@NPV - It really depends on what you mean by "safe" as I've noticed that e.g. urbanites and suburbanites seem to have wildly differing opinions on what is safe (see any "safety" related question on city-data.com's forums). Do you mean safe as in "won't get shot or burglarized" or safe as in "nobody around from a different social class" or safe as Agrestic, CA?
For big cities, sweeping statements don't apply. What generally holds is that some neighbourhoods are almost always unsafe, some are unsafe at the wrong time of the day, some are unsafe if you have the wrong skin color, some are unsafe if you're oblivious/stupid (waving a $500 phone around or leaving your bike unlocked), and some are almost always safe.
In any case, here's a map http://www.trulia.com/real_estate/Oakla ... nia/crime/
Step 1) Zoom out to cover the whole area.
Step 2) Draw the 1 hour range.
Step 3) Use craigslist to scan for places.
For each 1M you go east, the temperature tends to be 1/2 F higher. Or rougher guide, for each major city, add 10F. If it's 80F in SF, it'll be 110F in Tracy.
Are you commuting via car or BART? Rush hour on I-580 is atrocious (av freeway speed ~15mph). By car there's also Sausalito/Marin County. Home of Starfleet HQ and a host (ha!) of anti-vaxxers (good place to catch the measles) but otherwise really nice and expensive.
OTOH there are a bunch of mobile home parks in Hayward right next to the BART line for <$1000/month. ($800 when we checked in 2011). Wrt parks, same rule applies as to neighbourhoods. Some are really nice, some are run down.
Living in SF Bay Area (SJ) – how can I cut housing costs?
Re: Living in SF Bay Area (SJ) – how can I cut housing costs?
@NPV: By "conventional" housing, I was talking about renting regular housing, like an apartment or single family home. If you put your mind to it, I'm sure you could find cheaper alternatives, like living in an RV or a tent, but it would probably be difficult with a family.
Re: Living in SF Bay Area (SJ) – how can I cut housing costs?
to add on unconventional housing, how about a yurt?
There are tons of cool videos on youtube.I saw one video about a guy renting someone's backyard to set up his yurt, and that was in Portland. But I think the bay area has the right climate for it as well.
Another friend of mine is running airbnb from her house and charges $54 a night for a room near Richmond Bart station. The income alone pays her mortgage. Her room is fully booked for July and August and she said that was not much work to run it neither.
On a separate note, it looks like we have quite a few members in SF bay area, anyone interested for a meetup?
There are tons of cool videos on youtube.I saw one video about a guy renting someone's backyard to set up his yurt, and that was in Portland. But I think the bay area has the right climate for it as well.
Another friend of mine is running airbnb from her house and charges $54 a night for a room near Richmond Bart station. The income alone pays her mortgage. Her room is fully booked for July and August and she said that was not much work to run it neither.
On a separate note, it looks like we have quite a few members in SF bay area, anyone interested for a meetup?
Re: Living in SF Bay Area (SJ) – how can I cut housing costs?
@Altoid: I might be up for a meetup, depending on the location.
Re: Living in SF Bay Area (SJ) – how can I cut housing costs?
@Jacob: thanks for your input. In regard of the definition of safety, I think per your proposed definition, the ones I am looking for are in the "almost always safe" category. I don't mind at all which social class people around me belong to as long as it does not impact safety - e.g., both poor and rich people are fine with me as long as the poor are not gang members and the rich are not their bosses, but are instead, respectively, e.g., blue collar workers / farmers / retirees and bankers. My kids are quite young so I don't need to worry about quality of schools at this point.
When I look at this crime map of Oakland (and no less importantly, having walked around Oakland), I definitely see it as a place to be avoided. http://www.neighborhoodscout.com/ca/oakland/crime/
Orinda, on the other hand, (or at least the part I have seen within a mile or two from BART) looks like a small rural paradise to me, very clean and green and friendly. Northern Berkeley looks absolutely amazing, even more clean with a very friendly and slightly hippie-ish vibe which comes with being a university town.
I commute by BART as it seems more cost-effective and I prefer the asset light model of not owning a vehicle, and don't enjoy driving. That said, I am open on that and would look into buying a car (or a motorcycle) if the savings from the location reachable by personal transport outweigh total cost of ownership of the vehicle, which does not seem likely when I think about parking and gas prices in SF on top of the actual vehicle cost, insurance etc. I could definitely get a bicycle or run, e.g., to get to BART faster is it is more than a mile away.
Temperature is not an issue for me really, I like warm/hot weather and SF if anything is a bit cold for me.
@llorona, altoid: Yurt is an interesting idea, might look into it if I stay here longer term. Right now I am looking for accommodation for a couple months.
And yes, happy to participate in a meetup in SF.
When I look at this crime map of Oakland (and no less importantly, having walked around Oakland), I definitely see it as a place to be avoided. http://www.neighborhoodscout.com/ca/oakland/crime/
Orinda, on the other hand, (or at least the part I have seen within a mile or two from BART) looks like a small rural paradise to me, very clean and green and friendly. Northern Berkeley looks absolutely amazing, even more clean with a very friendly and slightly hippie-ish vibe which comes with being a university town.
I commute by BART as it seems more cost-effective and I prefer the asset light model of not owning a vehicle, and don't enjoy driving. That said, I am open on that and would look into buying a car (or a motorcycle) if the savings from the location reachable by personal transport outweigh total cost of ownership of the vehicle, which does not seem likely when I think about parking and gas prices in SF on top of the actual vehicle cost, insurance etc. I could definitely get a bicycle or run, e.g., to get to BART faster is it is more than a mile away.
Temperature is not an issue for me really, I like warm/hot weather and SF if anything is a bit cold for me.
@llorona, altoid: Yurt is an interesting idea, might look into it if I stay here longer term. Right now I am looking for accommodation for a couple months.
And yes, happy to participate in a meetup in SF.
Re: Living in SF Bay Area (SJ) – how can I cut housing costs?
I'd be up for meeting with some folks in the area.
@NPV if the bay area keeps attracting more and more high earners, it's inevitable that Oakland will not look the same in even a couple years. But it's a big gamble (for me at least) to predict such continuous growth (like Nasdaq). It's why I went with a van instead of renting or buying.. Maybe I'll be kicking myself in 5-10 years.
@NPV if the bay area keeps attracting more and more high earners, it's inevitable that Oakland will not look the same in even a couple years. But it's a big gamble (for me at least) to predict such continuous growth (like Nasdaq). It's why I went with a van instead of renting or buying.. Maybe I'll be kicking myself in 5-10 years.
Re: Living in SF Bay Area (SJ) – how can I cut housing costs?
Yeah, the crime's so bad in downtown Oakland, it can be hard to find parking:
(to be fair, when I took this picture just three blocks to the north there was a happy little farmers market with people strolling, free live band w/ serious chops & bunches of kids milling around eating strawberries, so, ymmv. anyway, if you're liking N. Berkeley, you might find some suitable & slightly less ridiculously-unaffordable parts around the northern outlying neighborhoods of Oakland. wishing you luck in your search.)
(to be fair, when I took this picture just three blocks to the north there was a happy little farmers market with people strolling, free live band w/ serious chops & bunches of kids milling around eating strawberries, so, ymmv. anyway, if you're liking N. Berkeley, you might find some suitable & slightly less ridiculously-unaffordable parts around the northern outlying neighborhoods of Oakland. wishing you luck in your search.)
Re: Living in SF Bay Area (SJ) – how can I cut housing costs?
Been biking around Oakland (north/south of downtown) the past two days and hanging out at various spots... Really I quite like it.. Regardless of price I would move here over anywhere except maybe SF or if I had kids Berkeley. Considering the cost, Oakland seems like a big win.
The amount of free fun this weekend in the "east bay express" weekly surpasses SF, for example. I've heard in the past five years all the creative types without golden handcuffs (rent controlled apartment in sf) pick Oakland if they get priced out of SF.
Plenty of parking for my van. Maybe I'll make it my new hood. Maybe start checking home prices in a few neighborhoods..
The amount of free fun this weekend in the "east bay express" weekly surpasses SF, for example. I've heard in the past five years all the creative types without golden handcuffs (rent controlled apartment in sf) pick Oakland if they get priced out of SF.
Plenty of parking for my van. Maybe I'll make it my new hood. Maybe start checking home prices in a few neighborhoods..
Re: Living in SF Bay Area (SJ) – how can I cut housing costs?
Has anyone tried living in a car?
I have access to showers and locker at work, free food at work, and have a car that I think I could sleep in if I lay the back seats down.
The problem, as I see it, is where do I park the thing when I'm sleeping? In working 2 jobs, both of which require a car, I have Saturday mornings off and Tues/Thurs evenings off. Otherwise I'm working or sleeping, so I won't have to figure out where to just "be" too often.
Just where to sleep. Any ideas?
I have access to showers and locker at work, free food at work, and have a car that I think I could sleep in if I lay the back seats down.
The problem, as I see it, is where do I park the thing when I'm sleeping? In working 2 jobs, both of which require a car, I have Saturday mornings off and Tues/Thurs evenings off. Otherwise I'm working or sleeping, so I won't have to figure out where to just "be" too often.
Just where to sleep. Any ideas?
Re: Living in SF Bay Area (SJ) – how can I cut housing costs?
Great Thread!
I was going to make a carbon copy of this thread before I saw it! I've followed this blog for years but never got around to making an account.
I am moving to San Francisco too from Boston. I lived three streets from Harvard Yard and rented in a furnished duplex for $2500 a month including utilities (given the state of the apartment it should have been $3500 a month but it was a professor on sabbatical listing it). It had 2.5 bedrooms which I rented out and after taxes and expenses I netted $650 a month living the closest I ever had to my office!
I am thinking of doing the same in San Francisco. I actually like having roommates as I'm generally a loner and it helps to sometimes talk to like minded individuals without the stress of a romantic relationship.
Has anyone done this before? I'm happy even living on the outskirts of San Francisco but I assume it'll be harder to short term rent my place, especially on airbnb.
Are there other unique ways to get a space in San Francisco with a livable kitchen and private toilet and shower under $1k a month? Any chance of living on a boat in SF or something similar, although that would mean no roommates?...
One more thing, I am hoping to have a basement or garage or I'd like to rent space in a wood/metal workshop, does that happen in San Francisco? In Cambridge we have Artisian Asylum that rents work space cheaply (especially to students).
My income is 210K from my job and my Monthly expense breakdown is:
$600 for local healthy food
$20 bike repairs (flats or tires mainly)
$100 eat out once per week, i.e., $25 each week
$50 ad hoc women expenses (paying for their food, random entertainment)
$600 travel expenses (so I can retain AA EXP status and then I sell the perks to people or trade on flyertalk to fund my vacations) NB this includes my fees when I go places as well
$30 gym fees (not sure how that will change in SF) (80% paid back by insurance company)
$60 car insurance for my 2007 Audi A4 wagon (at least its a wagon!)
$30-50 on gas
$120 public transit
$50 cabs when necessary (idk if SF is more expensive for a cab/Uber than Boston but due to my health condition sometimes I need a ride home; this won't change)
$100 clothing budget (I've lost a lot of weight recently after a surgery so instead of making one large payment I've been getting clothes every month up to $100, usually from eBay). This expense should cease in 1 year.
$80 monthly health insurance
$150 copays for medicine and cost of one Medicine compounded for me (this may go up depending on next health plan and there's no way to stop taking this specific Medicine)
$40 monthly savings for holidays and birthdays of family members that expect gifts
$8 Usenet subscription
$100 internet (hopefully there's fios in SF!)
$100 wood costs to build furniture
$30 server fees for AWS et al
$250 scholarship fund
I could probably get my food costs down but I don't want to change the type of food I eat and I don't have time to work more with a CSA to get a discount. I don't drink so that's a huge money saver.
I have no debts and no children. I have a small scholarship fund I setup for disadvantaged kids in trouble with the law to go take up a trade school program, everything else that is leftover is invested in various Vanguard index funds (I tried a three year experiment trying to buy value stocks, the first two years I did well and beat the SP500, the third year was a collasal failure. I told myself I would not play stocks if I didn't do well each year independent of the market). In the next ten years, I will be giving my mother money to survive but I'm not there yet.
I have no assets other than my car ($7500), computer stuff ($3500 between my laptop, 4k monitors and server), an old LCD TV ($200), soundbar (value $300), a camera and lenses (value $400) a Turner mountain bike (fair value $1800), wood working tools (mainly bought used $1300), road bike ($1500) and a city bike that I won't cry over if it's stolen ($500).
I try to live a rather minimalistic lifestyle and not buy crap but sometimes it happens. I actually really enjoy flying and I know $7200 a year is a ton for entertainment and vacations; I could reduce it to $400 a month if I got creative. I could also start selling AA or UA miles (I have 3M UA miles and 950K AA sitting in my account) to help offset my desire to fly and travel.
The reason I hold onto my car is besides that I love to drive on country roads, I would have very few opportunities to get to the mountains to mountain bike...
I've done the math and the health plan I have now is best for the medicines I need to live (I take an obscenely expensive clotting medicine as I have a genetic clotting disorder, so me only paying 1/3 the cost of a yearl script is a deal, I think, or at least that is how I look at it when I'm annoyed with spending that money), so unfortunately that expense cannot go down. I cannot get life insurance at a normal rate due to my clotting disorder.
I like what I do and I have a number in mind when I will retire; I have enough saved I could retire now but for the time being, I like what I'm doing every day. And I think I'll like it even more when I'm in San Francisco!
All I hear is how very expensive SF is and it has kept me from moving there for a long time (not that Boston is cheap)! I hope I can move there by October! Thanks for your help!
I was going to make a carbon copy of this thread before I saw it! I've followed this blog for years but never got around to making an account.
I am moving to San Francisco too from Boston. I lived three streets from Harvard Yard and rented in a furnished duplex for $2500 a month including utilities (given the state of the apartment it should have been $3500 a month but it was a professor on sabbatical listing it). It had 2.5 bedrooms which I rented out and after taxes and expenses I netted $650 a month living the closest I ever had to my office!
I am thinking of doing the same in San Francisco. I actually like having roommates as I'm generally a loner and it helps to sometimes talk to like minded individuals without the stress of a romantic relationship.
Has anyone done this before? I'm happy even living on the outskirts of San Francisco but I assume it'll be harder to short term rent my place, especially on airbnb.
Are there other unique ways to get a space in San Francisco with a livable kitchen and private toilet and shower under $1k a month? Any chance of living on a boat in SF or something similar, although that would mean no roommates?...
One more thing, I am hoping to have a basement or garage or I'd like to rent space in a wood/metal workshop, does that happen in San Francisco? In Cambridge we have Artisian Asylum that rents work space cheaply (especially to students).
My income is 210K from my job and my Monthly expense breakdown is:
$600 for local healthy food
$20 bike repairs (flats or tires mainly)
$100 eat out once per week, i.e., $25 each week
$50 ad hoc women expenses (paying for their food, random entertainment)
$600 travel expenses (so I can retain AA EXP status and then I sell the perks to people or trade on flyertalk to fund my vacations) NB this includes my fees when I go places as well
$30 gym fees (not sure how that will change in SF) (80% paid back by insurance company)
$60 car insurance for my 2007 Audi A4 wagon (at least its a wagon!)
$30-50 on gas
$120 public transit
$50 cabs when necessary (idk if SF is more expensive for a cab/Uber than Boston but due to my health condition sometimes I need a ride home; this won't change)
$100 clothing budget (I've lost a lot of weight recently after a surgery so instead of making one large payment I've been getting clothes every month up to $100, usually from eBay). This expense should cease in 1 year.
$80 monthly health insurance
$150 copays for medicine and cost of one Medicine compounded for me (this may go up depending on next health plan and there's no way to stop taking this specific Medicine)
$40 monthly savings for holidays and birthdays of family members that expect gifts
$8 Usenet subscription
$100 internet (hopefully there's fios in SF!)
$100 wood costs to build furniture
$30 server fees for AWS et al
$250 scholarship fund
I could probably get my food costs down but I don't want to change the type of food I eat and I don't have time to work more with a CSA to get a discount. I don't drink so that's a huge money saver.
I have no debts and no children. I have a small scholarship fund I setup for disadvantaged kids in trouble with the law to go take up a trade school program, everything else that is leftover is invested in various Vanguard index funds (I tried a three year experiment trying to buy value stocks, the first two years I did well and beat the SP500, the third year was a collasal failure. I told myself I would not play stocks if I didn't do well each year independent of the market). In the next ten years, I will be giving my mother money to survive but I'm not there yet.
I have no assets other than my car ($7500), computer stuff ($3500 between my laptop, 4k monitors and server), an old LCD TV ($200), soundbar (value $300), a camera and lenses (value $400) a Turner mountain bike (fair value $1800), wood working tools (mainly bought used $1300), road bike ($1500) and a city bike that I won't cry over if it's stolen ($500).
I try to live a rather minimalistic lifestyle and not buy crap but sometimes it happens. I actually really enjoy flying and I know $7200 a year is a ton for entertainment and vacations; I could reduce it to $400 a month if I got creative. I could also start selling AA or UA miles (I have 3M UA miles and 950K AA sitting in my account) to help offset my desire to fly and travel.
The reason I hold onto my car is besides that I love to drive on country roads, I would have very few opportunities to get to the mountains to mountain bike...
I've done the math and the health plan I have now is best for the medicines I need to live (I take an obscenely expensive clotting medicine as I have a genetic clotting disorder, so me only paying 1/3 the cost of a yearl script is a deal, I think, or at least that is how I look at it when I'm annoyed with spending that money), so unfortunately that expense cannot go down. I cannot get life insurance at a normal rate due to my clotting disorder.
I like what I do and I have a number in mind when I will retire; I have enough saved I could retire now but for the time being, I like what I'm doing every day. And I think I'll like it even more when I'm in San Francisco!
All I hear is how very expensive SF is and it has kept me from moving there for a long time (not that Boston is cheap)! I hope I can move there by October! Thanks for your help!
Last edited by Jehdlh on Thu Jul 30, 2015 7:47 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Re: Living in SF Bay Area (SJ) – how can I cut housing costs?
Hey! Can you tell me more about your can life? I am very interested. Any issues finding a place to park overnight? How often do you move? I actually like building things so this could be fun and I was thinking about trying this when I move to SF this fall but I'm a bit hesitant!bryan wrote:I'd be up for meeting with some folks in the area.
@NPV if the bay area keeps attracting more and more high earners, it's inevitable that Oakland will not look the same in even a couple years. But it's a big gamble (for me at least) to predict such continuous growth (like Nasdaq). It's why I went with a van instead of renting or buying.. Maybe I'll be kicking myself in 5-10 years.
Re: Living in SF Bay Area (SJ) – how can I cut housing costs?
Hey Jehdlh:
Good luck with the move!
There aren't any true "outskirts" in San Francisco. The city itself is 49 square miles with water on three sides so it's densely packed; however, there are less populated neighborhoods (i.e. Sunset, Richmond, Excelsior) that mainly consist of single-family homes or flats/duplexes. Once you leave SF, there are plenty of smaller (and cheaper) cities and suburbs to choose from, although commuting into the city can be time consuming.I'm happy even living on the outskirts of San Francisco...
Not that I can think of, but maybe folks on this forum have ideas? I don't think living on a boat would be cost-effective. I'm guessing that docking fees alone run $600+ per month. You could explore the idea of living in a youth hostel, although it wouldn't meet your qualifications for privacy. Or maybe you could try house sitting. But unless you want to get super-creative, finding a shared apartment is probably the best way to go.Are there other unique ways to get a space in San Francisco with a livable kitchen and private toilet and shower under $1k a month?
Virtually no houses in San Francisco have basements. Parking is generally a pain, so people with garages tend to either park their own cars there or rent them out for quite a bit of money. But you never know. You might get lucky, particularly if you rent an entire house and sublease rooms to roommates.I am hoping to have a basement or garage or I'd like to rent space in a wood/metal workshop, does that happen in San Francisco?
Depending on where you end up living, owning a car in San Francisco may be more of a liability than an asset. Except for Marin County, there are no country roads for 40-50 miles around. If I lived in the city, I would ditch the car and use ZipCar for getting out of town.The reason I hold onto my car is besides that I love to drive on country roads, I would have very few opportunities to get to the mountains to mountain bike...
Good luck with the move!
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Re: Living in SF Bay Area (SJ) – how can I cut housing costs?
A boat would be about as cost effective as an RV. When I last checked (about 5 years ago), you could dock a 30' boat (very often depends on length) in Berkeley for $200 per month. Add the liveaboard fee of another $200/month. However, there was a 2+ year waiting list! Prices on the west side in the South Bay were about the same.
Re: Living in SF Bay Area (SJ) – how can I cut housing costs?
My schedule is very flexible so I am able to find good parking very easily. Parking would be more difficult in SF if I had to find a place to park during 8AM-7PM. SF has street sweeping and just after the sweeping is a great time to re-park. Some residential zones limit your parking choices during the day time on weekdays, though.Jehdlh wrote:Hey! Can you tell me more about your can life? I am very interested. Any issues finding a place to park overnight?
When people think of parking troubles, they are usually more thinking of having to walk a long way from their parking space to their bed.. which is a non-issue in the van. Usually I optimize my parking location for either where I want to be when I wake up or where I will end up later (via bike or walking or public transport) at night.
That's my experience from trying to park in very desirable areas (great views, great coffee/restaurants/bars, near a park, etc). Some nights I have the same views of the city as some $8M homes. Would be way, way easier still if you are OK with parking in areas with less residential lots.
Pretty regularly actually. Street sweeping means at least moving across the street weekly. But I move around because I have friends all across the bay so enjoy hanging out in all the other cities, not just SF. SF is the hardest to park (and as mentioned above, it's not hard at all if you are flexible enough)Jehdlh wrote:How often do you move?
Though, I've seen some other vandwellers consistently parking in the same one block radius that is somewhat close to a gym. They never seem to move.
Nice! I like building too but inertia is more dominant. I've found my barebones lifestyle without any amenities (bathroom, kitchen, electricity) to be perfectly doable so I haven't built the van out at all. Before the van I built a loft in my room to get more lounging space.Jehdlh wrote:I actually like building things so this could be fun and I was thinking about trying this when I move to SF this fall but I'm a bit hesitant!
If you go for it, I'd be down to help you out with your build if you in turn help me out. Or we could split costs of what we might need etc.
Another reason I've been delaying the build is I want to get it just right. A lot of vandwellers go through a couple vans before they know exactly what works or what they want. I'm more confident in my iterative planning.. measuring 10 times then changing the plan and measuring 10 more times before making a cut so to speak.
Vandwelling is more lonely than having roommates for sure. Unless you commit to some tight community for hobbies.Jehdlh wrote:I actually like having roommates as I'm generally a loner and it helps to sometimes talk to like minded individuals without the stress of a romantic relationship.
With income and expenses like that... if you vandwell you could be FI in an extremely short amount of time if you aren't already.Jehdlh wrote:My income is 210K from my job and my Monthly expense breakdown is:
Expenses in SF/CA are dominated by income taxes and dwelling costs. Otherwise, it isn't so bad. Grocery costs are some of the lowest in the country if you find the right markets (not Safeway, Whole Foods, or Trader Joe's). Free entertainment everywhere. No reason to own a car unless you have a silly commute or always go outside of the city on the weekends (or you live in one). etcJehdlh wrote:All I hear is how very expensive SF is and it has kept me from moving there for a long time (not that Boston is cheap)! I hope I can move there by October! Thanks for your help!
Why anyone would pick an RV over a van (or essentially a Class B RV) and boondocking is beyond mejacob wrote:A boat would be about as cost effective as an RV.
Re: Living in SF Bay Area (SJ) – how can I cut housing costs?
Thanks all! For some reason I didn't get email notifications and I just manually checked. I will respond in full later. Quickly, what grocery stores do you recommend? I find TJs to be rather competitive in pricing although they focus on more "natural" "yuppy" customers so costs are higher than say Aldi. For instance, 1# of salted almonds are $5.99 and at Costco 3# unsalted is $16, not a *huge* difference and already salted... Are there any good co-ops available that are affordable? I usually shop for food at Costco, get packaged stuff from Amazon (their cost on curry and almond flour is way below anywhere else local that I've seen, for instance) and get whatever else at TJs (since I can't eat most vegetables due to my clotting disorder, I mainly eat proteins, meat, cheese, and some paleo-approved carbs).
I had zipcar back in the day and for 2 3 day weekends, my bill came to like $700. I said that's nuts and bought an old Audi wagon for $5000. Has it gotten cheaper? Doesn't seem so. What do people do when they want to go away for the weekend? How is Amtrak out there? If it costs $14/hr to go into the mountains to bike, and we are talking 45-50 miles away, that's going to be an 8-12 hour day, which means $112-168 per outing. That adds up rather quickly... maybe I can take my bike on Amtrak and get off somewhere to bike in the mountains? Otherwise, it doesn't seem to make much sense to get rid of my paid off car. Another option is to rent a Uhaul, one day is $20 for the truck plus $0.79/mile, 100 miles is $79 plus $30 for gas...that's cheaper and a full day. Hmm
When I mentioned living on the outskirts of SF, I meant like Mountain View, etc. Maybe I could find a nice person that wanted to rent a room in their home under $1k? In exchange for physics/math/CS tutoring? IDK, just thinking out loud... (I have seen those types of ads in Boston's craigslist, but mainly for foreign students to help their kids with a foreign language, but with SF being tech centered, maybe they want a PhD physicist to live with their kids?) But it seems my best bet may be renting a large victorian and airbnb'ing it or subleasing to people off CL and live for free? Has anybody on these forums accomplished this? I find the landlords don't care so long as they get their check on time each month.
I also heard that Bernal Heights is an "up in coming" area in SF that you can live in rather affordably?
This is a stupid question, but what if I want electricity to power my laptop and a 4k monitor (it would be nice to have two but that's pushing it, heh) and Internet in a vandwelling? What costs and options are we talking here? As for internet, I guess I'd have to get a 4G hotspot thru my mobile phone or something similar? That is getting rather expensive... I guess I shouldn't plan on working much in my van, if I get a van?
I have to run but I promise to respond point by point in the next few hours. Thank you all for your help!
I had zipcar back in the day and for 2 3 day weekends, my bill came to like $700. I said that's nuts and bought an old Audi wagon for $5000. Has it gotten cheaper? Doesn't seem so. What do people do when they want to go away for the weekend? How is Amtrak out there? If it costs $14/hr to go into the mountains to bike, and we are talking 45-50 miles away, that's going to be an 8-12 hour day, which means $112-168 per outing. That adds up rather quickly... maybe I can take my bike on Amtrak and get off somewhere to bike in the mountains? Otherwise, it doesn't seem to make much sense to get rid of my paid off car. Another option is to rent a Uhaul, one day is $20 for the truck plus $0.79/mile, 100 miles is $79 plus $30 for gas...that's cheaper and a full day. Hmm
When I mentioned living on the outskirts of SF, I meant like Mountain View, etc. Maybe I could find a nice person that wanted to rent a room in their home under $1k? In exchange for physics/math/CS tutoring? IDK, just thinking out loud... (I have seen those types of ads in Boston's craigslist, but mainly for foreign students to help their kids with a foreign language, but with SF being tech centered, maybe they want a PhD physicist to live with their kids?) But it seems my best bet may be renting a large victorian and airbnb'ing it or subleasing to people off CL and live for free? Has anybody on these forums accomplished this? I find the landlords don't care so long as they get their check on time each month.
I also heard that Bernal Heights is an "up in coming" area in SF that you can live in rather affordably?
This is a stupid question, but what if I want electricity to power my laptop and a 4k monitor (it would be nice to have two but that's pushing it, heh) and Internet in a vandwelling? What costs and options are we talking here? As for internet, I guess I'd have to get a 4G hotspot thru my mobile phone or something similar? That is getting rather expensive... I guess I shouldn't plan on working much in my van, if I get a van?
I have to run but I promise to respond point by point in the next few hours. Thank you all for your help!
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jacob
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Re: Living in SF Bay Area (SJ) – how can I cut housing costs?
Mountain View in particular since it has Google and NASA has many houses in which 3-5 techies join together and rent a house together.
Re: Living in SF Bay Area (SJ) – how can I cut housing costs?
In San Francisco, you can stick to Asian/Hispanic markets. Rainbow co-op if you need organic stuff or certain bulk goods.Jehdlh wrote:Quickly, what grocery stores do you recommend? I find TJs to be rather competitive in pricing although they focus on more "natural" "yuppy" customers so costs are higher than say Aldi. For instance, 1# of salted almonds are $5.99 and at Costco 3# unsalted is $16, not a *huge* difference and already salted... Are there any good co-ops available that are affordable?
Mountain View is not on the outskirts of SFJehdlh wrote:When I mentioned living on the outskirts of SF, I meant like Mountain View, etc.
I thought you meant what @llorona mentioned (Sunset, Excelsior, Hunter's Point, Daly City, etc).I lived there shortly. If you do that, just try to be very close to Mission street for easy bus access and less hills so it's still bikeable. By "up in coming" people are talking about the side that faces the city or close to Mission. The neighbourhood is actually relatively more owners than other hoods, less rentals. It's already been established as a cool area for a few years, but of course not everyone can learn of cool areas at the same time.Jehdlh wrote:I also heard that Bernal Heights is an "up in coming" area in SF that you can live in rather affordably?
If you wanted my opinion of "up in coming" it would be without a doubt certain areas in Oakland. Maybe Hunter's point eventually.
You just need to build it out.Jehdlh wrote:This is a stupid question, but what if I want electricity to power my laptop and a 4k monitor (it would be nice to have two but that's pushing it, heh) and Internet in a vandwelling? What costs and options are we talking here? As for internet, I guess I'd have to get a 4G hotspot thru my mobile phone or something similar? That is getting rather expensive... I guess I shouldn't plan on working much in my van, if I get a van?
For electricity, a couple deep cycle batteries and charging from the alternator (if you move around the bay every few days like me) should be fine. Maybe solar if you plan on staying parked for extended periods. I would run everything DC to avoid DC->AC->DC power loss.
I just do USB tethering with my samsung phone. It's not an unlimited data plan, unfortunately, so I just avoid downloading large files or videos while tethered. Part of my plans would include having various antennas on top of the van.
Re: Living in SF Bay Area (SJ) – how can I cut housing costs?
That would be perfect? Where do people go about finding roommates? On an email list at google? Where do you look for houses in SF? Is craisglist used, or do I need to reach out to a realtor? How much are we talking for a 3-5 bedroom house in Mountain View that is clean?jacob wrote:Mountain View in particular since it has Google and NASA has many houses in which 3-5 techies join together and rent a house together.
And if you aren't commuting during rush hours (which I assume is an hour or two later in SF than NYC/Boston), how long should I figure the commute to get into SF? Are there carpools or options if you live in MV and do NOT work for a tech company there?