Moving to SF for a startup (San Francisco, Marina: apartments, for rent, lofts)

[kins]

So, the company I'm with is moving to SF pretty soon and they want me to go with them. While, I am excited about the move, I'm pretty broke right now and I'm not sure I can afford to live in the city on the salary I have now. I say "in the city" because they want me closer to work.

Do startups in SF ever pay or assist with moving expenses? Or would they even consider increasing your salary?

SF is 28% more expensive and housing is 43% more expensive and that my current salary should increase about $19k in SF.

Salary.com says my current salary should increase $10-15k

CNN's calculator says that a comparable salary is $18k more than what I'm getting now and that groceries will be 15% more and housing will be 38% more.

Also, where would the best places to live in SF be? Since they want me close to work, I was thinking of places around SoMA and North Beach. Any places to avoid? It's quite possible I'd be working really late nights and I'd have to take the BART or some other public transportation.

[mdwstrnkid]

If they want you to live closer to work, they had better pay you more... Have they talked to you about what your new salary would be? What are you expecting to get paid?

[kins]

Originally Posted by mdwstrnkid

If they want you to live closer to work, they had better pay you more... Have they talked to you about what your new salary would be? What are you expecting to get paid?

Living closer to work is one of their wants. I get the feeling they'd prefer my salary stay the same. It's a startup. Then again, I haven't worked for a startup before, so I don't know all the "rules," but I figure in a normal situation, my pay would Have to increase.

I'm currently living in a 2 story house and I know there's no way I'm going to find that for an affordable price in SF. I wouldn't mind living in a 2 level loft, but how easy are those to come by? I'm okay with $2,300/mo, but would, of course, rather pay less.

[mdwstrnkid]

If you are looking for a loft, you probably can find a 1BR loft for that price, like this one:

Loft and Condo Apartments for Rent in the San Francisco Bay Area

I'm not sure where your company is located, but for lofts, you can probably find some places in SOMA, South Beach, and Potrero Hill that fits you budget.

[Jonotastic]

Originally Posted by kins

So, the company I'm with is moving to SF pretty soon and they want me to go with them. While, I am excited about the move, I'm pretty broke right now and I'm not sure I can afford to live in the city on the salary I have now. I say "in the city" because they want me closer to work.

Do startups in SF ever pay or assist with moving expenses? Or would they even consider increasing your salary?

SF is 28% more expensive and housing is 43% more expensive and that my current salary should increase about $19k in SF.

Salary.com says my current salary should increase $10-15k

CNN's calculator says that a comparable salary is $18k more than what I'm getting now and that groceries will be 15% more and housing will be 38% more.

Also, where would the best places to live in SF be? Since they want me close to work, I was thinking of places around SoMA and North Beach. Any places to avoid? It's quite possible I'd be working really late nights and I'd have to take the BART or some other public transportation.

Why aren't you asking your company most of these questions?

Best places to live:

North Beach
Telegraph Hill
Nob Hill
Russian Hill
Pacific Heights
Marina

[kins]

Originally Posted by Jonotastic

Why aren't you asking your company most of these questions?

Best places to live:

North Beach
Telegraph Hill
Nob Hill
Russian Hill
Pacific Heights
Marina

Thanks for the tips on places to check out. Haven't had the chance to ask them yet because I just found out on Friday night while I was on the east coast. Just trying to prepare for my mtg with them on Monday.

[kins]

Originally Posted by mdwstrnkid

If you are looking for a loft, you probably can find a 1BR loft for that price, like this one:

Loft and Condo Apartments for Rent in the San Francisco Bay Area

I'm not sure where your company is located, but for lofts, you can probably find some places in SOMA, South Beach, and Potrero Hill that fits you budget.

Ah, yeah. I saw that one. It's on the list of places to visit. I need to set up some time to check out the neighborhoods in the city.

I think the new office is pretty close to SF MoMA.

[mdwstrnkid]

Originally Posted by kins

Thanks for the tips on places to check out. Haven't had the chance to ask them yet because I just found out on Friday night while I was on the east coast. Just trying to prepare for my mtg with them on Monday.

You should definitely find out if they will give you a COL increase. Don't be too surprised if it is less than the differences that you read in those other web sites. My company only gives about a 10% COL adjustment for living in the Bay Area as compared to other areas in the country.

Also, if you are willing to pay $2300/month, I am going to assume that you are grossing roughly three times that per month, or about $80K gross per year. I'm not sure what role you have at your startup, but if you are a software engineer, that's not too far out of line with startup salaries in the area.

[kins]

Originally Posted by mdwstrnkid

Also, if you are willing to pay $2300/month, I am going to assume that you are grossing roughly three times that per month, or about $80K gross per year. I'm not sure what role you have at your startup, but if you are a software engineer, that's not too far out of line with startup salaries in the area.

Around 80k for software engineers in SF startups? That's interesting and slightly less than I thought. Where'd you get your information from? I'd like to take a look. I can't find too many articles or references on what startup engineers are supposed to make so any links would be helpful.

If it helps any, I'm one of the first employees (software engineer) of the company. I've been working on the UI side of things and have currently been working on building up the front-end development team which may end up being bicoastal.

[mdwstrnkid]

Originally Posted by kins

Around 80k for software engineers in SF startups? That's interesting and slightly less than I thought. Where'd you get your information from? I'd like to take a look. I can't find too many articles or references on what startup engineers are supposed to make so any links would be helpful.

If it helps any, I'm one of the first employees (software engineer) of the company. I've been working on the UI side of things and have currently been working on building up the front-end development team which may end up being bicoastal.

No specific references - I'm basing this on anecdotal information on the salaries for other software developers in the area and then adjusting for the fact that you are working for a startup. Of course, the number that I listed is for someone who is at a more junior level (0-3 years) - not sure if you fall into that category though. If you are a senior software engineer, I imagine that it could be higher.