Where to live in San Fran- 30 something's couple about $2000 maybe more to spend (San Francisco: apartment complexes, rental)

[clongirl]

Originally Posted by Pk6

Transferring for work, we know we can afford at least $2000 but we have 2 dogs, 2 cars (maybe even a third) and have no clue what utilities cost. Looking for at least 2 bedrooms- hopefully 3! All this in a cool, safe area (we are single- as in unmarried- no kids! So we want fun and hip). Is it possible with dogs/cars/utilities/cool area/3 bedrooms for around $3100 a month?

Not possible in San Francisco. You'd have to lose both dogs and one car. Then you might be able to get a nice one, MAYBE two bedroom.

oops..I misread your budget. 3100$ total budget will NOT get you a two bedroom in the City.

[dalparadise]

Now I'm confused. Is your budget $2000 or $3000?

In either case, forget North Beach or South of Market (SOMA) for a 2-3 bedroom. If you did happen to find a 2BR in either of those areas (it'll be $3000 not $2000 IF YOU GET LUCKY and it'll also probably be a tiny dump) you would definitely need to ditch one or both cars. You will lose your mind and a lot of money in parking tickets trying to park two cars on the street here, because you are not going to have parking for your budget.

The upside is utilities. I pay less than $22-$28 per month for everything. Water, garbage, hot water and steam heat are included in my rent. I only pay gas and electric.

The other way to save will be to lose the cars. A Muni pass is $66 per month and many employers will offer the option of paying for it pre-tax, which gives you the benefit of effectively reducing the cost of it relative to your tax rate. When cars can cost as much as $1000 per month in gas, insurance, payment, maintenance and depreciation, you can quickly see the advantages of living without them. It's a nice luxury for a couple living in the City, Berkeley or Oakland to share a car. Many just do without them altogether, because transit works well here. If you live elsewhere in the Bay Area, you'll probably need one car, at least. One more thing--plan on $250-$400 per month to park the car in SF (depending on the neighborhood), unless you want to take your chances with the City's notoriously scarce street parking and remarkably vigilant ticket writers.

Cars are not well liked in SF. Often, i describe it as "SF's War on Cars". the City makes owning a car very expensive. Parking, tickets, fees, etc. are all way above most places. If you happen to get your car towed, it's about $500 plus any storage fees, fines or tickets to get it back. It is no joke here. When I see people thinking of coming to SF with "two, maybe three cars" I think they are in for a rude awakening.

Oh, and for a final rude welcome to SF, you will most likely need to lose the dogs, too. On a tight budget, its too limiting in the number of places you will be able to afford. The good part is, you may be able to handle a smaller place without the dogs. Sorry, if you had a higher budget, you could afford to shop around. With two dogs, there will only be a small percentage of places in your range (the far upper end, at that) in the kinds of neighborhoods you seem to want and they may not have the space or amenities you're looking for.

[ilkhd2]

Here is the explanation mod cut:
There is the City of of San Francisco, which is high density city, similar to New York and Chicago, where rents are insanely expensive, density is high, very urban (yet not urban enough for my taste), not dog friendly, in most areas not car friendly either, not single family housing friendly, relatively dirty, and in some parts very unsafe. Coming from some typical American suburb, you will probably dislike it.
Now, there is also San Francisco Bay, which is... a Pacific Ocean bay. Now this bay is surrounded by San Francisco Bay Area, which consists of four parts: South Bay (where Intel, Yahoo and other old tech companies are located); East Bay, generally least expensive, but in cheaper parts of it you'll probably would not want to live. There is also Peninsula and North Bay. Cannot say much about North Bay - very rarely went there, but Peninsula is the second most expensive after the City of San Francisco. All four parts of the Bay are mostly typical American Suburbia, although East Bay is somewhat more urban then others. All four parts are far from the City of SF and culturally very different from the city itself. In each of the parts of the Bay Area you'll find rentals for your budget. If you are conservative, you'll probably want to live in the outer East Bay (very hot summers though), if you are liberal - inner East Bay (Berkeley etc).

Get a map while reading my post.

[mayorhaggar]

Look into North Oakland, mainly Rockridge, the Temescal and Piedmont Ave. Rents are cheaper than SF and it's easier to park a car there. Nowhere in the Bay Area is very dog-friendly for tenants though.

[jade408]

You will likely need to branch out a little further in Oakland as well to find a dig friendly place. You might want to try the Bond Apartments in Oakland near jack London square if you don't mind a warehouse-y area. They allow dogs and have some pet friendly amenities.


I am on my phone, please forgive the typos.

[ssmaster]

where do you work?
commute will factor into this.

[Obamadon1]

Originally Posted by jade408

You will likely need to branch out a little further in Oakland as well to find a dig friendly place. You might want to try the Bond Apartments in Oakland near jack London square if you don't mind a warehouse-y area.

The Bond is now condos for sale, not apartments - The Bond Living

[jsba]

Originally Posted by Obamadon1

The Bond is now condos for sale, not apartments - The Bond Living

This is true. The Allegro is pet friendly though and while not as nice as the Bond isn't a bad choice.

[ssmaster]

Originally Posted by jade408

You will likely need to branch out a little further in Oakland as well to find a dig friendly place. You might want to try the Bond Apartments in Oakland near jack London square if you don't mind a warehouse-y area. They allow dogs and have some pet friendly amenities.


I am on my phone, please forgive the typos.

"You like digs ? I like digs" brad pitt-snatch

Dags - YouTube

Dags - YouTube

[jade408]

Originally Posted by Obamadon1

The Bond is now condos for sale, not apartments - The Bond Living

Always getting the allegro and bond confused. They are very close together. But didn't the bond start as apartments too?