4 ms·

Start naming those other places and we will tell you why they are not viable or comparable. If there are so many it should be easy.

smohare 5y ago
I bet those other places are 115 Fahrenheit right now.
- nitrogen 5y ago
  And/or the people already in them are trying to keep them secret lest they gain all the problems people are fleeing from in the first place.
- wavefunction 5y ago
  If those places can suddenly hit 115F then so can the Bay Area. I am not saying it is likely but who would have said it is likely that Portland would hit 115.
  - TaylorAlexander 5y ago
    It’s true in general. What really surprised me though was the recent/current heat wave across all of the west coast - it has been foggy and cool the entire time in the Bay Area. I hope that holds even as the climate changes, though I don’t know if it will.
Der_Einzige 5y ago
Uhh, Portland or Seattle? They're political similar, economically as similar as you'll get (silicon forest in Hillsboro and Seattle's whole tech scene rivals SF), and geographically similar in terms of climate to parts of the bay area.
- Bud 5y ago
  Neither Portland nor Seattle can match the Bay Area in terms of overall culture. Neither has a world-class orchestra or opera, to say nothing of the early-music scene in the Bay Area, which is easily the best in the US. Neither measures up to the Bay Area in the art scene, either. Or the restaurant scene. Or the wine scene. Neither comes very close in terms of climate, although that argument is muted lately due to California being on fire for 4 months out of each year now. But Portland and Seattle are already experiencing their own climate-change-related impacts. And no, neither measures up economically either. Comparing the tech industry in Portland or Seattle to the Bay Area (Apple, Facebook, Google, Twitter, and basically all of the startup scene) is a joke. I could go on, but really, there is no competition.
  - clairity 5y ago
    that sounds like the koolaid talking. while SF offers a lot of "culture", portland and seattle have great "scenes" too. restaurants in both cities easily rival those of SF, which tend to be long on cost and short on flavor. but in CA, LA outdoes SF for food, weather, art, music, entertainment, fashion, and shopping, with a more diverse (not tech-centric) economy to boot.
    - Bud 5y ago
      Los Angeles wasn't part of the comparison, however. The question was about housing values and why they'd be so much higher in SF than in Portland or Seattle. And speaking as an experienced professional musician who has performed a lot in both places, I'd take the Bay Area over LA, at least for classical music, overall.
  - UpsilonAlpha 5y ago
    I've lived in Seattle so my viewpoint is biased. > Neither has a world-class orchestra or opera Seattle Symphony is fantastic and has multiple Grammy awards. The one that stands out to me is the 2014 premiere of John Luther Adams' work, Become Ocean. Not everyone's cup of team, but a phenomenal performance nonetheless. > to say nothing of the early-music scene in the Bay Area, which is easily the best in the US Grunge is very distinctly Seattle. I have a feeling you are incorrectly attributing certain bands with California because they moved there after they became famous. > And no, neither measures up economically either. Comparing the tech industry in Portland or Seattle to the Bay Area (Apple, Facebook, Google, Twitter, and basically all of the startup scene) is a joke. Google is heavily in Seattle. You are ignoring the powerhouses of Microsoft and Amazon which are headquartered there. Additionally, the startup scene is thriving. Vulcan Ventures (Paul Allen's firm) has a major presence. > Neither measures up to the Bay Area in the art scene I can't speak to the art scene but the Seattle Art Museum was pretty cool, not sure how it ranks. I do know that Seattle attracts a lot of artsy types from personal experience. > Or the wine scene If you look at Seattle in a hyper-focused fashion, yes there is no wine, it's a city and Bay Area is an area. But wine in Washington state is also thriving (extended family operates a small vineyard for fun). The climate issues have ironically made Washington a better place for wine in the past years I could go on, but really, there is quite a bit of competition ;)
rcpt 5y ago
Singapore, Shenzhen to start. If we blow it in the US there are plenty of people ready to work for TikTok or whatever other overseas company takes over. Though I am surprised NYC doesn't have more tech jobs
- azemetre 5y ago
  NYC has a lot of software jobs, it's just not dominated by a single industry. If you mean exclusively tech, maybe yeah.

smohare 5y ago

I bet those other places are 115 Fahrenheit right now.

nitrogen 5y ago
And/or the people already in them are trying to keep them secret lest they gain all the problems people are fleeing from in the first place.
wavefunction 5y ago
If those places can suddenly hit 115F then so can the Bay Area. I am not saying it is likely but who would have said it is likely that Portland would hit 115.
- TaylorAlexander 5y ago
  It’s true in general. What really surprised me though was the recent/current heat wave across all of the west coast - it has been foggy and cool the entire time in the Bay Area. I hope that holds even as the climate changes, though I don’t know if it will.

Der_Einzige 5y ago

Uhh, Portland or Seattle? They're political similar, economically as similar as you'll get (silicon forest in Hillsboro and Seattle's whole tech scene rivals SF), and geographically similar in terms of climate to parts of the bay area.

Bud 5y ago
Neither Portland nor Seattle can match the Bay Area in terms of overall culture. Neither has a world-class orchestra or opera, to say nothing of the early-music scene in the Bay Area, which is easily the best in the US. Neither measures up to the Bay Area in the art scene, either. Or the restaurant scene. Or the wine scene. Neither comes very close in terms of climate, although that argument is muted lately due to California being on fire for 4 months out of each year now. But Portland and Seattle are already experiencing their own climate-change-related impacts. And no, neither measures up economically either. Comparing the tech industry in Portland or Seattle to the Bay Area (Apple, Facebook, Google, Twitter, and basically all of the startup scene) is a joke. I could go on, but really, there is no competition.
- clairity 5y ago
  that sounds like the koolaid talking. while SF offers a lot of "culture", portland and seattle have great "scenes" too. restaurants in both cities easily rival those of SF, which tend to be long on cost and short on flavor. but in CA, LA outdoes SF for food, weather, art, music, entertainment, fashion, and shopping, with a more diverse (not tech-centric) economy to boot.
  - Bud 5y ago
    Los Angeles wasn't part of the comparison, however. The question was about housing values and why they'd be so much higher in SF than in Portland or Seattle. And speaking as an experienced professional musician who has performed a lot in both places, I'd take the Bay Area over LA, at least for classical music, overall.
- UpsilonAlpha 5y ago
  I've lived in Seattle so my viewpoint is biased. > Neither has a world-class orchestra or opera Seattle Symphony is fantastic and has multiple Grammy awards. The one that stands out to me is the 2014 premiere of John Luther Adams' work, Become Ocean. Not everyone's cup of team, but a phenomenal performance nonetheless. > to say nothing of the early-music scene in the Bay Area, which is easily the best in the US Grunge is very distinctly Seattle. I have a feeling you are incorrectly attributing certain bands with California because they moved there after they became famous. > And no, neither measures up economically either. Comparing the tech industry in Portland or Seattle to the Bay Area (Apple, Facebook, Google, Twitter, and basically all of the startup scene) is a joke. Google is heavily in Seattle. You are ignoring the powerhouses of Microsoft and Amazon which are headquartered there. Additionally, the startup scene is thriving. Vulcan Ventures (Paul Allen's firm) has a major presence. > Neither measures up to the Bay Area in the art scene I can't speak to the art scene but the Seattle Art Museum was pretty cool, not sure how it ranks. I do know that Seattle attracts a lot of artsy types from personal experience. > Or the wine scene If you look at Seattle in a hyper-focused fashion, yes there is no wine, it's a city and Bay Area is an area. But wine in Washington state is also thriving (extended family operates a small vineyard for fun). The climate issues have ironically made Washington a better place for wine in the past years I could go on, but really, there is quite a bit of competition ;)

rcpt 5y ago

Singapore, Shenzhen to start. If we blow it in the US there are plenty of people ready to work for TikTok or whatever other overseas company takes over. Though I am surprised NYC doesn't have more tech jobs

azemetre 5y ago
NYC has a lot of software jobs, it's just not dominated by a single industry. If you mean exclusively tech, maybe yeah.