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I am interviewing with a tech company based in downtown SF next week. If everything goes well, we could be making the move from Nashville in the next month. Because the company is headquartered downtown (in SoMa) and because my husband and I want to have the whole city living experience, we would be looking for a place in the city - we are considering Nob Hill, Russian Hill, North Beach/Telegraph Hill or Financial District. But...from everything I have read online, apartment hunting in SF seems to be a highly competitive sport. So, that has us worried. We would be looking for a one bedroom and our budget is $3,500 - $4,000. We are flexible with regards to amenities (in-unit laundry, outdoor space, etc) but would really prefer a unit that has close proximity to public transportation and also a building that has an on-site parking space if at all possible. Based on what I have seen on Craig's List, Zillow and HotPads, this seems do-able at our budget.
My question is if I get a job offer and have to relocate within 3-4 weeks, will this give us enough time to find a reasonable apartment in the city that meets our needs? Or should we just try to find a short-term furnished rental that will buy us some time to look around a bit? Also, if we have the means, is it best to just enlist the help of a realtor to help us find something? Thanks in advance for any advice or suggestions you can provide! We are a bit overwhelmed as the Nashville rental market is nothing like SF. And we just want to be totally prepared to pull the trigger and move if I am offered the position.
Location: Baghdad by the Bay (San Francisco, California)
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In your price range, the options are virtually unlimited. You will find many places that fit those criteria in the neighborhoods you listed. You have chosen well in considering those locations. All are transit-heavy and offer great access to SoMa and a complete SF experience. Be careful of the southern part of Nob Hill, as that can actually be the Tendernob, or even Tenderloin, and still be listed as Nob Hill in ads. You absolutely need to see places for yourself, walk the neighborhoods, check out the businesses on the block, visit during different times of day, etc.
So, the idea to get a temporary place while you look is a good one. It took me about a month of going to showings and open houses to find a place. I had a packet with a completed application, a list of references, and a credit report in a nice folder I would take with me to showings.
Think of open houses as auditions. There may be 10-15 people all vying for the same apartment. You'll be able to spot the newbies--they are looking around at the apartment, checking out the kitchen cabinets, etc. the pros are chatting up the landlord or the agent. I'd tell my California Dream story and try to be as friendly and likable as possible. I also tried to say something memorable, to reference if we spoke again later. It sounds crazy, but I learned it from experience and I was on every short list of places I really liked.
I live in Russian Hill. Given your criteria, it's hard to imagine a better fit than my neighborhood for your needs. Telegraph would also be great. I like Nob Hill, but it's not as interesting as the other two for living, in my opinion.
You are smart not to be looking in SoMa. I don't find it a very desirable neighborhood to live. To work and to go out? It's great. To live? Not so much. It lacks charm and a sense of community to me.
Thanks, dalparadise! Appreciate your insights and confirmation that we are targeting the right neighborhoods! Based on our visits to SF and the apartments we have viewed online, Russian Hill is at the top of our list. It seems to be a lovely, safe neighborhood with lots of charm. But we are trying to stay open-minded and flexible so Nob Hill and Telegraph Hill would be good alternatives. Thanks again for the info!
Location: Baghdad by the Bay (San Francisco, California)
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I think Russian Hill is the perfect San Francisco neighborhood. It is right on the edge of nightlife and entertainment-- close enough to walk to the Marina, North Beach, Polk Gulch, and even Hayes Valley -- yet quietly peaceful and safe. It's also an easy walk down to the waterfront, Fort Mason, Crissy Field, The Off-The-Grid food truck meetup on Fridays, etc. my wife and I have walked and biked across the Golden Gate Bridge on a few occasions from our apartment. It's a pretty great location.
It is well served by transportation. I have about 12-15 Muni lines running within 5-6 blocks of my apartment, headed in all directions of the City. There is enough overlap of lines that, in off-peak times, or if there is some kind of problem with one line, there is an easy alternative available. During peak times, there is a bus at each of the stops that are within a block of my apartment every 3-5 minutes, running on four separate lines. It is also easily bike-able to Soma around the Embarcadero, with a limited number of hills. Still, since I work in the Financial District, I prefer the slower, but much more pleasant cable car for my commute. I know the grip men, and always strike up conversations with tourists. It's really nice. Depending on your work location in Soma, you may be able to use the cable car conveniently, too. It definitely is the way to go to Union Square, the FiDi, Market St., Chinatown, the Theater District or the Ferry Building from most parts of Russian Hill.
Russian Hill has many great neighborhood-style, and even a few elegant, Michelin-Star restaurants, plus tons in between. There are both divey and chic bars. There are boutiques, small bookstores, cafes and markets.
Views of the City are postcard quality in every direction. We are typically out of, or above the fog, so the weather is generally nicer than neighborhoods just a couple of miles or so west. And small public green spaces on the hill are charming, beautifully landscaped, secluded and safe.
It's the perfect balance between the kind of idyllic SF that tourists fall in love with, but isn't quite attainable for most who live here, and functional city that makes everyday living in a pedestrian-oriented place more desirable. That last part is key--a car is a bad idea in SF. It is an absolute nightmare and severe liability in Russian Hill. I have one only because I have garage parking (my building has 70 or so apartments in it and offers 10 spaces. ��) Without my space, I would hate having a car. With a parking space, I commute on public transportation and have a car for weekends in Wine Country or exploring the Bay Area. Perfect.
For all these reasons, Russian Hill is one of the most expensive neighborhoods in SF. To me it's easily the most livable one that retains the "old SF charm" though. I, like many others, find it worth the expense--more so than many other neighborhoods that may be more popular right now.
Last edited by dalparadise; 12-29-2014 at 01:43 PM..
Winter months are the slow season, so you should in theory face less competition. With that said, the area you are targeting is in high demand and the price range about par for the neighborhoods. My guess is that you will see vastly different level of competitiveness depending on the characteristics of each unit. At the upper end, renters can afford to be picky and you might find yourself competing with 10 other applicants for the gem while the ugly sister sits at the corner alone begging for an applicant.
Like dalparadise said, the name of the game is prepareness and making a good impression. Some renters dress up with business attire for the open house and with all documents ready in a folder ready to be handed to the landlord. Usually dressing up works better for women as men can come off as too corporate and intimidating so for men, I suggest business casual with khakis and no tie, etc. If there are more than one person living together then all people should show up so the landlord/manager see for himself/herself that you all are not some drugged up hooligans with tattoos on the faces. Making a good impression can make or break the deal. Even if the manager said he/she doesn't make the final decision, you bet he/she will have some input regardless so go and talk to the person and be super nice and sell yourself. You can also download an application online and fill it out ahead of time. Yes, many landlords have their own application but all forms are mostly the same anyway. Having a pre-filled application gives you an advantage - while management waits for the other applications to arrive, yours is set and all ready to go on the first day of open house. Management will likely run your credit and background check first and might just decide, "hey this looks good, let's just stop the process and rent this unit to this applicant." I like to use the application from rentalguide.com because it is more extensive than most forms out there and covers all the questions most standard forms ask you and more, so you can just convince the manager/landlord to accept your application, "Hey look, my application has more information on it than yours."
dalparadise and beb0p - thank you both for the information and tips! Will definitely check out the rentalguide.com application - it sounds like having that filled out ahead of time is a real advantage. We likely won't have more than a few days to look for a place so any shortcut or advantage we can get is helpful.
We do plan to bring a car to SF but would only use it on weekends to get out of the city. Having visited SF many times over the years, I agree that driving and parking is a nightmare so we would use public transportation or Uber to get around the city. We have gone back and forth on the car thing but ultimately, we want to be able to leave the city anytime we want to and think we'd feel a bit stranded without one. We may feel differently once we get there. I realize this will make our apartment hunt a little more difficult as we would strongly prefer to find a unit with on-site, secured garage parking.
Location: Baghdad by the Bay (San Francisco, California)
3,530 posts, read 5,139,312 times
Reputation: 3145
Quote:
Originally Posted by ThirtySomething11
dalparadise and beb0p - thank you both for the information and tips! Will definitely check out the rentalguide.com application - it sounds like having that filled out ahead of time is a real advantage. We likely won't have more than a few days to look for a place so any shortcut or advantage we can get is helpful.
We do plan to bring a car to SF but would only use it on weekends to get out of the city. Having visited SF many times over the years, I agree that driving and parking is a nightmare so we would use public transportation or Uber to get around the city. We have gone back and forth on the car thing but ultimately, we want to be able to leave the city anytime we want to and think we'd feel a bit stranded without one. We may feel differently once we get there. I realize this will make our apartment hunt a little more difficult as we would strongly prefer to find a unit with on-site, secured garage parking.
Consider Zipcar if you can't find a place with parking available. By the way, expect to pay $300-$400/mo. For a reserved parking space in Russian Hill.
Also, you'll probably have to fill out the application your landlord wants anyway, but having your forms together already makes a great impression. Plus, as stated above, anything that puts you on top of the pile helps.
We do plan to bring a car to SF but would only use it on weekends to get out of the city. Having visited SF many times over the years, I agree that driving and parking is a nightmare so we would use public transportation or Uber to get around the city. We have gone back and forth on the car thing but ultimately, we want to be able to leave the city anytime we want to and think we'd feel a bit stranded without one. We may feel differently once we get there. I realize this will make our apartment hunt a little more difficult as we would strongly prefer to find a unit with on-site, secured garage parking.
I work in Russian Hill, parking is near impossible on the south side (the side closer to SOMA)... but it is quite easy on the other side of the hill, the side close to the ocean. I've found that there are usually open spaces between Bay St and Francisco St (especially on Hyde St btw Bay and Chestnut), on weekdays (weekends are much tougher). That side of Russian Hill is also pricier.
As resident of the neighborhood, you are allowed to park your car on the street beyond the 2-hr limit (up to three days). You will need to apply for a street parking permit (forgot how much, probably around $60 for the year). But here's the thing, each building is only allocated four permits max, so if you plan to bring your car, check with the management if they know whether this limit has been reached.
Since you are considering Russian Hill, I'm wondering why you don't also have Marina and Pacific Heights on your list. They tend to go together with Russian Hill/Nob Hill for place hunters.
Location: Baghdad by the Bay (San Francisco, California)
3,530 posts, read 5,139,312 times
Reputation: 3145
Quote:
Originally Posted by beb0p
I work in Russian Hill, parking is near impossible on the south side (the side closer to SOMA)... but it is quite easy on the other side of the hill, the side close to the ocean. I've found that there are usually open spaces between Bay St and Francisco St (especially on Hyde St btw Bay and Chestnut), on weekdays (weekends are much tougher). That side of Russian Hill is also pricier.
As resident of the neighborhood, you are allowed to park your car on the street beyond the 2-hr limit (up to three days). You will need to apply for a street parking permit (forgot how much, probably around $60 for the year). But here's the thing, each building is only allocated four permits max, so if you plan to bring your car, check with the management if they know whether this limit has been reached.
Since you are considering Russian Hill, I'm wondering why you don't also have Marina and Pacific Heights on your list. They tend to go together with Russian Hill/Nob Hill for place hunters.
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Good advice and I agree that parking is a bit easier down where Russian Hill starts to blend into Fisherman's Wharf. The problem is, if you live even a couple of blocks up the hill from Bay St. it could be really inconvenient to have to tackle that hill every day.
During the tourist season, it also becomes more difficult, with rental cars parked around the area.
The Marina is easier to park overall. I think Pac Heights might be a toss-up.
Nice, I'm from Nashville originally. Definitely your budget would be fine for those neighborhoods, but parking is pretty awful. Unless you can find a garage (which would likely be something like $350-450 a month depending on the neighborhood), a car really would be a drag. I lucked out with my apartment and have a spot, but that's certainly not the norm.
But as others have said, as long as you come prepared and ready to pounce on something quick you should be fine. I'd also look into setting up a "recipe" on ifttt.com, so you can set up alerts on Craigslist. You'll be one of the first to reply most likely and any leg up you can get on others is huge. In the past I actually didn't even bother with a rental app, I just brought a renter's resume that had all the relevant information (previous apartments and landlords, reference, as well as brief details on me and my spouse) and a credit report, and that always seemed to work.
Not sure how deep into Soma your office is, but I work at Mission and 1st and generally walk to/from work everyday from Russian Hill. It's a bit of a steep walk on the way home, but nice to avoid the hassle of Muni. Russian Hill & Nob Hill make it pretty easy to get to that FiDi/Soma area whether by Muni or walking. Pac Heights is great but definitely a longer commute. The Marina - if it's your thing - would definitely be a trek unless you take one of those Marina-to-FiDi shuttles, but not sure how much those run per month.
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