Moving to SF from Houston, TX - confused on comparable cost-of-living (dorm, neighborhoods)

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by neutrino78x

Downgrading from what? What are you talking about? In other words what makes you think he doesn't live in a one bedroom apartment right now? Again, cite where he said he is currently living in a SFH that he owns. Then a comment like this might have some merit.

That's exactly it. Finally, you agree with us....? We're advising him about what he needs to afford a 1-br., while you're off on some tangent about slumming it in shared accommodations. You just admitted that your advice is off-topic.

Thank you.

[neutrino78x]

Ruth I have you on my ignore list because you made various offensive and insulting comments toward me in the relationships forum. I only saw your post because I viewed the forum without logging in.

No, my advice is not off topic. I was saying that while 3000 may be the median apartment price, that means half of them are cheaper. Others commented that OP wants to save 2000 per month. I said he can do that by sharing an apartment with others. Hence, it is not off topic.

And if you live in a one bedroom apartment in Texas that has just the bedroom and a bathroom and no kitchen, and then you move into an apartment with two bedrooms in which you live in one of the bedrooms and one or two people live in the other, and you have a bathroom to yourself as well, no, that is not "slumming it".

And no, one does not have to make 250k to rent an apartment in the Bay Area or have a similar lifestyle to someone who makes 85k in Texas. That is a rediculous notion and a comment that someone made who doesnt realize that they make a high income.

That is exactly why my voice is important on this forum. Most of you speak for people who make a high income. That's great but if 100k is the median, by definition, half of us make less. So someone should be helping out the people who make less by providing realistic, practical information.

Claiming that no one can live here unless their salary is in the top 1% of all salaries in America is preposterous. I'm glad some of you earn such a salary, but it doesnt reflect how most people live.

[tikkasf]

OP;
I am not going to read through the whole thread to see if this topic has been discussed already. But, if you want to have a car while living in SF, it really would behoove you to look for a apt bldg. that offers indoor parking,,,either a building with individual parking garages or indoor parking lot for tenants. In a fair number of neighborhoods in SF, finding a parking place can be difficult. Parking meters are rather expensive and so are the parking tickets. Pay attention to any parking restriction related signs you see.....otherwise you could find your car towed. Often the restriction pertains to certain times periods when parking is prohibited....often during peak commute hours. Also, SF has a real problem with smash and grab car burglaries. Don't leave anything that might be worth something, visible through your car windows.....even something in a paper bag. Trunk is not always safe either. meters can be as high as $6hr in a few areas, most are less though, see link below
https://www.sfmta.com/sites/default/...wide2014_0.pdf

[tikkasf]

OP;
If your job is in the area usually referred to as downtown, then like the vast majority of those working in that area, public transportation is the choice to take to work. Below is a link with a map of the SF public transportation system. The map has more then one level of "zoom in". So, you should be able to zoom in where your employer is. SF has buses, street cars, cable cars, light rain type train (it's underground in the downtown area) and BART. The map will help you see available public transportations in different neighborhoods in SF
It's a advantage for you if your employer is walking distance from a BART Station.....because, BART commute opens possibility of commuting from the East Bay; without having to deal with taking a bus or street car from the SF Bart station to your job.....


https://www.sfmta.com/sites/default/...May2016_75.pdf

[jade408]

Originally Posted by neutrino78x

Ruth I have you on my ignore list because you made various offensive and insulting comments toward me in the relationships forum. I only saw your post because I viewed the forum without logging in.

No, my advice is not off topic. I was saying that while 3000 may be the median apartment price, that means half of them are cheaper. Others commented that OP wants to save 2000 per month. I said he can do that by sharing an apartment with others. Hence, it is not off topic.

And if you live in a one bedroom apartment in Texas that has just the bedroom and a bathroom and no kitchen, and then you move into an apartment with two bedrooms in which you live in one of the bedrooms and one or two people live in the other, and you have a bathroom to yourself as well, no, that is not "slumming it".

And no, one does not have to make 250k to rent an apartment in the Bay Area or have a similar lifestyle to someone who makes 85k in Texas. That is a rediculous notion and a comment that someone made who doesnt realize that they make a high income.

That is exactly why my voice is important on this forum. Most of you speak for people who make a high income. That's great but if 100k is the median, by definition, half of us make less. So someone should be helping out the people who make less by providing realistic, practical information.

Claiming that no one can live here unless their salary is in the top 1% of all salaries in America is preposterous. I'm glad some of you earn such a salary, but it doesnt reflect how most people live.

A few things. I think you are misunderstanding one bedroom apartment. This means you have one bedroom ans the whole apartment to yourself: living room, bathroom and kitchen.

If you are used to having an entire apartment to yourself it ks a serious downgrade to share an apartment. I haven't lived in a shared apartment since my early 20s. No way am I doing that again. It is a deal breaker for me. It is for many people over 30. Many people prefer to live only with romantic partners and not platonic roommates.

Next the OP wants a comparable lifestyle to his current one. Which means save a lot, and live alone. Since Texas has cheaper housing Costs and income taxes, he needs to increase his salary by a lot to get what he wants. The OP has an upper middle class lifestyle in Texas and wants to maintain that. Your lifestyle is not one size fits all. Most people expect that middle class lifestyle is roommate free, particularly co,INF from a lower cost of living state. In fact for many areas single mid,e class adults live in 2 bedroom apartments or larger homes. A 1 bedroom apartment is a downgrade.

[jade408]

Originally Posted by tikkasf

OP;
If your job is in the area usually referred to as downtown, then like the vast majority of those working in that area, public transportation is the choice to take to work. Below is a link with a map of the SF public transportation system. The map has more then one level of "zoom in". So, you should be able to zoom in where your employer is. SF has buses, street cars, cable cars, light rain type train (it's underground in the downtown area) and BART. The map will help you see available public transportations in different neighborhoods in SF
It's a advantage for you if your employer is walking distance from a BART Station.....because, BART commute opens possibility of commuting from the East Bay; without having to deal with taking a bus or street car from the SF Bart station to your job.....


https://www.sfmta.com/sites/default/...May2016_75.pdf

Also many parts of the east bay are served by computer buses to downtown. I live in Oaklamd and take the bus. My commute is about 30 minutes each way. 20-ish minutes in the bus and 7 minute walk. A shorter commute than many parts of SF to downtown.

[3rdGen SFan]

Originally Posted by tikkasf

OP;
I am not going to read through the whole thread to see if this topic has been discussed already. But, if you want to have a car while living in SF, it really would behoove you to look for a apt bldg. that offers indoor parking,,,either a building with individual parking garages or indoor parking lot for tenants. In a fair number of neighborhoods in SF, finding a parking place can be difficult. Parking meters are rather expensive and so are the parking tickets. Pay attention to any parking restriction related signs you see.....otherwise you could find your car towed. Often the restriction pertains to certain times periods when parking is prohibited....often during peak commute hours. Also, SF has a real problem with smash and grab car burglaries. Don't leave anything that might be worth something, visible through your car windows.....even something in a paper bag. Trunk is not always safe either. meters can be as high as $6hr in a few areas, most are less though, see link below
https://www.sfmta.com/sites/default/...wide2014_0.pdf

IMO, indoor parking is more important than ever before. I don't own any motor vehicles these days, but if I did, I'd keep it in my garage overnight and pay to park in a garage when commuting because, lately, there's still a risk of the vehicle getting broken into even if you don't leave anything in sight. One of my neighbors whose car was broken into had their change dish--yes, the plastic dish--stolen from their car. Another neighbor's car was broken into and only a usb cable was taken. Thieves are even breaking into cars to take car owner's manuals and paperwork from glove compartments. There are also thieves who steal certain low-security cars for free rides.

I often witness conspicuous thieves going from vehicle-to-vehicle looking into windows (also bike thieves). A lot of them boldly use flashlights. They're probably armed to be so bold which is why I don't confront them, but I have yelled at some of them on a few occasions when I wasn't thinking rationally.

As a cyclist, the broken glass from vehicle windows I have to try to avoid, and often accidentally ride through, also has me well aware of how bad of an epidemic the vehicle break-in rate is here in SF.

[BicoastalAnn]

If it helps, my SO was able to negotiate a 30ish % salary increase coming from New York City so you should be able to do much better coming from Dallas. IMHO, it's not about what you can get just to live on.. you want to be paid fairly for what you do in the context of your company or the area. Have you checked out glassdoor for what you do in this area?

[04kL4nD]

neutrino78x ran the OP off with his horrific suggestion to live in a college dorm room in order to be able to survive the Bay Area

[Strawberry Alarm Clock]

Originally Posted by 04kL4nD

neutrino78x ran the OP off with his horrific suggestion to live in a college dorm room in order to be able to survive the Bay Area

Wanting to live like a college student for the rest of your life doesn't make any sense to me. Is it some attempt at finding inner peace? But yeah, OP don't move here unless you fully understand the hit to your quality of life you'll face.