Mercy St, Old Mountain View

Mercy Street is one of those picture-perfect, seemingly suburban streets that is not only completely safe, but located adjacent to downtown Mountain View. Intersecting Castro Street and immediately paralleling California Street, the area really has it all: coffee shops, bars, ethnic restaurants, nightlife, nearby businesses, and a safe, comfortable suburban atmosphere. Even traffic here is a fraction of what it is on the nearby side streets.

The down side, of course, is price: living here means paying at least several hundred thousand for small, traditional California ranches - and significantly more for larger, newer homes. Frankly, given the location, the atmosphere, and the consistent appreciation due to the Google-opoly that exists here, I would just as soon invest in a fixer-upper here for a lower price rather than purchase a larger, more expensive, move-in ready home. Either way, you can't go wrong here - as long as you can afford it.

This is a great street filled with houses that were built as early as the 1920's and as modern as last decade. Charming bungalows next to monster houses means you should pick your home carefully. My 1927 mother-in-law home was only 700 square feet and cost over $200,000 but that's Silicon Valley for you.

The street (and surrounding streets) are tree lined, peaceful, and safe. I would walk my dog as late as 11:00 pm without a problem. Sitting on the porch, neighbors would pass by and say hello. Living downtown gave me access to all the stores and restaurants as well as the public library (Mercy & Franklin) with it's state of the art building and great collection.

One of the best things about this area is that the entire city is wi-fied thanks to Google. You can get free wi-fi in your home with no limits. If you have a large house you may need to buy a small booster device to project the signal through your home, but that's it.

One of my favorite things was the MV Art & Wine Fair which always occurs on the weekend after Labor Day. Step outside and shop! Literally hundreds of booths were there. I would invite friends to drop by throughout the day, providing a bathroom and a place to stash their goodies.

One word of advice...put out a trash can in the front yard on festival days if you don't want your yard to be littered with paper plates and soda cans!