Is the SF Bay Area overrated? (San Diego, San Francisco: for sale, buyer, garden)

[MrJester]

Originally Posted by gizmo980

Just re-reading this post, and realized I didn't say enough in response... so much to break down here! Haha.



That describes EVERY major ballpark or stadium in the country, if not world. It's called having a captive audience, and taking full advantage of that. Anyone who's been to enough sporting events knows this, which is probably how the whole tailgating tradition started. Load up on food and alcohol BEFORE the game, then sip on water once you're inside.



It attracts both, honestly. According to this source, San Francisco itself welcomed 25.1 million visitors in 2016, who brought in a total of 9.69 BILLION dollars to the city. If that isn't impressive enough, I don't know what to tell you. It's literally one of the top vacation destinations in the country, so what more do you expect??

https://www.sftravel.com/article/san...g-tourism-2016



Nah, the tourists seem even more aware of it than the locals - especially given that it's mostly seen in the neighborhoods where tourists end up, like Civic Center and the Tenderloin (since the theater district is around there). Go to where most of us actually live, and you won't see much if any of that stuff.



Again, your opinions seem limited to the touristy areas. Most of the region isn't that "stifling," and none of it really qualifies as "third-world." Have you ever been to an actual third-world country? I have, and they make even the worst parts of SF look like a virtual paradise.

And since this thread is discussing the Bay Area in general, there are TONS of places where you can feel almost completely isolated. I live up in the Santa Cruz mountains now, and all I hear at night is the hooting of owls. They put on quite a performance last night! This is the view from my deck/backyard:





Now that someone else mentioned this, I'm a little confused. Google is 30+ miles from San Francisco, but you're saying they couldn't afford the city - so moved 30 miles away from work? Do you mean in the other direction, or are you under the impression that Google is in the city? Look at a map, lol.

And this is also not something unique to the Bay Area, although we do have it worse than most places (due to our high COL). But if you asked everyone who worked in Manhattan, or Boston, etc, you'd find a good number of them live 20-30 miles/minutes from city center. That's how suburbs were formed in the first place.



Wow. You mean to say that one of the most famous tourist spots was CROWDED? And that they were putting sugar in their bodies at a CHOCOLATE factory? Next you'll tell us there was a line of cars trying to go down Lombard Street, and that Fisherman's Wharf smelled kinda fishy.



If you really want to know what the hype is about, talk to some locals before coming again (if that ever happens). Don't just rely on the guidebooks and usual tourist spots, although it is good to see those things once... but if you come back, and I do wish you would, try visiting the places where tourists don't normally go. Then maybe you'll understand a little better.

As a Bay Area local, please tell us where the locals hang out. That would best prove your point.

Anyhow, you are exceptionally fortunate to live in the Santa Cruz mountains. We don't deny the Santa Cruz mountains aren't majestic and lushly forested, we just know that the vast majority of Bay Area residents are not enjoying this kind of scenery daily. We also know that vast swathes of the Southeast have mountains just as, if not more, majestic than the Santa Cruz ranges, plus changing fall colors and maple syrup to boot. And finally, we know of entire cities from Houston to Atlanta to Orlando to Pittsburgh that are surrounded by vast forests that stay lush even during the heat of the summer thanks to plentiful summer rain whereas the foothills of the East Bay are dead brown all summer, every summer. Many of us have actually enjoyed the warm water of the Gulf, the Atlantic, or the Caribbean or Hawaii and can't be fooled into thinking that Bay Area beaches are just as pleasant for swimming. If they were, why do they build beach resorts in Miami, not Bodega Bay?

The Bay Area has its merits (robust rail transit system, Silicon Valley, fancy bridges, and a rapidly growing Downtown SF skyline). But the weather and scenery leave much to be desired. And it's not like the rest of the country has a worse job market.

[80skeys]

Originally Posted by JoeSmow

Ditto. It seems like it's some sort of defense mechanism to show superiority for the Bay Area.

But, the fact of the matter is that there are very few to no bugs here in the Bay Area, or at least here in Silicon Valley. Literally no mosquitos, no cockroaches, no flies, no insects at any time of the year.

[80skeys]

Originally Posted by MrJester

But the weather and scenery leave much to be desired.

I disagree adamantly. I've lived in different places and am pretty widely travelled and in my opinion the weather here in the San Jose area is as ideal as you can get. The only complaint I have is that it would be nice to see a little bit of rain during the summer months.

Originally Posted by JoeSmow

Clearly you're just ignoring the other comments that have been made on this.

I've lived in Austin where flying cockroaches are a problem; short of fumigating the heck out of your apartment every month you can't avoid them. I've lived in New Mexico where centipedes come into your house, cicadas are buzzing all the time in summer months, and wasps are common. I've lived in the D.C. area which has a lot of mosquitos in the summer, and I've been in Minnesota in the summer which is horrible for mosquitos. .... None of these things are present here in Sunnyvale (or, if they're present it's in such small amounts that I haven't noticed them in the 9 years we've been here.)

[JJonesIII]

Originally Posted by 80skeys

I've lived in Austin where flying cockroaches are a problem; short of fumigating the heck out of your apartment every month you can't avoid them. I've lived in New Mexico where centipedes come into your house, cicadas are buzzing all the time in summer months, and wasps are common. I've lived in the D.C. area which has a lot of mosquitos in the summer, and I've been in Minnesota in the summer which is horrible for mosquitos. .... None of these things are present here in Sunnyvale (or, if they're present it's in such small amounts that I haven't noticed them in the 9 years we've been here.)

What a bunch of hogwash! If you had cockroaches, then try cleaning up your apartment, and move to one that has monthly pest control and not a bunch of slobs that leave food all over the place. This is why you can't have a rational conversation on this topic.

[aslowdodge]

Originally Posted by JoeSmow

I couldn't agree more with this statement. But if that poster enjoys putting up her pictures, more power to her. Quite frankly what I find even more stunning than her pictures are these pictures....

$1,000,000 (current pricing)





$319,000 (current pricing)





You see, some of us value going home to a energy efficient house with every modern amenity vs a million dollar shack. With a property tax rate of 2.3%, you're only looking at $7k, but of course there are no state taxes so clearly a savings over San Francisco.

Ironically, we live in an 2 bd apartment that is bigger than our home in San Francisco (rent of $1300) and our average utility bill is $77 (about half of what we were paying for our PG&E bill back home...the average customer is spending a little over $150 right now in the San Francisco area).

https://www.sfgate.com/business/arti...16-6728373.php

I'm looking forward to purchasing a home in the summer (we wanted to get through a year here to make sure we like it, had sustainable jobs, and could handle the warm summer.....we love it!). For me, the lower COL and a beautiful home trump these scenic pictures any day (but again, as stated by MrJester, there is beautiful scenery all over the country).

But come on, the first house is a great deal because it comes with the bars on the windows already installed

[aslowdodge]

Originally Posted by 80skeys

But, the fact of the matter is that there are very few to no bugs here in the Bay Area, or at least here in Silicon Valley. Literally no mosquitos, no cockroaches, no flies, no insects at any time of the year.

I do agree there are fewer bugs in the Bay area overall, but it doesn't take many to make you suffer. 10 flies, 100 flies, they are all a pest.
I've done photoshoots in the bay area where I had to retouch out the bugs that landed on the people.
I think there's more mosquitos here in Ga as we have a lot more bodies of water whereas Ca was pretty dry, but I still got bit in Ca so either way you can get nailed but repellent solves it.
In all my years in the bay area I've never had roaches, but I know other people who didn't have clean dwellings there did.
It really comes down to to just taking precautions which aren't that big of a deal.

[Finper]

So Cal used to be fairly mosquito free till this summer. We were invaded by a new mosquito called ankle biters. They bit multiple times around the lower leg during the day time. Very itchy too. Bugs don't normally bite me but not this new one. I had to drain my outdoor water feature. Some people had to go to the er because they blew up from the bites. I bet by next summer the new mosquito will hit SF. If you don't believe me google ankle biter so cal.

[Tulemutt]

Originally Posted by Finper

So Cal used to be fairly mosquito free till this summer. We were invaded by a new mosquito called ankle biters. They bit multiple times around the lower leg during the day time. Very itchy too. Bugs don't normally bite me but not this new one. I had to drain my outdoor water feature. Some people had to go to the er because they blew up from the bites. I bet by next summer the new mosquito will hit SF. If you don't believe me google ankle biter so cal.

Those aren’t mosquitoes ... those are chihuahuas.

[rodentraiser]

Originally Posted by Tulemutt

Those aren’t mosquitoes ... those are chihuahuas.

I thought ankle biters were kids.

[Tulemutt]

Originally Posted by rodentraiser

I thought ankle biters were kids.

Same thing, basically. Yappy little hell-raisers.