6 ms·

Now go look at the cost of a home or apartment in San Francisco or nearby towns. I'll wait...

stocknoob 4y ago
https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackkelly/2022/03/05/twitter-employees-can-work-from-home-forever-or-wherever-you-feel-most-productive-and-creative/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackkelly/2022/03/05/twitter-em...
schnebbau 4y ago
I guess they'll have to lower their cost of living like the rest of us?
- falcolas 4y ago
  Moving is not cheap. Short of moving, lowering your cost of living in SF is going to be absurdly hard (especially while dealing with the mental fallout of being laid off).
- jmathai 4y ago
  I don't understand the hate towards high cost of living areas. Making a few $100k in a HCOL area is similar to making $100k in a LCOL area. You don't live like a king if both your income AND expenses are higher. Both people in this example have a lot more in common than I'm reading into from your comments.
  - rayiner 4y ago
    > I don't understand the hate towards high cost of living areas. It's all the whining. These folks are privileged to have options, choose to live in certain areas, and enjoy the benefits (higher pay, more jobs if they get laid off, amenities, etc.) of those choices. But they still complain. I honestly don't get the psychology. Is it some sort of defense mechanism for folks who don't want to admit they're the elites that they decry? Rent costs an insane amount in SF—and its driving out long time residents and minorities—because Facebook engineers make $500k/year. It's not "billionaires"--how many houses can Zuck buy? It’s the tens of thousands of rank-and-file employees making 5x the US median household income.
    - jmathai 4y ago
      I agree that some, not all, wages in HCOL areas are very bloated. That's not always the case though and I imagine it's not the case for HR groups within Twitter.
  - dionidium 4y ago
    > $100k in a LCOL area OK, but it's very easy to live comfortably on $100k in a LCOL area. The idea that these people have no fat in their budgets is risible. Put me in charge of the books and I promise they'll be in tip-top shape in 6 months. But they'll hate me, because a lot of stuff they've been keeping in the "needs" bucket is gonna find its way into the "wants" pile in a hurry. If you don't have an emergency fund, then you cannot afford to eat out. You cannot afford two cars. The one car you have better be a used Hyundai. You can't afford to take a vacation. You can't afford those violin lessons. Hell, you can't even afford Hulu or Netflix. Go for a quiet walk and gather your thoughts toward accumulating an emergency fund, because if you don't have one, then you cannot afford any of that stuff.
    - jmathai 4y ago
      In all fairness, this applies across the board. I agree with you on financial responsibility residing with the individual. $100k in a LCOL or $300k in a HCOL is sufficient to have an emergency fund. And in the same way that layoffs in a LCOL will hurt, it hurts in HCOL as well. I just think that the lifestyle perception that some have of people in HCOL making $300k is very inaccurate. It's not nearly as extravagant as you might think.
  - fleddr 4y ago
    Well, I have news for you: 100K in a LCOL is a type of salary that pretty much nobody in the US, let alone the rest of the world earns. It's an elite salary. The absolute top tier for employees worldwide. It's not hate, it's trying to get people to understand that they are elite and privileged.
    - claudiulodro 4y ago
      That's not true. Plenty of trades, nurses and other medical professionals, etc. make a over $100k/yr. Here's a listing I was looking at the other day: Lineman with a 4-day workweek at ~$110k/yr in Newport, Oregon (populatioon 10k) - https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/cencoast/jobs/3582995/journeyman-lineman-4-day-workweek https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/cencoast/jobs/3582995...
      - fleddr 4y ago
        Those are...ELITE. How hard is it to understand that word?
  - _puk 4y ago
    Having lived in both, the thing that got me is that if you're left with 20% after you've paid for everything that month.. that's an awful lot more left over in a HCOL area. But then everything seems geared towards parting you from that remaining 20% wherever you live :) I do feel for those laid off, not everyone being laid off will have managed to maneuver themselves into the ideal position over their time at Twitter.
    - jmathai 4y ago
      Agree. I think money is sort of like a house. No matter how large or how much, it'll get filled or used. Discipline in both will go a long way in not having a big house full of unused rooms and money that's not wasted.
allarm 4y ago
Is SF the only city in the US? What stops them from moving to another part of the country? I moved across the globe, twice for the last 12 months, with my family. It’s definitely doable.
- arcticbull 4y ago
  Often visas - either that they cannot get visas to live or work in a different country, or because leaving the US would cause them to abandon potentially decades of progress towards permanent residency.
  - notch656a 4y ago
    Don't need a visa for Svalbard. Checkmate!
    - arcticbull 4y ago
      I've been actually - considered staying - and if you haven't I'd highly recommend it. Especially a day trip up to Pyramiden. While you do not need a visa to stay in Svalbard forever, you do need a Schengen visa to get there which not everyone can obtain!
- falcolas 4y ago
  > What stops them from moving to another part of the country? Cost. Paying early termination on your rental contract. Paying to move. First, last, and a cleaning deposit at your new place. Stocking a new place with perishables. An easy 3+ grand to move to an inexpensive town. Loss of salary/job opportunities. You won't have the same job opportunities, nor salary ranges, if you live in a less expensive part of the country, since your new pay will be based off your peers in your physical location, not your last salary in SF.
  - actually_a_dog 4y ago
    > An easy 3+ grand to move to an inexpensive town. I think 3 grand is probably an underestimate for any significant move. It cost me $1k to move ~2.5 miles across town the last time I moved.
refurb 4y ago
Those poor people who bought a $1.5M home? What will they ever do to survive?
missedthecue 4y ago
$30,000 a year for an apartment in San Fran. If you can't swing that on your $250k income it's not Twitter's fault
- ar_lan 4y ago
  $40k is probably a more accurate median. Still, after taxes, that should leave ~$80k money to live on/save beyond rent concerns.
  - maerF0x0 4y ago
    40k is accurate if you only need one bedroom. Now try being the breadwinner for 4 people.
    - vlozko 4y ago
      I don’t see the motivation of raising a family and paying such a high rent in SF, particularly when Twitter has stated just about all their employees can work remote.
      - maerF0x0 4y ago
        I agree. That's why people are leaving in droves.
      - ar_lan 4y ago
        With the Elon cloud that statement doesn't really mean anything.
  - prpl 4y ago
    A nice (but not luxury) 2BR place, or a modest 3BR place, within 60 minutes of SF (excluding Central/Deep East Oakland) can easily be $50k/year if you moved in within last 3 years. That’s probably close to the average (4k/mo).
    - missedthecue 4y ago
rconti 4y ago
Diversification?
rayiner 4y ago
https://www.tiktok.com/@lukecapasso/video/7110279370173910314 https://www.tiktok.com/@lukecapasso/video/711027937017391031...

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackkelly/2022/03/05/twitter-employees-can-work-from-home-forever-or-wherever-you-feel-most-productive-and-creative/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackkelly/2022/03/05/twitter-em...

schnebbau 4y ago

I guess they'll have to lower their cost of living like the rest of us?

falcolas 4y ago
Moving is not cheap. Short of moving, lowering your cost of living in SF is going to be absurdly hard (especially while dealing with the mental fallout of being laid off).
jmathai 4y ago
I don't understand the hate towards high cost of living areas. Making a few $100k in a HCOL area is similar to making $100k in a LCOL area. You don't live like a king if both your income AND expenses are higher. Both people in this example have a lot more in common than I'm reading into from your comments.
- rayiner 4y ago
  > I don't understand the hate towards high cost of living areas. It's all the whining. These folks are privileged to have options, choose to live in certain areas, and enjoy the benefits (higher pay, more jobs if they get laid off, amenities, etc.) of those choices. But they still complain. I honestly don't get the psychology. Is it some sort of defense mechanism for folks who don't want to admit they're the elites that they decry? Rent costs an insane amount in SF—and its driving out long time residents and minorities—because Facebook engineers make $500k/year. It's not "billionaires"--how many houses can Zuck buy? It’s the tens of thousands of rank-and-file employees making 5x the US median household income.
  - jmathai 4y ago
    I agree that some, not all, wages in HCOL areas are very bloated. That's not always the case though and I imagine it's not the case for HR groups within Twitter.
- dionidium 4y ago
  > $100k in a LCOL area OK, but it's very easy to live comfortably on $100k in a LCOL area. The idea that these people have no fat in their budgets is risible. Put me in charge of the books and I promise they'll be in tip-top shape in 6 months. But they'll hate me, because a lot of stuff they've been keeping in the "needs" bucket is gonna find its way into the "wants" pile in a hurry. If you don't have an emergency fund, then you cannot afford to eat out. You cannot afford two cars. The one car you have better be a used Hyundai. You can't afford to take a vacation. You can't afford those violin lessons. Hell, you can't even afford Hulu or Netflix. Go for a quiet walk and gather your thoughts toward accumulating an emergency fund, because if you don't have one, then you cannot afford any of that stuff.
  - jmathai 4y ago
    In all fairness, this applies across the board. I agree with you on financial responsibility residing with the individual. $100k in a LCOL or $300k in a HCOL is sufficient to have an emergency fund. And in the same way that layoffs in a LCOL will hurt, it hurts in HCOL as well. I just think that the lifestyle perception that some have of people in HCOL making $300k is very inaccurate. It's not nearly as extravagant as you might think.
- fleddr 4y ago
  Well, I have news for you: 100K in a LCOL is a type of salary that pretty much nobody in the US, let alone the rest of the world earns. It's an elite salary. The absolute top tier for employees worldwide. It's not hate, it's trying to get people to understand that they are elite and privileged.
  - claudiulodro 4y ago
    That's not true. Plenty of trades, nurses and other medical professionals, etc. make a over $100k/yr. Here's a listing I was looking at the other day: Lineman with a 4-day workweek at ~$110k/yr in Newport, Oregon (populatioon 10k) - https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/cencoast/jobs/3582995/journeyman-lineman-4-day-workweek https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/cencoast/jobs/3582995...
    - fleddr 4y ago
      Those are...ELITE. How hard is it to understand that word?
- _puk 4y ago
  Having lived in both, the thing that got me is that if you're left with 20% after you've paid for everything that month.. that's an awful lot more left over in a HCOL area. But then everything seems geared towards parting you from that remaining 20% wherever you live :) I do feel for those laid off, not everyone being laid off will have managed to maneuver themselves into the ideal position over their time at Twitter.
  - jmathai 4y ago
    Agree. I think money is sort of like a house. No matter how large or how much, it'll get filled or used. Discipline in both will go a long way in not having a big house full of unused rooms and money that's not wasted.

allarm 4y ago

Is SF the only city in the US? What stops them from moving to another part of the country? I moved across the globe, twice for the last 12 months, with my family. It’s definitely doable.

arcticbull 4y ago
Often visas - either that they cannot get visas to live or work in a different country, or because leaving the US would cause them to abandon potentially decades of progress towards permanent residency.
- notch656a 4y ago
  Don't need a visa for Svalbard. Checkmate!
  - arcticbull 4y ago
    I've been actually - considered staying - and if you haven't I'd highly recommend it. Especially a day trip up to Pyramiden. While you do not need a visa to stay in Svalbard forever, you do need a Schengen visa to get there which not everyone can obtain!
falcolas 4y ago
> What stops them from moving to another part of the country? Cost. Paying early termination on your rental contract. Paying to move. First, last, and a cleaning deposit at your new place. Stocking a new place with perishables. An easy 3+ grand to move to an inexpensive town. Loss of salary/job opportunities. You won't have the same job opportunities, nor salary ranges, if you live in a less expensive part of the country, since your new pay will be based off your peers in your physical location, not your last salary in SF.
- actually_a_dog 4y ago
  > An easy 3+ grand to move to an inexpensive town. I think 3 grand is probably an underestimate for any significant move. It cost me $1k to move ~2.5 miles across town the last time I moved.

refurb 4y ago

Those poor people who bought a $1.5M home? What will they ever do to survive?

missedthecue 4y ago

$30,000 a year for an apartment in San Fran. If you can't swing that on your $250k income it's not Twitter's fault

ar_lan 4y ago
$40k is probably a more accurate median. Still, after taxes, that should leave ~$80k money to live on/save beyond rent concerns.
- maerF0x0 4y ago
  40k is accurate if you only need one bedroom. Now try being the breadwinner for 4 people.
  - vlozko 4y ago
    I don’t see the motivation of raising a family and paying such a high rent in SF, particularly when Twitter has stated just about all their employees can work remote.
    - maerF0x0 4y ago
      I agree. That's why people are leaving in droves.
    - ar_lan 4y ago
      With the Elon cloud that statement doesn't really mean anything.
- prpl 4y ago
  A nice (but not luxury) 2BR place, or a modest 3BR place, within 60 minutes of SF (excluding Central/Deep East Oakland) can easily be $50k/year if you moved in within last 3 years. That’s probably close to the average (4k/mo).
  - missedthecue 4y ago

rconti 4y ago

Diversification?

rayiner 4y ago

https://www.tiktok.com/@lukecapasso/video/7110279370173910314 https://www.tiktok.com/@lukecapasso/video/711027937017391031...