How do teachers live in SF Bay area? (San Jose, San Francisco: rent, condo)

[HockeyMac18]

Originally Posted by ambient

Really?

If you're talking two teachers, median salary around here could be like $60K...so $120K gross. Where do you find the houses and condos that you can afford? In mid peninsula where I hang out, 1350 square foot fixer-uppers are selling for $1.1M. Even condos sell for mid $600s at lowest here. And maybe throw a kid or two into that equation as well...how exactly do you see this working?

So that then really begs the next question: if you have to go out to the hinterlands of East or South bay and you teach in SF...what do you call a reasonable commute? 1.5-2 hours each way?

And if you're in the "hinterlands" of the Bay Area, why even bother commuting to SF to work? Just be a teacher in said hinterland town. SF doesn't really offer teachers anything more that another surrounding town can offer. Teaching is not a tech job (i.e. only located in SF/silicon valley).

[jade408]

Originally Posted by EdJS

Well, to answer the OP's question:

My wife is a teacher in Fremont. I am a software engineer. We bought our house almost 20 years ago. That's how we afford to live here.

This is the case for one of my friends. Unfortunately they are my age. We were still in high school 20 years ago, no buying a home for us. So they rent. They want to buy but hubby works in Silicon Valley and there are no reasonable home options in their budget.

The other teachers I know also rent. One recently moved into a new apartment and barely found many options in her price range in Oakland. This is only going to get worse as Oakland gets more popular.

A few left the area to other cheaper metros.

It is pretty sucky, teaching barely pays a living wage in the Bay Area.

[shooting4life]

Originally Posted by jade408

This is the case for one of my friends. Unfortunately they are my age. We were still in high school 20 years ago, no buying a home for us. So they rent. They want to buy but hubby works in Silicon Valley and there are no reasonable home options in their budget.

The other teachers I know also rent. One recently moved into a new apartment and barely found many options in her price range in Oakland. This is only going to get worse as Oakland gets more popular.

A few left the area to other cheaper metros.

It is pretty sucky, teaching barely pays a living wage in the Bay Area.

Many jobs barely pay a living wage and usually people spend up to their income, meaning they will be in the same financial boat if they made 10k more, 20k more, 30k more, etc.

I just don't understand why people think being a teacher is some mythical boundary, it is a job, like every other job. It has its own distinct challenges, just like every other job.

[jade408]

Originally Posted by shooting4life

Many jobs barely pay a living wage and usually people spend up to their income, meaning they will be in the same financial boat if they made 10k more, 20k more, 30k more, etc.

I just don't understand why people think being a teacher is some mythical boundary, it is a job, like every other job. It has its own distinct challenges, just like every other job.

Because teaching used to he a solid path to the middle class and home ownership.

Other public servants can be paid quite well (ahem local fire fighters) and teachers also provide a valuable service to the community.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by shooting4life

Many jobs barely pay a living wage and usually people spend up to their income, meaning they will be in the same financial boat if they made 10k more, 20k more, 30k more, etc.

I just don't understand why people think being a teacher is some mythical boundary, it is a job, like every other job. It has its own distinct challenges, just like every other job.

You're making big assumptions, that someone who works at MacDonald's or on campus while working through college will get very spendy once they get a professional job. What people do when they move up at some point is start a retirement savings account. What they used to do, in addition to that, is invest in a home purchase, but that's harder to do now.

Teaching isn't a job like any other job. There are jobs for unskilled and semi-skilled workers, there are jobs for people with BA's, there are jobs for people with advanced degrees, and jobs for upper-level management, politicians, and so forth. Not all jobs are the same. Teaching is a job that requires, as a minimum, a BA + extra coursework for a teaching certificate, and teacher training. Some teachers have MA's. It's also a job that involves a certain level of responsibility for student safety. Many teaching jobs around the country don't pay commensurately with the level of education and responsibility required. Some do; some pay quite well after someone's been in the job awhile.

Jade makes a good point; maybe teachers should quit, and go into firefighting instead.

[gsw510]

I had a teacher that lived in Kensington, and that's one of the richest communities in the bay
Most of my teachers lived in "middle class" Bay Area cities, and there are a few "affordable" cities around (Richmond, East Oakland, Vallejo, Fairfield, Pittsburg, East Palo Alto, Antioch). However, most affordable parts of the Bay Area aren't very nice. Generally the further away from San Francisco the cheaper the housing prices, unless it's a total dump.

[shooting4life]

Originally Posted by jade408

Because teaching used to he a solid path to the middle class and home ownership.

Other public servants can be paid quite well (ahem local fire fighters) and teachers also provide a valuable service to the community.

And so did scores of other professions that do not exist now. Should the factory workers be getting subsidized housing to live in expensive areas because they once were able to. People who create the many products needed for a community to survive are also a valuable service to the community.

Teachers are no different than any other profession. the other public servants like firefighters often end up with life limiting injuries based on the work, which is why people will not do that job without higher pay. Teachers are more than welcome to apply for a job as a firefighter to earn more income.

[04kL4nD]

You are comparing unskilled factory workers to ones with specialized skills and degrees. It's sad that you don't value the services teachers provide, and I hope you don't have children since you don't seem to care very much about education.

[shooting4life]

Originally Posted by 04kL4nD

You are comparing unskilled factory workers to ones with specialized skills and degrees. It's sad that you don't value the services teachers provide, and I hope you don't have children since you don't seem to care very much about education.

Factory workers are skilled, it is just a different skill.

I value the skills teachers provide, but that skill in relation to supply available and should not be somehow linked to owning a home in the city you work in as is the topic of this post. And never once did I say I didn't care about education, it is best when you don't put words into others mouth.

[jade408]

Originally Posted by 04kL4nD

You are comparing unskilled factory workers to ones with specialized skills and degrees. It's sad that you don't value the services teachers provide, and I hope you don't have children since you don't seem to care very much about education.

100% agreed. Educating our kids is the foundation of a successful society. We have devalued this so much we literally do not care if half of our kids are not educated enough to contribute productively to society and our schools are failing even though it is detrimental to the future labor force and economic outlook.