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Concentrate on getting a job first before exploring the area. Your SO isn't going to wait on a deadbeat girlfriend, especially when the Bay Area does not lack for hardworking, educated, intelligent, financially-stable, and gorgeous, single women.
Concentrate on getting a job first before exploring the area. Your SO isn't going to wait on a deadbeat girlfriend, especially when the Bay Area does not lack for hardworking, educated, intelligent, financially-stable, and gorgeous, single women.
You're killing me! LOL!
Or, maybe the OP should use the SO to get out to the bay area and then find herself a new partner who'd be happy to pay for her raised beds .
My boyfriend has accepted and started a position at Apple. I will be moving there in mid-December from North Carolina and starting a job search. We've found a house to live in (Sunnyvale) and BF is ok paying all of rent and bills until I find a job. However, I would like to find a job ASAP: I do not like not being able to support myself. I'm doing social work right now, and from what it looks like, people in CA make about the same as what I'm making with only a slight cost of living increase.
I'm finding it pretty difficult to stay positive with all the people that say don't come to the Bay Area, you will regret it, you will be living paycheck to paycheck, etc. So please, tell me, great people who can afford to live in the Bay Area, what are some positive things about the area? What are some good places to eat, nice sights to see, museums, bars, parks, etc? What do you guys LOVE about living there? For background, I'm in my mid-twenties, physically active, and love to explore new places.
I moved to CA from NC (Raleigh, specifically), and like others have said it's going to be a major adjustment. If you're outdoorsy, into good food/wine, and you like exploring, I think you'll like it here. One thing I will say is that Raleigh is absolutely nothing like the Bay Area. The people are different, the politics are different, and people aren't going to be as warm/friendly as they are in the South. In all honesty, it took me a solid year to make some genuine friends, so don't get discouraged if it doesn't come easy to you. People here are slow to warm up and it can get a bit lonely if you don't have a thick skin and aren't persistent. I've been here nearly ten years, but I honestly wouldn't want to live anywhere else. After a while, the Bay Area will start to "click" with you, and it'll eventually feel like home. My best advice is to join as many social groups as you can and to hang out with people who are passionate about a hobby (hiking, photography, cooking, etc). People can come across as aloof or flakey, but once you establish that you have something in common, they'll eventually weave you into their network of friends. You already know the COL is going to be outrageous, so just accept it and move on. Talking about how expensive it is or how much cheaper things are back in NC isn't going to do you any favors. In my experience, if you focus on the positives of living here (weather, scenery, diversity) you'll surround yourself with like minded people. Also, be forewarned that a lot of people here view education level as a status symbol and some will even assume you're dumb/backwards because you're from NC (it happened a bit to me when I first moved here), but try not to take it personally and just distance yourself from those types of people (they suck), as well as people who try to give you unsolicited relationship advice online Best of luck to you and shoot me a DM if you have specific questions.
I moved less than a year ago (fellow woman, similar age) and finally feel very homey here. To be honest, I've felt "home" from day one - and that says a lot; I have lived in several other states, traveled a lot, and have family overseas.
Pros:
1. Variety in everything (people, nature, restaurants, companies...)
2. There's no other place like Silicon Valley, especially right now. I think locals take it for granted that we share roads with Google's self-driving cars on our commutes. (Okay, they can be annoying, but I feel like I'm getting a secret glimpse into the future.) I consider them a symbol of "all-things-cool" happening in tech here, except they're one of the few visible developments; this place is bubbling with ideas.
3. Intellectual stimulation, sans ego (for the most part). It's basically a given that everyone here is brilliant and driven, so I rarely (almost can't remember if ever, actually) see people speak of their credentials. That is very refreshing compared to other places I lived, where a simple introduction can become a battle of people trying to one-up each other. Most people are very happy to chat, brainstorm, and share their knowledge.
4. Continuing from #3, the opportunities to meet other people are endless. There are meetups and "meetups" from the site and beyond. People get together for any reason and to discuss anything. You find people discussing crazy physics theories at happy hour, and you can probably find a group for people who like socks with blue polka dots.
5. Continuing from #4, this place makes me feel like I'm traveling every day. I love traveling - have an incurable travel bug - yet I'm content here. On a daily basis, I encounter people from at least a dozen countries, who speak even more languages, like and know of different things than I do, and are easy to get along with. You really can't say this for many other places in the US except major cities (NYC, Chicago, etc.).
6. Back to #1, when you get people from all over the world, you end up with food from all over the world, too. From Indian to Indonesian, vegan to BBQ food trucks... your tastebuds will never get bored.
7. And neither will your eyes. The nature here is spectacular. With no more than an hour or two driving in any direction, you can get beaches, mountains, hiking trails through redwoods, rolling hills in wine country, hot weather, snow, and even Yosemite.
I could go on and on, but those are some of my favorites. I also lived in SoCal for several years and left swearing I would never return to CA (I hated it that much). Fast forward to living in the Bay, and I wouldn't trade it for the world. I turned down a job here years ago, and I'm glad I didn't make the same mistake twice.
RE: Volunteering - I'm also a lifelong animal volunteer and found it a bit challenging (but not impossible, given you have the time) to find opportunities. Some shelters had volunteer waitlists which, while frustrating for prospective volunteers, is pretty freaking awesome in the grand scheme of things.
I'd be happy to grab coffee when you move and chat! Best of luck with everything.
Not seeing the whole RTP similarity trait to PA, the people are totally different in terms of their spiritual beliefs and heritage mainly Civil War resentment, though a large % of the population is transient with a lot of people from NY and elsewhere, there is still pockets of true Natives going back generations, some of which but not all, still have issues with anyone who is from the North and they will treat you accordingly, often might be nice to your face but watch your back.
Though it has changed over the years with the influx of people from all over, there still is a vibe that exists of outright animosity towards anyone that is from the North, being called a Yankee not in a joking tone, accent laughed at and/or harassment at work.
I knew a few people that moved there from PA years back and left, many stated reasoning to what I stated, got harassed at jobs they took, one guy was a welder and co-workers would walk up behind him and yell real loud or go Boo! for no reason, causing him to mess up, got fed up with the treatment and mentality, quit and returned to PA. Also they would constantly make fun of his accent, none of which was typical joking around between co-workers because none would sit with him at lunch or offer to connect after hours, just was totally treated like he was the plague.
Personally, I actually preferred ATL and even had better luck with people in general outside the Perimeter, though I did have one co-worker who was a native southerner get on my case about being a Yankee and freeing all these damn (bleep-bleeps).
Also a drive to the ocean ala Santa Cruz from San Jose on 17, though nothing like living in Miami, is a ton better than from Raleigh to the Outerbanks which is a major haul. Also it snows in Raleigh and when it does, it basically shuts down the whole area, in PA when it snows, PennDOT can handle it and people know how to drive in it.
Everyone thinks RTP is so great for Tech, and thinking maybe things changed since I last talked to anyone who moved there in recent years, I talked to several co-workers in Tech who moved there and left after a year, that's within the past 2-3 years. I also know a couple who recently moved there from Miami 6 months ago, they are planning on going back to Miami in the Spring, go figure.
Personally I would not suggest anyone who works in Tech moving to the Valley for any less than $125K/year and now that's becoming more like $150K/year, especially a single wage earner who's boyfriend/girlfriend/spouse does not equally work in tech and cannot make the same coin. Not everyone is scoring Developer Salaries or even works in Software, so make sure you figure 50% of your income going towards rent, not going to leave much for dining out or shopping on Santana Row, if you can even find a parking spot.
Also, Apple is notorious for not paying great and at having no work/life balance, hope the OP took that into account? Good thing is once your planted, your odds of being poached or finding another job is better than other areas of the US, even with the amount of competition and H1-BS, it's still the best place for Tech for now, till the bubble pops.
One thing NC and CA have in common, high income tax rate, and often wages are relative, though they dropped it down from the old rates, SC is much worse. PA is the best state besides Florida with it's no income tax, east of the Mississippi @ 3.07%.
I lived in Raleigh for 1.75 years before coming here. Spot on. I didnt like the area too much. Bland, suburban, humid and hot in the summer, surprisingly cold in the winter for its latitude. It averages about 8 inches of snow a year but the city pretends theyre in Florida and have no ability to deal with annual snowfall, causing choas.
I found there to be a lot of transplants in NC but a lot of the locals were very standoffish and were extremely unfriendly when they realized I was a northerner. Many of the locals really seemed to resent the college educated locals taking all the "good" jobs.
To the OP the beaches have cold water here (though warmer in the wintertime than NC here) but its a lot easier to get there than Nags Head or Wrightsville Beach. The surfing and kayaking is better, theres places to go mountain biking and hiking everywhere. San Jose's downtown kind of reminds me of a way better version of Raleigh. Way more live music, a hockey team that isn't a joke, a better theater scene, a much wider variety of cusine and decent public transit. And San Francisco outshines every city in the South by far barring New Orleans.
Also some of these "required" salary figures are insane. Lets just say I rent a really nice 1 bedroom for 2k (and you can go cheaper) and find the cost of other goods and services to be around 5-10% more than NC. This area is urban so expect smaller apartment housing, but if youre childfree and have good weather who cares?
And finally jobs. Theres a much stronger job market in all fields here than NC. Its tech scene in NC is vastly overrated imo. Its heavily centered on defense these days and is only really lauded because its the only real high-tech hub south of mason dixon and east of texas. I met more underemployed college grads there than here, and the salaries in NC were awful.
Last edited by njbiodude; 11-18-2015 at 10:18 AM..
I lived in Raleigh for 1.75 years before coming here. Spot on. I didnt like the area too much. Bland, suburban, humid and hot in the summer, surprisingly cold in the winter for its latitude. It averages about 8 inches of snow a year but the city pretends theyre in Florida and have no ability to deal with annual snowfall, causing choas.
I found there to be a lot of transplants in NC but a lot of the locals were very standoffish and were extremely unfriendly when they realized I was a northerner. Many of the locals really seemed to resent the college educated locals taking all the "good" jobs.
To the OP the beaches have cold water here (though warmer in the wintertime than NC here) but its a lot easier to get there than Nags Head or Wrightsville Beach. The surfing and kayaking is better, theres places to go mountain biking and hiking everywhere. San Jose's downtown kind of reminds me of a way better version of Raleigh. Way more live music, a hockey team that isn't a joke, a better theater scene, a much wider variety of cusine and decent public transit. And San Francisco outshines every city in the South by far barring New Orleans.
Also some of these "required" salary figures are insane. Lets just say I rent a really nice 1 bedroom for 2k (and you can go cheaper) and find the cost of other goods and services to be around 5-10% more than NC. This area is urban so expect smaller apartment housing, but if youre childfree and have good weather who cares?
And finally jobs. Theres a much stronger job market in all fields here than NC. Its tech scene in NC is vastly overrated imo. Its heavily centered on defense these days and is only really lauded because its the only real high-tech hub south of mason dixon and east of texas. I met more underemployed college grads there than here, and the salaries in NC were awful.
Completely agree. the $125-150k figure the person you quoted used is ridiculous, and I say this as a solo occupant in a 1-bed unit, even with the massive additional cost of a dog (walking, etc.). If you don't need Louis Vuitton bedsheets and cutlery, you are smooth sailing at $100k and can easily save a lot of money anywhere above that (especially given you'll be splitting rent and other costs).
Also some of these "required" salary figures are insane. Lets just say I rent a really nice 1 bedroom for 2k (and you can go cheaper) and find the cost of other goods and services to be around 5-10% more than NC. This area is urban so expect smaller apartment housing, but if youre childfree and have good weather who cares?
So you spend $24K/year on rent, if you are grossing $100K and are a single wage earner, you are paying around 40% of your take home (not figuring in any other deductions other than standard) on rent, odds are you're rent will go up higher next year or in two years (if rate hike restricted) higher than any raise can offset, rental rate hikes in the Valley are out of control.
If you can ditch a lot of what you can have elsewhere for less, eat cheap and not have anyone else in your household to support, sure it's possible but not something that's always the case. Also most recruiters I worked with place people in positions ranging the $125K+ range, anything less and many will not even make the move.
Completely agree. the $125-150k figure the person you quoted used is ridiculous, and I say this as a solo occupant in a 1-bed unit, even with the massive additional cost of a dog (walking, etc.). If you don't need Louis Vuitton bedsheets and cutlery, you are smooth sailing at $100k and can easily save a lot of money anywhere above that (especially given you'll be splitting rent and other costs).
Like I said above and are you paying a monthly pet rent for your dog? A lot of places are charging people that, when I first heard of "Pet Rent", it was a first and I lived all over the US.
There are plenty of H1Bs splitting rent on a 1 bedroom.
So you spend $24K/year on rent, if you are grossing $100K and are a single wage earner, you are paying around 40% of your take home (not figuring in any other deductions other than standard) on rent, odds are you're rent will go up higher next year or in two years (if rate hike restricted) higher than any raise can offset, rental rate hikes in the Valley are out of control.
If you can ditch a lot of what you can have elsewhere for less, eat cheap and not have anyone else in your household to support, sure it's possible but not something that's always the case. Also most recruiters I worked with place people in positions ranging the $125K+ range, anything less and many will not even make the move.
The problem with percentages is they dont really mean squat here. After rent and taxes I have an extra 1k a month from salary here compared to NC. Yes the percentage of my income going to rent in NC was lower but not my gross. My general expenses are only marginally higher, so that seems to work.
IMO your 125k in the Bay Area translates to about 75-80k in terms of purchasing power in Raleigh. And thats about what someone doing a job here paying 125k a year would get paid there. So it evens out somewhat.
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