> “Of course not,” says the first, “but you don’t buy to live there.” This quip about investing in property in Oakland hits home. I had some reservations about

> “Of course not,” says the first, “but you don’t buy to live there.” This quip about investing in property in Oakland hits home. I had some reservations about crossing the Bay a few years ago to buy a home, but one I did not have was about moving to a place where people who had attitudes like this were uncommon. Several months ago I ran into an ex-coworker who triumphantly told me how he had cashed out some of his options to buy some units in Oakland, evicted the existing tenants under some owner/family move-in loophole, vacated, remodeled, and was now raking in the rent. All the while explaining that he would never actually live there. I wanted to vomit. I'm a lucky dummy romantic, I moved to SF because I like trains, and LA didn't have any. I have some skills which have helped me land excellent jobs. I don't hide my disgust for baloney very well and this has enabled me to walk away from some jobs. My brushes with the proto-corporate startup world have been fleeting, but proportionally every bit as soul-sucking as the author makes it out to be. Excellent piece.