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San Francisco is awesome compared to Missouri. Unless you're a real down-home homebody type - then it may be your worst nightmare. ;-) $60K is great for 19. A

San Francisco is awesome compared to Missouri. Unless you're a real down-home homebody type - then it may be your worst nightmare. ;-) $60K is great for 19. As usual there are a bunch of people talking about how it "isn't much for the bay area." But - ignore them. Most people outside of the tech industry in SF don't make $60K, and they get by. Most 19 year olds are making $7/hr, part time. How to live large on $60K in SF: - Don't rent your own place at first. It is better to live with roommates. You can rent a room for $600-$1000, depending on how nice of a place you want and what neighborhood you're in. - If you are working in the city, don't bring a car. - If your job is in the city, don't live outside the city. Commuting costs aren't too bad, but if you live somewhere far out, like Berkeley or down on the Peninsula, and have to work late, you will get stuck covering a huge Taxi bill from time to time. - Learn to love cheap food. Burritos, Pho, Bahn mi, pizza slices, etc. - Being 19, you're too young to go to bars, so you will automatically save a lot of money on the weekends... - Craig's list, Chinatown and IKEA for all your house stuff - Costo, Trader Joe's for groceries and sundry items It should be pretty fun. I moved to Manhattan when I was 19. Manhattan was and is still way more expensive than SF. I only made $55K, and I managed to save about $10K my first year there, and I went out and did random stuff all the time.

herdrick 19y ago
Agreed, definitely find a roommate situation on Craigslist. The process of going around from place to place meeting possible roommates is also a great way to make friends, including friends of a romantic nature, and to get a better feel for the city and how to get around in it. As for leaving the car at home... I mostly disagree. It's good to get out of the city and go hiking or whatever. You need a car for that. Most of all, yes, come to SF. Where else can you find things like this: http://superhappydevhouse.org/ http://superhappydevhouse.org/ ? You won't regret it. Post here again if you are looking for more advice.
- menloparkbum 19y ago
  I agree that a car is nice for getting out of the city, and I miss my car for exactly that reason. However, parking + parking tickets is going to run you about $300/m. Add in gas + insurance and even the worst car that is fully paid for (like my old car) will cost $500/m. I switched to City Car Share (www.citycarshare.org) and spend maybe $60 every three months on a car. They have a new plan where you can rent a car for an entire day for $40, which is a good deal. Especially since a 19 year old cannot rent a car from one of the standard car rental places (usually have to be 25+).

herdrick 19y ago

Agreed, definitely find a roommate situation on Craigslist. The process of going around from place to place meeting possible roommates is also a great way to make friends, including friends of a romantic nature, and to get a better feel for the city and how to get around in it. As for leaving the car at home... I mostly disagree. It's good to get out of the city and go hiking or whatever. You need a car for that. Most of all, yes, come to SF. Where else can you find things like this: http://superhappydevhouse.org/ http://superhappydevhouse.org/ ? You won't regret it. Post here again if you are looking for more advice.

menloparkbum 19y ago
I agree that a car is nice for getting out of the city, and I miss my car for exactly that reason. However, parking + parking tickets is going to run you about $300/m. Add in gas + insurance and even the worst car that is fully paid for (like my old car) will cost $500/m. I switched to City Car Share (www.citycarshare.org) and spend maybe $60 every three months on a car. They have a new plan where you can rent a car for an entire day for $40, which is a good deal. Especially since a 19 year old cannot rent a car from one of the standard car rental places (usually have to be 25+).