How on earth do people afford to buy in SF? (rant) (San Francisco: 2013, to rent)

[irishman_irl]

Just reading this article about the new-rich choosing to live in the mission district: Valentine’s Day miracle? Mission District poised to be SF’s most desired neighborhood | On The Block | an SFGate.com blog

I have no idea how people buy houses in SF, I am a software engineer & married....doubt I could afford anything over 300k...maybe 350k at a push. In other-words my maximum budget is no more than a deposit on these properties.....seems like no matter how hard or long I work, I will never be able to afford a modern / kind-of-cool house like the ones featured in the article....or much else for that matter.

I would love to live here long term, but at some point I need to start building equity / stop wasting cash on rent.

These home prices are pushing a million $.....it might as well be a billion as far as I'm concerned, it feels like a hopeless situation as far as owning a house is concerned.

Has anyone else been in this situation / managed to get onto the property ladder in SF with a "budget"?

[sonarrat]

San Francisco has 800k people and 2-3 million more who would take their place at the drop of a hat if it was affordable. There's no population growth to speak of, because essentially no new housing can be put in, and yet the demand keeps growing.

[DocGoldstein]

Originally Posted by irishman_irl

Just reading this article about the new-rich choosing to live in the mission district: Valentine’s Day miracle? Mission District poised to be SF’s most desired neighborhood | On The Block | an SFGate.com blog

I have no idea how people buy houses in SF, I am a software engineer & married....doubt I could afford anything over 300k...maybe 350k at a push. In other-words my maximum budget is no more than a deposit on these properties.....seems like no matter how hard or long I work, I will never be able to afford a modern / kind-of-cool house like the ones featured in the article....or much else for that matter.

I would love to live here long term, but at some point I need to start building equity / stop wasting cash on rent.

These home prices are pushing a million $.....it might as well be a billion as far as I'm concerned, it feels like a hopeless situation as far as owning a house is concerned.

Has anyone else been in this situation / managed to get onto the property ladder in SF with a "budget"?

That's one of the things that has changed in the Bay Area over the past 15-20 years. Back when I bought in Lafayette (still considered high end during that time), median home prices were roughly 3.5-4.0 times the median income of the area. Now? It's closer to 10x.

Same with S.F, San Mateo, Atherton, Palo Alto, etc. Any desirable area in the Bay Area is completely above what could be considered affordable for a single income family. Even the 2nd/3rd tier places like Fremont, or Milpitas. About the only affordable places left for single income earners are in Solano County pretty much.

That's why when people post here "Hey I'm making $50,000 in Farmtown, Iowa, and I want to move to S.F for a job that offers $90,000 a year, is it worth it?", I usually try to paint a picture of housing cost first so people understand that it's super affordable in that respect so any "gain" in salary would be offset by the amount of house you can afford.

[irishman_irl]

Originally Posted by sonarrat

San Francisco has 800k people and 2-3 million more who would take their place at the drop of a hat if it was affordable. There's no population growth to speak of, because essentially no new housing can be put in, and yet the demand keeps growing.

I hear what your saying, but what kind of money are homeowners in SF earning to be able to afford these houses....I could double my salary and I would be no closer to being able to afford anything. It's pretty much the same story down in Silicon Valley.....80 year old, dilapidated homes going for 7 figures.

[bmw335xi]

Originally Posted by irishman_irl

Just reading this article about the new-rich choosing to live in the mission district: Valentine’s Day miracle? Mission District poised to be SF’s most desired neighborhood | On The Block | an SFGate.com blog

I have no idea how people buy houses in SF, I am a software engineer & married....doubt I could afford anything over 300k...maybe 350k at a push. In other-words my maximum budget is no more than a deposit on these properties.....seems like no matter how hard or long I work, I will never be able to afford a modern / kind-of-cool house like the ones featured in the article....or much else for that matter.

I would love to live here long term, but at some point I need to start building equity / stop wasting cash on rent.

These home prices are pushing a million $.....it might as well be a billion as far as I'm concerned, it feels like a hopeless situation as far as owning a house is concerned.

Has anyone else been in this situation / managed to get onto the property ladder in SF with a "budget"?

You can own property here for $350k, but you'll have to choose a less desirable neighborhood or a small condo. It's tough to swallow sometimes when you think about it because $1 million would buy you a beautiful state of the art mansion in many parts of the US. There is simply more demand than supply in San Francisco and no land to expand.

[DocGoldstein]

Originally Posted by bmw335xi

You can own property here for $350k, but you'll have to choose a less desirable neighborhood or a small condo. It's tough to swallow sometimes when you think about it because $1 million would buy you a beautiful state of the art mansion in many parts of the US. There is simply more demand than supply in San Francisco and no land to expand.

Pretty much.

Also rents are in the stratosphere. One of my units in South Beach 1br/1bath, I was able to rent it out for over $4,000/month and had 30+ applications. S.F needs to build upward basically, like Manhattan.

[irishman_irl]

The only house I'm seeing on craigslist for < $350k is a house-boat on pier39

[bmw335xi]

Originally Posted by DocGoldstein

Pretty much.

Also rents are in the stratosphere. One of my units in South Beach 1br/1bath, I was able to rent it out for over $4,000/month and had 30+ applications. S.F needs to build upward basically, like Manhattan.

That's incredible! Good for you though lol. I agree that building vertical is really the only option left.

[bmw335xi]

Originally Posted by irishman_irl

The only house I'm seeing on craigslist for < $350k is a house-boat on pier39

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[bmw335xi]

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Homes go fast at this price range, but new inventory is constantly being added. You should also consider Daly City as a cheaper alternative too.