Westward bound on a shoestring (San Francisco, Walnut Creek: insurance, how much, homes)

[Tallysmom]

Originally Posted by nmnita

Here I go again,

Stay where you are for now: Jobs are not to be had, rents are outrageous and Criagslist can only be partly trusted, especially any jobs they may advertise...

May I ask, if you have never been to Ca, have no family there and do not know a sole why do you want to move there and why the bay area? I am just curious...

Nita

We did just that in 1984. There were no jobs in PA, and work to be had out here.

I have relatives out here, but it was made very clear to us we were to expect NO help. And trust me -- they were absolutely no help. To the point where we called them once about where we might find a good television repairman... and we got a recipe for hummingbird nectar.

SO I can see where the attraction is to come out here and make one's way.

But even when we did it, we did it with three to four thousand dollars in our bank account, and my husband came out first and stayed with some friends who also picked up and moved to California.

[exitingtheeast]

There are several reasons why I choose the Bay Area, One of them is, being that I'm from all the way East, no better way to get a new start then in the all the way West, One other is the influence many of the things that have come from the Bay Area have had on my life.

I am sure the jobs are scarce and things are no easier there then here, But thats kinda the point, If things are bad all over then I might as well at least be where I want be.

Not sure who had the comment about coming there and collecting California Social Services benefits, Thats insulting to me I'm not looking for welfare I'm looking for a new start that I will build myself.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by exitingtheeast

There are several reasons why I choose the Bay Area, One of them is, being that I'm from all the way East, no better way to get a new start then in the all the way West, One other is the influence many of the things that have come from the Bay Area have had on my life.

I am sure the jobs are scarce and things are no easier there then here, But thats kinda the point, If things are bad all over then I might as well at least be where I want be.

Not sure who had the comment about coming there and collecting California Social Services benefits, Thats insulting to me I'm not looking for welfare I'm looking for a new start that I will build myself.

do you realize Ca has one of the highest unemployment rates, just below Mi..You say that is where you want to be, but you have also menioned you have never been there before..

Wanting to start over can be wonderful, I just would not attempt it right now unless you have several thousand $$s to fall back on.

Nita

[psychprof]

These replies have been helpful to me. I am moving to the bay area to begin a tenure track job at sonoma state. For me, job and housing (faculty townhomes) are all set.

My best friend wants to come with me for a new start, and I would love for her to join me. But I have been worried about her finding a job. She has not even begun looking because she is confident she will find something. She is hoping for some sort of office job, and I am trying to explain how impossible they are to find right now.

I will show her some of these posts to try and stress that this is not going to be so simple. So thanks folks.

[clongirl]

Originally Posted by exitingtheeast

There are several reasons why I choose the Bay Area, One of them is, being that I'm from all the way East, no better way to get a new start then in the all the way West, One other is the influence many of the things that have come from the Bay Area have had on my life.

I am sure the jobs are scarce and things are no easier there then here, But thats kinda the point, If things are bad all over then I might as well at least be where I want be.

Not sure who had the comment about coming there and collecting California Social Services benefits, Thats insulting to me I'm not looking for welfare I'm looking for a new start that I will build myself.

I think people would probably be more helpful and say "go for it" if it were a different time in our state. The Bay Area is one of the most expensive places in the world to live and has one of the most educated/experienced pool of potential employees..many already laid off.. so not coming over with a job lined up or much money saved, or even having friends/family to support you seems to throw up a lot of red flags.

So have you considered what will you do if you don't find a job that can pay your rent? How can you buy food w/o money? I don't even see signs in the windows for waitstaff, retail, gas station attendants anymore.

I wasn't trying to insult you by implying that you'd be leeching off the state..but where else are you going to get money for your day to day expenses if you don't have a job and can't get one? Where are you going to sleep if you don't know anyone out here? You need to have more money saved to get by in case you don't make it..otherwise you'll just end up like another street kid down in the Haight begging for money cause they wanted a change also.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by clongirl

I think people would probably be more helpful and say "go for it" if it were a different time in our state. The Bay Area is one of the most expensive places in the world to live and has one of the most educated/experienced pool of potential employees..many already laid off.. so not coming over with a job lined up or much money saved, or even having friends/family to support you seems to throw up a lot of red flags.

So have you considered what will you do if you don't find a job that can pay your rent? How can you buy food w/o money? I don't even see signs in the windows for waitstaff, retail, gas station attendants anymore.

I wasn't trying to insult you by implying that you'd be leeching off the state..but where else are you going to get money for your day to day expenses if you don't have a job and can't get one? Where are you going to sleep if you don't know anyone out here? You need to have more money saved to get by in case you don't make it..otherwise you'll just end up like another street kid down in the Haight begging for money cause they wanted a change also.

and that is my position as well. I think it is great when young people (I assume he is young) want to venture out, nothing ventured, nothing gained, but not today. It could be a disaster waiting to happen.

Nita

[memorytheatre]

You will end up homeless and dangerously vulnerable. Being homeless is not a game.

[exitingtheeast]

Originally Posted by memorytheatre

You will end up homeless and dangerously vulnerable. Being homeless is not a game.

I came here seeking resources and info from people in the area. I asked for no naysayers, and I never said I thought it would be easy. I also have not, nor do I care to speak of my life experiences, You do not know what I have already lived through, nor is that the point of this post. Making judgments such as welfare and homelessness is unfair,uncalled for and unproductive.

I understand many of you may think I will fail, that is fine,The thought has crossed my mind a time or two myself What you fail to see is that I did not come here for opinions on my fate. I was only looking for resources and info, Good and safe areas to live,Where to start looking for work, bus routes You Know, productive information to help me on the way.

I don't mean to sound rude but, I have made my decision and weighed the pros and cones. The fact is, For me it looks more promising there then where I am at.

Thank you.

[clongirl]

I'm sorry.. we all know you weren't asking for "naysayers" but it's sorta like giving advice to a teenage girl that is looking to have unprotected sex with her new boyfriend and thinks that babies are real cute..or a fresh out of high school "actress" that has 50$ to her name that think that the only way to stardom is moving to Hollywood/NYC to make it big. (I know, Madonna had the same thoughts and look at where she is now!)

The odds of all the positive predicted outcomes are really, bad..(in this area at this particular time). You don't sound rude at all..just young, idealistic, and totally into romanticizing being broke in the Bay Area where you will pay more in taxes, car insurance, cost of a gallon of milk, cost of gas, cost of rent, and competition for jobs with people that already have "connections", money saved and/or loads of experience that have just been laid off from years of working in SV or the cafe down the street from the one that's hiring. I'd say it could all be done in a very different economy..just not now.

You want people to give you advice about good and safe places to live when you have no job, prospects, or money saved in a state with one of the highest unemployment rates and highest taxes? Well, okay then.. look into Piedmont..or The Marina district in the City..or Palo Alto..Walnut Creek is really nice too. You sound like you can pretty much live wherever you want. They're all safe places to live.
Onto jobs..well, Craigslist I suppose would be the place to look.. Roommates too..Craigslist is the main source in these parts..or cafe bulletin boards. Don't forget about the safety deposit..you'll usually need a lot upfront to start. Sometimes 1st months, last months rent in addition to actual deposit.

I know I'm sounding negative here..I have kids, have lived my entire teenage yrs/twenties/part of thirties in San Francisco..I've know a lot of kids in your mindset looking to get away from whatever situation that is making them want to leave. I'd probably give you very different advice if I didn't already know/live with so many kids/adults in your same situation and the economy looked a bit more promising.. Some of us actually have firsthand knowledge of an outcome such as yours.

[gowestohio]

My daughter has a job waiting in July in sanleandros but cant find a place to live-any suggestions?
thanks