Novato, California

MisoPants
2y ago
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I grew up in Novato and it definitely has its pros and cons you should consider—currently mid 30’s with a young family, have also lived in Petaluma and San Rafael for context. Sorry in advance for the novel!

Access to nature was always a major pro. We would hike around Mt.Burdell, Indian Valley, and Stafford Lake a lot as kids. I love that I spent so much time outdoors growing up. The caveat to this is that it’s kind of the only option as far as entertainment goes. Novato is incredibly sleepy. It has decades of history as a bedroom community and keeps on aging to match. You can only go downtown/wander through Target/watch a movie so many times. Food options are a little limited. But Sonoma and the rest of the Bay Area are fairly close! It was just flat out awful as a teenager.

You do get more for your money vs. the rest of Marin. Some areas are much nicer than others. Rafael Village/Ignacio Valley is a good family area, great access to Indian Valley through the CoM campus. Loma Verde Elementary is not the most highly rated school, but that really depends on what is important to you. More western Novato neighborhoods like San Marin, Pleasant Valley, and around Sinaloa middle school have a quieter neighborhood feel with a smattering of other schools to check out.

I will say the commute is terrible and has only gotten worse. If that’s going to be a part of your day-to-day I highly recommend testing it out. Maybe stay in town for a week and see how a real work week would be for you. In all honesty if commuting and proximity to the city are not concerns, look at Petaluma as well. We loved living there, but unfortunately the distance was just too much for our sanity.

It makes me happy to see so many younger families considering Novato though. The town as a whole really needs a community that isn’t afraid of changing the status quo. I’m incredibly guilty of being a native who isn’t putting their money where their mouth is on that. And yes, absolutely make sure you get A/C :’)

anngrn
2y ago
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We have been in Novato for many years. You can get to SF (non commute hours) in less than 30 minutes, wine country in 30, there are many restaurants, lots of shopping and some really good schools. Our kids went to Rancho which was a good elementary school. It’s a good place for families.

MrDoOO
2y ago
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Just moved to Novato last year as an early 30s couple who previously lived in SF for 7 years. It was time to get out of the city and get more space and Novato checked a lot of boxes for us.

So far it has been great and does feel like an up and coming gem of Marin County, but still more affordable vs the rest of Marin. We ended up on the west side of Novato which is filled with rolling green hills, lakes, and tons of trees.

Pros: Tons of nature everywhere, if you’re into hiking, biking, running, etc there aren’t many places that are better. Right near Point Reyes and the coast which are some of the most beautiful places in the country. Cute downtown that has some good restaurants. Near other cities that are fun to visit - San Rafael, Mill Valley, Sonoma, Petaluma. Can get spacious houses at much cheaper prices than the rest of Marin. Commute to the city is about an hour during peak times which is not bad for someone who can work from home sometimes. Getting to the Richmond neighborhood in SF only takes 35 minutes during non peak times. The town has all the stores you need for convenience (Costco, Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, etc), but they are all located slightly away from the residential areas so you don’t get traffic or noise from those shopping areas. More and more young people and young families are moving here which has been great to see. If you’re planning on having kids or have them already, there are some good schools like Pleasant Valley elementary and San Marin High School.

Cons: Food options are still a bit limited, but new places are popping up often and there is at least 1 good place for each major cuisine type. Commute to the city is tough to do daily, would not recommend a daily commute to SF from here. Diversity is lacking as is the case with most of Marin, but that seems to be changing quickly. There isn’t a great coffee shop in Novato, just a couple good ones (I can’t wait for the day when someone opens up an amazing coffee shop here).

Overall feels like Novato is a few years away from becoming more well known and “hip”. I hope that helps.

Pros and Cons of Living in Novato Marin County