How realistic is my future living dream in SJ with all details inside? (Los Angeles: 2013, apartments)
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How realistic is my future living dream in SJ with all details inside?
Hello all,
I'm moving from SoCal for a job offer in one of the prominent companies in the area. The salary is about 115K-120K a year including yearly bonus and signing bonus. There is also 5k relocation bonus.
Here is my future leaving:
1. I would like to live in a suburb which is not very boring yet offers good looking streets with american/american-cultured people around. I was hoping to get a 2 bedroom house in Fremont or even upwards around San Leandro, Hayward or Livermore. It's also possible to get a place in the south SJ. My target house is at most 2k a month.
2. I will be paying 1.3k a month for a new car.
3. I would like to have a flexible life. Shopping, eating, hobbies, travelling and also some saving.
I don't want to live in an apartment. So all included and given that I'm a single 23yo professional with no additional expenses, how is it likely to live a comfortable life? To give an example, my all expenses in Los Angeles was not more than 400$ a month excluding housing, including commuting, shopping, groceries, hobbies, all other stuff.
I would REAALLY appreciate an experienced answer from this region. Can't thank you enough for that but THANK you!
No, not necessarily. The description is very clear. I don't mind anyone with western culture, be it chinese or indians. There are many of such living in LA but my last experience in SJ area was quite different that people from different regions want to dress and behave to their own cultures, rightfully, so do I. This is what I meant and it is no different than another member asking where s/he can find Indian apartments/complexes around the area.
I'm moving from SoCal for a job offer in one of the prominent companies in the area. The salary is about 115K-120K a year including yearly bonus and signing bonus. There is also 5k relocation bonus.
Here is my future leaving:
1. I would like to live in a suburb which is not very boring yet offers good looking streets with american/american-cultured people around. I was hoping to get a 2 bedroom house in Fremont or even upwards around San Leandro, Hayward or Livermore. It's also possible to get a place in the south SJ. My target house is at most 2k a month.
2. I will be paying 1.3k a month for a new car.
3. I would like to have a flexible life. Shopping, eating, hobbies, travelling and also some saving.
I don't want to live in an apartment. So all included and given that I'm a single 23yo professional with no additional expenses, how is it likely to live a comfortable life? To give an example, my all expenses in Los Angeles was not more than 400$ a month excluding housing, including commuting, shopping, groceries, hobbies, all other stuff.
I would REAALLY appreciate an experienced answer from this region. Can't thank you enough for that but THANK you!
1. You won't really find many non-boring suburban neighborhoods throughout the South Bay. It's overall a more family-oriented, unexciting place. There are plenty of fun things to do overall though in the Bay Area that are easily accessible from most places. I'm not sure why you're thinking Fremont, San Leandro, Hayward or Livermore to be honest. They don't really fit any of your criteria and are not even in the South Bay (Fremont is closest to SJ, though). San Leandro is a horrible commute to SJ and doesn't offer any of what you're asking for and overall is not a great place to live. Fremont has a very large Indian/Chinese/Afghan population and the "American/American-cultured" type of people you're looking for are few and far between now. Hayward is dumpy and run-down and may not have the same type of "American" crowd you'd be wanting to be around. Livermore probably most closely has the demographic you're looking far, but is far out there and commuting would suck. It's also not really the most exciting place for a 20-something year old. Lastly, your $2k/month budget is most likely going to be too low for a decent single family home. Rents have been rising quite a bit lately. Based on your income, you should be able to afford more on rent and still have plenty of money left over each month if you know how to be be reasonably frugal.
2. I'm a car guy and have always liked to drive nice cars, so I get it. $1.3k a month for a car payment is absurd though! Absurd! If you're really paying that much, somebody/dealership ripped you off. My mint condition 2003 BMW 5 series (the last year before the recent ugly body styles came out) with only 48k miles on the odometer cost me $10k! My point is, you can have a nice car without blowing so much money. I thoroughly regret that I blew so much money on car payments when I was your age. You don't need to spend anywhere near that much to have a nice ride.
3. Assuming no other debt apart from rent/normal bills/car payment, if you're not the type to blow money like it's going out of style, you should have plenty of money left over to save each month.
Lastly, there are plenty of places that meet some of your criteria. I think you really need to decide specifically what's most important to you and what you're willing to give up. I'm not sure you'll be able to find a place that offers everything you're asking for anywhere near SJ.
If I were you, I'd look into the South Bay cities of Campbell, Los Gatos and Mountain View. They won't fit your $2k/month rental house criteria, but probably fit what you're looking for in other ways. Also, many parts of SJ would probably work as well.
No, not necessarily. The description is very clear. I don't mind anyone with western culture, be it chinese or indians. There are many of such living in LA but my last experience in SJ area was quite different that people from different regions want to dress and behave to their own cultures, rightfully, so do I. This is what I meant and it is no different than another member asking where s/he can find Indian apartments/complexes around the area.
I don't think this is unreasonable at all. I've found most people who take issue with comments like this haven't actually spent any real time living/working in a place that is overrun with specific non-American cultures. I've lived/worked in the Fremont area for a long time and I can list many negative aspects that have been introduced to this area as a result of the influx of foreigners. I speak from personal experience. My wife grew up in Fremont and I grew up in Milpitas, both cities with very high Indian/Chinese populations. This wasn't the case when we were growing up here. There are definitely many quality of life issues that we find to be very grating after awhile and we don't see ourselves staying in the area too much longer because of it. It's not racist, it's just reality.
I don't think this is unreasonable at all. I've found most people who take issue with comments like this haven't actually spent any real time living/working in a place that is overrun with specific non-American cultures. I've lived/worked in the Fremont area for a long time and I can list many negative aspects that have been introduced to this area as a result of the influx of foreigners. I speak from personal experience. My wife grew up in Fremont and I grew up in Milpitas, both cities with very high Indian/Chinese populations. This wasn't the case when we were growing up here. There are definitely many quality of life issues that we find to be very grating after awhile and we don't see ourselves staying in the area too much longer because of it. It's not racist, it's just reality.
i agree. and each race tends to hire more of their own race which leaves the rest of us natives unemployed!
Wow guys, i thought my car payments would be reasonable but well glad that I asked. I'm planning to buy an Audi A6/BMW 5.35i 2013 without any down payment for 4 year payment. Either of them will be the first and last luxury item in my life, having them in my mind to motivate me until this point I've reached. If paying this much is really a problem how on earth all those other people manage to get these and more expensive cars then? It's a question of genuine curiosity.
Thanks for your detailed answer, this means a lot to me! So which exact area would you recommend me? I want to have the freedom of a house living, as I'm planning to own pets and also listen to my music however I please with those constraints I mentioned. I can spend extra 200 bucks on housing if that'd make a difference? I'm single so I don't need a 3-4-5... bedroom houses. I just need a well manicured gardens with nice neighbors, 2 bedrooms etc.
The first reason I chose that part was because it is closer to San Francisco, so in a case I want a quick refresher from work, I could always have a ride to there and be equally distanced from SFO and SJ. My assumption was also that since it's further away from SJ, it's more likely the area would have less influx of foreigners due to its location to company areas.
Thanks for your detailed answer, this means a lot to me! So which exact area would you recommend me? I want to have the freedom of a house living, as I'm planning to own pets and also listen to my music however I please with those constraints I mentioned. I can spend extra 200 bucks on housing if that'd make a difference? I'm single so I don't need a 3-4-5... bedroom houses. I just need a well manicured gardens with nice neighbors, 2 bedrooms etc.
The first reason I chose that part was because it is closer to San Francisco, so in a case I want a quick refresher from work, I could always have a ride to there and be equally distanced from SFO and SJ. My assumption was also that since it's further away from SJ, it's more likely the area would have less influx of foreigners due to its location to company areas.
have you been to the area at all? you'd be hard-pressed to find any part of the bay area not full of foreigners. have you looked on craigslist? upping the budget by $200 is not enough to change things.
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