A few words regarding cost of living and housing in San Francisco (San Jose: HOA, felons)

[Joe_Ryder]

Originally Posted by Torghaole

Elegantly put, N.C.; very well, indeed. The 'maya' of Materialism pollutes Consciousness perniciously, as evidenced by those who descry the vagaries of The Market, en toto. I have devised a plot to live in the Greater S.F. area, and to forgo the expenses of real estate/landlords completely. However, I am playing that strategy close to the vest, for now. What matters most to me, (as I am an autumnal senior, metaphysical poet, and life-long Mossback), is to repair to the balmier climes of the San Joaquin/Sacramento Delta estuaries. As S.F. is the Athens of the New World, I shall find myself there someday, I intuitively know. Albeit, the current status quo must morph, (as it tends to do over time, especially as time seems to be compressing since I passed the attainment of fifty years on-planet/present incarnation. All that being said, I congratulate you for teaching positivism in your last posting: well done! I look forward to the day when a flash of recognition is not uncommon between eyes of passersby, and spontaneous conversations evolve into animated flights of philosophy and fancy-dancing. Cheers!
Torg White Bear (a.k.a. Torghaole) (I be a Celtic curmudgeon, some may say).

Sounds like you're planning to live in a boat on the Delta. About the only thing free here is a few launches.

[DjRey]

I really dont see the big hype behind SF anymore?I mean,San Jose, Pleasant Hill,Walnut Creek,Pinole,Cool parts of Oakland & Berkeley are way cheaper to rent in than SF, and have a lot of diversity as far as different people.To me SF is a small city(compared to NYC,Boston,LA,Philly,Miami).You can do everything their is to do in SF in about 8 days!I was born in the Bay,and will always be from the Bay Area.I'm sorry ya'll, SF has done lost its flavor.Real Talk people..

[DjRey]

I think alot of people that LOVE San Francisco,really actually like this city because you dont have alot of Blacks and Latinos in big numbers in SF anymore?It's not the early 90's,where Blacks and Latinos in SF had a huge impact.There's no bodegas on the corner(New York).The yuppies like it this way,its helps them feel comfortable.LOL. P.S. I work with yuppies all day,Some are pretty cool.I'm just tryin to get in cool with yuppie ladies.

[sonarrat]

Originally Posted by loveack

I was here 5 years ago. What does that mean? I can live green anywhere I flippin want to.

So why San Francisco? If you can live green everywhere, I think you have even more reason not to live in San Francisco. It has one of the most polluting power plants in the country in the city limits. It has lots of housing built on Superfund sites. Buses stop on every block because the residents demand it, increasing fuel usage and wear and tear on motors, and there are lots of empty buses. Too many people crammed together which makes for unsanitary conditions. Old, crumbling and non-optimal buildings result in high demand for energy. Poor road planning results in terrible traffic conditions on 19th Avenue, Lombard, Van Ness and the downtown core, with far too many cars stopped in traffic, far too many pedestrian deaths, far too much pollution which gets carried over by those famed sea breezes to the East Bay and Central Valley so that you don't have to wallow in it. It's amazing how much credit San Francisco gets for being so problematic.

[loveack]

Originally Posted by sonarrat

So why San Francisco? If you can live green everywhere, I think you have even more reason not to live in San Francisco. I

I have many reasons, but mainly because of my career and we have a lot of family in the BA. And who knows what will happen. When we get out there, we are fortunate enough to have our own apartment to stay in for 3-4 months while we get situated. Who knows if I get a job in SV or elsewhere in the south bay area...more than likely that's going to take us in to the East Bay or Peninsula. We're setting our sights on the city, but not ruling out the probability to living outside of it either. We're pretty flexible

[sonarrat]

Originally Posted by loveack

I have many reasons, but mainly because of my career and we have a lot of family in the BA. And who knows what will happen. When we get out there, we are fortunate enough to have our own apartment to stay in for 3-4 months while we get situated. Who knows if I get a job in SV or elsewhere in the south bay area...more than likely that's going to take us in to the East Bay or Peninsula. We're setting our sights on the city, but not ruling out the probability to living outside of it either. We're pretty flexible

Family does change everything. That's the one and only reason why I am staying. Otherwise, I would like to explore, because I can't imagine that this is the be-all and end-all. There are too many huge issues.

[gizmo980]

Originally Posted by sonarrat

Family does change everything. That's the one and only reason why I am staying. Otherwise, I would like to explore, because I can't imagine that this is the be-all and end-all. There are too many huge issues.

Yeah, I'm kind of in the same boat... I grew up here and most of my immediate family & old friends are here, which is why I returned (after leaving for 8 years). I do love the Bay Area, despite it's many problems, but who knows what will happen in the future? At least I have a good job now, so it's unlikely I'll be moving out of the BA anytime soon! For me, being near loved ones and other positives outweighed the negatives, but we all have different priorities and needs in life. Good thing we have a large country to choose from, LOL.

[loveack]

I think we can all agree, especially those of us who live in other cities, that we're all experiencing problems in our communities of some sort. No one city is perfection. I live in Cleveland, Ohio. It's overrun with budget deficits, the public transportation system is in the crapper, the inner city schools are horrendous, and Ohio is second to California in the hardest hit states by the foreclosure crisis. You can't swim in our lakes on a lot of days, and our rape, robbery and assault rates are more than triple that of San Francisco. But it's where I grew up and I love it...but it's time to move on. Anyway, I digress....all cities have problems...but there is nothing wrong in seeing the POSITIVE side of a city...and I'd love for some threads to focus on the positive..

[bgreen68]

You mention if someone is skilled, educated, and hard working they can get by in San Francisco. What if someone isn't skilled or educated but it honest and hard working? Doesn't that mean anything anymore in America? Or are only the rich allowed to live a decent life today? I assume you have people working in San Francisco doing the grunt labor, you haven't automated that yet, so how do they afford to live there and pay $2,000 a month's rent? Your city opens their arms for illegal aliens but you don't give a hoot for your fellow countrymen. Then you turn around and pretend to be liberal democrats but as far as I'm concerned you're snobby rich republicans.

[rah]

Originally Posted by DjRey

To me SF is a small city(compared to NYC,Boston,LA,Philly,Miami).You can do everything their is to do in SF in about 8 days!I was born in the Bay,and will always be from the Bay Area.I'm sorry ya'll, SF has done lost its flavor.Real Talk people..

That's funny, because SF has a larger population in the city proper than both Boston and Miami, and the metro population tops all of those cities except LA and NYC.

Originally Posted by DjRey

There's no bodegas on the corner(New York)

Hahaha....

They're called corner stores, not bodegas, and we have tons of them. There are three within 4 blocks of my house, and that's kind of a low density of them too, compared to some other parts of the city.

Do you just make this stuff up as you go along?

Just because you were "born in the bay" doesn't mean you know what you're talking about...I was born here too, in SF. But I've lived here in SF my whole life. You know, I DID live in Walnut Creek just about 1 year as a baby, but I don't pretend I know what it's like there.