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0 pointsholy_city6y ago0 comments

When I was interviewing for jobs in the Bay area I noticed entry level salaries (even at smaller shops) were in the range of 100-120k and rent was like 35-40% of your salary after taxes. Certainly higher than the recommended 30% but it's not that different from somewhere like LA or NYC, even Chicago and Miami aren't much cheaper.

Are my numbers just totally off?

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DevKoala6y ago

Remember to factor in taxes. You will only see 6k a month cash on 120k a year after maxing our your 401k. A tiny studio will go from 2.5 to 3.5k last I checked.

ng126y ago

$120,000 comes out to around $6k/mo. A mediocre studio in SF is pretty close to $3k.

holy_cityOP6y ago

After taxes it's a bit under $6,900 so 40% of that is ~$2,700. Browsing Zillow/Apartments.com/Padmapper shows several thousand listings for studios under $2k and single bedrooms around $2.2-2.7k, depending on area. SF proper seems pretty tiny and the most expensive, is everyone just trying to cram in there? Do people try not to commute?

shuckles6y ago

You are right that most casual analyses overstate the real cost of living in SF. A Bart commute in the Daly City direction, or Oakland, or a drive in from Pacifica all get you much more reasonable cost / commute trade offs for jobs in the city. Certainly in absolute prices remain absurd.

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ng126y ago

It's closer to $6,600, and that's without spending a dollar on retirement or benefits.

> Do people try not to commute?

Spoken like someone who's never tried to commute in SF. Public transportation options are extremely limited, owning a car is extremely expensive.

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manfredo6y ago

The rent figures are an exaggeration. I lived in a mediocre studio for between $1.8k and $1.9k. $3k will get you a mediocre 1 bedroom or a pretty good studio.

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0 pointsholy_city6y ago0 comments

Are my numbers just totally off?

0 comments

DevKoala6y ago

Remember to factor in taxes. You will only see 6k a month cash on 120k a year after maxing our your 401k. A tiny studio will go from 2.5 to 3.5k last I checked.

ng126y ago

$120,000 comes out to around $6k/mo. A mediocre studio in SF is pretty close to $3k.

holy_cityOP6y ago

shuckles6y ago

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ng126y ago

It's closer to $6,600, and that's without spending a dollar on retirement or benefits.

> Do people try not to commute?

Spoken like someone who's never tried to commute in SF. Public transportation options are extremely limited, owning a car is extremely expensive.

1 more reply

manfredo6y ago

The rent figures are an exaggeration. I lived in a mediocre studio for between $1.8k and $1.9k. $3k will get you a mediocre 1 bedroom or a pretty good studio.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse