East Bay guide · Tier S · Rank #2 of 87
House hacking in Oakland (Fruitvale / lower San Antonio).
Double frequent-transit coverage (Fruitvale BART plus Tempo BRT) over Oakland-flatland affordability: the metro's best transit-per-dollar house-hack.
What's actually happening in 94601
- Delivered
Fruitvale Transit Village Phases IIA/IIB (Casa Arabella and Casa Sueños, 94 and 181 affordable units) delivered 2019 and 2022: a national TOD model at Fruitvale BART. PR Newswire / Unity Council
- Operational
Tempo BRT Line 1T: dedicated median busway on International Blvd, 10-minute headways, operational since 2020, stations about a third of a mile apart through the ZIP. AC Transit
- Delivered / entitled
International Blvd affordable pipeline: 3050 International plus the Native American Health Center (76 units, ~$91M) delivered 2026; 2610 International (Unity Council, 105 units) entitled for ~2029. SF YIMBY
- Effective 2026-07-01
SB 79 TOD upzoning at Fruitvale BART (Oakland implementing amendments, case ZA26001): by-right mid-rise. CA Legislature / City of Oakland
- State-funded
DTSC state-funded brownfield cleanup in Fruitvale for affordable housing, announced May 2026. DTSC
The numbers
- Median price
- Oakland flats (city proxy; Alameda county median $1.2M, +5.4% YoY, and Fruitvale flatland trades well below it)
- Market rent
- Oakland proxy $2,250/mo avg (2bd $2,588, 4+bd $3,475; +5% YoY, Zumper, Jun 2026)
- Property tax (Alameda County)
- ~1.71% effective (Oakland city median; new purchases reassess at price)
- Per-bed rent band
- $900–1,300/mo per bed
- ADU rent band
- $1,800–2,300/mo
- Whole-home rent band
- 2bd $2,588 / 4bd $3,475 whole-home
- Underwriting vacancy
- 5% underwriting vacancy
- Appreciation scenarios
- 1.5 / 3.0 / 4.0 %/yr (conservative / base / upside)
City-level proxy rather than a true ZIP median; re-comp at the property level. Appreciation basis: SB 79 plus Tempo frequency drive the band; pre-1940 flats carry high capex (foundation, electrical). Rent bands are city-level medians; confirm the specific parcel before trusting any of them. Run your own scenario in the calculator.
Buildings we underwrote in 94601
18 buildings in 94601 carry a record. 9 beat renting and index funds, 1 rejected; the rest did not. Every row links to its own page, with the numbers it was scored on.
| Property | At our defaults | Status |
|---|---|---|
| 3-unit building · Fruitvale Transit Village corridor Members 3 units | +$249,065 House-Hack | Published pick #3 |
| 3311 E 17th St 4 units · $599,000 | +$106,690 House-Hack | Underwritten — beats renting and index funds, below the publish cut |
| 2531 E 11th St 2 units · $675,000 | +$40,348 House-Hack | Underwritten — beats renting and index funds, below the publish cut |
| 1626 46th Ave 2 units · $525,000 | +$38,277 House-Hack | Underwritten — beats renting and index funds, below the publish cut |
| 1993 38th Ave 2 units · $585,000 | +$24,855 House-Hack | Underwritten — beats renting and index funds, below the publish cut |
| 3314 Farnam St 4 units · $795,000 | +$21,423 House-Hack | Underwritten — beats renting and index funds, below the publish cut |
| 2859 E 9th St 2 units · $375,000 | +$188,846 House-Hack | Underwritten — beats renting and index funds, below the publish cut |
| 2212 25th Ave 2 units · $688,000 | +$21,285 House-Hack | Underwritten — beats renting and index funds, below the publish cut |
| 2150 35th Ave 2 units · $499,999 | +$141,745 House-Hack | Rejected — mixed-use (commercial financing) |
| 1436 52nd Ave 4 units · $879,000 | −$62,623 S&P 500 | Underwritten — the index wins at our defaults |
| 3516 E 15th St 2 units · $599,900 | −$68,327 S&P 500 | Underwritten — the index wins at our defaults |
| 2017 27th Ave 2 units · $475,000 | −$278,358 S&P 500 | Underwritten — the index wins at our defaults |
| 2105 48th Ave 2 units · $995,000 | −$423,850 S&P 500 | Underwritten — the index wins at our defaults |
| 2605 Prentiss Pl 2 units · $799,000 | −$371,897 S&P 500 | Underwritten — the index wins at our defaults |
| 3700 Foothill Blvd 2 units · $879,000 | −$477,610 S&P 500 | Underwritten — the index wins at our defaults |
| 5445 Bancroft 2 units · $1,100,000 | −$668,441 S&P 500 | Underwritten — the index wins at our defaults |
| 3050 Davis St 2 units · $1,250,000 | −$888,408 S&P 500 | Underwritten — the index wins at our defaults |
| 812 Lisbon Ave 2 units · $1,199,000 | −$1,018,541 S&P 500 | Underwritten — the index wins at our defaults |
The full board shows every region's current week; this table is every record we hold for 94601, newest basis first.
The house-hack angle
2–4-unit flatland buildings (Oakland's missing-middle rules allow 2–4 units by-right) and SFH room rentals to a transit-dependent tenant base. Highland Hospital about a mile out, La Clínica, and the new health center anchor in-ZIP institutional demand.
What breaks it
- Oakland's 1.71% tax and insurance costs need roughly 40–60 bps more rent coverage than San Leandro or Concord
- Tenant-income softness on the corridor: underwrite conservative rents
- Safety perception on parts of International Blvd, block by block