Apt rent Sunnyvale vs MtnVw (San Jose, Santa Clara: apartment, lease, insurance)

[NewInAtlanta]

Hi
I'll be moving to the silicon valley from atlanta. Just wanted to get an idea about the cost of a 2BR, 2 Bath apt in the sunnyvale, mountain view and santa clara/san jose areas. Also are the high salaries in the valley are at par with the high housing cost? Any inputs would be appreciated.

Thanks

[ragnarkar]

I think Sunnyvale is cheaper than Mountain View.. rents are fairly expensive by any standard in the area but Sunnyvale and Santa Clara are some of the cheaper options.

[tilz]

We live in San Jose, nice apartment 1100sq/ft 2 bed 2 bath and access to pools/gym etc. Costs $2400 per month and approx $70 a month for bills. As for salaries I guess it depends on the company, my company pays more if you live in New York City or the Bay Area to accommodate for the high cost of living. In general I am not sure I would assume there is some sort of general uplift applied.

[NightOwlHoot]

We rent in a large complex in Cupertino for the schools, 2BR 2BA, pool, gym, play ground, nearly 2800 for a short term 4 month lease while we figure out if we will buy or keep renting. There were cheaper options for a year long lease. It is okay, we have a small dog and pay 50 extra monthly for her, included in the 2800.

[roadwarrior101]

We rented a 2 bedroom apartment in a big complex in downtown Mountain View. I think those units are now going for over $3,000/month (easily). If you are willing to live away from downtown or live in an older complex, you may be able to save some money. I would think by and large that Sunnyvale would be a little cheaper than Mtn View, but in my opinion, Mtn View is a better place to live.

[80skeys]

Originally Posted by NewInAtlanta

Hi
I'll be moving to the silicon valley from atlanta. Just wanted to get an idea about the cost of a 2BR, 2 Bath apt in the sunnyvale, mountain view and santa clara/san jose areas. Also are the high salaries in the valley are at par with the high housing cost?

Sunnyvale you're looking at $1750 and up.
Mountain View approximately the same.
Santa Clara is about $150-$200 cheaper.

The high salaries are on par with renting, but not at par with purchasing. The purchase cost of housing here far outdistances any gains you may have from a higher salary.

[roadwarrior101]

Originally Posted by 80skeys

The high salaries are on par with renting, but not at par with purchasing. The purchase cost of housing here far outdistances any gains you may have from a higher salary.

Yes, but so does the house appreciation....that could come in very handy if you plan on relocating elsewhere in a few years.

[TheGreatCurve]

Originally Posted by 80skeys

The high salaries are on par with renting, but not at par with purchasing. The purchase cost of housing here far outdistances any gains you may have from a higher salary.

You pretty much have to strike it rich with stock options in order to afford to purchase a house in Silicon Valley.

[TheGreatCurve]

Originally Posted by roadwarrior101

Yes, but so does the house appreciation....that could come in very handy if you plan on relocating elsewhere in a few years.

You mean like the house appreciation between 2006 to 2011?

House appreciation is not guaranteed, but your high mortgage payments are. You're better off putting your money in the stock market, which has historically appreciated at twice the rate of houses. Even if your house doubles in price in 30 years, guess what? You've paid 3 to 5 times your purchase price in total mortgage, property tax, insurance, maintenance, HOA, fees, closing costs, realtor commissions, etc. payments over those 30 years, so you still lost money.

[roadwarrior101]

Originally Posted by TheGreatCurve

You mean like the house appreciation between 2006 to 2011?

House appreciation is not guaranteed, but your high mortgage payments are. You're better off putting your money in the stock market, which has historically appreciated at twice the rate of houses. Even if your house doubles in price in 30 years, guess what? You've paid 3 to 5 times your purchase price in total mortgage, property tax, insurance, maintenance, HOA, fees, closing costs, realtor commissions, etc. payments over those 30 years, so you still lost money.

Well, we bought a new townhouse in Mtn View 2 years ago at a depressed price. The new ones in our complex are now selling for about $100k more than we paid for ours and they're having no trouble selling. Yeah, it wasn't easy for us to get in (and my wife and I aren't rich), but a FHA loan helped out.