Cost of Living in SF

[Firstime Caller]

I know the cost of living is supposed to be very high even compared to other major cities like NY and Chicago. How much of that though is housing costs? How do things like, say, groceries, utilities, gas, entertainment - movies, greens fees, drink at a bar - compare to other major cities? Are they higher, too?

 

[CentralIllinoisan]

http://cgi.money.cnn.com/tools/costofliving/costofliving.html

http://www.bestplaces.net/col/

 

[Jack_Kerouac]

If you make less than six figured there, it's hard to be even comfortable. My bro-in-law just bought a house for $999,999 ... and it's a fixer-upper.

 

[qtlaw]

Stay away!!!! Just kidding.

Yes, everything is quite high; housing is astronomical, gas, food, dining out, green fees (lucky to hit $45 for a muni) but its worth it.

I sometimes forget how fortunate I am to be here. Beautiful sunsets over the Golden Gate Bridge. Great weather (mostly mild with hot temperatures less than 45 mins away) year round.

Welcome.

 

[KYSportsWriter]

If you make less than six figured there, it's hard to be even comfortable. My bro-in-law just bought a house for $999,999 ... and it's a fixer-upper.

A fixer-upper for that money? Holy ****.

 

[Bears00]

And prepare for the massive earthquake that will hit in the next 20 years.

 

[Hank_Scorpio]

If you make less than six figured there, it's hard to be even comfortable. My bro-in-law just bought a house for $999,999 ... and it's a fixer-upper.

A fixer-upper for that money? Holy ****.

A fixer upper out there, probably doesn't mean the same as it does in, say the midwest.

 

[John]

Stay away!!!!  Just kidding.

Yes, everything is quite high; housing is astronomical, gas, food, dining out, green fees (lucky to hit $45 for a muni) but its worth it.

I sometimes forget how fortunate I am to be here.  Beautiful sunsets over the Golden Gate Bridge.  Great weather (mostly mild with hot temperatures less than 45 mins away) year round.

Welcome.

I'm envious. If I could move anywhere in the country, I'd have to choose between San Francisco and New York.

 

[KYSportsWriter]

Stay away!!!! Just kidding.

Yes, everything is quite high; housing is astronomical, gas, food, dining out, green fees (lucky to hit $45 for a muni) but its worth it.

I sometimes forget how fortunate I am to be here. Beautiful sunsets over the Golden Gate Bridge. Great weather (mostly mild with hot temperatures less than 45 mins away) year round.

Welcome.

I'm envious. If I could move anywhere in the country, I'd have to choose between San Francisco and New York.

I want to move back to North Carolina one of these days. Maybe Raleigh or Hickory.

 

[Firstime Caller]

gtlaw and other SFers,

Just to help out, could you give me say a ballpark figure for any of the following: cost of 2-liter bottle of soda, cost of a movie (non-matinee), gallon of gas, utilites for 1500 sq ft apartment?

I know the housing costs are very high. Let me just say I'm in a somewhat unique situation in that, for me, housing costs might not be an issue. So I'm just trying to figure out how, if my spouse and I live on $X and have to pay for housing in a fairly expensive city, how well will we be living in SF if we make $X+$30,000 and don't have to pay for housing. That's why I keep on asking about non-housing related costs.

$45 for a muni isn't too encouraging though for being able to play too often. Is that for 18? With a cart?

 

[Jack_Kerouac]

If you make 30k in San Fran, you'll be begging from the homeless.

 

[Screwball]

Figure $10 for a movie and $3.25 for a gallon of gas.

And don't forget bridge tolls, for when you want to leave town. Those can add up in a hurry. Off the top of my head, I think it's $5 across the Golden Gate Bridge and $3 across the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge.

 

[Firstime Caller]

I wouldn't dream on moving to SF and living on $30,000/year. That's how much more we'd be making. Plus, we don't have to worry about housing costs.

 

[Columbo]

What are we talking...$550 a square foot housing?

 

[DyePack]

Those people in "Pacific Heights" didn't seem to have trouble buying a house.

The tenant gave them some ****, though.

 

[Chi City 81]

Those people in "Pacific Heights" didn't seem to have trouble buying a house.

The tenant gave them some ****, though.

Wow, way to pull off the obscure-movie reference, DyePack.

Somewhere, Michael Keaton, and his eyebrows, just nodded appreciatively.

 

[Walter_Sobchak]

Well, if Full House taught me anything, it's that San Francisco is expensive.

I mean you had TWO morning talk show hosts, a lead singer of a wildly popular band, and a stand up comedian, and they STILL had to all live in the same house with five kids.

 

[KJIM]

Well, if Full House taught me anything, it's that San Francisco is expensive.

I mean you had TWO morning talk show hosts, a lead singer of a wildly popular band, and a stand up comedian, and they STILL had to all live in the same house with five kids.

This board scares me sometimes.

 

[Editude]

Live in the East Bay near a BART station.

 

[BTExpress]

According to one of those "cost-of-living comparison" websites, I would need a salary of $123,000 in San Francisco to maintain the same standard of living I have where I am.

So unless that's the going rate over there, I don't care how nice the sunsets are. They ain't getting my resume.