Oakland California, located in the East Bay area of California, is anticipating new growth due to its appealing alternative to living in San Francisco. Both businesses and residents are beginning to realize that Oakland can provide lower costs of living, including less expensive housing and cheaper rent than San Francisco.

According to Property & Portfolio Research Inc, published in a recent Wall Street Journal article, “the East Bay real estate market, while still commanding some of the country’s highest rents, is showing signs of strain. Office vacancies are rising, and rental-rate growth slowed to a forecast 1.7 percent this year from nearly 8 percent in 2007”.

There are multiple signs of confidence for Oakland and city planners; Ellis Partners LLC is working on the second phase of Jack London Square, an Uptown project that will be completed sometime later next year, which will offer a marketplace with food vendors, office spaces, restaurants, and hotels. Additionally, Forest City Enterprises Inc. and MacFarlane Partners have created a joint venture to offer 665 rental units to Oakland this year, and a 500,000 square foot Catholic cathedral is scheduled for completion later this year.

According to Oakland Redevelopment Manager Patrick Lane, the city may have to wait until the next economic expansion cycle before the city reaches its goal of creating 10,000 new residents, set forth by former Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown in 1999. Brown, now California’s attorney general, is optimistic that rising energy costs and Oakland’s close proximity to San Francisco will continue to raise Oakland’s appeal.