Breaking Down Oakland Districts and Neighborhoods

[Kendric Ng]

Hi all! I am looking to find my first deal, and I've decided to look into the Oakland area to perform my first house hack. Having talked to several friends, landlords, and tenants who have lived in the area, this is what I have gathered so far:

1. Higher End Neighborhoods

• - Piedmont
• - Temescal
• - Rockridge
• - Elmwood
• - Adams Point and Grand Lake
• - Uptown and Downtown

2. Growing Neighborhoods

• - West Oakland (not sure about which neighborhoods here)
• - Lower Bottoms
• - Emeryville (and parts of Oakland next to Emeryville)
• - Oakland Zoo Area (above the hill)

3. Neighborhoods to Avoid

• - East Oakland (especially east of Fruitvale)
• - West Oakland (South Prescott, Acorns)

4. To Look Into

• - Berkeley
• - East Oakland (above the hills; Montclair, Upper/Lower Dimond, etc.)

I generally see a tradeoff between sticker price (from amenities, bars/restaurants, general vibe), cash flow opportunity, potential appreciation (due to gentrification), safety, etc.

For those who are familiar with the Oakland area, what other considerations should I be looking at when house hacking my first deal?

Thank you for your inputs!

[Katie P.]

@Kendric Ng how are you financing? Not sure if you have looked at First Republic Eagle Community Program (Lower interest rate & 7,000 credit towards closing costs). The properties have to be located in specific income tracts, so that would be another factor. 

There’s quite a bit of new development in the Dogtown neighborhood of West Oakland. Constant rehab projects in Golden Gate/Gaskill/Santa Fe neighborhoods. 

Santa Fe, Gaskill, Golden Gate  neighborhoods attract many tech workers because of proximity to the more highly priced neighborhoods/amenities you mentioned (and proximity to BART of course.)