Mountain View and Santa Clara vs Milpitas (San Jose, Fremont: apartment complex, to rent)

[blueslily]

Hi all,

I am about to accept a job offer in the San Jose area. The company has offices in Santa Clara, Mountain View, and Milpitas. I'm not sure how these areas are different. Please help!

What's unique about each area? What are the demographics of residents?

Which area do you prefer?

I'll need to rent an apartment. Which area has the least expensive apartment rates?

I realize that I am asking several questions. I'll appreciate any feedback because I'm not from Northern Cali and I'm lost making the decision on my own.

Thanks!

[roadwarrior101]

Well, Mountain View is a bit more upscale than either Milpitas or Santa Clara and has a nice downtown, whereas the other cities don't. It is also significantly more expensive than the other two cities. I choose to live in Mtn View since I think it is a much nicer community. However, as only about 10 miles separates all 3 cities, you could work in any of the offices and commute.

[mstnghu2]

Mountain View is typically considered to be the most desireable city of the cities mentioned. It's the only city out of the three with a downtown area (small, but nice). Mountain View is a nice community and tends to be more of an upscale area, but not really in a pretentious sort of way. It borders Palo Alto and Los Altos which are very expensive. Although not as expensive as Los altos or Palo Alto, MV is still somewhat pricey.

I'd say your best bet for finding an apartment is going to be in MV or Santa Clara. Milpitas is mostly single family homes and doesn't have a ton of apartments. Santa Clara and Milpitas apartments will be cheaper than MV apartments usually. Mountain View probably has the largest selection of apartment complexes to choose from though.

As far as demographics go, Mountain View is somewhat diverse but has a lot of white residents and also has a sizeable Latino population. Santa Clara is probably the most racially diverse of the three cities. Milpitas was very diverse when I grew up there, but is now predominantly Asian. Milpitas is one of two cities in Santa Clara county (the other is Cupertino) that have a minority-majority population.

All three of these cities would be good choices, and you'd probably need to explore them a little bit to see which would fit you better. They are all mostly safe and well-kept communities. It will probably come down to personal preference. Mountain View is probably overall the nicest city and has more of a small community feel to it. Santa Clara is nice as well and really just feels like an extension of San Jose. Milpitas (especially the eastern half of town) has some very nice parts, but as I mentioned previously, there aren't many apartment choices. Most of the apartment complexes in Milpitas are pretty dumpy.

Given the choices, you really can't go wrong. It will just come down to personal preference.

[blueslily]

How does Sunnyvale compare to these three?

[roadwarrior101]

Originally Posted by blueslily

How does Sunnyvale compare to these three?

Without discussing specific neighborhoods, I'd say that the following applies in terms of desireability:

Mountain View > Sunnyvale > Santa Clara > Milpitas (the last two are open for debate and can be flip flopped)

[80skeys]

Mtn View, Sunnyvale and Santa Clara are neighbors, there's only four or five miles from one to the other. Santa Clara is nice and it's a little cheaper. All three are pretty similar, except Mountain View and Sunnyvale seem to have more trees.

[BayAreaHillbilly]

SC actually does have a down town. But it's not in an central node orientation, it's more in the old Spanish style (it developed around a large square). It's certainly a sleepy CBD compared with wild Mt. View. Try finding parking anywhere near Castro on a Fri or Sat night!

[blueslily]

Can anyone recommend a safe and clean apartment complex in the Sunnyvale or Santa Clara for $1,100 or less per month for a studio? $1,100 is my max. I've read on here that rent is expensive, but I'm hoping to at least find a studio for that price.

[TheGreatCurve]

Originally Posted by blueslily

Can anyone recommend a safe and clean apartment complex in the Sunnyvale or Santa Clara for $1,100 or less per month for a studio? $1,100 is my max. I've read on here that rent is expensive, but I'm hoping to at least find a studio for that price.

You can probably find a studio in those cities for that price but it probably won't be a nice one nor in a great neighborhood. Rents have always been expensive in Silicon Valley but they have really gone ballistic over the past two years.

[lucky_seven]

Santa Clara is the most convenient because it's in the middle of the 3 geographically. Milpitas is better if you're outdoorsy because it's right by the foothills; you can go hiking or hang-gliding in Ed Levin park or drive 10 minutes to Mission Peak in Fremont. Or take a drive up the hills on Calaveras Blvd (it's a beautiful drive in spring!)

Mt View is more expensive but it's not safer than the others; I think its price reflects its proximity to Palo Alto and Los Altos. If it were me I'd pick SC or Milpitas