• Richmond Heights/Richmond View/Mira Vista
• More Reviews of Richmond Neighborhoods

hello bpn folks! we just moved to the mira vista neighborhood from albany and its been a hard adjustment. im so used to walking out my door and leaving the car at home. now it seems im in the car every day! not so fun with a little one. it seems there are never people out and about, walking around, playing outside... where are all the parents and kids? is it because its so hilly? i have a 2 year old and it seems every park i go to we are always the only ones there! i know there is a great community here from reading all the positive reviews/ posts about mira vista elementary. is there some sort of neighborhood group/meetings? id love some insider tips as to where people are hanging out. where do you grocery shop? get videos to rent? eat inexpensively? id love to feel more a part of my neighborhood but its hard when im always driving back to solano or the el cerrito plaza for everything. walkable places a big plus! thanks. new to the hills

Re: I work in Richmond, husband works in Sunnyvale
We live in Richmond View (Also called Mira Vista neighborhood)...It's East Richmond unincorporated county. The local school is Mira Vista Elementary School...Some things about MV are fabulous, and it has it's problems like most of our public schools. My kids went to MV in younger years adn you can't ask for more dedicated wonderful teachers. Next year MV will start a 7th grade class and the next year 8th grade so ultimately it'll be K- 8. We're about a 10-15 minute drive from Richmond Marina. Up the hill from 80. Close to Del Norte BArt. This neighborhood is older...houses built mostly in late 40's and on. Great mix of ages, cultures, lots of kids around. I know all of my immediate neighbors. Houses range anywhere from $400-$650,000 or so. We've been in our house for about 21 years and are very happy here. Feel free to e-mail me for more info too, Good luck. Tough decision.

Re: Schools, commutable,urban under $500k?
Richmond View, high up in the hills and not walkable, definitely suburban, but with larger houses and yards in the 300K-400K range. Good elementary school options both public and private, and the charter alternative high school is now in the area. Safe, diverse, friendly. Tassajara Park and hiking in Wildcat Canyon.

Re: Cheaper but "safe enough" neighborhoods
We live in what is sometimes referred to as 'Arlington Heights' or sometimes lumped into Richmond View. I prefer our area over Richmond View, as our houses have triple sized lots, thus have more of an open feel. With the housing downturn, homes in the area have gotten really well priced. We feel safe - have only heard gunshots on the fourth and NYE, but they sound like they are from the revelers in the flats of Richmond.

We live on N. Arlington, which borders Alvarado Park. The park is great, Wildcat Canyon is walking distance. We have Raley's for a grocery store (which is fantastic). We unfortunately do have a few bad houses in the 'hood, where obvious drug addicts live and unfortunately, those two or three houses seem noticeable. We have a few odd characters, but generally seem harmless. We have had a few in home burglaries of late, but I have heard of nice areas in Berk / El Cerrito that have that problem, which can be avoided with an alarm system.

As far as safety, I feel very safe. The houses facing the city are more charming than the ranch houses facing the El Sobrante Valley. The neighbors are wonderful and there are lots of outdoor activities. Oh! and the best part - most houses have a million dollar view! lovin' what's known as poor man's marin

As for the cons, hill living means less amenities within walking distance, though we do have the Arlington Market nearby. I wish there were some better restaurants nearby but if you like El Salvadoran food, La Bamba can't be beat!

There are a lot of good deals in real estate right now, and I think the range around here is in the $400 - 550,000 range. I'd recommend taking a drive down Arlington -- catch it at Marin and head north -- and then meandering in the little side streets once you've passed Barrett. It's worth checking out. Christine

Hello BPN members--I'm thinking about moving to the East Richmond Heights area--unincorporated Richmond hills near the Self-Realization Fellowship temple--and would like to hear from anyone who's living/lived there what their experience is. Considering how close Richmond is to UC Berkeley, I'm surprised at how few postings are archived on this site about living/moving to this area. It's twelve minutes to Solano Ave and twenty-five to downtown Berkeley. I've found some quiet streets with beautiful views overlooking Wildcat Canyon, and a relaxed atmosphere that hints of hippie happiness--the house prices are way lower than Berkeley or El Cerrito Hills, but the community seems pretty similar, less status-conscious perhaps, but into gardening, biking, etc. There are a couple of cool alternative schools, and even the little grocery store on the Arlington (Arlington Market) that kind of looks like a ghetto liquor store from the outside (bars on windows etc.) surprisingly sells only organic milk and mostly organic produce and health food brand foods. Is there something I don't know about this neighborhood that's keeping prices lower (like, are there huge landslide problems, does pollution from the Richmond refineries ever affect the hills?) or is this just a case of the Richmond zipcode deterring buyers? I'm just surprised to find 3-4 bed homes with nice views and an OK-sounding elementary school in the 500K-600K range so close to everything.
Curious about Richmond Hills

The refinery, though can be an eyesore if you have a view of it, is not a pollution problem to us because the wind seems to carry any fumes north...not great for the northern neighbors, but doesn't come up here. If you have the refinery in your view, you only need to divert your eyes slightly upward to look at the much more grande view of Mt. Tam.

I work in Berkeley, my husband works in Albany and Berkeley. It takes us 12-20 minutes (depending on time we leave and which location we're going to) to get to work on the town streets. This is a wonderful neighborhood for adults, kids and dogs.
June