Moving to Bay Area need suggestions on cities to live. Help! (San Francisco: apartment, rental)

[KP360]

Hey,

I'm originally from Michigan and I just received an offer from a job out in San Francisco and I'll most likely be moving out there for it. I've been unemployed now for over a month and this is the only place looking to give me a job. The job is paying around $73k a year.

I've only been to the Bay Area once for vacation so I'm unfamiliar with travel distances, subway (train) ride times, etc. I do know the housing is outrageous there though.

Can anyone here recommend a city in the Bay area with not SF priced housing and not a 1 hour commute (no traffic) to work?
Also, would cities like Hayward or Castro Valley be close enough to downtown SF for an everyday commute?

Thank You

[Perma Bear]

Originally Posted by KP360

Hey,

I'm originally from Michigan and I just received an offer from a job out in San Francisco and I'll most likely be moving out there for it. I've been unemployed now for over a month and this is the only place looking to give me a job. The job is paying around $73k a year.

I've only been to the Bay Area once for vacation so I'm unfamiliar with travel distances, subway (train) ride times, etc. I do know the housing is outrageous there though.

Can anyone here recommend a city in the Bay area with not SF priced housing and not a 1 hour commute (no traffic) to work?
Also, would cities like Hayward or Castro Valley be close enough to downtown SF for an everyday commute?

Thank You

I'd recommend you go back to Michigan and pay 600 for a 1 bedroom instead of 2500.

[bmw335xi]

Originally Posted by KP360

Hey,

I'm originally from Michigan and I just received an offer from a job out in San Francisco and I'll most likely be moving out there for it. I've been unemployed now for over a month and this is the only place looking to give me a job. The job is paying around $73k a year.

I've only been to the Bay Area once for vacation so I'm unfamiliar with travel distances, subway (train) ride times, etc. I do know the housing is outrageous there though.

Can anyone here recommend a city in the Bay area with not SF priced housing and not a 1 hour commute (no traffic) to work?
Also, would cities like Hayward or Castro Valley be close enough to downtown SF for an everyday commute?

Thank You

Will you be bringing a car or not?

[mstnghu2]

Originally Posted by KP360

Hey,

I'm originally from Michigan and I just received an offer from a job out in San Francisco and I'll most likely be moving out there for it. I've been unemployed now for over a month and this is the only place looking to give me a job. The job is paying around $73k a year.

I've only been to the Bay Area once for vacation so I'm unfamiliar with travel distances, subway (train) ride times, etc. I do know the housing is outrageous there though.

Can anyone here recommend a city in the Bay area with not SF priced housing and not a 1 hour commute (no traffic) to work?
Also, would cities like Hayward or Castro Valley be close enough to downtown SF for an everyday commute?

Thank You

Don't listen to Perma Bear. It would be one thing if you had stable employment in Michigan, but since you're unemployed and you need a job you should go for it.

Just know that $73k/year isn't much at all in the Bay Area. If you're single, have no kids, have no debt, don't plan to buy a house, etc. you should be able to get by. If any of these don't apply to you though, expect to struggle a little bit financially.

Your biggest expense will be housing, by far. If you can get over that hurdle, you should be ok. You mentioned Hayward and Castro Valley, so you're looking in the right areas. The East Bay overall is much cheaper than SF or the peninsula. If you take BART from those areas, it should normally take you a lot less than an hour to commute to work. Driving is a different story. I'd also recommend Fremont/Union City/Newark although they are generally more expensive than Hayward/Castro Valley and the commute to SF is longer.

[KP360]

Originally Posted by mstnghu2

Don't listen to Perma Bear. It would be one thing if you had stable employment in Michigan, but since you're unemployed and you need a job you should go for it.

Just know that $73k/year isn't much at all in the Bay Area. If you're single, have no kids, have no debt, don't plan to buy a house, etc. you should be able to get by. If any of these don't apply to you though, expect to struggle a little bit financially.

Your biggest expense will be housing, by far. If you can get over that hurdle, you should be ok. You mentioned Hayward and Castro Valley, so you're looking in the right areas. The East Bay overall is much cheaper than SF or the peninsula. If you take BART from those areas, it should normally take you a lot less than an hour to commute to work. Driving is a different story. I'd also recommend Fremont/Union City/Newark although they are generally more expensive than Hayward/Castro Valley and the commute to SF is longer.

I am single, no children, and fairly no debt (just a small car note which is not expensive.)
I will be driving out there but my plan is to take the BART to and from work.

And thank you, I'll look into those cities ASAP.

[jade408]

No such thing as no traffic around here.

[PBob]

In your post, you ask for "one hour to San Francisco (no traffic)" Will you actually be traveling at no-traffic hours? There aren't many. Tracy to San Francisco could be done in an hour with no traffic. I usually takes me between 3.5 and 4 hours during commute time.

[mkdude_08]

I lived in the East Bay for three years (2006 - 2008) and did not care for Hayward nor Castro Valley at all. Instead, I would highly recommend looking at Dublin or Pleasanton (both are wonderful!), affordable (at least relative to SF prices), and would extend your BART trip by about ten minutes or so. I believe the length of the BART ride from Pleasanton to SF was about an hour, but that's simply a fact of life in the Bay Area - traffic is heavy and it takes a long time to get to work, unless you can somehow afford rental prices in the vicinity (which you cannot at $73k). Find an apartment in Dublin/Pleasanton that is nice, safe, etc. but not a luxury apartment and you'll be fine.

[boulder2015]

Originally Posted by KP360

Hey,

I'm originally from Michigan and I just received an offer from a job out in San Francisco and I'll most likely be moving out there for it. I've been unemployed now for over a month and this is the only place looking to give me a job. The job is paying around $73k a year.

I've only been to the Bay Area once for vacation so I'm unfamiliar with travel distances, subway (train) ride times, etc. I do know the housing is outrageous there though.

Can anyone here recommend a city in the Bay area with not SF priced housing and not a 1 hour commute (no traffic) to work?
Also, would cities like Hayward or Castro Valley be close enough to downtown SF for an everyday commute?

Thank You

What is your monthly budget for rent? Are you open to roommates?

[jeopardyd]

I also recommend checking out Dublin/Pleasanton.