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When I was interviewing for jobs in the Bay area I noticed entry level salaries (even at smaller shops) were in the range of 100-120k and rent was like 35-40% o

When I was interviewing for jobs in the Bay area I noticed entry level salaries (even at smaller shops) were in the range of 100-120k and rent was like 35-40% of your salary after taxes. Certainly higher than the recommended 30% but it's not that different from somewhere like LA or NYC, even Chicago and Miami aren't much cheaper. Are my numbers just totally off?

ng12 7y ago
$120,000 comes out to around $6k/mo. A mediocre studio in SF is pretty close to $3k.
- holy_city 7y ago
  After taxes it's a bit under $6,900 so 40% of that is ~$2,700. Browsing Zillow/Apartments.com/Padmapper shows several thousand listings for studios under $2k and single bedrooms around $2.2-2.7k, depending on area. SF proper seems pretty tiny and the most expensive, is everyone just trying to cram in there? Do people try not to commute?
  - ng12 7y ago
    It's closer to $6,600, and that's without spending a dollar on retirement or benefits. > Do people try not to commute? Spoken like someone who's never tried to commute in SF. Public transportation options are extremely limited, owning a car is extremely expensive.
    - holy_city 7y ago
      I mean I'm being open here and saying I don't understand why CoL is so high in SF, since researching it from afar doesn't make it look that much pricier than what I've seen living in other cities. And I commute in LA, it's not exactly enjoyable or cheap. But it's cheaper than living within walking distance of my office.
      - malandrew 7y ago
        The other thing to remember is that when rent is that high as a percent of median income it has a rippling effect on the cost of everything else. Since I moved to Seattle I pay 1/2 as much for groceries, 1/4 as much for the gym, 2/3 as much to eat out. So in the end rent isn’t the only problem. All your costs add up. Add state income tax and the problem compounds further.
  - shuckles 7y ago
    You are right that most casual analyses overstate the real cost of living in SF. A Bart commute in the Daly City direction, or Oakland, or a drive in from Pacifica all get you much more reasonable cost / commute trade offs for jobs in the city. Certainly in absolute prices remain absurd.
    - TMWNN 7y ago
      I can confirm that as of December-January it was possible to find a decent 900-1000 sq ft house with two bedrooms in southern SF (Visitacion Valley or Crocker/Amazon, say) or Daly City, near BART, for $3000 a month. Still more expensive than than the comparable in New York, where a two-bedroom apartment in Jersey City with a comparable commute to lower Manhattan was $2300.
- manfredo 7y ago
  The rent figures are an exaggeration. I lived in a mediocre studio for between $1.8k and $1.9k. $3k will get you a mediocre 1 bedroom or a pretty good studio.
DevKoala 7y ago
Remember to factor in taxes. You will only see 6k a month cash on 120k a year after maxing our your 401k. A tiny studio will go from 2.5 to 3.5k last I checked.

ng12 7y ago

$120,000 comes out to around $6k/mo. A mediocre studio in SF is pretty close to $3k.

holy_city 7y ago
After taxes it's a bit under $6,900 so 40% of that is ~$2,700. Browsing Zillow/Apartments.com/Padmapper shows several thousand listings for studios under $2k and single bedrooms around $2.2-2.7k, depending on area. SF proper seems pretty tiny and the most expensive, is everyone just trying to cram in there? Do people try not to commute?
- ng12 7y ago
  It's closer to $6,600, and that's without spending a dollar on retirement or benefits. > Do people try not to commute? Spoken like someone who's never tried to commute in SF. Public transportation options are extremely limited, owning a car is extremely expensive.
  - holy_city 7y ago
    I mean I'm being open here and saying I don't understand why CoL is so high in SF, since researching it from afar doesn't make it look that much pricier than what I've seen living in other cities. And I commute in LA, it's not exactly enjoyable or cheap. But it's cheaper than living within walking distance of my office.
    - malandrew 7y ago
      The other thing to remember is that when rent is that high as a percent of median income it has a rippling effect on the cost of everything else. Since I moved to Seattle I pay 1/2 as much for groceries, 1/4 as much for the gym, 2/3 as much to eat out. So in the end rent isn’t the only problem. All your costs add up. Add state income tax and the problem compounds further.
- shuckles 7y ago
  You are right that most casual analyses overstate the real cost of living in SF. A Bart commute in the Daly City direction, or Oakland, or a drive in from Pacifica all get you much more reasonable cost / commute trade offs for jobs in the city. Certainly in absolute prices remain absurd.
  - TMWNN 7y ago
    I can confirm that as of December-January it was possible to find a decent 900-1000 sq ft house with two bedrooms in southern SF (Visitacion Valley or Crocker/Amazon, say) or Daly City, near BART, for $3000 a month. Still more expensive than than the comparable in New York, where a two-bedroom apartment in Jersey City with a comparable commute to lower Manhattan was $2300.
manfredo 7y ago
The rent figures are an exaggeration. I lived in a mediocre studio for between $1.8k and $1.9k. $3k will get you a mediocre 1 bedroom or a pretty good studio.

DevKoala 7y ago

Remember to factor in taxes. You will only see 6k a month cash on 120k a year after maxing our your 401k. A tiny studio will go from 2.5 to 3.5k last I checked.