Read a blog about getting an apartment, very competitive etc...truth?

[04kL4nD]

You moved here from Dallas, TX- The city without a soul. Any complaints you have about SF or its weather are pretty much on you...

[charbo]

I'm sorry but the rental market is super hot even in Sunset/Richmond now - hell it's hot all up and down the Peninsula and into South Bay. How would you like to rent a 1100 sq foot in crime-ridden East Palo Alto - well that'll cost you $3500/month! I have never seen it this bad before, worse than what occurred during the dot-com boom, where there was a similar rush on rentals, only you could still get them the further out of the city you went. Now it's a complete cluster**** and really there's nowhere to hide, except maybe Hayward and further and further east.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by luvmypug55

Wow, thanks everyone! Very interesting and very new to me lol..




^This is good because I want to be close to the ocean!

I'm really hoping to find something under $1500, that's why I initially ruled out the city completely until I found these studios...but I agree that yes, probably students and new singles like myself are going to be wanting these little in-laws as well.

Wow, I'm so glad I started my research early!

Well, you're now hitting the college crowd, returning to school for Fall Semester, and snapping up all the available studios and affordable units. So you may have missed your chance. Or you may want to wait until late fall or winter.

[andyadhi01]

Originally Posted by charbo

I'm sorry but the rental market is super hot even in Sunset/Richmond now - hell it's hot all up and down the Peninsula and into South Bay. How would you like to rent a 1100 sq foot in crime-ridden East Palo Alto - well that'll cost you $3500/month! I have never seen it this bad before, worse than what occurred during the dot-com boom, where there was a similar rush on rentals, only you could still get them the further out of the city you went. Now it's a complete cluster**** and really there's nowhere to hide, except maybe Hayward and further and further east.

LOL... Our smart techies will put 80% of their paycheck in rent judt for the bragging rights of SF address-

[felinius]

Originally Posted by charbo

I'm sorry but the rental market is super hot even in Sunset/Richmond now - hell it's hot all up and down the Peninsula and into South Bay. How would you like to rent a 1100 sq foot in crime-ridden East Palo Alto - well that'll cost you $3500/month! I have never seen it this bad before, worse than what occurred during the dot-com boom, where there was a similar rush on rentals, only you could still get them the further out of the city you went. Now it's a complete cluster**** and really there's nowhere to hide, except maybe Hayward and further and further east.

Not sure where the $3500 comes from. East Palo Alto is still extremely affordable -- studios from $1100, one beds are $1300, two beds are $1600-1800. The surrounding areas will start you at a studio from $1700 and go into $2000 for a bedroom.

[dalparadise]

Originally Posted by andyadhi01

LOL... Our smart techies will put 80% of their paycheck in rent judt for the bragging rights of SF address-

First, nobody's paying 80% of their paycheck.

And do you really think people pay SF prices for "bragging rights"? That's a Texas attitude. People live in SF and pay the price because it's unlike anywhere else and they want to live here.

Do you really think a Google employee would purposely inconvenience himself with a long commute to a job with long hours just to brag to friends about living in SF? Or, would he live here because he loves the City and endures the commute as his means of paying his expensive rent?

So, you chose your place without research or comparative shopping because you didn't want to "bend over backwards for the SF rental market" and find a place in a more desirable area. Then, you complained for the next four years about how much you hate where you live? Brilliant.

[dalparadise]

A little over a year ago, when I moved into the City, the rental market was a terrible grind and I think it's even worse now. It took me about a month of looking around, responding to CL ads, open houses, etc. I learned a few things:

-Most cattle-call open houses listed on Craigslist are a waste of time. I would show up 15-20 minutes early and there would already be 10-12 people waiting in line. A couple of them turned out to be no-shows, too. It's much better to schedule a showing with someone--either a private one or a small open house. I found listings handled this way to be better prospects anyway. Plus, scheduling a specific time allows you to set up 3-4 properties to view in a single day.

- I found a scam or two on CL. One that was particularly irritating was a false listing for a great price, where the landlord who lived in the building emailed me and requested I provide a credit report from a specific credit report site I had never heard of. I wrote the landlord back asking if I could provide other means of credit verification and got no response. Then, an email for another property I had requested info about came with the same "personal" note from the landlord telling me they were renting it at such a good price because they live in the building. He requested the same credit report.

- Making appointments and touring during the week helped thin the competition out some. I took a few afternoons off work and tried to hit two or three places at a time.

- At mass showings, I would chat up the agent/landlord a bit and would tell them my "California Dream" story. I'd also talk a lot about anything I knew of the neighborhood, so they knew I had done my research and was truly interested in staying for a long time.

- I made a packet with all my info, credit reports, check stubs, references, rental and mortgage history, etc. I still had to fill out applications, but it looked like I had it together and the packet was an easy quick-reference for the landlord. It got me to the top of a pile of applications.

- I lost the first apartment I had been approved to rent. The landlord called me on a Friday and told me I was approved and could drop off the deposit Monday after work. When I called Monday to verify she was home so I could drop the check off, she informed me that I had been outbid by someone who saw the apartment Saturday and put in a deposit on the spot. I was furious. Her reply was, "That's San Francisco. I thought you knew."

I ended up with a great place in a fantastic neighborhood, so my efforts paid off. I hope you do as well.

[andyadhi01]

Originally Posted by dalparadise

First, nobody's paying 80% of their paycheck.

And do you really think people pay SF prices for "bragging rights"? That's a Texas attitude. People live in SF and pay the price because it's unlike anywhere else and they want to live here.

Do you really think a Google employee would purposely inconvenience himself with a long commute to a job with long hours just to brag to friends about living in SF? Or, would he live here because he loves the City and endures the commute as his means of paying his expensive rent?.

At least one google employee I spoke to pretty much lived in SF for bragging rights. In any case, you would have to be incredibly dumb to do the insane daily commute to mtn view instead of living in south bay and visiting SF on the weekends for fun.

I think govt really needs to regulate or crack down on these employer shuttles. These shuttles are encouraging people to do unnecessary long commutes and increasing population density in SF to a point where the available housing is not enough to meet the demand resulting in multi-roommate slumification.

[dalparadise]

Originally Posted by andyadhi01

At least one google employee I spoke to pretty much lived in SF for bragging rights. In any case, you would have to be incredibly dumb to do the insane daily commute to mtn view instead of living in south bay and visiting SF on the weekends for fun.

Unless it's worth it to the person to live here and he can afford it. Living somewhere is more than weekend fun. Again -- your Texas attitude is showing. People don't just live at home here. They have vibrant neighborhoods to explore. That's why people are okay with smaller spaces and some even have roommates. If I were a young single guy with a good job in a city like this, where I could step outside and be in the middle of a lively urban environment, I'd be fine with having roommates and might even make a long commute for that privilege...especially if my employer drove me to and from work.

Originally Posted by andyadhi01

I think govt really needs to regulate or crack down on these employer shuttles. These shuttles are encouraging people to do unnecessary long commutes and increasing population density in SF to a point where the available housing is not enough to meet the demand resulting in multi-roommate slumification.

This is dumb. I don't like the rent prices any more than you do, but they exist because demand is high to live here. It's the same reason for the shuttles. It's not the other way around. Do you have a lot of shuttles in the Sunset? No, and the rents are still going up. People are still looking for roommates. It's becoming more desirable out there, as more close-in neighborhoods fill up. Soon you may see more shuttles there too. They will be a symptom of the desirability of SF, not the cause of it, though.