Newark councilman resigns saying he can't afford to live in East Bay city

NEWARK -- A longtime Newark city councilmember announced this week that he was stepping down after being "priced out of town."

Mike Bucci made the announcement in a Facebook post on Wednesday, saying that he and his wife were unable to buy a home in the East Bay city.

"Unfortunately, we're just the next people in a long line of folks who have been priced out of town. We tried to buy a home a number of times over the years but it never happened for us," Bucci said.

According to Zillow.com, the average home value in Newark is just over $1.3 million, which is up 10.5 percent over last year.

Bucci, 47, has served on the Newark council since 2014 and is a public works estimator at SilMan Industries, according to his LinkedIn page. His term on the council was set to expire in 2026.

In a Facebook post, Bucci said that he was frustrated that he wasn't able to afford a home in the city.

"The most insane part is that even with 60k down and a 785 credit score we can't get into the cheapest house in Newark for less than $7,500 a month," Bucci said. "If I put my entire Millwright and council salary towards it every month, it's still not enough."

The Newark City Council member salary is $16,452 annually.

The council member said he had watched "lots of friends continuously get pushed out for years," adding that his family would probably have been better off if they had moved years before.

"The fact that there is no future for us in the city I love is a tough pill to swallow," Bucci said.

Bucci did not immediately respond to request for comment on what city he would move to, now that he has resigned from the council.