4 ms·

Yup, rents have gone up approx. 50% in the last few years. A 1 BR in SF is now averaging $3200/mo. I believe. AVERAGING. The secret killer behind these price

Yup, rents have gone up approx. 50% in the last few years. A 1 BR in SF is now averaging $3200/mo. I believe. AVERAGING. The secret killer behind these prices is that only newcomers pay them. Most renters who have been in SF for more than 5 years are in a rent-controlled building, which means their rent is basically locked in, which is good on one hand but on the other, you can never move out. Black mold? Leaking roof? Rat infestation? Illegal units stealing your electricity? It creates a situation where people will deal with any and all hazards and illegal situations just to maintain their low rent because they know if they move they have nowhere else to go.

owyn 10y ago
Yep, rents have doubled since I moved here. I moved to the bay area about 8 years ago. In that time, the house in Seattle that I lived in doubled in value, the equivalent of about 50k/year. Since I have lived here, the rents have also doubled, the equivalent of about 25k/year. I'm actually paying about the same (mortgage there vs rent here). I could have parked everything in AAPL and made about 5x. There are opportunity costs everywhere. Money is only part of the equation but I'm making more than that difference in salary and I'm a LOT happier in SF. Being closer to friends and family and having a better work/life balance, being able to ride my bike to work, makes a big difference for me in overall happiness score. YMMV of course. The building I live in used to be a terrible slum situation, and the new owners have renovated it (of course, living here during the renovation wasn't fun). I feel lucky there. Friends of mine have also been evicted and moved to other cities or other countries as a result of not being able to afford anything.