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This is surely exaggerated right ? I know CEOs of large startups who live in mansions in Woodside, Berkeley, Mill Valley etc
by dmode 7y ago
This is surely exaggerated right ? I know CEOs of large startups who live in mansions in Woodside, Berkeley, Mill Valley etc
- paulie_a 7y agoMy sample size is small but a company that raised 40 million and the CEO is considering leaving sv because his wife need to make rent with a roommate is not a great sign of the real estate. Sv isn't special. People are going to other tech hubs which are sprouting like crazy. Sv was when it made products. But sass can be done anywhere. People are leaving sv and housing prices are the reason. It's going to lead to brain drain. Why bother with that congested hell hole when you can live anywhere else and cut your cost of living by 50 percent. Your average founder is 30 and they are not into partying. Sv is for 20 year olds
- Bombthecat 7y agoI doubt that prices lead to brain drain. Sure there is a guy or two who will walk away. But I know more then a few people who are like: more then 2/3 of my pay to live in the city? No. Problem! Living in the city is super important!
- paulie_a 7y agoI've seen it first hand with incredibly talented people that hated living in the city. There are plenty of tech hubs elsewhere. Sv isn't special. 2/3 of your pay is a bad decision unless you are being paid 600k+
- usaar333 7y agoSounds like that CEO might be paying himself too little. Fwiw, housing prices (rents) have barely budged in much of the Bay Area for the past 4 years. If the exodus hasn't already happened, I doubt it will.
- dmode 7y agoI have a hard time believing this story. You can get 1-bedroom apartment around 3k in SF or neighboring areas. You can afford that with entry level wages
- paulie_a 7y agoWell it's true and why he wants to move out of sv. There are plenty of better and cheaper places to live. Sv is no longer special.
- gamblor956 7y agoI would believe that a random startup employee might be considering leaving SV due to rent. I wouldn't believe that a CEO of a company that has raised $40 million is leaving because his wife needs a roommate to make rent. His wife should probably live with him if she needs to save money.
- _jal 7y agoI'm sure there are "startup CEOs" in that situation. I doubt there are many whose firms have office space and employees. In my experience, the serial startup execs mostly don't live in the city. In the 90s, I knew several who also had an apartment near the office, but that's much less common now that the sort of place they'd want is going for $8K/mo.
- paulie_a 7y agoIt's my small experience but I know dozens of employees that got the hell out of there. A startup exec with 300 employees isn't exactly small scale in my opinion. Plus 40 million in round b or c funding means they are doing something right. Paying 8k in rent better come with a daily hand job For those down voting please explain why anyone would want to live in sv. Its A shit hole with bad weather and traffic. You can live outside of the bubble