Might be moving from LA...is SF for me? (Los Angeles: apartment, rent)

[defineLA]

Hello all...

I'm reaching out to all you people who know about, live in, or have lived in the Bay Area...I'm at a critical crossroads in my life and need any advice you guys can offer.

In a nutshell, I live in LA, despite it's many many shortfalls, I enjoy it. I originally grew up in NJ so I am COMPLETELY aware of these shortfalls. I'm mid-twenties, currently in sales, make good money and on the side, I co-own and operate an upstart clothing line that is starting to get very good buzz and press. This has yet to be profitable but appears to have the potential to do very good things.

The problem I'm facing is that I've recently been offered a job that will take me to the Bay Area. I'm going to be making no less than $130K/yr, but, since this is also in sales, I will be driving quite a bit (to places as far as sacramento) and likely cannot live in the city of SF due to traffic constrictions getting in and out. It seems that areas such as Walnut Creek, Concord, and San Ramon are more suited for this job.

I've visited SF a few times, but don't particularly love it. I've found it to be a little cold, very expensive (even relative to LA), difficult to drive in, and just not the same "vibe" as LA (or NY for that matter). I am definitely a "city" person and don't like the burbs all that much, at least not at this point in my life.

Knowing what I've shared with you guys, is it worth moving to SF to live in Walnut Creek or a similar area (knowing that I'm suburbs-averse) just for greater income? Will I be bored out of my mid twenties mind if I'm in those areas? Also, this could damage my clothing line considerably as all the fashion resources on the west coast are centered in Los Angeles. Thoughts? Anyone? Help!!!

[MoMark]

Originally Posted by defineLA

Hello all...


The problem I'm facing is that I've recently been offered a job that will take me to the Bay Area. I'm going to be making no less than $130K/yr, but, since this is also in sales, I will be driving quite a bit (to places as far as sacramento) and likely cannot live in the city of SF due to traffic constrictions getting in and out. It seems that areas such as Walnut Creek, Concord, and San Ramon are more suited for this job.
I've visited SF a few times, but don't particularly love it. I've found it to be a little cold, very expensive (even relative to LA), difficult to drive in, and just not the same "vibe" as LA (or NY for that matter). I am definitely a "city" person and don't like the burbs all that much, at least not at this point in my life.
Knowing what I've shared with you guys, is it worth moving to SF to live in Walnut Creek or a similar area (knowing that I'm suburbs-averse) just for greater income? Will I be bored out of my mid twenties mind if I'm in those areas? Also, this could damage my clothing line considerably as all the fashion resources on the west coast are centered in Los Angeles. Thoughts? Anyone? Help!!!

You're saying you don't like SF, yet you don't like the suburbs either... Let me tell you, with $130K a year income, you can afford a beautiful apartment in a nice part of the City. If you choose to live in the Marina or off Union, you'll live in a wonderful area with boutiques and odd shops, coffee shops, clothing boutiques, etc. Sounds like a good match for your business aspirations to me. Plus, you can then be centrally located to either go west to the Golden Gate Bridge to cross over to Marin, or simply head east toward Van Ness and then over to the onramps to get onto the Bay Bridge and cross over the bay. It's not that big a deal and traffic in SF isnt' as scary as traffic in LA. Yes you can live in Walnut Creek (the nicest choice in my mind for a suburb), or Berkeley, Oakland, etc., but Berkeley is delapidated and dirty, Oakland isn't much cheaper than SF, and out of all the options, I'd rather have a very nice apartment in San Francisco with a garage spot than live across the bay. For the income you're speaking of, you can afford it and fly out of SFO to LA when you need to for biz.

[defineLA]

That's correct, I don't like the burbs, and I'm not a very "San Francisco" type person, however, given the choice I'd much rather live in the city than out in suburbia.

Is it possible to live in SF and still commute out to places such as Livermore, Sacto, Sunnyvale, etc.? Most of my driving will be confined to same-day visits so I will need to get in/out relatively easy. Am I wrong to assume that getting out of the city in the morning is much easier than coming in ("the reverse commute")?

[vondeitch]

just move to Sacramento. Sac gets a bad rep, but is very forward and reminds me of a warm, flat San Francisco. There are all kinds of odd shops, especially on J Street and "Midtown" is full of very artistic 20-30 somethings. There are a bunch of great locally owned neiborhood bars and resturants and there are trees everywhere. Every month, Midtown has Second Saturday, where local artists and gallery owners open their homes and studios and have a free show, which usually spills out into the street but is ALOT of fun. Midtown is the spot and you could rent out a space for your own buisness at a fraction of the cost of SF. Renting / Owning is way cheaper too. I lived there two years ago, in an apartment that was a five min. walk from everything. A little 1/1 with off street parking set me back $600.00 /mo. The same apartment in SF would have been WELL over $1,000 / mo. If you are going to be doing buisness there, this is the way to go, esp. with major freeways coming and going out of all areas of the city.

Good Luck!