So going with cadetdrivr's 2 out of 3 scenario, the best place is out near Pacifica.
I would however avoid the apartments that are in the news right now.
If you don't like the fog the next best area is in the east bay.
Check out Walnut Creek or Pleasanton/Livermore.
A little further out the road from Livermore is Brentwood/Discovery Bay.
All have small part time controlled airports.
The traffic from the North or South or from SAC is daunting to say the least; not that traffic from the east bay is much better.
These get pretty warm in summer but none are "over the hill" and in to the central valley.
Good Luck
Now if somebody could help me find our system timetable that would be wonderful.

Sierra foothills-2+30 to sfo, hour away from some of the best skiing in the world.

California:

1500 sq ft will cost $500,000 in the Bay Area, in a middle-class neighborhood.

Vallejo: some nice houses, cheaper, but terrible schools (despite new facilities and dedicated teachers).

State income tax: about 10% of your Federal income.

Sales tax: I think it is around 7% statewide, and 9% in the Bay Area.

Gas; $1.00-1.25 higher per gallon than the national average.

BART: limited hours; can't get to or from the SFO airport before 6 AM or after 1100 PM. Dirty trains; I often felt uneasy riding it. Some unsavory characters riding it. Pretty expensive fares compared to subways in other major cities.

Living way north, east, or south: fog in the central valley will make travel slow, impossible, or dangerous.

Traffic in the Bay Area: awful. Car insurance rates: high.

I grew up in the Bay Area; just recently sold my childhood home. Could have lived in it, or used it as a crashpad, and been senior in SFO.

No thanks. The weather is great; everything else is awful.

I toyed with living in Tahoe on the Nevada side, but houses there are expensive, and commuting more difficult than it seems.

Good luck with your decision.

If you can fly to work, check out Calaveras county, with an airport in San Andreas. It's about two hour drive to work, but I know of one United pilot that flies from the country airport to San Carlos for EVERY TRIP. I lived out there for 18 years .. it's up in the foothills and you can get land (5 acres) for under $70,000. Send me a pm with your phone number, I can talk to you for hours about all of your options.

Robert.

T38, I don't think you'll find those prices anywhere that actually touches the bay. In 2008 my brother in law bought a 950 sq ft house in a very "blue collar" neighborhood of San Mateo that hadn't been lived in for three years. Waist-high weeds in the front yard, ruptured hot water line somewhere in the concrete pad he had to find and dig out. All this for the bargain price of $580,000. Two years later and after a tear down to the studs and complete remodel, his wife and newborn finally had central heat. Even in the middle of the downturn home prices anywhere on the peninsula didn't retreat at all, just plateaud for a while. That same house now cost $800-900k, at least.

I grew up in the east bay, but bailed out years ago. Still love NorCal, but the Bay Area is insane.

Do you have kids? Recommend no closer than Vacaville along the 80 corridor if you look out west. Home prices drop off dramatically in that area until Davis. If I had to do it all over gain I would probably pick Davis. College town...good schools...low crime.

Sacramento - about 1.5 hour drive to SFO . Steer clear of Natomas, some areas of Elk Grove, and look carefully in South Sacramento. There is a small, uncontrolled airport south and west about 7 or 8 miles from Sacramento Executive , I think it is called Franklin Airport. Sacramento is a really affordable place to live. It's got lots of trees, rivers and nearby lakes

I grew up in the east bay, too. (abeam the outer marker/FAF for rwy 30 at KOAK). San Mateo is a little more expensive; so are the nicer parts of San Jose.

Another place, just north of Davis, that's off the beaten path is Woodland. I lived there in the 80's when I attended UC Davis. It's probably 1:45 drive to SFO, no traffic, 4:00+ in rush hour traffic.

Good luck.. After living in CA for over 40 years, my wife and I left for the East Coast. It's a wonderful state to live in, but it's not worth the price to live there anymore.

I commuted there for a several years. Flying back from Europe, the local pilots weren't paying attention to flying, there were looking to see how bad the traffic was. By 3 pm, rush hour was in full force.

Nice place to live, in theory.