Moving to SF from Houston, TX - confused on comparable cost-of-living (Oakland: apartments, rentals)

[polkadotsandglitter]

Hi folks!

So, there's an offer on the table for me to take my bags and move on over to SF. I'd be with the same company, and I've been asked to name the price. There's plenty of cost-of-living calculators on the web, but I need some real-life opinions as to what a comparable salary is + cost-of-living.

Like... How much do I make? Lose to taxes? Rent in the city? Deposits? Car insurance? Etc.

I'm currently at $85K - if I were to move, I would live in the city (I'm open to nearby areas, depending on the type of neighborhoods available).

I'd really appreciate any type of help and suggestions as I make this decision. Feel free to direct message me, as well!

[tikkasf]

Originally Posted by polkadotsandglitter

Hi folks!

So, there's an offer on the table for me to take my bags and move on over to SF. I'd be with the same company, and I've been asked to name the price. There's plenty of cost-of-living calculators on the web, but I need some real-life opinions as to what a comparable salary is + cost-of-living.

Like... How much do I make? Lose to taxes? Rent in the city? Deposits? Car insurance? Etc.

I'm currently at $85K - if I were to move, I would live in the city (I'm open to nearby areas, depending on the type of neighborhoods available).

I'd really appreciate any type of help and suggestions as I make this decision. Feel free to direct message me, as well!

Finding a place to rent in SF is going to be your biggest hurdle, I assume you are single?
Use the craigslist link below to get a idea of the rental market in SF. $85K a year = $7,083
a month gross income. A common value to use in regard to calculating a rent that would fit
a given budget is 1/3 of monthly gross income, in your case that would = $2,360 a month for
rent. In the craigslist SF rental listing link below, I put in a filter of $2,500 maximum rent

SF bay area apartments / housing rentals - craigslist

Spacious top floor studio with sep kitchen

[polkadotsandglitter]

Hi tikkasf,

Thanks so much for your response! Correct - single! So, the $85K is what I'm making currently - the salary, if I choose to move, will be increased to reflect the cost-of-living differences from here (super cheap) to SF (super expensive!). I've been asked to make an offer, but given the differences with everything from taxes, rent and other expenses, I can't figure out the salary sweet spot in order to continue the same lifestyle and still save as much as I'm saving now (around $2K/month).

Hope I'm making sense!

[alliance]

Also consider state income taxes.

Like you said, going from somewhere that is dirt cheap to SF will be a dramatic swing. Cost of living is probably 2-3 times more than Houston. I'd guess a low end of 140-150k to break even.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by tikkasf

Finding a place to rent in SF is going to be your biggest hurdle, I assume you are single?
Use the craigslist link below to get a idea of the rental market in SF. $85K a year = $7,083
a month gross income. A common value to use in regard to calculating a rent that would fit
a given budget is 1/3 of monthly gross income, in your case that would = $2,360 a month for
rent. In the craigslist SF rental listing link below, I put in a filter of $2,500 maximum rent

SF bay area apartments / housing rentals - craigslist

Spacious top floor studio with sep kitchen

Tikka, you're calculating from gross income, not net. That's not a good idea, is it? OP needs to know how big a bite taxes will take out of his gross.

It sounds like a pretty sweet deal if he's been told to name his price. IMO, he should kick it up toward $110K, ballpark, if employer would go for that. OP, you can bring costs down by living in the East Bay (Berkeley, Oakland, El Cerrito) and taking transit to the city. I'm just mentioning that, because we don't know how flexible your employer can be with the pay scale.

Oh, wait. OP said he wants to be able to save $2000/mo. on top of his expenses. Good luck, OP. Dream on. Take a look at Craigslist rents in Berkeley ("north Berkeley", & "Elmwood" , for starters) and El Cerrito, to get an idea of rents there compared to SF. You'll find El Cerrito to be a little cheaper than Berkeley. Both are on the rapid transit line to SF.

[tikkasf]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

Tikka, you're calculating from gross income, not net. That's not a good idea, is it? OP needs to know how big a bite taxes will take out of his gross.

It sounds like a pretty sweet deal if he's been told to name his price. IMO, he should kick it up toward $110K, ballpark, if employer would go for that. OP, you can bring costs down by living in the East Bay (Berkeley, Oakland, El Cerrito) and taking transit to the city. I'm just mentioning that, because we don't know how flexible your employer can be with the pay scale.

Oh, wait. OP said he wants to be able to save $2000/mo. on top of his expenses. Good luck, OP. Dream on. Take a look at Craigslist rents in Berkeley ("north Berkeley", & "Elmwood" , for starters) and El Cerrito, to get an idea of rents there compared to SF. You'll find El Cerrito to be a little cheaper than Berkeley. Both are on the rapid transit line to SF.

I have no idea what OP's net would be. A general rule of thumb for rentals is 30% of gross income in calculating rent afford ability.
If OP plans to go without a car in SF, then that needs to be taken in consideration. My electricity & gas is currently costing me $60 a month in SF for a one bedroom apt.

[TR95]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

Tikka, you're calculating from gross income, not net. That's not a good idea, is it? OP needs to know how big a bite taxes will take out of his gross.

It sounds like a pretty sweet deal if he's been told to name his price. IMO, he should kick it up toward $110K, ballpark, if employer would go for that. OP, you can bring costs down by living in the East Bay (Berkeley, Oakland, El Cerrito) and taking transit to the city. I'm just mentioning that, because we don't know how flexible your employer can be with the pay scale.

Oh, wait. OP said he wants to be able to save $2000/mo. on top of his expenses. Good luck, OP. Dream on. Take a look at Craigslist rents in Berkeley ("north Berkeley", & "Elmwood" , for starters) and El Cerrito, to get an idea of rents there compared to SF. You'll find El Cerrito to be a little cheaper than Berkeley. Both are on the rapid transit line to SF.

Good advice for the OP. OP, I'm usually a positive one for people moving here than most of the posters on here. But, Ruth is spot on. If you really want to save $2,000/mo. then you need to be up in the $130k range. Net on approximately $130k will be around $85-$90k or $7,000/month. Saving $2,000 leaves you $5,000 for rent (at least $2,500) and then it just depends on your other debt and spending. One thing to keep in mind is that if you eat lunch out everyday in the city it likely will be over $10/day and many cases $13-$15, so lunch alone is about $200/month. Sure you can find cheaper places. Then if you go to happy hours that could easily be another $30/week. But you sound frugal so maybe you bring lunch and don't socialize after work, but many do here much more so than probably Houston. Really all depends on your spending habits. If you have good spending habits, then maybe you could get away with $115k. Too many variables that are unknown.

[tikkasf]

Originally Posted by TR95

Good advice for the OP. OP, I'm usually a positive one for people moving here than most of the posters on here. But, Ruth is spot on. If you really want to save $2,000/mo. then you need to be up in the $130k range. Net on approximately $130k will be around $85-$90k or $7,000/month. Saving $2,000 leaves you $5,000 for rent (at least $2,500) and then it just depends on your other debt and spending. One thing to keep in mind is that if you eat lunch out everyday in the city it likely will be over $10/day and many cases $13-$15, so lunch alone is about $200/month. Sure you can find cheaper places. Then if you go to happy hours that could easily be another $30/week. But you sound frugal so maybe you bring lunch and don't socialize after work, but many do here much more so than probably Houston. Really all depends on your spending habits. If you have good spending habits, then maybe you could get away with $115k. Too many variables that are unknown.

I had faith in OP figuring that out on her/his own. The link provided in my reply post to OP. should give OP some idea what the rental market is like in SF.

[TR95]

Originally Posted by tikkasf

I had faith in OP figuring that out on her/his own. The link provided in my reply post to OP. should give OP some idea what the rental market is like in SF.

Yes, one would hope that he/she could do that.

[tikkasf]

OP;
Below is another website link of rentals in SF. This time, I did not apply a maximum rent filter. From my experience of helping a former coworker look for a rental a few years ago, don't let expectations get too high from any listing you see...until you see the rental in person


https://hotpads.com/san-francisco-ca...s-for-rent/map