rooom or share a place for $800-$850. Craigslist is a good source for either.

There are cabs in the South Bay, but it's not like SF where you can flag them down. Generally you'll need to call and wait. Outside of SF and San Jose, MV has as many clubs as any other city in the area, so if you get a place in the area, you can walk (or crawl).

Yes, no one here has mentioned Bernal Heights. My neighborhood :D

It is one of the hills of SF and very popular with the dot commers of the 90s, which caused a dramatic appreciation in the value of my home <thank you very much>.

It is conveniently located between 280 and 101, so you have a choice of either freeway. It is also close to public transportation. Mission Street has 4 bus lines and can connect you to Bart at 24th Street.

It is a terrific neighborhood with great restaurants (especially along Cortland), a public library, a large amount of open space and parks (and all overhead wires are undergrounded) so the views are spectacular from most areas. The streets are narrow, some still surfaced with brick and even some still dirt. The further you are from Mission the easier the parking. There are many bikers on the hill which love the ride down, but not so much the trek back up. There is both a small local grocery store on the top of the hill with a butcher's shop and organic everything and a Safeway at the bottom of the hill if that is your preference. You will not find a *bucks, but there is a Martha's on Cortland with free wireless. There isn't much traffic because of the narrow streets, so it is a bit insulated from the rest of the City in that respect.

Most of the homes in the area are over 100 years old which usually means a lot of character like a fireplace, hardwood floors, and high ceilings.

If you want a feel for the neighborhood you can visit this site

I used to live right on Castro in Mountain View, in these apts: http://www.prometheusreg.com/residen...l/pplDesc.html

great location but have gotten pricey, about $1700 for a 1 bedroom

one nice thing about castro is that it has both light rail and caltrain stops so you can probably find something a bit cheaper and and commute.

I'm currently renting along the light rail in San Jose and usually head over on Sundays for the farmer's market. The light rail doesn't run too late though, I think it ends at midnight.

I can't imagine that you will get something within walking distance for $850 a month but it may be possible by renting a room in a house with a bunch of others. Mountain View is pretty big and most of it isn't within walking distance of Castro.

You can sometimes find a cab at the caltrain station. Other than that you would need to call for one.

Depends where in Pot. Hill you live - 3rd Street Muni light rail will be fully operational in April and already runs on weekends. This would mean the closer you live to the waterfront the more convenient your commute could be. You could also consider living within walking distance of the 22nd street Caltrain station to make your commute even more tolerable. Overall, I think Pot. Hill offers good value in the sqft size/view/parking/neighborhood categories. Of the neighborhoods I've lived in (Hayes Valley, downtown and ocean beach), this is by far my favorite.

I used to work about 45 minutes south in Palo Alto and DEFINITELY found Pot. Hill a pleasure for the commute; where my richmond/nob hill/fillmore friends had an extra 20 minutes or more added onto their commute each way dealing with city traffic. YMMV.

Second to Potrero Hill, this would be my favorite neighborhood too :)

Thanks for the tips on Mountain View. I found a couple of listings in the sub-$1000 range, but will probably go for more bedrooms if the others join me as well.

I didn't know about the Light Rail - will have to look into the routes and schedules for that. It certainly opens up more possibilities.

Lots of good advice already. If you don't like Palo Alto, I'd rule out Outter Sunset, Inner and Outer Richmond and the adjacent Laurel Heights/Presidio Heights areas. Inner Sunset is for grad students and left/liberal yuppies imo -- either you'd like it or not. I think you'd like Mission, Potrero Hill, Upper Market, Duboce Triangle, and Cole Valley best, unless you're more MBA/YUP type then the list might be Pacific Heights, Marina, South Beach, Telegraph Hill.

About MUNI, take a look at the map. There are certain bus lines that cross the city in unusual ways accessing very different districts. For example there's a line that goes from the Marina through the Haight and eventually to the Mission and Potrero Hill. You might find affordable, desireable housing in one place with a few cafes, clubs, restaurants in walking distance, but with good MUNI connections to other places. Also, many people who live in the City take taxis.

Your interest in drunken evenings strongly suggests to me that you would be much happier in San Francisco. Why not look for a summer sublet South of Market (e.g., a Golden Gate University student gone for the summer)? You could walk/bike to Caltrain, then 50 minutes to Mountain View (bikes allowed on board). Castro Street starts right at the Caltrain station.

Life is way too short to be young, single and looking for nightlife in the South Bay.

Life is way too short to be commuting more than 20 minutes each way to and from work everyday :D

I think I'll manage living with my free minibar and weekend night certs in the IC Mark Hopkins on weekends, but I'd rather be closer to work during the week. I suppose summer sublets from Stanford students closer to Mountain View are a possibility.