Austin, San Francisco, or San Diego?

[TheyCallMeDerek]

Originally Posted by OmShahi

Haha you being a real estate agent can help the OP a lot more about info for Austin than anyone else here!

Ha! You're right, I'm going through this forum on my phone. But one poin I would make is the fact that the cost of living is about 42% less here in Austin vs San Fran. The average sallary is about 20% less here so you come out ahead here by 20%. In a former life I played drums in Austin for a living, toured all over and couldn't wait to get back. The people here are so friendly and diverse. Austin is getting bigger but manages to keep it's "wierd" attutude!

[OyCrumbler]

You could consider East Bay areas especially Oakland which can be significantly warmer since it's further from the open waters of the cold Pacific and generally costs less. You sacrifice some density (though Oakland/Berkeley certainly has its dense and urban parts), but SF could be a short hop on the BART.

Austin is definitely a reasonable choice though especially if they get their act together on mass transit with the bus rapid transit lines.