I'm just curious...i'm trying to get information about the Bay Area in california ...i've been planning on moving back there since janurary and was wondering if people can tell me about the job market there...i did go online and do a little research abotu the area...but it didn't erally help me much...i was wondering if i can get first hand type experience of what it's like up there....cost of apartment etc..job income...etc... Anyone living in San fran. or Oakland? Berkeley? ....Let me know~FS
Bay Area CA
by FiveShadows 2 Replies latest jw friends
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sunshineToo
FiveShadows,
Check out www.insidebayarea.com. I don't recomend SF because it is still too expensive; even the sales tax is higher than other county.
Hope you can find something you like.
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JWinSF
I live in San Franciso, "South Beach" [newly name area for the spot by the Bay Bridge and several blocks south. Yes, it's expensive. A one bedroom in a nice area will probably set you back about $1300 -1600 per month. In Oakland/Berkeley, you'll probably be able to drop about $200-300 off of that. Check out www.apartments.com for a quick idea.
Jobs tend to pay more here, but not directly proportional to the higher cost of living. I'm not an expert in this area, so can't really help with specifics. The dot-com bust hit the area hard, which is why the apartment rates have fallen back to the levels of 1997 --- one bedrooms were going as much as 50% higher than this just a year or two ago.
Regarding the sales tax, yes, slightly higher for SF, but .5% over other areas of the State is not in my opinion anything to be concerned about. It's whether or not you like/love the area [which I do]. There are few other places that I'd ever consider instead. NYC is a close second for me.
If you can, take a brief vacation to check things out. You'll get a better feel for whether or not it's right for you.
John W Wirtanen