I grew up in a suburb outside of Manchester, New Hampshire. You can get a pretty sizable house there for $300k, rent a nice apartment for $700/month. I'd consid

I grew up in a suburb outside of Manchester, New Hampshire. You can get a pretty sizable house there for $300k, rent a nice apartment for $700/month. I'd consider my upbringing middle class. It was cheap but wholesome, with access to an excellent New England education, mountains, the ocean, Boston, and enough social connections that I've never ever felt isolated. I think living in the Bay Area heavily distorts your view of what things are like in the rest of the country. Some people insist on living near Silicon Valley as if everywhere else is filled with bumpkins and barbarians, the uncool, but then can't make the connection that they must pay dearly for that inflexibility. I say, if you are poor in San Francisco, there are plenty of beautiful, cool, places to live that are much cheaper and culturally interesting.