5 ms·

You know, I'm tired of hearing this. I live very comfortably and my total expenses are <$1500/mo. This might get a small bump if I go out more than usual in a p

by gxs 15y ago

You know, I'm tired of hearing this. I live very comfortably and my total expenses are <$1500/mo. This might get a small bump if I go out more than usual in a particular month. But really, I wonder what everyone else does so differently.

victork2 15y ago
Agreed, but after Engineering studies you want to make "big money" if you go to SV. And if you read the article it is worded as such: > "Her more than $70,000 salary, stock options and personal investment portfolio, though, go a long way to alleviate any parental concerns. " Which seems to be so much money that her parents forget their worries. What I am saying is, in term of SV salary that's not much to have 70k. Actually 75k in S.V. ~ 55k in Atlanta for example. Personally I have a very good salary (> 70k) and I have way to much money per month. I don't buy gadgets or anything so yeah I am way below $1500 / mo.
- gxs 15y ago
  Agreed. I rent a room in a house and my rent is about $600/mo. including utilities. (this isn't hard to find, unless you want to live in a highly desirable area of SF. I personally have found I can get all the benefits without living in the epicenter) Insurance, phone, and gas run about 200 dollars a month. The rest consists of food and drink, by far my worst habit and biggest expense, varies between 700 and 800 per month. This puts me anywhere between 1500 and 1800 in expenses per month. I suppose if I were to amortize unforeseen costs (the occasional 300 dollar repair on the car, occasional shopping for clothes) those figures would creep a bit higher. It all depends on where you're coming from I guess, I grew up with frugal parents who placed value on family and good times around the dinner table as opposed to expensive clothes and cars.
ipince 15y ago
Rent alone (in SF) will _easily_ put you above 1500/month
- lansing 15y ago
  That's not really accurate. If one insists on living in a new building with amenities, or in an ultra-yuppified neighborhood (e.g. Marina), then yes, the sky is the limit on rental costs and there are no bargains. If you're more flexible, then you can go a lot lower. My last 1BR (in SOMA, on a rough block but the apartment was perfectly nice) was $1100, and another 125 for parking. I have friends who have 1BR and studios in Tendernob, Panhandle, and other decent but less-popular places for around the same cost. Mainly it just takes patience and persistence to nab the deals when they become available. That said, living in SF on a total budget of 1500/month is going to take some compromises.
  - timr 15y ago
    "My last 1BR (in SOMA, on a rough block but the apartment was perfectly nice) was $1100, and another 125 for parking." I haven't seen a rent like that in SOMA since 2008...at least, not anywhere that I'd consider safe. There are some bedbug-ridden firetraps in down near 6th, but there's a limit to what I'm willing to sacrifice for cheap rent. And I'm saying this as a guy who lives in a not-so-great part of SOMA.... Rents have gone up. Decent 1BR rents land at around $2,000, even in inconvenient/less-than-great locations. There seems to be this general delusion/denial trend regarding San Francisco rents, when they're easily verified by going to craigslist. It's an expensive place to live, and that's the greater point -- $70,000 isn't making anyone wealthy in San Francisco. It's enough to have a comfortable single-20-something lifestyle, and maybe put a bit of cash away for retirement if you live frugally.
  - dpres 15y ago
    $600-$1200+/mo for 1 room with room mates in SV $1200-$1900+/mo for 1 bedroom apt in SV $1900-$4000+/mo for a house with 2+ rooms in SV ... from my recent housing searches on CL
- dave_sullivan 15y ago
  More people should look at Pacifica. 15 mins from city, I live literally next to the beach, have a pretty good gym, sauna, pool in complex, and my rent is obscenely low for what I've got. Plus free and easy parking and lots of stuff walking distance. But the fog... Not much worse than sf fog though...
quak 15y ago
Out of curiosity, would you be able to break down your monthly expenses(rent, food, entertainment, etc...)? Always looking for ideas on trimming my budget and understanding how low it can go in the various categories.
- gxs 15y ago
  I did somewhat above in the same thread. Let me know if you want more details and I'll elaborate.

by gxs 15y ago

victork2 15y ago

Agreed, but after Engineering studies you want to make "big money" if you go to SV. And if you read the article it is worded as such: > "Her more than $70,000 salary, stock options and personal investment portfolio, though, go a long way to alleviate any parental concerns. " Which seems to be so much money that her parents forget their worries. What I am saying is, in term of SV salary that's not much to have 70k. Actually 75k in S.V. ~ 55k in Atlanta for example. Personally I have a very good salary (> 70k) and I have way to much money per month. I don't buy gadgets or anything so yeah I am way below $1500 / mo.

gxs 15y ago
Agreed. I rent a room in a house and my rent is about $600/mo. including utilities. (this isn't hard to find, unless you want to live in a highly desirable area of SF. I personally have found I can get all the benefits without living in the epicenter) Insurance, phone, and gas run about 200 dollars a month. The rest consists of food and drink, by far my worst habit and biggest expense, varies between 700 and 800 per month. This puts me anywhere between 1500 and 1800 in expenses per month. I suppose if I were to amortize unforeseen costs (the occasional 300 dollar repair on the car, occasional shopping for clothes) those figures would creep a bit higher. It all depends on where you're coming from I guess, I grew up with frugal parents who placed value on family and good times around the dinner table as opposed to expensive clothes and cars.

ipince 15y ago

Rent alone (in SF) will _easily_ put you above 1500/month

lansing 15y ago
That's not really accurate. If one insists on living in a new building with amenities, or in an ultra-yuppified neighborhood (e.g. Marina), then yes, the sky is the limit on rental costs and there are no bargains. If you're more flexible, then you can go a lot lower. My last 1BR (in SOMA, on a rough block but the apartment was perfectly nice) was $1100, and another 125 for parking. I have friends who have 1BR and studios in Tendernob, Panhandle, and other decent but less-popular places for around the same cost. Mainly it just takes patience and persistence to nab the deals when they become available. That said, living in SF on a total budget of 1500/month is going to take some compromises.
- timr 15y ago
  "My last 1BR (in SOMA, on a rough block but the apartment was perfectly nice) was $1100, and another 125 for parking." I haven't seen a rent like that in SOMA since 2008...at least, not anywhere that I'd consider safe. There are some bedbug-ridden firetraps in down near 6th, but there's a limit to what I'm willing to sacrifice for cheap rent. And I'm saying this as a guy who lives in a not-so-great part of SOMA.... Rents have gone up. Decent 1BR rents land at around $2,000, even in inconvenient/less-than-great locations. There seems to be this general delusion/denial trend regarding San Francisco rents, when they're easily verified by going to craigslist. It's an expensive place to live, and that's the greater point -- $70,000 isn't making anyone wealthy in San Francisco. It's enough to have a comfortable single-20-something lifestyle, and maybe put a bit of cash away for retirement if you live frugally.
- dpres 15y ago
  $600-$1200+/mo for 1 room with room mates in SV $1200-$1900+/mo for 1 bedroom apt in SV $1900-$4000+/mo for a house with 2+ rooms in SV ... from my recent housing searches on CL
dave_sullivan 15y ago
More people should look at Pacifica. 15 mins from city, I live literally next to the beach, have a pretty good gym, sauna, pool in complex, and my rent is obscenely low for what I've got. Plus free and easy parking and lots of stuff walking distance. But the fog... Not much worse than sf fog though...

quak 15y ago

Out of curiosity, would you be able to break down your monthly expenses(rent, food, entertainment, etc...)? Always looking for ideas on trimming my budget and understanding how low it can go in the various categories.

gxs 15y ago
I did somewhat above in the same thread. Let me know if you want more details and I'll elaborate.