Ah, F-You money. A nice house in the Bay Area is going to be expensive - either in mortgage payments or the opportunity cost of having $1m+ capital tied up in

Ah, F-You money. A nice house in the Bay Area is going to be expensive - either in mortgage payments or the opportunity cost of having $1m+ capital tied up in a house. Plus property taxes. And really, $1m is that much, especially when you consider good school districts. If you're willing to relocate someplace cheaper, the number is going to be a lot lower. It's really very similar to retirement planning. A 5% withdrawal rate should be sufficient to preserve principal, so that's a good starting point for the necessary math.