Wow. Good thing the realtors warned you!
I live in a safe area on the SF Peninsula. My Dad moved the family to SF around 1950, and he was born and raised in Philadelphia. So while visiting a cousin back east, I asked if she could show me where my Dad grew up. She shuddered and said "Oh, we would never ever go there!". After accidentally entering a ghetto area in my rental car I understood what she meant. I was panicking to get my family out of there as quickly as possible. Sometimes you don't want to be where your seniors lived.
I would guess from news about Philadelphia, it would be a good idea to stay out of certain areas there. I grew up in upstate NY but never went to Phillie or NYC....did move all the way to the west coast in my early twenties tho’...Moved to Sacramento and spent time at friends in the Bay Area - Redwood City, Belmont, Mountain View etc., and they seemed like safe places...moved to Southern CA and finally out of the state entirely - clear across the country but never back to NY! When we were ready to retire and get out of CA, Hillary was a NY Senator and we wanted no part of that - LOL! Don’t think it ever got any better either!
What’s a safe area on the Peninsula? Hillsborough?
(I lived in downtown San Mateo for a few years, and we drove through Hillsborough all the time.)