Over the last decade and a half, Bay Area Transplants, known as BATS, have moved by the thousands to communities in the Central Valley and Sacramento suburbs. Fleeing or pushed out by high rents and home prices, they found affordable bungalows and a respite from the Bay Area's caustic housing market.

Increasingly, however, the once-affordable exurbs have become too expensive. No longer can low-income families — with or without federal housing assistance — find affordable housing in places like Antioch, Vallejo and Modesto. Once considered the sticks, these towns are now seen as attractive options, even if they offer few cultural amenities.