Housing in Arden Arcade is insanely varied. There are inexpensive apartment buildings just blocks from multi-million dollar homes. It’s a slightly strange place for that reason – young professionals making it work on smaller budgets, and plenty of wealthy families living la vida loca in their McMansions. If you want to live just outside Sacramento on a “budget”, this could be your home. If you’re loaded on Sacto/Bay Area tech money and want to live large this could be your home. 

Arden-Arcade is an unincorporated community that is Sacramento’s “cash cow” because there is so much business here. The unincorporated status means despite all the commercial activity it does not receive typical revenue streams that a “city” its size would normally receive. This means some infrastructure elements lack and locals are vocal about shortages in the police department, transit, and a lack of homeless support services. 

LookyLOO Review of Arden Arcade

Arden-Arcade is a suburb of Sacramento and many live the quiet suburban lifestyle in family-friendly neighborhoods. Much of the lifestyle of those who stick to Arden Arcade is spent shopping at the big box stores and the mall in the area. More adventurous socializers drive into Sacramento, which is just a few miles outside the city center, and enjoy the social and cultural options the state capital offers. It’s a classic suburb for that reason - a mix of quiet suburbia and bigger city options close by. 

It must be noted though that the location of Arden-Arcade, just east of Sacramento, makes it about as ideal as it can be for heading east to Lake Tahoe, the Eldorado National Forest, Bear Valley, etc. You’re in about as ideal a spot as you can be for being around a major metro and yet having really quick access to some of the most amazing mountains on the planet. The Sierra’s run just an hour east of Arden and for those into an outdoor lifestyle it's a pretty perfect combo. 

As was also noted though, Arden has an incredible variety of housing and neighborhood options and so there are also walkable and younger population neighborhoods for those who are just looking to live a less expensive life outside Sacramento. There are tons of apartment buildings and inexpensive restaurants/bars and shopping if you’re working hard to build a nest egg. For those weekends when families want to stick closer to home but still get the kiddos outdoors, there are tons of parks in the city. [Arden Park](https://www.aprpd.org/), [Arden Creek](https://www.acrpd.com/) and [Larchmont](https://crpd.com/parks/larchmont-community-park/) are great park options, with community pools, sports fields and courts, open green spaces and playgrounds to keep the kiddos (and grownups) busy and healthy.

We highly recommend visiting Arden-Arcade and staying in the community in a [VRBO](https://vrbo.com/affiliate/p4JS4ZC) rather than a hotel to get a feel for living among the locals. You can receive discounted fares on travel via our [partnership with Expedia](https://expedia.com/affiliate/9NZ8LBQ) as well.


Lifestyle

Arden Arcade is part of the San Juan Unified School District. It rates a B+ on [niche.com](https://www.niche.com/k12/d/san-juan-unified-school-district-ca/). One of the more notable characteristics of the schools is how varied the performance of the school districts is, similar to the great variety of housing types. There are A-rated quality schools and C-rated quality schools so if you’re paying close attention to standardized scoring on niche.com or Greatschools.com then keep an eye on how the neighborhoods are zoned. 


Schools

There was an exodus of families from the San Francisco area to the Sacramento area during covid and lower costs drove much of this. If you can work remotely and want to be in a better position to afford a home then Arden Arcade should be on your shortlist. 


Save Some Dough - Build for the Future

Why You Should Move Here Now?

**Effective-Pilot-5501**
1y ago
🦉🦉🦉

Hey hi potential new neighbor. I know Arden has become one of the most attractive neighborhoods in Sacramento for its proximity to the grid and relatively safety compared to other suburbs (excluding Fair Oaks and Carmichael, which well iykyk right?). I actually did the same move when bought my first home a couple of years ago and let me give you my comments:

-Traffic going downtown is always bad on Watt and Howe. Those are actually the 2 most used roads in Sac county so it was granted when I moved back but in my case since i wfh it is no big deal. Once you get to 50 it’s always madness so if you’re going downtown take Exposition Blvd. FYI the Fair Oaks Blvd and Howe intersection is the intersection with most accidents recorded last year so it’s very famous for being the craziest intersection in Sacramento.

-Walkable: it’s not the grid but we’ve got some great parks like swanston fountain park, Howe Park, Cottage Park and the american river trail. Also there is Arden Mall for you to walk doing some window shopping.

-Diversity: you will find it here for sure more than Fair Oaks. I lived in Fair Oaks for 2 years and there was only a couple of latinos including myself in my apartment complex. In my new neighborhood there is a lot of Millenial couples, again just like me and my fiancee this was the most affordable and safe option we could get in Sacramento for a starter home. I have black, korean, filipino and mexican neighbors, all of them have kids or expecting.

For more reviews of what living in Arden-Arcade is like from locals, check out [The Reviews](https://lookyloomove.com/locations/arden-arcade/reviews).


Reviews of Arden-Arcade from Locals

Arden Park Vista is a hugely popular neighborhood with families. It is rated one of the safest areas in Arden, and has some of the best amenities in the city. [**Arden Park Recreation & Park District**](https://www.aprpd.org/), is here, which has softball/baseball fields, tennis courts, and a nice swimming pool (it gets toasty here). [**Cresta Park**](https://www.aprpd.org/cresta-park) is another great local spot. It has a massive playground for kiddos, plus tennis court and soccer field/green space for general play. All these parks are walking distance of neighborhood homes. 

Perhaps best of all kids walk to school, as all homes within Arden Park Vista are a few blocks from [**Mariemont Elementary**](https://www.niche.com/k12/mariemont-elementary-school-sacramento-ca/) an A-rated school on niche.com. 
Median home price runs high in Arden Park Vista due to the safety/walkability factors and comes in at $970k. There are also properties for rent with the average ~$1,900. 


Families

Arden Park Vista 

Another hugely popular neighborhood with families is Arden Oaks. It’s got an interesting tight-knit vibe among the community who love the persistent events the [**Arden Oaks Neighborhood Association**](https://ardenoaks.org/) runs throughout the year. 4th of July Parade and Games, Fall BBQ and Winter Holiday Lighting and Decorations Contest are just a few of the occasions that pull everyone together. 

Additionally the neighborhood is filled with beautiful, unique homes and there is a walkable scene here to the great [**Orville Wright Park**](https://www.morpd.com/8-orville-wright-park) and the only local Whole Foods. There’s nothing like connecting with neighbors while out on a stroll to strengthen the bonds.  

Homes here run a bit higher than average for the area with a median home price of ~$950k. 


Arden Oaks |

If you’re looking for a luxurious lifestyle then check out [**Sierra Oaks Vista**](https://www.sierraoaksneighborhood.org/home/). It has the most stunning homes and tree-lined blocks in the city, and these homes connect to the American River Parkway and the American River Bike Trail. This means not only are the blocks in the neighborhood providing beautiful outdoor experiences, but you’re also right near some of the best adventuring in the city. There are great walking options to local restaurants and coffee shops and there’s nothing like the strolls locals take under the massive trees running up and down every block in the neighborhood. 

While the public schools here are excellent, it’s also home to several of the popular private schools and locals appreciate the choice. Most homes have an acre of land, 4-5 bedrooms, a pool and full-on modern amenities. That luxury doesn’t come cheap and the median home price is $1.6m. 


Sierra Oaks Vista

[**Timberlake**](https://timberlake.hoaspace.com/) is a popular choice for young professionals and young families not yet ready to buy a home. It’s a condos only neighborhood, available for rent or purchase and it sits on the west side of the town, so convenient for commuting in to Sacramento for work or play. It’s kiddo and doggo-friendly so again, young professionals, couples and young families like the vibe. 

The buildings are surrounded with beautiful foliage so it has a more green-energy than other condo complexes in the area. Many of the building areas have ponds and wrap-around porches and you get all the community amenities you could want including: clubhouse for socializing, fitness center and a nice pool for the kids or the grownups to cool off in on summer days. Average rent is $1,650. 


Young Professionals/DINKs/Families

Timberlake

Arden-Arcade

**mrsbull610**
1y ago
🦉🦉🦉

I live near Hurley and Fulton. If you're not right on the main streets there are a few really cute neighborhoods tucked away. It's very diverse. Walkability is meh, there are corner stores at most large intersections however larger stores are few. There's Target, a Raleys and in the north east, a Bel Air and down the street is Winco. The school district is good - San Juan Unified - so if you have kids, it's still in the umbrella of decent education.
Best of luck. I'd live here over Fair Oaks any day, but I grew up in NYC so Sacramento is basically the country for me anyway lol

**Effective-Pilot-5501**
1y ago
🦉🦉🦉

Hey hi potential new neighbor. I know Arden has become one of the most attractive neighborhoods in Sacramento for its proximity to the grid and relatively safety compared to other suburbs (excluding Fair Oaks and Carmichael, which well iykyk right?). I actually did the same move when bought my first home a couple of years ago and let me give you my comments:

-Traffic going downtown is always bad on Watt and Howe. Those are actually the 2 most used roads in Sac county so it was granted when I moved back but in my case since i wfh it is no big deal. Once you get to 50 it’s always madness so if you’re going downtown take Exposition Blvd. FYI the Fair Oaks Blvd and Howe intersection is the intersection with most accidents recorded last year so it’s very famous for being the craziest intersection in Sacramento.

-Walkable: it’s not the grid but we’ve got some great parks like swanston fountain park, Howe Park, Cottage Park and the american river trail. Also there is Arden Mall for you to walk doing some window shopping.

-Diversity: you will find it here for sure more than Fair Oaks. I lived in Fair Oaks for 2 years and there was only a couple of latinos including myself in my apartment complex. In my new neighborhood there is a lot of Millenial couples, again just like me and my fiancee this was the most affordable and safe option we could get in Sacramento for a starter home. I have black, korean, filipino and mexican neighbors, all of them have kids or expecting.

**wasting_time_n_life**
1y ago
🦉🦉🦉

Arden-Arcade
I’m at Howe and el Camino. Once you get off the main roads, it’s surprisingly quiet. We get a lot of walkers, lots of kids cause we are across the street from the elementary school. Of course Howe is crazy but most of the time at stoplights they will let me cross when it’s my turn.

For diversity, we are a mixed race gay couple - and except for our newest neighbors, most everyone has been more than nice to us. My husband is often out doing maintenance or landscaping or something and we have had pleasant conversations with 90% of our block.

I prefer to think of it as a working class neighborhood- it’s not ghetto but everyone works hard for what they earned, and that respect seems to come through. We don’t fly any flags though, so we aren’t as out there but we have done our fair share of gay gentrification and most neighbors have been glad to see the crappiest house in the street turning into one of the nicest (within reason of course)

Invest in LookyLoo for as little as $100

Arden-Arcade, California

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Looklyloo Score: 82