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That is a good point. I guess I could see why people paid top dollar for Manhattan/Paris/London... but the Bay Area is pushing right up there with them in cost, I didn't think the bang for the buck was on par for what you get. I guess it is people paying top dollar to be near wine country/mountains/weather/high paying tech jobs? I'd rather not pay for that, but I didn't mind paying extras to have world class transit, museums, arts, etc.
DC is another city I definitely wouldn't pay top dollar to live near, I think it's overpriced for what you get.
The problem with the cost of living has to do with the fact that California's RE market is a specu-flipper driven market. People who need homes to liven do not determine the prices in middle-working class areas, speculators who are trying to make a buck do.
I think DC the city is pretty awesome. Don't know if it's worth top $$$, but for my money it's one of the top 5-6 urban experiences in the U.S.
Where the value really plummets for me is the burbs. 3 BR townhomes 20 miles outside of the city going for $600k? Yeah I don't think so.
Yeah that is what I'm talking about, SF is the same way, the suburbs are also very high and often higher than the city itself. You drive around and see Sotheby's property everywhere. NY and LA yes it is expensive in certain places, but you can find places to live that are reasonable and safe, probably b/c there is so much real estate? Living in a lil studio or with roommates gets old. Fine in your 20s though.
I "tried" to like Orlando but the city was boring unless you're at the theme parks.
Used a COL calculator and couldn't imagine the SF Bay area being 20%-25% higher than where I am. Might not be a city worth plunking down cash but looks great.
DC is another city I definitely wouldn't pay top dollar to live near, I think it's overpriced for what you get.
The DC area has access to very large numbers of high-paying jobs for people with high educational qualifications. That's really what drives up the COL here.
Anything else is icing on the cake (although a lot of that icing can be pretty nice too).
The DC area has access to very large numbers of high-paying jobs for people with high educational qualifications. That's really what drives up the COL here.
Anything else is icing on the cake (although a lot of that icing can be pretty nice too).
Yeah that is true, my concern is just for natives priced out. Or us non high income earning folks when choosing a city that don't work in law/medicine/engineering/etc. Money and long term savings is a bigger factor of choosing to live somewhere the older I get. 10 years ago fresh out of college I wasn't as worried about it.
OP I agree with you, I spent 2 years out there... I felt similar, but not the same complaints. I mean it was okay, but I couldn't jive with the people who LOVED it, because I just didn't. I had high hopes but was disappointed in the city itself. As far as nature goes, CA and the Bay Area are GREAT though... Very impressive and the best I've seen in the U.S., as far as city life though I think SF gets overrated and is more gritty actually than the usual perception, but I had lived in Chicago, Paris and frequented NYC many many times before ever stepping foot in SF, so, I guess I'm a bit biased towards the rah rah SF stuff. I definitely tried to like it but it just wasn't my thing for some reason or another. I never had any bad experiences or anything there either, just something about it that didn't click, maybe the scenes there? I dunno. It is still a great city though, but I think it attracts a certain type of crowd. It's still in my top 10 cities to visit, but definitely not my preference as a place to call home.
I think Madison is overrated also...
I actually think San Francisco feels more urban and bustling to me than Chicago. Downtown, inner neighborhoods, and the denser outer neighborhoods are really bustling and vibrant, and the streets feel more alive than in Chicago. That said, Chicago is much, much bigger and remains urban through much of the city, so it has to get credit for that.
However, I like how many other urban destinations there are in the Bay Area, like Oakland and Berkeley, and even the some of the downtowns like San Mateo and Palo Alto are more vibrant than Chicago's suburban downtowns. Aside from the area directly north of San Francisco (Marin and Sonoma, which are actually quite rural and isolated), much of the rest of the bay area has a strong pulse and a good urban fabric.
That is a good point. I guess I could see why people paid top dollar for Manhattan/Paris/London... but the Bay Area is pushing right up there with them in cost, I didn't think the bang for the buck was on par for what you get. I guess it is people paying top dollar to be near wine country/mountains/weather/high paying tech jobs? I'd rather not pay for that, but I didn't mind paying extras to have world class transit, museums, arts, etc.
DC is another city I definitely wouldn't pay top dollar to live near, I think it's overpriced for what you get.
I think Chicago, Philly and Seattle are priced great for what you get. So is NYC if you take advantage and live the lifestyle. I'd probably say LA is also, it's cheaper than SF and has the "nice" CA weather to boot.
Detroit definitely. I know everyone rags on Detroit, but the reputation definitely is deserved. I grew up in the suburbs of Detroit and made almost weekly trips to the city. The people there are some of the most rude you will encounter. After living near Detroit, I went to NYC and thought people were nice there!
At least being from Detroit made visiting other cities interesting. (They say the best way to be impressed is to set your bar really low.) Going to other cities like Chicago, Milwaukee, Denver, NYC and SF, I realized just how interesting large cities are and how much Detroit is lacking compared to other cities it's size.
The DC area has access to very large numbers of high-paying jobs for people with high educational qualifications. That's really what drives up the COL here.
Anything else is icing on the cake (although a lot of that icing can be pretty nice too).
DC does, paid for by the american tax payer. The govt complex is rediculously oversized and over paid in DC
DC is a real estate bubble subsidized by the govt and taxpayer.
Honestly and I like DC but NYC and even SF I can see the prices, DC not so much, it doesnt offer nearly as much without the subsidy, a great city yes but over-priced (subsidized), absolutely
And even moreso to this (in the district for areas is one thing but a small townhouse in Sterling, really)
Quote:
Originally Posted by 14thandYou
I think DC the city is pretty awesome. Don't know if it's worth top $$$, but for my money it's one of the top 5-6 urban experiences in the U.S.
Where the value really plummets for me is the burbs. 3 BR townhomes 20 miles outside of the city going for $600k? Yeah I don't think so.
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