5 ms·
While some of the article just seems like nostalgic yearning, I agree that it's not necessarily the best place to start a company. My wife and I were making a v
by fourspace 16y ago
While some of the article just seems like nostalgic yearning, I agree that it's not necessarily the best place to start a company. My wife and I were making a very good income at Google but still found ourselves wondering how we would ever afford to a buy house, raise a family and other medium to long-term goals. The idea of starting a company while having to pay $3000+ in rent was laughable.
We lived in the Bay Area for the last 5 years and wound up moving to Charlotte, NC in order to bootstrap my business. While the tech/startup community here is obviously much smaller, it's thriving. I've been completely surprised by the level of diverse technical talent here and now that I'm outside of the Silicon Valley bubble I see that Charlotte's not alone. There are thriving startup communities all over the country and at the end of the day, it's easy enough to hop on a plane to SF to visit investors. I'd rather focus on building my business than constantly worry about how I'm going to afford housing.
- michaelchisari 16y agoI've always felt that people's best bets are in places like Chicago, which have good tech economies, while having a healthy range of living costs. You can go anywhere from a very cheap apartment or condo on the far north side to living it up on the Gold Coast. Places like SF, Boston, Manhattan, with their exorbitant costs seem to add a lot of unnecessary pressure when trying to build a startup.
- eyeareque 16y agoWith dual income I am surprised you weren't able to buy a home in silicon valley. Unless you are dead set on sending your kids to school in Cupertino (or another expensive area with a really good school). Also, why spend 3k a month on rent? You can get an older one bedroom apartment for just under 1k within ~8 miles of the Google HQ. If you are single you could also rent a room in Mountain View for ~650 a month. It isn't hard to live on the cheap in silicon valley. You just need to be smart with your money. (99 Ranch for groceries, drive a economic car, don't eat out all the time, don't buy a 65 inch flatscreen tv. :) ) Obviously you have already moved away so this information won't matter to you now. I'm posting this for other people who are in a similar situation.
- rdouble 16y agoYou can get an older one bedroom apartment for just under 1k within ~8 miles of the Google HQ Where?
- jaredsohn 16y agoHere's one such place (not sure if it is older or not, but it is under 1K and close to Google HQ): http://sfbay.craigslist.org/pen/apa/2204805441.html http://sfbay.craigslist.org/pen/apa/2204805441.html
- tptacek 16y agoThat's a studio, not a 1bdr.
- jaredsohn 16y agoSorry, I wasn't making a distinction between studios and one bedroom apartments since I have searched for either when looking for an apartment for myself; but yes, there is a difference. Also, for the record, from my search on craigslist I didn't see any one bedroom apartments in that price range (just studios), although as another post mentions it wouldn't be easy to raise children in a one bedroom apartment anyway.
- eyeareque 16y agoJapan town in san jose is one area. It won't be a brand new unit of course. You can find deals if you spend some time looking around.
- tptacek 16y agoYou can't reasonably raise kids in a 1 bedroom apartment.
- eyeareque 16y agoAgreed. But the 1 bedroom apartment would allow you to save up for a starter home or condo.