[kjackson2012]

It depends on your down payment and your salary. Does your wife work? Are you open to sending your kids to a mediocre school or do you want them to attend a private a school?

All areas with good schools will run you over 1M for a house. A place that isn't ghetto with mediocre to bad schools will run you about 750k.

[therandomguy]

School district is important. How about if I increase my commute time? Would you say San Ramon or Pleasanton are bad options?

[hack_edu]

Those cities are way, way out there and absolute commute gridlock hell. You also need to understand just how dense the suburban strip-mall monotony gets once you cross the hill...