Moving to NorCal from SoCal

Good Ol J.R

Good Ol J.R

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Sep 24, 2008
Posted this in the Nor Cal thread but wanted to ask general as well.

I have an interview with a large public agency in SJ (downtown SJ to be exact) soon and the starting pay is close to $55k. I think that if I get the job, I can negotiate the job since I have some experience and it's a union job so we'll see.

I would rather use BART/Caltrain for my commute but where would be a great place to live? Was looking at Union City/Fremont area. Any help would be appreciated!
 
There's no BART to SJ. Fremont is the last stop, have never really taken Caltrain so can't say much about that. Also are you just using public transportation to get around or do you have a car? That can have impact on where you should live being that it's in SJ.

And what are you looking for on places to live? Just somewhere to lay your head or some activities?
 
I'll have my car, but to commute to/from work, I would just take BART to Fremont then take the 181 bus to SJ. I know the SJ BART extension is coming in a couple of years though.

Honestly, I'm just looking for a place to call my own. Activities can be reached via car or public transit. Long as I can get some food, necessities and be reasonably affordable, I'll be happy.
 
Not sure about that area but I know NorCal is $ as hell. I turned down a job offer from Facebook a couple years ago because the pay raise wouldn't kept up with the rent in Menlo Park.

My friends who are making around $60-80k say they have to live in Oakland due to rent.

Funny that they are from SoCal and they say NorCal drivers are even worse. And I thought we were the top pick for that category :lol:
 
Yeah I have no problem staying in Oakland at all. But I just ran a net salary calculator and yeeeeeeah....


Definitely gonna need a roommate.
 
i'll move to this thread... The problem in the bay is the housing cost. Which leads folks to just rent. The trick is to find a place that rents to "low income/subsidized"..... although your not qualified....:D
 
wj4 said:
Not sure about that area but I know NorCal is $ as hell. I turned down a job offer from Facebook a couple years ago because the pay raise wouldn't kept up with the rent in Menlo Park.

My friends who are making around $60-80k say they have to live in Oakland due to rent.

Funny that they are from SoCal and they say NorCal drivers are even worse. And I thought we were the top pick for that category :lol:
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they don't have to, it's just their prerogative if they want to save most of what they're making or spend it on something else. I choose to live closer to my work and I know I'm gonna sacrifice the price of rent for it. I'm at the fine line where I can save some money and not be killed on rent and I'm at Daly City and make less than them.

And SoCal drivers are horrible, they don't know what to do outside of traffic :lol:

JRAdagreat72 said:
Yeah I have no problem staying in Oakland at all. But I just ran a net salary calculator and yeeeeeeah....


Definitely gonna need a roommate.
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what's your budget on rent ? I was recently looking for a place on my own and found decently priced apartments in the east bay, didn't take it since I work in SF though.
 
Both sets drivers are terrible in their own special way :lol:

And for my own spot, I want to spend bout 1200-1500. I'll be getting money in from school to alleviate costs in the short term and can put some money back too in case of emergency.

Also considering getting a weekend job as a bartender or charter bus driver...be about that 7 days a week work life. But if I have a roommate then it can be whatever.
 
You can likely find some stuff in the $1200-1500 range in San Jose, but you'll probably have to live with a roommate or live in a not-so-great area. I think the East Bay is a little cheaper, but the commute to San Jose would be anywhere from a half hour to an hour (maybe even more). 
 
Thanks for the recommendations everyone!

To be honest, though: is $55k a salary that can lived on solo up there? Been doing research and people are saying that you need 60k or more.
 
JRAdagreat72 said:
Thanks for the recommendations everyone!

To be honest, though: is $55k a salary that can lived on solo up there? Been doing research and people are saying that you need 60k or more.
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i don't think it is possible unless you have a roommate, live in a tough spot, and eat cereal 3 meals a day. it is so brutal living here. it's like putting buying a house & having a family on hold 
 
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JRAdagreat72 said:
Yeah I have no problem staying in Oakland at all. But I just ran a net salary calculator and yeeeeeeah....


Definitely gonna need a roommate.
Click to expand...

The scariest part about wanting to move to NYC is living with a roommate I dont know. :smh:

Rolling the dice with an unknown roommate in any city scares me more than living in a terrible neighborhood.
 
:smh:

Even with living in the East Bay, it seems like it'll be tough. I rather have a roommate than to live at home past this year.
 
wj4 said:
Not sure about that area but I know NorCal is $ as hell. I turned down a job offer from Facebook a couple years ago because the pay raise wouldn't kept up with the rent in Menlo Park.

My friends who are making around $60-80k say they have to live in Oakland due to rent.
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That doesn't make any sense because the only places more expensive than Oakland are SF and the  occasional mega rich suburb like Menlo Park or Atherton. 
 
JRAdagreat72 said:
Thanks for the recommendations everyone!

To be honest, though: is $55k a salary that can lived on solo up there? Been doing research and people are saying that you need 60k or more.
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I live in south bay and I would say hell no 
 
ICE Football said:
 
That doesn't make any sense because the only places more expensive than Oakland are SF and the  occasional mega rich suburb like Menlo Park or Atherton. 
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nah, santa clara is really bad. cupertino is unaffordable. palo alto... no reason to go there really unless you're going to stanford 

rent all around is horrible. i'm sure if you go deep enough into oakland you can find something. and maybe some of the crappier parts of san jose. 
 
I'm not really worried about "safety" per say (I grew up in the hood, live there now) so I'm unaffected by it.
 
are you ok paying 800 (estimating) a month to share a place in the hood though. that quality of life just seems bad. if you work in san jose, u should just live in san jose. taking public transpo is like losing 2-3 hours minimum per day 
 
Fremont is has some apartments for a price and also Union City might be a good city to look into as well as San Leandro.
 
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