It's all relative. No matter where you live, if your rent is half your take-home pay, you're in a pickle. I mean surely everyone out there realizes that there are places in this country, even in the cities mentioned, where lots and lots of people barely make $50,000, let alone more than $100,000. Shelter is expensive, too expensive, but unless the law will allow us to "camp out" in public parks, we have to pay. Hooray for free enterprise.

We live in a pretty inexpensive place compared to the ones you mention. Our rental home isn't very nice, but we're currently able to spend a little less than 1/5 of our income on rent, which is allowing us to save a lot. However, our town is no where near as fun/nice as San Francisco (we went there on our honeymoon last year!)

This is why I chose to stay put in Texas and visit all the other amazing cities around the world. Houston may not have all the great amenities of "real" cities and requires a car and a/c to do anything, but at least I can afford to actually enjoy living.

Struggling with that now in NYC, and I feel the pain, but it is 'la douleur exquise' to pay so much, but be lucky enough to make it work in such a fabulous city. Where else do you get to see cable cars, and enjoy amazing blue bottle coffee while sitting on the water. Once I move away, I will always miss the breeze off the Hudson, the view of incredible bridges and the chance to see just a plethora of people from all over the world in one place. We make a lot to spend it on rent, but we work incredibly hard to do so, the best way to reward yourself for a few years, is to live somewhere fantastic :) lucky you!

The thing about most expensive cities is that if you look carefully enough, they usually do have neighborhoods that are somewhat reputable that have moderate rents. That's where I've always chosen to live. They're usually far from the "downtown" areas but they're often quiet and lovely. In Chicago we lived in Rogers Park and had a beautiful apartment with a sun room and gourmet kitchen a block from a beach, and in NYC we live in Pelham Parkway in the Bronx, which has lots of families and is super cheap (we can afford 1500 square feet just for two of us!) It's always just a short train ride into the city to go out with our friends and I've always found it worth it to have a wonderful space to come home to. However, this wouldn't work for you if you value living in a hip, young neighborhood.

I live in the DC area. Like anywhere else the rents vary greatly depending on where you look. Do you want to live downtown with a postcard view? Prepare to pay big time. Out in the suburbs, especially in the Maryland suburbs east of Rock Creek Park, it's much more affordable.

San Francisco is great to visit. I live in a town across the bay where
my dollar goes a little farther but SF and the bay are almost always in sight. Easier to live and get around in, and SF is a quick subway ride away. It's good!

There are no plans you can make, unfortunately, because the economic landscape changes so quickly these days. I've lived in 5 cities and 4 states. In the first 3, the rent was cheap because the economy wasn't as good as the last 2. In the last 2, which were big cities on the list, there are more jobs/social services/wealth than the previous places.

Depending on your field of work, these days you basically have little choice but to go where the jobs are. And if that's a place where the real estate prices are completely absurd (which they typically are given that the average incomes in most fields don't change a whole lot from city to city), you don't have much choice. If your field is one that requires a state license, you may also be restricted in that way from moving somewhere "cheaper."

We have thought of that and quality of life in terms of what the city/state can offer us relative cost savings. We don't have kids, so luckily we don't have to worry about school districts. But we do care about quality of healthcare, access to public transportation networks, availability of social safety nets/services (as we have my parent to care for), an educated populace, tax breaks for singles (like rent or public transportation cost deductions, etc), availability of good food and cultural activities, care for the environment, number of young professionals and universities, etc.

We aren't happy in the suburbs or the "country," and in fact, they make us miserable (and in some areas are no less expensive, btw). We need the hustle and bustle to feel happy. Unfortunately, we have learned over the years that not all hustle and bustle is created equal. We also like having 4 seasons and hate the heat. Because of all of the above, our ultimate goal is to leave the states and move somewhere more aligned with our values, like Canada or Western Europe/Scandinavia.

Philly is great and cheap in comparison. So many NYers are moving here because you can actually buy something for a fraction of rent in NY. I will always have NY envy here but we're an hour away on the train.

My husband and I lived in San Francisco in our 20's as students and 60% of our income went to living in studio apartments. It was great, but we could never afford to do any of the fun stuff San Francisco is known for. We could never eat out, see shows or go beyond window shopping. It was hard to hang out with friends because no one had a place big enough to invite people over, you'd spend a fortune at bars or restaurants just to maintain relationships.
On the other hand it's beautiful, you can have a ton of fun doing the free stuff and I love the people.
We live in Chicago now and can afford a decent sized place and go out all the time. I love it here but I'd move back to SF in a heart beat.

We moved to New York 3 years ago from SF Bay area and plan to move back west next year so really there is no "cheap rent" in our future, more like "relatively less". I absolutely lovelovelove NY but in my experience, the rents are slightly higher than what you'd be getting for the same $$ in the Bay Area, especially if you're okay with living in the 'burbs. However long term, I really can't imagine settling in the 'burbs even though we're married and expecting our #1. Our plan is to save (a little) on rent in the next few years and hopefully save enough to buy something in SF/Oakland/Berkeley. For us personally it just makes such a difference to be able to walk to places, to have a vibrant community of people and neighbors around, to be able to have the option of public transportation etc. I totally realize that this means we'll always be paying significantly higher in housing costs than most of the country but hopefully our incomes will rise over time and the trade off will be worth it.

Lived in NYC for 7 years and not planning on leaving anytime soon. We live in Manhattan and we're paying 30 percent of our income for rent, so I guess we're doing okay. I love the city, and I have no desire to make car payments, buy gas, or drive anytime in the near future. We're planning on having a baby someday in the apartment we live in now.

What bothers me more about the cost, is that I could pay a significant mortgage with the price we pay in rent, but who could come up with the 20 percent down payment?! That's my conundrum at the moment.

Having grown up in NY I have a bit of a been-there-done-that-get-out-of-my-city-you-spolied-brat-hipsters-williamburg-makes-me-sick attitude. I would love to get out of here, but I fear I couldn't make a living anyplace else.

I left my heart in San Fransico! We got married 46 years ago in San Fransico and lived there for a year in a studio apt. with a "Murphy bed". We could see Golden Gate Park from our window. We took the trolley every Saturday to go downtown WINDOW SHOPPING, which was a favorite pastime of many who lived in San Fransico (before street people were all over). We were not able to go on a honeymoon, but who needed it in The City by the Bay. My husband found our apt. and it was wonderful for our budget. We figure it would be right up there in "barely affordable" now. We moved back to the Midwest a year later and have always known that was good for us to do, NEVERTHELESS, we feel very fortunate that we had that wonderful experience the first year of our married life. OH SIGH!

I'm curious to know how you chose that list of cities? I used to live in Danbury and it's not a popular city on the east coast :)

This was me. I swore I would be there forever. Two years ago, after 10.5 years in San Francisco, we threw in the towel and moved to Pennsylvania. It was actually an extended trip back east visiting relatives that made us re-examine our plans. About a month after we got back to SF, we both came to the realization that we were no longer able to enjoy the city the way we wanted, and working 4.5 jobs between the two of us to make ends meet meant we didn't have time to enjoy it. We miss the city terribly, but owning a house (at third of the rent we were paying) and having more free time have been a good trade off.

My husband and I actually do quite well financially and still cannot afford to stay in San Francisco. We figured out that even if we pay off our house we'll have to sell it and move out of the area if we ever want to retire since so much of our wealth will be tied up in our home. We're now trying to decide where we want to retire and will buy a place there to start paying it off. Such a bummer! Trying to talk all of my friends into moving to the same cul de sac in Wyoming or Iowa so we can try and pretend we still live in SF if we're still together.

Currently going too broke to live even in Chicago (even in Rogers Park!). I figure I have about six more months in me, tops, before I decamp to Minneapolis/St. Paul or, if things are really dire, St. Louis.

OK realistically, I'm not *that* broke. But I'm in a situation where the tradeoffs have become unacceptable: "live in a real adult apartment with a bedroom," or "have any kind of social life," because I sure as heck can't do both here. Never mind "saving for retirement" or "buying a home" or anything--that sort of thing just isn't on the table.

I work in a field where I'm just never going to make a lot of money, and I finally reached the point where living in New York just wasn't worth the stress anymore. About a year ago I moved to a small city where my income is the same but my rent is half of what it was in New York and I live in a much nicer apartment. I'm so much happier now, mainly because I'm not constantly stressed out about money. I was one of those people who thought I could never live anywhere else, but I have not had a moment of regret.

We live in Chicago because it seems to be the only great US city that's (relatively) affordable, pedestrian-friendly, and still cosmopolitan.

I'm less than a block from a major L stop (Belmont), in an adorable and private 2 bed, 2 bath coach house, for less than the average SF rent listed above. I can walk to most of my errands, my favorite restaurants, and some of my favorite theaters. And Chicago pay rates are often on par with that of SF or NYC, so we come out so far ahead that we can enjoy those theaters, restaurants, and shopping!

Not to mention the theater is better here than on the west coast, the food scene is top-notch, plenty of sports teams to choose from, direct flights all across the world when you want to leave (we're heading to Mexico in January), and (thanks to global warming) the weather is getting better... :P

Wow, I live in New York, but I would never live here if I thought it was unsustainable. That idea is just completely foreign to me. When I wasn't making much here, I had roommates and I lived in a small space in a neighborhood I didn't love. That's what you do -- you find a space that fits into your budget, you don't operate at a deficit just for the chance of living there. That's crazytalk. You couldn't have found a slightly less nice space that cost less than half your income?

Anyway, I live in New York in a neighborhood I love (now in my own studio). My apartment is rent-stabilized; I plan to be in it for at least 10 years before even considering an upgrade. I expect to be in the city for 30 years or more, until retirement age at least. At some point in there, I would like to buy a 1br or junior 2br in a local co-op, if it's affordable -- but I'll see how that plays out. In the meantime, I'm being sure to save and invest. Although it would've been nice to get a 1br instead of my studio, the difference in price (and frugality in other areas) is helping to max out my Roth IRA, 401(k), and other savings. I can't overstate the importance of saving while you're young -- look into compound interest!

yes, I second everything @vykim said about Chicago. I cannot imagine living in a city where 60% or higher your salary goes to housing - I am genuinely curious how anyone can live like that?! Both renting and owning in Chicago has never been more than 20% of my salary (and I am certainly not wealthy).

I have felt the pain. I lived most of my life in either Toronto or Vancouver and housing prices are just insane. Fabulous cities, but once you get through with rent and Canadian taxes, you are sunk. My husband wound up with a job in Grand Rapids five years ago (I said Grand what?). I came here sight unseen, but it is so cheap to live here, I can now afford to travel more and actually have money to spend. Last week the today show named Grand Rapids the number one place to buy a house. We paid $120,000 for a four bedroom house - about 1,600 sq. ft. In a desirable area close to downtown that was in pretty nice shape (built 1929). Anyway, I was prepared to hate living in a smaller town in Michigan, but it's actually a pretty cool town and hey, I like not being broke!

Life as a 47%er!

My current city, Santa Barbara, should definitely be on this list. Two bedrooms are easily $1900/mo at least from what I've experienced. I suppose because we have UCSB to figure in, it brings the "average" payments down somewhat. I'm coming to the realization that living here is not affordable and even though I grew up here and have lived in California most of my life, it may be time to jump ship. I easily spend half of my earnings on providing shelter for myself and my 2 kiddos. Kinda ridiculous considering that earnings and potential for earning is so low in this neck of the woods.

Lived in a small, Upper West Side, rent-stabilized apartment for over a decade (and five years in Brooklyn before that) and slowly, studiously, saved enough money to buy... a house in Staten Island. A small studio apartment in our Manhattan neighborhood would have cost more than our 3-bedroom with a small yard. So, we're still in NYC with a MTA bus stop on the corner, free ferry to Manhattan, walking distance to 4 separate parks, restaurants and shopping, and a realistic longterm plan for staying in very expensive NYC. Not for everyone, but perfect for us.

My husband and I live in a great neighborhood in Baltimore County. Sudbrook Park's claim to fame is that the neighborhood was designed by Frederick Law Olmstead.

We just look at prices in DC and shake our heads. Baltimore isn't glamorous, but it is affordable and has enough art, culture, etc. to keep us interested.

Lost my job in central NJ last year, as did everyone else I know. Since the unemployed around here are all scientists making ~$100K/year and all we can find now are academic lab positions paying less than half of that, I have to move. I own and I bought this house in 2000, so I'm going to make a profit when I sell it. There really isn't any other choice. The big companies moved us to one of the most expensive areas of the country to live and then abandoned us here when the shareholders wanted more money. So, I'm moving and leaving both my expenses and science behind. No, we can't keep this up.
My current housing expenses: $1640 mortgage + property taxes ($6400/year), $205 association fee on a 3 bedroom townhouse. It's a nice house, it's plenty big and I put a lot of money into it with hardwood floors, a new kitchen, finished basement, new rood, HVAC system, etc. The pre-sale inspector told me it will go really fast. I'm going to miss it but it's sucking up my entire unemployment benefits and I'm burning through my savings. Even though I'm going to miss my house, I'm happy to be leaving NJ but keep thinking that this was all entirely preventable.

And maybe that's how people should start thinking about cities like NY and San Fran...they aren't places where the majority of people can expect to live longterm, but are merely places where one goes for a few years to soak up city life and then move elsewhere (and spend the remainder of your days boring everyone around with your stories of the days when you lived in Noe Valley)

I'm always reminded of this Onion article when I read/think about living situations: http://www.theonion.com/articles/84-million-new-yorkers-suddenly-realize-new-york-c,18003/

The same satire could be made for D.C., San Fran and even a rural area...it's all about the things we are willing to put up with to live where we live.

My husband and I have been in SF for over 2 years (3 for him) and we are counting down the days until we can leave and live somewhere more affordable. We both have good jobs where our salaries would take us further anywhere else but it's hard to enjoy ourselves where we're paying $2,300 in rent for a 1 bedroom out in the Richmond district (further out from downtown SF).

I'm hoping the tech bubble will burst soon and things will settle down a bit. And/or we'll move out to the East Bay where it's more livable (and sunny!).

We live in an inner suburb of the DC area and own, but have rented around the area. Our choice was dictated by how we like to travel, we like to eat well, and I am the queen of planning for the worst possible scenario (the budget was based on just one income paying all the bills and eating slightly better than ramen, because stuff happens). After two years we really like our townhouse, our great neighbors, and our access to public transportation and ease into the city.

We have a good number of friends who live in the city proper, but few plan on staying. It nearly all comes down to the same thing - DC schools are terrible (nationally recognized terrible with rampant corruption) and there's no way they could afford both housing and a DC private school education. Schools push a lot of people across the river.

Regarding NYC: "I would love to get out of here, but I fear I couldn't make a living anyplace else." KushKush, my thoughts exactly.

@cykel609 I'm orginally from Grand Rapids and miss it! It might not be as big as Toronto or Vancouver but it's Michigan's second largest city after Detroit. I hope you get to all of the cool cultural stuff that's popped up since I moved away! (ArtPrize?!)

I live in Chicago and while I could live in a cheaper neighborhood, I don't feel safe. So I choose to spend a bit more on my rent to live in an area where I feel okay walking home by myself in the evening. I don't think rent is so bad in Chicago, it's the tax! While 9.5% is a decrease from the 10.25% it was when I got here, it's still a lot! And there's no food tax in Michigan. Here, there's a tax on food, sweets, alcohol, soda.....just because the city can't get itself together, we have to pay.

Oy!

To me, living in an expensive city requires looking past the top layer. There are sections of a city that are less expensive than others, and there are neighborhoods that are older or newer and that can change the cost. I've never encountered a city that was equally expensive in every neighborhood. There are always older, maybe slightly less desirable neighborhoods that just need someone creative to take a chance on it.

I was born and raised in the Mission district in SF. I rented a cute little cottage in So. SF for 18 years. When real estate tanked, I was able to buy a condo across the bay from SF 3 years ago. Yes, it's way cheaper, less noise, NO graffiti, no 'sign's of gang activity although there is a city not to far away that does have them...and I would move back to SF in a heartbeat if I could afford a place to buy...I'd be willing to scale down in size. I'm 55 years old and I hate not being able to just step out my door and WALK to where I want to go. On the east side of SF, you need a car to go anywhere in the city I live in. I would not go back to the Mission but there are much nicer areas in SF that I would really enjoy living....but that's just me.

I'm curious how they came up with this list and ranking and why the Boston area did not make the list. We live in the outskirts of Somerville, but previously lived in Cambridge and paid $1300 for a basement 1 bedroom and felt like that place was a total bargain the entire time we lived there. We would like to live closer to the city, but as 2 working professionals with advanced degrees, good jobs, and good salaries, can't afford it!

I live in Hyde Park (Obama's zip code), Chicago. My rent went up about 6.1% which is more than my raise was, is or probably will ever be. I am living in nicely rehabbed but tiny match-box one bedroom not even facing the lake. The rent here is going from $1145 to $1215. I am out in less than a month. Moved here for a huge $845 studio then forced to move because of constant repairs and construction in and on all three sides of my unit into a new expensive rehab that I could not afford, i.e., if I ever wanted to sleep--I work 2nd shift plus overtime. Hyde Park rents go up every year forcing constant turnover unless you are making $100,000 or more. Crazy. Or you can get a walk-up maybe with a less than desirable kitchen and bathroom and that rent will continue to go up there too. Ridiculous. Moving to cheaper but borderline crime infested neighborhood and take my chances until I can buy a condo. Pray for me.

We're in Denver--the most expensive place we've ever lived--and have the prospect of moving again in the next year dependent on the hubby's job. He's an architect...which is tough; there are a limited number of cities where architecture is really progressive, and yet architects are one of the lowest paying jobs relative to the high cultural regard. So we're constantly faced with the challenge of working in progressive cities that we can barely afford to exist in. We rent a great house in town right now, but our kids are sharing a room and space is getting very tight. I shudder at the thought of moving to San Fran, Seattle or Boston and trying to move up to a 3 bedroom. Our egos get in the way, too...there's some incongruity in being a "Sustainable Design Professional" who commutes to work from some ticky-tacky far flung suburb!

Ohhhhhh, San Francisco......
I am french, have live in Prague, San Francisco, Seattle, England, and now Munich (for the last 2 weeks!)
And I did leave my heart in San Francisco...
But i will say that what i miss the most about the city IS the city.
The people are cool, everyone is so cool and belong to a certain trend. NO real soul anymore, no real sense of community. I love my GG park, yes it's mine too :)
I miss running to the ocean and back to the panhandle, i miss the light, the architecture, the ocean, the gorgeous gorgeous city. I adore San francisco.
But... after 11 years there, i felt like i didn't really enjoy the city as much as i could. Because it is so outrageously expensive, so we had to work like donkeys to have 10 days off a year. Because everyone was soooo into themselves, and i became the same. it was all about my hobbies, my family and myself.
Because the I can't justify to pay $7,500 to taxes for a 840 sqf apartment.
So yes, I loved SF and i have the best memories there, leaving San Francisco is like leaving a lover with whom you can't build a life but with whom you had the best sex with, it's painful but necessary.
Munich is great so far :)

My husband and I love California. For years I've dreamed about moving to the Santa Barbara area. After looking closely at what our budget would be in comparison, I've learned to love CA as a vacation destination. We currently live in West Michigan with our 4 young kids. We have a 1/2 acre complete with a HUGE garden. Our home was a fraction of the cost of a home in California. In fact, we save so much money on our home and other living expenses, that its cheaper for us to live here and visit CA. I've grown so used to having a big yard and comfortable home that I would probably have a hard time getting used to a different way of life.
It also helps that Lake Michigan is incredibly beautiful and a quick drive on a hot summer day :)

We're going through the same thing in Vancouver. Even the "cheaper" parts of the city are ridiculous. I've managed to get myself into a career that only exists in larger centres but doesn't pay enough to match the housing prices so the debate now is, do I make a career change in order to move to a smaller place? and what would that be? It's an endless discussion here. At least every month, there appears another article analyzing the problem.

Like Kitchenstitch, I have lived and currently live in an inexpensive area of the New York City region. The key is to find a plain, nice neighborhood that hasn't become hip and live comfortably there. It's counterproductive to live in a centrally located neighborhood in an apartment so expensive you can't enjoy the benefits of living there. The NYC region has transit and good roads so when you want to meet friends or do things you can get there and afford the activity. My mom explained a long time ago during a frustrating first apartment search: luxury is something you create, not a developer or landlord.

I lived in Jersey City, NJ for 18 years; rural and expensive Hunterdon County, NJ for 5; and now dirt cheap Trenton, NJ for 7. All my residences were/are places in safe, plain neighborhoods priced well below surrounding markets. Yes, you can live a little bit large in the expensive city of your choice, in a cheap neighborhood.

Working as a sole wage earner and a graphic designer- I run into this issue all the time. NY and CA are the places I'd LOVE to work. I could never in a million years choose that and have my family. So we live in Dallas. And we live actually in a suburb 40 minutes from dallas to be able to afford a house.

I wish there were better choices for homes/apartments in low income ranges- but if you choose the "wrong" profession, you're out of luck.

I lived in D.C. during college and right after, and eventually ended up moving to Colorado, partly because of the astronomical rents. Of course, I could have lived cheaper in the suburbs, but I chose to relocate in order to spend less percentage of my income on rent and also not have a Metro commute to work.

It all depends on what you want, I guess. And I'm curious how they arrived at those figures - $1506 will barely get you a studio in the neighborhoods in D.C. where most young professionals live, much less a 2-bedroom like the chart says.

I was born and raised in NYC, my family moved when I was in high school. I now live in Massachusetts.

I would love to return to NY, but my husband and I combined only make about $70k, which, to me, means we could never do it. It makes me so sad that "my" city now feels like a place to which I can never return because I'm too poor. It's a terrible feeling.

How DO genuinely poor people --- poorer than me, I mean --- live there? I just don't get it. Is there any such thing as "low income" or rent-controlled housing for the lower-middle class?

I feel like we make too much to be considered poor, but too little to afford anything.

My plan is to stay long-term. If I become super successful I'll buy a place I like, but for now I'm stuck renting a place I like. It's a bit expensive, but it's still only 25% of my income (which is middle of the road, according to census stats, I think). If it became 50% of my income I would have to leave the city, but luckily I'm in a province with rent control meaning my rent can only go up a govt prescribed % every year, based on inflation. As long as I stay put, or find a place I can afford before giving notice I should be able to stay here as long as I have a job...

*knocks wood*

I used to live in Los Angeles, and had this very problem. It sucked. My solution was to go back to school and change careers. Now I'm in DC and rent is crazy expensive here (way worse than Los Angeles) but at least I can afford it. I just wish that the career "guidance" they had in high school college was more practical. Giving up on something I loved because the money was bad and always would be was heartbreaking.

Last winter my husband and I decided to move away from the Bay Area looking for a simpler life, with a lower cost of living and less stress from commuting and so on. We ended up in a smaller city on the east coast and found that while we got more bang for our buck in terms of rental housing, pretty much all our other costs remained the same. Our car payments, student loans, cell phone plan, and cable bill didn't change. We like to buy high quality food, so even using the food co-op there, we paid more for food. A free range chicken from the co-op there was $20. and came frozen. And instead of paying for gas and bridge tolls with a longer commute, we were now paying for air conditioning in the gigantic house than we rented without thinking we were going to have to pay to cool. So after a few months, we moved back to the Bay Area, and we are now paying double the rent we paid before we left. It's not sustainable at all. My husband earns a decent salary and I work freelance and still we struggle to save anything. And the hard part is that he works in the tech field and this is where the jobs are so it's not so easy to just pick up and move. We're going to be here for awhile, but we are still looking for the perfect place to settle down.

We just decamped SF for Berkeley. We were able to buy a sizable (if slightly run-down) house in a lovely part of town, after being resoundingly priced out of our beloved Bernal Heights. We've been amazed by how much better and more interesting the food is around here, and how much CHEAPER it is to eat out and go grocery shopping. I wish we'd made the move earlier.
Living in the city is fun when you're young and out partying all the time, but after I got old and boring I didn't feel like the trade-offs were worth it anymore.

Seriously, what is the Daily Mail smoking? Where are these $1500 2-bedroom apartments in DC, because I'd love to find one.

I lived in SF for over 6 years. We had an exit plan for 2 of those years. We decided that we'd rather move to a smaller, more affordable city and own a house than flee to the burbs of SF where we might be able to scrape together enough for a condo. I loved living in the city, but I love living in my small/college town now just as much. It's walk/bike-able and super friendly. It can be a little podunk at times, but I don't miss the city as much as I thought that I would. Plus, we pay significantly less now in mortgage for a cute, historic 3 bedroom that's walking distance from work, than we did for our tiny 1 bedroom apartment. And the yard...I love having a yard, a garden, and a porch!

I grew up in San Francisco. My parents were able to buy a house in a nice neighborhood by the beach 20 years ago. But the real estate market is so expensive now that me and my husband could only afford to buy in Oakland in a so-so neighborhood. At least the weather is much nicer on this side of the bay.

I moved to Oakland 6 years ago. While living in SF, I never had to pay more than $600 for rent in SF with roommates. They were not the nicest apartments mostly in the Mission and Haight Ashbury area, but I would never spend half of my take home pay for rent, that's just crazy talk. I would rather spend the money on going out and doing stuff then be house/apartment poor.

wow, no one living in LA has posted yet? it's expensive here, but because there are so many neighborhoods it's not too hard to find something safe and (relatively) affordable. we rent a 1BR guest house in the hills of highland park for $1300, but we have a huge backyard, parking, our own washer/dryer (all hard to find in LA rentals). it's become a stretch with my graphic designer boyfriend only freelancing right now. of course you have to have a car here, too. we can't really afford to eat out much, but the city has a lot of affordable activities if you look and plan a little. it's do-able on a day to day basis, but forget being able to save much or really thinking of home ownership at all.

We just moved from SF to Portland for a similar reason. Portland had everything SF had to offer for us at a cheaper price. Plus our salaries in the Bay Area we're keeping up with rental prices.

Any time I've left SF I've been miserable, couldn't wait to move back. People are just different here! I'll stay no matter what it takes.

I grew up in SF and moved to Philly in my mid-twenties. After renting a room in house for $600/month, I was able to rent a studio downtown for the same amount. Whenever I visit visit back home, my friends ask when I'll move back. I love SF and it's amazingly beautiful, but the cost of living is a deal breaker for me. This year, I bought a house in Philly which I could have never done in SF, so it looks like I'm here for the long term.

We were across from San Francisco in the East Bay for 10 years, where it is more affordable but still awfully expensive by normal standards. We made it work and didn't mean to ever leave, but a job took us to Boulder, CO last year, and I'm glad we had that kick in the butt to get out. I had been pretty stressed about how we'd raise a family in CA, so it's a big deal that in CO we can afford a house and count on good public schools. (That's the other big problem with CA... and if you have to pay for private school, there goes the rest of your paycheck.)

I'd rather move out of NYC than have to live in the Bronx or Staten Island. WTF.

I'm lucky to have a relatively inexpensive apt in Brooklyn (I split an $1100 two bedroom with a roommate), but I'm basically stuck here until I die or move out of the city. With all of the student debt that I STILL have to pay back, even after a decade of being out of school, I just wouldn't be able to afford anywhere else. I finally asked my roommate to move out-- because who in their mid-30s wants a roommate?-- and it looks like I'm just going to have get another roommate after this one leaves because the new [dream] job I just accepted also came with a $10,000 pay cut.

I can't imagine being anyplace but NYC. Sure, I dump 40 percent of my income on housing, but I'd be bored anywhere else. Of course that feeling changes every winter, when the cold becomes just too miserable (I'm originally a Cali girl).

Who figured out that $1580 was the average price for a 2 bedroom in the NYC area? that seems really on the low side to me.

NY has ruined me for anyplace else. I am willing to give up lots of things that lots of people consider essentials in order to live in the city I love and do the work I am passionate about. It has been, is, and likely will continue to be quite a struggle financially. What would I get somewhere else? A bigger apartment? A yard? A car I can barely drive? If those things are very important to you, NY can break you even if you are downright rich (had a funny chat with a one-percenter complaining that he doesn't have a washer-dryer IN his apartment--not that HE does the laundry!). Quality of life means different things to different people. I wouldn't trade.

When our Culver City/Palms (L.A.) 2 bedroom condo where the rent was $1300, was put on the market for 350,000, we knew that was going to be no g-dmn way we would ever, ever be able to buy a place in L.A. (one where we wouldn't have to spend 2+ hrs commuting to our West Side jobs). And we didn't want to pay rent for the rest of our lives. We loved living in L.A. and we had 7 great years, but we knew then that we had to go. Two years later we had moved on. We still have friends there, some still renting and others owning out in a suburb somewhere. They seem happy, but for us it was a good decision.

Gosh, reading about others makes me feel privileged to live where/how I do. I'm from Ottawa which, at about 1M people isn't insanely huge or anything but even here the prices have been creeping steadily up. My boyfriend was eager to buy a 730 ft brand-new condo at $330K but with condo fees that covered no utilities and add-ons of parking spaces, storage lockers, etc. etc. it just became too much we gave it a pass. We waited it out and managed to luck into a 90-year old single home 2BD/1B in the Centretown area for under $360K that gives us 1000 sq feet, a back patio, a crawlspace/basement for storage, central air and a porch. We know we lucked into anything in the downtown core under $400K but even with 2 people making decent money, it's not cheap. I have no idea how single people can be expected to buy homes here, especially since being a government town means that people's jobs are protected and the market doesn't fluctuate much. The influx of high-rise condos is saddening as they're all that seems to be built. Hard to say who's buying them all.That kind of supply can't last for long...

@500 Square - I haven't seen apartments in the really hip neighborhods in DC within that range, and even some of the less desirable, but up and coming, areas seemed to be higher. I remember researching neighborhoods in DC last year and was boggled to find the rents in some of the up and coming areas were just as high as I was paying just across the river in VA. All things equal, I chose to stay in Northern VA.

I've noticed a sad trend among some of my peers, particularly about those who didn't grow up in the area. Many of them feel like they have to have that Washington DC address and made so many concessions as a result. Bad neighborhoods, multiple roommates (and they complained to high heaven about having them).

As a young professional like them, I was never concerned with needing to live in DC. I was more concerned with being a young professional who could actually afford to buy groceries and have a savings account. Prices in Northern VA are still ridiculously high, but I love it here.

@Allie J - I've not encountered a $1,500 two bedroom, but I did used to live in a $1,800 one bedroom with a "den" - so technically that was 1.5 bedrooms.

Yeah, $1095 for a 2 bedroom in SF does seem really low. My sister in the suburbs of Houston pays more than that for a 2 bedroom apartment. I'm not sure what that includes in SF, here it's an open concept, 2 bed 2 bath, with laundry room and parking, which I'm guessing isn't the case in SF.

I can definitely see WHY you would want to live in San Francisco, the city and surrounding areas are stunning as is the architecture and the weather is wonderful and there are many public transportation options (certainly compared to anywhere in TX). I'm just not so sure I could live anywhere that would require me to pay $600k for a 400 sq ft studio with no parking or laundry (just going by House Hunters). But it's really all about the lifestyle you want. Being raised in Texas where home prices are low, it's really hard to imagine paying so much for so little, it's just a mindset that's difficult to break. Even when I watch House Hunters in not-so-pricey places like Nashville, I'm kind of sticker-shocked to see dated 3 bed houses for $400-600k.

@beccawebber - I feel your pain! I spent 12 years in San Francisco, with around 60% of my income going to rent, too! I finally moved to Sacramento (big change!), but I am loving the heat, and the rental prices and parking (ah, the parking)...the job market and people, meh, not so much. I think Hawaii will be my next step.

Another plug for Chicago... my theory is the cold weather keeps rents/prices low but we still get to enjoy this beautiful city. Salaries are strong but you can still own, even in the city.

I can't believe that at the age of 35 I am FINALLY able to rent an apartment of my own. Living in Los Angeles I thought it might never happen. I just lucked out and happened upon a cute 1 bedroom condo in a safe area. At $950 a month, it's not exactly cheap rent for a single girl, but hundreds less than every other place I looked at.
I have to live a bit frugally, which means an old car and I haven't been on a real vacation in more than 5 years. But, a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do!

@HeyNowTex - Nashville is one of the more affordable areas I've encountered. I'm sticker shocked when I see a house go for what would be very little in the DC area.

I am a 4th generation Angeleno (Los Angeles) and I have lived in Dallas for the last 9 years. I would love to move back to LA where all of my family and friends are but the cost of living is undeniable. If I were still in LA, I would have a tiny apt and never have money to travel or shop. I own two places in Dallas and I travel on pretty awesome international trips several times a year. Also, I can shop regularly because my mortgage for a 3b/3b home is half that of what it would be or a 2b/1b apt in LA. I go home to LA about 4 times/year and love it every time but am reminded of the cost of living when I look at my bank account upon my return to Dallas. One day if the hubs and I hit is big, we'll buy a beach condo there for summer vacays but probably never to live permanently.

DC isn't so bad if you're 'in the know' - as a longtime resident of my neighborhood, I was able to jump on a $1625, utilities included, two-bedroom for my husband and myself.

I love DC, I like that it has many big city amenities while still being manageable in size, and I'm from the area and have roots here. And I couldn't imagine moving to the suburbs - I grew up there, and no matter what anyone tells you, it's just not the same experience.

That said, it is just bloody hopeless here. Even with a combined upper middle class income, there is no hope of buying, or even renting, a family home that isn't miles outside the Beltway. We can live stacked like kindling, or we can live in an exurb and spend all our waking hours commuting. I have frequent fantasies of chucking it all and moving back to North Carolina, but I know I'd miss DC terribly if I left.

Yes NYC is expense in terms of $/sq ft, but overall I'm not so sure. If I lived almost anywhere else you have the expense of cars driving everywhere, heating and cooling larger spaces, filling those spaces with crap.

Add to this a lower salary, you're not really better off. Lots of people live like they think they can have it all. I think the trick is figuring out what you really need and what's important to you. To me that's living in a big city, and I'm prepared to sacrifice things like a 3000 sq ft house.

@ScannerJockey - Have you considered Rockville, Alexandria, Arlington, or Silver Spring? I know things are expensive all around in the area, but we bought a house 10 minutes from DC, and extremely close to the metro.

We couldn't afford a home in Toronto where we lived for almost 15 years so we left. All of my friends that currently live in the City all bought before the Real Estate boom and what's very telling are the class sizes with younger children in them. In our town we have over 5 JK/SK classes in our school and almost 10 elementary schools. One has 9 jk/sk classes this year. In my friends school in the city, they can barely fill one class at her childs school. Young families just cannot afford to buy in the City anymore, unless they want to rent. So a huge portion of them are moving out.

Seriously, what is the Daily Mail smoking? Where are these $1500 2-bedroom apartments in DC, because I'd love to find one.

So would I!

PI - the thing is, due to the cheap rent and rent control we have in our current place, our expenses would actually go up if we moved to a close-in suburb. As it is, we can get by on one car and we can walk almost anywhere we need to go.

I'll admit I'm a snob and prefer living in DC proper. It's friendlier, more interesting, and I love our leafy, quiet neighborhood. But I also feel like if we're going to leave, we might as well pull up stakes completely and leave the area.

I live in a city just outside Boston moved here about 7 years ago. I at first looked in Boston but the places I looked at Back Bay and Beacon Hill were just too small and too much money. I found a small town just outside Boston with all the things I was looking for: a walkable neighborhood, close grocery store, pharmacy, bookstore, coffee shop and access public transportation. It was much more affordable, a hidden gem. I live in a multifamily home with 3 roommates.I love my place because it is not an open floor plan. I really like this area. I love not having to have a car. I think I want to stay but I have not visited other cities. I think the only way I could really stay is to continue to rent, save to buy a condo or get together with roommates and buy a place together so instead of rent we would be paying our mortgage instead.

I live in one of the most popular, most trendy metropolitan areas in the U.S. I grew up in one of the least popular, least trendy metropolitan areas in the U.S. Once I quit paying attention to which way the trends were blowing I noticed something amazing: My hometown, architecturally, historically, is one of the most gorgeous cities in this land of ours. But it's not very popular because "the creatives" are pouring into cities like X, Y and Z by the thousands. So I'm getting ready to sell my shack here for way more than it's worth and move there and shell out $400 a month for a 1,000 sf apartment with stained glass, beautiful floors, a fireplace, a kitchen big enough for a table,12-foot ceilings. I'll be in culture shock for a few years but what the hell.

@ScannerJockey - That's understandable. I am a bit of a VA snob. I like DC proper, and spend many hours in it due to work and visiting friends and family, but I love my corner of Northern VA. One of the reasons we had to stay close to DC was because we didn't want to buy a second car. One of the reasons I didn't want to move into DC was because I could not deal with buying into a system of terribly run political offices.

I love this discussion. I moved from NYC a few months ago to my husbands home town of Agawam MA. I love it! I lived in a 400 sq studio apartment with my husband and baby and paid $996. We lived in upper Manhattan. We had trains near us, amenities, and it was pleasant. We relocated because we really want a house in the near furture, and know that this is not possible in NY. We live in an apartment now because I have been at my job for only a few months and mortgage companies really want you to be at your job for 2 or more years...so we have to wait...however we are renting a beautiful one bedroom 600 sq apartment for $725...something completely unheard of in NY. To each their own!

@TinyStudio: Come on, St. Louis isn't that bad.

My husband and I rent a one-bedroom apartment in a fantastic part of town (right by Forest Park) for $600 a month. But the trade-offs are huge. We save up so much money and will have paid off our student loans before we're 30. We have more money to travel to those places that cost so much to live in. I can't even imagine having half my income go to housing.

Minneapolis/St. Paul is a great area. We live in a massive house in a historic district blocks from shopping and food, and our mortgage is totally affordable, and we manage to max out both our retirement accounts. And we are certainly not in the 1%. Minneapolis/St. Paul has great theaters, museums and shopping. Plus, as a total bonus, you get two cities for the price of one!

Try Sydney... now this place is expensive.

This is a very timely post. I was born and raised in SF (not the burbs) and have continued to live here for more than half a century, the whole of my life. For the most part I've loved it, especially the convenience of not having to own a car (I don't drive) and of being able to walk most places, including to grocery stores, the mall, museums, restaurants, the park and ocean. I can't imagine having to live somewhere where I had to drive everywhere, nor would such a place be practical for me. I grew up walking and still occasionally walk from one end of the city to the other. Plus, I love the fog.

But the older we get, the more difficult it becomes to maintain a reasonable quality of life here in SF. Although my husband and I once earned good salaries (not anymore), we've never made nearly enough to own a home. And as long-term renters, affordable housing options have grown slimmer as the tech industry has driven rental prices sky high.

We've already significantly downsized several times (thank you Apartment Therapy for "Small Cool" ideas). However there's not much more we can comfortably give up, although I continue to try. We'd even consider a studio if we could save money. Unfortunately, in San Francisco at least, smaller doesn't necessarily mean less expensive. I looked at one 250 square foot place that was renting for $1350 a month, not including utilities!

Low ceilings, no heat, no living room and no dead-bolts on unit doors are not uncommon amongst the city's more affordable in-law units. The amazing thing is, I've looked at a lot of these in-law units and there are always young people ready to jump at the chance, no matter how dirty or cold, or small or expensive. I almost never run across older renters or couples, let alone families. I think a lot of the city's low-income renters have learned to stay put, no matter how bad their current rental conditions are. It's sad but San Francisco is more and more becoming a city of "Haves" and "Have-Nots".

Naturally we'd like to move to somewhere more affordable but my husband's work is here; regardless of skills or experience, at our age very few employers are willing to hire an older employee whose health insurance costs are so very expensive and we can't afford to purchase it all on our own - quite a sticky wicket! Right now, we're exploring other parts of the Bay Area which would allow my husband to keep his job. It's challenging though and frequently discouraging.

Long comment, but I had to share. I hate seeing what's happened to the city I love.

I lived in San Francisco for college, right on Russian Hill, and I _loved_ it. I've been wanting to move back, but I would need to find a job that pays a halfway decent salary before I can even think about it. After graduation I headed out to DC, then found myself in Seattle after the recession. Seattle's fun, and I spend about a third of my income rent, but honestly, I'm thinking about going back to grad school to help get a better job so I can move back to San Francisco. If I have to pay half my income on rent, so be it, The City is amazing and well worth it!!

@ScannerJockey and @PI - I'm definitely pro close-in Virginia. The rents and mortgage are cheaper, the taxes are lower, the schools are better, and I have an awesome Asian supermarket right by my train station (also a DC area win: government subsidized mass transit).

We'll all not speak of Maryland. In our house it's referred to as "Shelbyville".

I have been in NY my whole life. I live with my family in B'klyn and I'm in my 30's. Our rent is under $1,000 b/c it's a low income apartment building, but our apt is a huge compared to most NYC apts. All the 5 boroughs have affordable apartments if you look hard enough and many of my friends are in their late 20's/early 30's and live alone or with roommates.

There are some lovely neighborhoods in the Bronx that are affordable, so I don't know what Wisdom is talking about.

I would LOVE not to have a roommate in my 30's but it's a sacrifice you have to make if you want to live in a decent neighborhood w/o spending over 35-40% of your income. I know dozens of people doing it. You gotta do what you gotta do.

I toughed it out in NYC for years, and by the time I left, communism was starting to look real good.

I am a native New Yorker now living in the SF Bay area... The rents listed for a 2 bedroom are about half the price of what they actually go for in San Francisco, Sunnyvale, San Jose, etc.

I have a fabulous rent-controlled top-floor studio in San Francisco's Lower Nob Hill that's under 30% of my take-home pay. 4 blocks from Union Square, 8 blocks from Market Street/Financial District. Who needs a mortgage, property taxes, a car & a yard? Blah.

But a 2-bedroom for under $2000/mo here? That's just crazy talk. Live happy, live small!

Yes, I too relate to this predicament.

I live in very expensive Vancouver, and have a career that traditionally doesn't pay a high salary, although I've found a gig that pays me adequately and offers amazing benefits. But it's an industry one-off for the most part, unless I retrain and actively pursue for-profit company options. Plus, there won't be room for advancement once I've mastered the various facets of the job in the next couple of years. So I know I can't do this for the next 20-plus years and will have to reassess.

However, I did manage to buy into this crazy market with much scrimping and saving. But I needed to buy slightly out of the city (remaining 15 to 25 minutes from most everywhere I need to be). It's not my forever home, but it's a great first home. And it does mean that a second income freelancing will be needed if I wish to take month-long vacations abroad (I get four weeks at my great job). I've never needed to budget the way I do now, and that's taking some adjustment, but it's all about choices and sacrifice. Essentially, it comes down to determining what is your quality of life. I wanted to remain near my aging mother and my closest friends.

Because it's so expensive here, out of necessity, at least in the arts communities I frequent, there are more and more cheap options for entertainment. No, I can't dine out every night and have to pack a lunch, but that's honed my cooking skills. No, I can't afford organic produce, but now I have to think about harvesting my own on my patio. No, I can't afford to drive everywhere, but I chose a very transit friendly/walkable neighbourhood. And I've had to cut down on booze consumption. So, essentially, I get healthier out of necessity, and I reassess what fun and pleasure are. I have some friends who envy my home ownership, meanwhile they go to every concert/restaurant/bar they please, drive everywhere, and that's important for their quality of life.
Different priorities.

What's interesting is on that list, every city has a renting wage lower than the median salary. The exception is Honolulu. I'm lucky because my salary is decent, but I know many people work several jobs here just to make ends meet (not just because of housing, but because everything costs more even if it's local). I moved here specifically for a job experience that I can't get anywhere else, but there's no opportunity for career growth or to make more money since they can always easily find someone to replace you. I can afford to live here (let's not talk about savings accounts though), but from a career perspective I know I will have to leave soon. I think a lot of people do stay because they grew up here or moved to Hawaii for the purpose of moving to Hawaii. There really is no other place like it.

And since this is apartment therapy- my rent here is close to average and my rent when I lived in DC was close to average, but I got A LOT more for my money in DC.

My daughter works in SF, but after several years of living there too, recently made a move to Oakland. She lives in a really nice area there and has twice the place for much less $$.

P.S. - I'm just wondering where those $1,500 2 bedrooms are exactly?

$1900 for a TWO bedroom in San Francisco? That's a joke, right? If the two bedrooms are also called the Kitchen and the Bathroom, then yes...$1900 sounds about right.

Sorry, I meant $1,900 2 bedrooms.

Someone is living in Agawam! I come from next door in Westfield. I live in WI now, where it's so cheap it makes Western MA look like Boston!

SF is indeed way too expensive and you don't even get the nice weather! I live in the bay area and can't wait to get out of this state! Good for now, but not for the long run!

I wouldn't trust the $1900/ 2bd for San Francisco figure. With rent control one person could be paying $300/mo for the same 2bd that a new tenant in the building pays $3500/mo for. It would be more accurate to just show new occupancies.

Ah, this link gives a more accurate amount for SF. Just over $3k for the average 2bd listing.

Reading these comments makes me so happy I live in Austin. Gorgeous city, excellent access to great hiking/camping sites, "Live Music Capital of the World," SXSW, a booming tech industry (Google, Apple, and Facebook all have offices here), bike-friendly, birth city of Whole Foods...oh yeah, and I live about 10 minutes from downtown for about $700 a month/700 square feet.

It's interesting how everything is relative. I moved to Chicago from Boston...and by the cost of living of the East Coast as my reference, I was amazed what I could get for my dollar.

I now live in downtown St. Louis, in a loft I never could have afforded in Chicago, which now seems expensive to me. My standard of living is definitely better since I moved to Missouri...which is not to say I don't sometimes miss

I think we need to read the numbers more carefully. According to the US Census Bureau, the median household income in San Francisco is $77,000. That makes it the second highest (after San Jose) among the 25 most populous US cities.

As a median, it also means there are as many people with incomes higher than $77,000 as there are lower than that amount.

The cost of housing will reflect this relatively high median household income. Some studies show that the rent for vacant one-bedrooms is closer to $2600, and two-bedrooms go for over $3200.

This is entirely due to the influx of high-tech workers who command salaries over $100k, and still have enough left over for fancy coffee and dinners.

Of course, if you're willing to rent in less desirable neighborhoods, you would pay less.

Oh man, you guys are my people! I've been thinking about this just about everyday. Los Angeles must not be on that list because there are cheaper areas to live - you just have to worry more about crime in the cheap places. I live in the cheapest part of Burbank, which is pretty nice compared to the cheaper parts of other LA regions. I spend just shy of 50% of my income on rent.

I love this town, but it's a drag not to contribute to retirement, create an emergency fund, save to own a house, pay for a wedding, or consider having kids. There are lots of free things to do, but sometimes I'd like to travel or buy tickets to events that cost more than $12! I found my one bedroom for $975/mo, which was only about $100 more per month than the studios with full kitchens, so I jumped on it.

I love my current employer, though my work is on a project to project basis, and if another project doesn't come up I'm game to leave California entirely. I grew up in California, but none of my family lives here anymore. I don't work in a very lucrative field, and doing some job posting searches revealed that I could get paid what I make now (and sometimes more) just about everywhere else in the U.S., so I guess I'm waiting to hear how things pan out in the next year before deciding when to leave LA.

I feel this way about Vancouver, Canada. While I love the city, I know I can't stay here. With 1800 sq ft homes in the burbs (the burbs of the burbs) selling for half a million, there's no way I will ever be able to buy. At least not on my own.

Dear Tess Wilson

The trick to staying here in SF is learning how to make money in the economy that surrounds SF. Aka learn some computer programs. Learn how do the back end or the front end of the website. Learn it even kinda well and your writing skills mixed in with it make you much more valuable. Then you can manage people etc or just do the majority of it on your own.

Really unless you are mega rich you have to milk silicon valley/the damn tech companies that did this to us with the influx of high paid workers. They are hiring like crazy and the whole start up thing omgz.

Just signed a lease on a 1bdrm today with my lady in Duboce Triangle for 2150. Its beautiful I'm excited. The money youch. Seems standard if you're sharing a place to be spending near 1200 now. I've paid anywhere between 500/month and 1300/month sharing places with people here over the past 4 years. I do really love it here though.

This discussion is one reason I LOVE Indianapolis. I love all these big cities, too- my family is from SFO but I've never lived there- but they're seriously just a plane ride (or fun car ride) away. In an adorable/historical/vibrant/cultured part of town, we're about to go into a 2 year lease on a 1920s bungalow (2 bedroom, 1 bathroom, dining room, living room, kitchen, fenced in backyard with trees, full basement, finished attic)- within walking distance to indie coffeeshops, cafes, jazz, records, groceries- all that- for $875/month, with the landlord paying the water, trash, and sewage utilities. We've been able to take several trips each year to get our bright-lights-big-city fix, and while we fantasize (esp about Chicago, which is right in our backyard), we both know we'd be giving up soooooooooo much. Include space, time, and energy.

*IncludING

Sigh. I went to college in San Francisco, and grew up in San Jose; I dream of moving back someday. I know this is not a realistic dream, however, and resigned myself to staying in Phoenix where I can buy a cute little mid-century house with a big yard on my teacher's salary. I won't have art, music, culture or good food, but I can travel for that.

I live in Austin,TX and my rent down town is $1,100 for a studio. I am actually planning on moving to a bigger city because you have to have a car here. Insurance, gas, parking, car payment, oil change, etc. comes out to around $1,000 a month. I can take my $2,100 and pay for rent and a subway pass in a larger city where there are better job prospects.

If I wanted to own and home and settle down, Austin would be the place to do so. But at this time in my life I would rather live in SF or Chicago or Boston.

I live in San Francisco about three blocks from the accompaning photo. I say you get what you pay for. You make compromises to live here, such as renting instead of owning but I wouldn't live anywhere else.

Having lived in both cities for over a decade, I think housing in SF is actually more expensive in NYC, although you get more for your money in SF. NYC is bigger and more varied, with a lot more on the low end to buy. OTOH rents are increasing dramatically everywhere except the Bronx. I recommend you save up to buy a starter place somewhere for about $200,000. You could buy an apartment in Oakland or NYC, or a house in a rural area of the Hudson Valley more than two hours from NYC, or a cottage or condo in the Raleigh-Durham area of North Carolina, which has many of the benefits of the Bay Area with few of its drawbacks. Good luck with your search.

Detroit sounds intriguing also.

Great debate...I will indulge after I'm done working my 14 hour day :O

I've lived in san francisco twice. The first time from 1980-1983, in a 3rd floor attic studio walkup in Pacific Heights. $500 per month rent seemed impossible on my just-out-of high school salary but oh, to be in the city and away from the (soon to become) Silicon Valley! My second time consisted of my husband and I living in a marina-style house in West Portal from 2008-2011 for $2650 per month. Even with our grad school educations and our firmly entrenched middle class salaries, it tore us up to be throwing away money every month for a house we could never afford ( neighborhood proces fluctuating around $1 million). So, sadly, we took advantage of job transfers and moved to San Diego in the spring of 2011 and we are about to put our 20% down payment on a house. Our non-California friends gag at the housing prices in San Diego, but compared to SF we're feeling pretty good about our move. And the surfing is WAY better here too!

SF is an expensive place to live. I will stay until I get priced out. It's a beautiful city and many friendly people. The richest moves in and poorest learn to stay put no matter the space & rental condition. I agree with "REEAL." I live in SF for many years and have a habit to do my errands nearby and on foot. Everything is nearby within walking distance. It's a trade off for not having a car and its cost associates with it.

One of my favourite HGTV shows is Love It Or List It (I think there is a US knock off of the show called Renovation Relocation or something like that, but I never watched it) and it ALWAYS makes me wonder what jobs the homeowners have because they typically cough up between 50 to 70 K on the reno, the pre-reno price of their house is $600,000 and up , and the budget for the new house is usually 100K higher than the value of their current house. I just don't get.

I bought my first house in Toronto when I was making $26,000 (I do realize it was not courage - it was brain damage) and it was a definite starter house for which I paid $113,000. (This was in 1996). Unfortunately, the real estate boom in Toronto happened too late for me. A year after I bought my house our company decided to close the office and offered to relocate us to the company headquarters (another city about 100 km from Toronto). For several separate reasons, I accepted. Had that happened 2 years later, I would have ended up a bit richer (even with the said starter house).

This is sad. I think people like this writer move to expensive cities like NY or SF and spend a decade paying too much for living, never being able to get ahead only leave and be replaced by similar sorts of young people who are subsidized by their parents for a decade before they have to move on as well. They all think they'll be able to cash up and leave SF and move to some place like Denver, Portland, or Boulder, only to discover that they've spent too much time and money subsidizing their unsustainable live in SF over the last decade and now prices in even those places are out of their reach because everyone else has the same idea they do. Blogger, I think it's too late for you. I don't know where you are planning on moving to, but you probably haven't saved enough after a decade of SF living are going to find home ownership in "cute little towns" as unobtainable for you as it was in SF.

We lived in SF for 12 years. Moved to Portland, OR 8 years ago and have zero regrets. We could never get ahead in SF and the worst part was that we never felt truly able to put roots down because we knew we would need to move away one day to move forward. I think many people living in places like SF and NYC feel that way and it leaves much of the population feeling like they did not get invited to the party...awkward.

I get to travel for work and I see plenty of places in the US where you can live in a sweet neighborhood, drink amazing coffee and buy good cheese...Boise, Albuquerque, Minneapolis, Detroit. Trust me, life can be good outside of SF too.

I knew there'd be some fellow vancouverites commenting on this one!!
My husband and I, both in our 30's, great careers, make decent money, have a savings account, live on a cash only budget, don't go out a lot, yadda yadda..yet we will remain renters for the foreseeable future due to the crazy unaffordable real estate here.
Who can come up with a downpayment while renting in Vancouver? Maybe if you have rich parents to help you out? Not us! it's mind boggling. I'd prefer to stay in Vancouver but I'm sure once we have kids we will have to re-assess and leave.

Santa Monica, California. I work in the arts and no, I am not in the entertainment industry. I pay about 65% of my rather meager income towards rent on a tiny, rather rundown apartment. Hence, my love of shelter porn.

I gave up sunny LA for a while and tried out Houston, halving my rent and tripling my space. I could have even bought a darling house, walking distance to work, in the one of the most interesting neighborhoods in town. After three years, I took the first opportunity to move back to LA. (Sorry, H-town, I do love some things about you.) I may never own a home, but I will never again give up LA's incredible blend of nature and culture.

I live in Manhattan (Lower East Side) in a 4 floor, 4 bedroom, 3 bathroom house - a brownstone that wasn't ever split up. I have 3 roommates, all of us are professional females. My rent has actually been lowered since I moved in 7 years ago. I don't pay any car related expenses (car payment, insurance, gas, parking). I don't have any pets so I don't pay for pet food, vet bills, walkers/pet daycare. I have no children (& no real plans to have any) and I can't even begin to list the expenses saved there. I owned a home prior to moving to NYC so I know what types of expenses that can incur.

It's just a lifestyle choice. I don't see it as roughing it until I have some smashing success. I sincerely enjoy my neighborhood and would never think that I couldn't stay as long as I wanted.

I've noticed among my friends/acquaintances that there is a 2 year expiration date for those not wanting to stay in the city. After the 2 year mark most people I know that left did so because of wanting to have children (& most moved to Brooklyn).

PS: San Francisco is quite lovely & I would wager that those living there as more than a temporary stop (there's nothing wrong with that) do so because of the charms of the city fit into what they want out of their lifestyle.

I have lived all over the country and finally settled in Corte Madera (Marin County). I'm only 15 minutes from SF and I love living here! Would not move away even if I had to live in a trailer...

Anyone care to guess or know if the rental situation is worse in California than NY because the housing crash there was worse, pushing more people into rentals and therefore driving up prices?
Also-I've heard the SF City Council is a bit hard on landlords. Maybe that's a fallacy. Are rental prices there worse because of demands on landlords-like rental controlled? Some cities are making their landlords upgrade everything to green-installing new windows, doors, waterless heating tanks, low flow toilets. Those costs are getting handed down to tenants OR landlords who have owned since the 70's are dumping their properties and getting out of the business. Those properties are being turned into owned homes for the most part. Good for the person who can afford a 500k plus home (at least in our city) but not so good for younger people looking for good rentals as the supply keeps diminishing.

It's so interesting to read about what it costs to live in US, I myself living in Sweden, at very "expensive" country. I recently moved from one great city to another and discovered that the prices were totally different, to my surprise. My new city, even though it's bigger, got a more international feel, offers more opportunities etc, it's still cheaper to live here.
I was so determined to stay in my old city because of work, and couldn't consider leaving. Until I found love and we started thinking about starting a family. Suddenly my work wasn't that important anymore.

And it gave me the freedom to leave? Why do you stay?

<3 Ida

I moved to SF with $120 in my bank account. I made it work, make a good living now, and have my dream house in the east bay. And I have friends who have done the same. Yes, it's expensive, but the opportunities to make money are here too. I could happily live in many places, but I do enjoy the natural beauty, diverse culture, progressive politics and amazing food here in the bay area.

I feel very lucky, I live in the UK in my own home mortgage free. I've lived all over the world and never paid more than 20% of my net take home income on rent/mortgage. I never extended myself choosing life over higher rent/bigger home/better area. For me it was a sensible decision at 36 I made my last mortgage payment and now live in my forever home.

I live in a small city in Australia, approx population is around 200,000 if you include the next city over which most of the population commutes between for work.
The median rent for a 2 bedroom in an average (if that) apartment (more like a walk in closet) is $1900 a month. The average wage, if you're not including the fly in, fly out miners and engineers on 200k, is about 40-50k.
Apart from the never ending work, its kind of a hole. A dead hole, with stinking hot weather 10 months of the year.

I am fortunate enough to have rent control in SF, and have never appreciated it as much as these last few weeks. I've been helping two different friends find housing, and studios, yes STUDIOS(!) are going for $2,000 (no parking, busy street, no natural light...). One of the gals is considering $2,200 for just a room in a shared apartment...I know now we can never leave our place!

I would love to live somewhere cheaper, but most of the jobs in my industry are in the NYC area (and I live in Bergen County, also on the expensive list). I second the poster who said that if you are willing to forgo the "cool" neighborhoods, you are much more likely to afford something. I live just one town over from a "cooler, hipper" town and pay about 500 dollars less for a similar apartment. I do dream, though, of living somewhere affordable where I can actually get a-- well renovated, a/c, laundry and parking--place for a good price.

More than half my income goes on rent and I live in perhaps the cheapest capital in Europe, Berlin. Rent here is incredibly cheap compared to most cities and capitals, but everybody earns way less too. Espiecally if your just on an internship. I agree with other people here, it is all dependant on where you live. London is expensive but you earn far more etc.

Not that I want everyone to move here, but I pay 25% of my income to own in Portland, and don't even make the national median. Granted, I live in a crappy neighborhood but I could easily rent for the same cost in a nicer one. I feel the occasional twinge that it would be cool to move to New York, but I'm not crazy enough to give up my beloved (and apparently affordable) city for the cache of "the" city. I have everything I could possibly want in Stumptown, except for places that are open all night, and I was sorely disappointed at how early everything but the bars close in Manhattan anyway.

This is why after 5 years I'm leaving Paris (well, not even Paris itself but the stinking suburbs!) with my partner to go and be freelance hippies in Yorkshire, UK. Paying 400£ rent instead of 1000 € is going to make a big difference, even if our income is bound to go down. It may also go up some months, that's what makes it fun, right? We're not quite ready for kids but we are ready to stop feeling ripped off at the end of each month, so basically it's now or never. Also, no more commuting will mean 2 extra hours each day to actually DO stuff!

Adventure awaits.

We did a comfortable, established thing and were nearly paid off on our mortgage when we decided to sell up and move across the world to our dream city. COL has doubled, income was cut in half.

But, we've always lived simply, and continue to do so. We are able to pay for what we need, and we have started to put things by again. It feels great to do so.

I suppose the main thing is to look around and see what you can do. You can look for more/different work that would earn you more income, for instance. Or, you could look for ways of bringing your expenses down. Or, you could do both -- which is what I usually do. It's a process that I enjoy.

We have streamlined down considerably, and it's great.

Two words:- Sydney, Australia....
Rent here is ridiculously expensive. Its difficult finding a two bedroom to rent for less than $500/week. Rent here is on a weekly basis. Unfortunately wages barely make up for it. Wages here are high but so is everything else.
We just moved from San Diego, California where rent was about $1500 per month for a 2 bedroom apartment. This is equivalent to about $350 per week - about $150 cheaper than in Sydney. However transport costs, food and everything else was way cheaper. Dollar wise - we were on the same salaries. However we love Australian life. I'm not complaining - just drawing a comparison. Living in a city is a lifestyle choice. And it can be a very expensive one! Personally we'll see how long we keep doing this...!

At the end of the day, we all choose where we live. Whether it's the actual city or a career that dictates where we live. When I was single, shelling out half my income for an apartment in DC was worth every penny. Now, not so much. My mortgage now is a little more than my rent 15 years ago in Georgetown and I live fivee miles from Charleston,SC. Plus we can ride our bikes to the beach, have some of the best restaurants in the country and no more ultra-irritating presidential motorcades jamming up my commute. Sometimes you think you're a city-person for life, and then suddenly, BOOM, you crave a back yard.

I wouldnt trust anything that comes out of the Daily Mail. The fact that it masquerades as a serious broadsheet and is the top selling paper here is a travesty.

@ CHRIS@HOME - thats debatable, you earn more in London depending on what you do. Increasingly this city is becoming unaffordable for a single person on an average salary. For example on £25k you will probably be living in a shared flat and you have no chance of buying unless you recieve a large inheritance. The average age for buying a flat in London is now something like 48 which is ridiculous. I live quite centrally, in a 390 sq ft flat (with my partner) and we pay £1325 a month (about $2100) a month, not including council tax and utilities. Bloody well expensive.

I just left NYC because of $$. The starting rate for an apartment not in a dangerous neighborhood but with less than an hour commute is 2k. Yet the median income is around 40k. hmmm something doesn't add up here. Especially when you consider the taxes. So not worth it...in my opinion anyway.

Before I met my boyfriend and decided to settle down in my current city I used to dream of living in NYC. I make a decent salary but couldn't afford to live in Manhattan for long. My plan was to save up and live there for at least a year, and then move to Brooklyn or an area a little more affordable.

Hello, first comment for me, just to say that I live in Paris, I rent one bedroom appartement of 48 square meters for 1000€/m and it's rather cheap for Paris (a friend got the same space for 1500€/m). I decide not to buy in order to stay in Paris because I was born and I work here, as my husband. The only way for us to buy will be to win at the lottery because my flat would cost 350000€ which I couldn't save for 15 years and I plan to have a baby and a room for him. And we make realy decent salaries for a french couple: we are in the 25% best paid in France. For me this is a clue that the crisis is just beginning: we can no longer live like our parents.

To me, it's crazy to talk about renting. I was born and raised in NYC, and with a mother who is a lifelong renter and a father who has always saved and scrimped to put money away and buy apartments (not multiples, but in succession!), I was trained by both to save for buying. I know people complain about saving, but I feel like a lot of people just don't prioritize. Out of college, I worked a job that was in the public sector, not particularly well-paid, and still managed to save a LOT (over 15K) in two years. Then again, I was living to live far into Brooklyn in an ok apartment with a dear friend. If you want to do it, you can. If you prioritize city life that much, you should be prioritizing a way to stay there.

Using San Francisco as an example: everyone complains about rent and real estate. Yet when I go with SF friends to the Outer Sunset or Richmond and talk about how beautiful they are, with their foggy streets and sand-swept yards, they say it's like living in another state. Then they wistfully tell me that rents there are 1/3 to 1/2 less than other areas.

Living in walkable, urban areas is about compromise. That's a good thing.

When I first moved to DC 6 years ago, I loved the city so very much. I loved the free museums and the neighborhood character and not having to own a car... But now the stress of constantly spending an obscene percentage of my income on rent is starting to wear on me. I've been eyeing jobs in other smaller cities (I've discovered that I really like Richmond, VA), but now that my boyfriend is looking to start grad school here in DC in the spring, and I just got a really nice promotion, it seems like I'll be here for another few years. I keep trying to reclaim the spark of my love for this city, but the rents are *really* getting me down.

@RYBEARS MAMA - I'm glad someone's enjoying Agawam. I grew up in Western Mass (East Longmeadow/Springfield to be exact) and I would never in a million years move back there. NYC is probably my home for good. I may pay a little more for rent, but I also make a higher salary and I don't have to pay for a car, so it all evens out IMHO.

@chinook2006 - Let me say that whatever you're spending on rent in DC, you can find it cheaper if you just leave the DC zip codes. Head to VA or MD and live near a metro station.

I love where I live (Capitol Hill in Washington DC) and think the amount we pay in mortgage is absolutely worth it. I rented in Northern Virginia for a while, but the cost of living is nearly the same there and the tradeoffs are not worth it; you spend about a quarter of your day sitting in a giant traffic jam, and you have to get back in the car on the weekends if you want to do anything interesting. Being able to walk everywhere I could possibly want or need to go is priceless, and I would need a really compelling financial incentive to give that up.

@COOKLYN - It's good to hear you've been successful in saving and owning a home, however not everyone is so blessed, even if they are hard-working and diligent. There are lots of good reasons why people might remain in an expensive location (without leaving for more affordable areas), just as there are lots of reasons why those same people can't afford to buy - even if they do manage to save a bit of money. Family responsibilities, work, health-care, lack of transportation options (and general accessibility), plus a low-income are just some of the many factors that might play a role. Not all of our lives are so simple.

The American Dream of owning a home has become unattainable for many of us, for many reasons. Times have changed and it's a different world. Some of us have even resorted to using our savings to get by each month.

As far as the SF real estate goes, you're right. The outer Richmond and to a greater extent, the outer Sunset, are still less expensive options, although even those areas are changing as more people become aware of the neighborhoods' less obvious charms. And less expensive or not, rents in these areas are still unaffordable for many low-income renters.

I just left NYC because of $$. The starting rate for an apartment not in a dangerous neighborhood but with less than an hour commute is 2k. --@Delg23

What are you talking about? Where in Manhattan did you work? I live in a very safe neighborhood, 30 minutes from my job in midtown, and my apartment is $1150.

@Pi, not totally true. I recently moved to DC and spent several months comparing prices in NoVA, MD and DC. If you want to be within walking distance of a Metro, DC is cheaper than NoVA. MD varies, depending on how sketchy you want to get.

I have one of those coveted $1500 2-bd apartments. I'm up by Ft. Totten in a new-ish apartment complex. I don't own a car and my preschooler goes to a public charter, which means I no longer have the $1400/mo daycare expense that I had in VA or would have in MD. DC public schools are bad, but not universally so (there are some decent elementary and charters in the mix) and the early childhood education programs are actually pretty good.
My apartment doesn't have the character that one in say, Adams Morgan, Dupont Circle or even Columbia Heights has, but it's safe, walking distance to the Metro and affordable. It looks and feels like most apartments in NoVA actually. Only without the commute, no need for a car and free preschool. I make about half the listed median wage and we lack for nothing, I even have money for a kickball league and weekly brunches!

I plan on staying in the city for at least another 2 years. When my son gets to 1st grade, I'll be re-evaluating depending on what school he's attending.

Living in North NJ I love watching HGTV and seeing how inexpensive homes are in other parts of the country! Sometimes (but only sometimes) it makes me want to move. I just sent this list to my bf - he moved from NYC to the Bergen-Passaic area of Jersey to try and save some money on rent...guess he won't be saving that much since it still made the top 10!

I agree with Cooklyn - i lived with roommates pretty much my entire time in NYC (nearly 13 years), and never in Manhattan itself, and never spent money on cable TV or cabs just so i could save to buy an apartment. My salary was never that spectacular, but last year, I was able to finally buy a fantastic apartment one stop away from the city. I guess I'll be there for a long while though, because I don't see how I'll be able to upgrade for awhile!

Oh, and as far as the DC prices go, remember that the price listed is the average price across the city. There are 2bds across the river in SE that go for $800/mo. They're not in safe neighborhoods, but they do offset the $3000/mo apartments in Dupont or Georgetown.

Yet another Vancouverite here...
We see our house as a part of our retirement plan.
When we bought our first house at 30 (still when prices were going up and up, 2006), we were by no means rich.
We had no money from parents. What we did have was what I had saved up since I was a teenager. Yes, teenager. We share a '99 Protege. We cook most of our meals at home. We camp in the summer. I coupon.
We sold that one from 2006 and upgraded. We own 50% of that house now (meaning the bank owns the other half).
The point? Priorities. If you really want to buy a place, you're going to have to sacrifice.
Frankly, if my 27 yr old single legal secretary SIL can buy an apt in the 'burbs and rent it out to get into the market, just about anyone with a job can.
Sure prices are crazy. But chances are they'll be just as crazy when you go to sell, so it's all a wash in the end provided you have more than the scant 10% down payment.

"How long can we keep this up?" This question comes up on a regular basis for us (Chicago). So many of our friends have moved away (those who don't have family here and/or didn't grow up here) to make their money go farther. Raising 2 kids in a 2-bedroom condo is luxurious by some city standards, but it still is tough when my preschooler asks (innocently) when we're going to have a basement or a yard like all of his cousins have. And now, having bought our place about 2 years before the housing bubble burst, we are stuck for a while.

The trick, I think, is trying to change my mindset from feeling "stuck" and remembering all of the great things I get by living here: being within walking distance to almost everything I need, being near transit, having all kinds of great amenities and attractions, etc.

I think the question that we aren't asking is why many creative people feel drawn to cities as a preferred habitat. It seems that the frustration we feel when we look at the cost of living in these cities is that we are drawn to them and yet can barely afford to live there. I'm including myself in this. Is there a way to reproduce what we love about cities like New York or San Francisco in more affordable places? Maybe.

What about places like Portland? It's cheaper, loaded with culture and full of artists of all stripes. Are there other places like Portland that have that happy medium between affordability and culture?

My husband recently got a new job with a bonus, and we'd been living in a 2 bedroom Seattle apartment with a roommate. We bought a townhouse in one of our favorite walkable neighborhoods, figuring that housing prices are just going to go up and we want to get a place while we can afford it. We're very lucky though - 2 incomes, and he's a software developer. They remodeled our old apartment after we left, and now it costs more than our mortgage. Rent is going crazy here and new apartment buildings are going up all over the place; I'm glad to have a locked rate with our mortgage. We both grew up in Portland, and the areas we like best there have similar housing prices to where we are now (about 2.5 miles north of downtown Seattle). Seattle feels like a bigger version of Portland, with more jobs (but more traffic, too).

"I'm including myself in this. Is there a way to reproduce what we love about cities like New York or San Francisco in more affordable places? "

OR....

Is there anything to do in places like DC, NYC, and SF to PRESERVE AFFORDABLE HOUSING? Hmmmmmmm......

These comments are really making me appreciate what I have here in Philly: my own 1050 square foot house for just under 1/3 of my take-home pay (and I am not a high earner by any means), a walkable city and neighborhood where I don't need to own a car, plenty of city amenities and cultural institutions, hiking within city limits and accessible by public transportation. Plus money and time left over to enjoy my life and do some traveling. Sure, we don't have the 'best of the best' here, but NYC is only two hours away.

I was considering a move to SF for the past 2 years, but the only thing I can think of that makes it better than here is the incredible natural and architectural beauty. Other than that, bars are bars, restaurants are restaurants, coffee shops are coffee shops (in my experience of major US cities, anyway).

Take a look at Philadelphia, those of you looking for walkable, culturally stimulating, and affordable

... cities, that is.

@Borage--a great question. What about housing cooperatives? It's at the top of my "If I ever have a cash windfall" list: buy a building, create a housing cooperative.

Thanks to Sydneysider for the comment! Melbourne is not far behind. I am enjoying this read so much, wish there would an equivalent exchange for Australia. This is very informative!

I agree, there haven't been any 2 bedroom $1500 apts in DC for years now. And with the housing market the way it is, rent just keeps going up (with the stricter lending laws there are more renters, fewer home owners). Still, I managed to save enough cash to buy a house in NOVA and I'm making well under the median income here. I saved all I could (my cell phone is 10 years old next year!) My mortgage ended up being less than the rapidly escalating rent.
If I didn't have my dream job, I'd move to Columbus Ohio in a heartbeat. It has a great balance of cheap living and thriving art/culture. Plus - Jeni's ice cream...

To live in an expensive city that is over your income, you have to go to unconventional means. Also if you plan to stay there you open more options up.You might make a good wage nationally but you might qualified for an FHA loan or house locally. All the FHA or housing department low income zoned housing doesn't mean its in a bad area. It means that the price of the home even when you go to sell is strictly regulated. Not a bad thing if you plan to live your entire life there. You could also qualify for a program in which FHA owns a foreclosed home and offers it to people in lower incomes in the area. Meaning you have to qualify for the program and the homes are not on the regular real estate market. Dont think that you dont qualify because you make a good living nationally. California actually takes median house holds into account now too. You might not be looking at all your options.

I always would like Apartment Therapy to be more international in its articles like this to reflect its readership. I understand the seasonal differences will never work for us in the southern hemisphere but feel an article like this would be enhanced by an added paragraph of international info.

These rents are a bargain compared to Perth in Western Australia. I feel for those in the rental marketplace its tough. I'm fortunate to be a private landlord and rent out 2 Inner city 1 bedroom apartments for $550 per week. 2x Two bedroom Apartments on the beach for $650 per week. And a knock over 3 bedroom house for $600 a week. (The tenants actually offered a $100 a week extra rent mid lease if they could get an 18 month extension on their lease they were so worried about having to go back in the marketplace). I receive about 15 applicants in 1/2 a day of listing. All with deserving stories. (I work really hard to make them as nice as I can and everytime they change over I make myself upgrade them. I endeavour to be the best landlord I can be. My own house isn't as nice.) That's Perth.... its tough for tenants but that is nothing compared to Port Hedland & Karratha where 3 bedroom houses rent for $2000- $3000 per week. ( no typo) People who own houses in these towns have rented them out and moved in to Caravan Parks to cash in on the income.

I'd love to know what sort of apartment they think you can get for that price in San Francisco. I live on the Peninsula south of the city and pay $3,000 a month for a two bedroom, two bath in a large apartment complex. Yes, I have granite, a soaker tub, and a gas fireplace, but when I lived across the country in Charleston, SC, I paid 1/3 of that rate for the basically the same apartment while making 1/3 less salary. It's very hard to live decently in the Bay Area and pay less than 50% of your take home in rent.

I would love to leave NYC, but my desired destination, NH, has so few jobs and would require that I have regular use of a car (for work, grocery shopping, etc.). Plus, the specific location in NH where I'd like to live is actually relatively expensive, and apartments tend to be in sub-divided homes, rather than "proper" apt buildings like my (character-filled) Manhattan rental. Argh.

Another Sydneysider (who loves SF!) here. Only $1,905 a month? Holy crap, sign me up!

@designgratislondon "The average age for buying a flat in London is now something like 48 which is ridiculous." Agree that London has become unaffordable. Not sure when it happened, maybe in the last 10-15 years. It seems that if you didn't get on the property ladder by the end of the 90s, it's near impossible to purchase within London on a single wage. Rents, meanwhile, have remained high.

We all live with such contradictions. I suppose some of that is just inevitable, but it's not inevitable not to question or challenge it.

On the one hand, we see what may be environmental collapse on the horizon. This is due in part to a lavish lifestyle, expending carbon and pollutants like they're nothing. We buy stuff and throw stuff away (this should be illegal, unless it's organic). Well, we all know the ways that we contribute to pollution. On the other hand, we're told that what we need is GROWTH, growth, growth. It's the only thing that can 'sustain' us. We need jobs! We need well-paying jobs! More jobs! Now! Doesn't matter doing what, we need jobs! MORE JOBS!

So how do we reconcile these two concepts: the need to cut back and conserve, and the need for constant economic growth? I think the growth model or the capitalist model has done a lot of damage.

Are there ways to be productive that do not contribute to destruction of our resources? Let me say that another way: are there ways to be productive that contribute LESS destruction to our resources? There is simply no doubt that the answer is yes.

But here we see everyone's economic panic - hardly a HINT that there might be another way if people got together, used their heads and demanded change on a local scale, demanded a way to see things and do things differently STARTING WITH the physical structure of where we live.

I love reading about design so I like this site - I love reading about and looking at images of design for small spaces, especially. But this site's reason for being is to SELL STUFF. It is the only way it stays in business. I've been following it for a long time, and I'm not sure it was always like this. Seems like they took a hard sell turn a year or two ago, but don't quote me on that.

Just some Saturday morning musings (made in the USA).

Currently living in Minneapolis paying $750 for a one bedroom half of a duplex which is a deal. Rents have recently gotten pretty crazy here and the vacancy rate is on par with NYC. When the economy tanked lots of people moved in with their parents and are now back on their feet enough to be looking for their own place again. Just finding is affordable one bedroom took months and I've been here for 8 years. We do have some new construction but those are more expensive than SF (http://www.liveinflux.com/floorplans.html). Don't overlook food costs. Eating out and groceries are way more expensive than PDX or Austin, but not as bad as SF.

I had always assumed that, unless you are incredibly wealthy, the reason people live in the most expensive cities is because their work, studies or relationships/family ties mean they HAVE to live there, or within a commutable distance. It never occurred to me that people "pay crazy-high rent forever and forget about buying a home" because "oh, I do love San Francisco..."

I love living in Chicago and love it for all of its culture, diversity, and *relatively* affordable lifestyle. I lived in L.A. for a time, which I loved, but just decided unless I was wealthy it just wasn't worth it. (still waiting for that ship to come in!) I love the fact that on a relatively modest salary I was still able to buy a spacious 2 bed-2 bath condo, something I could never dream doing in California, let alone something bigger. But then I visit friends is smaller towns and I realize my point of view is still skewed. They have entire homes and yards for less than my place, not to mention cheaper groceries, gas, entertainment, etc. (even vet bills as I found out from a friend who's a vet in a small town) But I wouldn't change where I live.
Everyone has a slightly different sweet spot of location vs cost, which can change with time of life.

Lived in NYC for 6 years on 30k a year (with a teenaged son) and loved every second of it. I moved for love, not finances, and though my life now is lovely and happy, I miss my city fair every single day. Hold on for as long as you can, and savor it fully and profoundly...

Sigh. I live in Auckland, New Zealand... jobs are tight, money does not go very far (it is normal to spend $100 a week at the supermarket, no matter how tight you are and how little you eat) and the salaries are very very low. We currently spend $330 a week on rent, for a one bedroom flat underneath a main house. It's expensive, but the house is not damp and is built soundly, so it's worthwhile but still... expensive. Other problems in NZ for rental housing is lack of care from landlords, many of them are cold, damp and badly built with old or no insulation, and what insulation there is is usually far below par. Many of the old villas have the original windows for the house (so thin and not very water tight).

It sucks, as I love Auckland and New Zealand, but it is hard to find a decent job that pays... yet, we cannot go elsewhere because the jobs are even tighter, even though the rent is (mostly) cheaper. I am seriously considering moving overseas after my degree is done.

"Is there a way to reproduce what we love about cities like New York or San Francisco in more affordable places? "

I think the simple answer is no. If you could reproduce the attractions of NY or SF, the new places would be just as attractive and in demand, which means property prices will go up.

"Is there anything to do in places like DC, NYC, and SF to PRESERVE AFFORDABLE HOUSING?"

Ah, that's the rub. Housing and rental prices don't go up on their own. They can only go up when people pay for them. So, houses and apartments are indeed affordable in DC, NYC, and SF. They just may not be affordable to you.

As a real estate professor once said, there is plenty of low-cost housing in California. It's just not where most people want to live.

I am really confused about these people "gushing" over San Francisco. I have lived here 37 years and I am leaving for a small ranch house with a pool in the Sierra foothills in about 7 weeks[completely mortgage free!]...the Natural beauty of San Francisco is what it is all about, but the days of the real San Francisco when the city was for "San Franciscans" is completely over. I have had the big Victorian apartment, the gorgeous new construction on Liberty Hill and am now in a rent controlled 500sq ft Studio near Dolores park that will double in price when I move out. The city has become an absolute cesspool, they are building more and more condos to sell to people who don't live here and we are already more densely populated than New York. The public transportation [except for BART] is a complete joke and I don't know what you are talking about when you think the people are great because the demographic has changed so much in the past 15 years that the entire city is full of self obsessed whiners who think they are being filmed for a reality show. These cretins are rude, loud, bad neighbors and so self entitled they wouldn't even pick up their own trash because they are "above that." I will miss the clean air, the close proximity of the Pacific, the 90 minute ride to Sonoma and all the wonderful food resources. SF has become "Hong-FranSicko!" You can have it!

@Reeal I quite agree with a lot of what you wrote in response to my post. After I wrote that, I was actually on the train and realized that what I had written actually had an air of condescension to it. I hope I didn't come off as if I was harshly judging the actions of others

I realize that there are many factors that prevent people from being able to save and buy. I was lucky-- my family is financially stable and I had relatively little debt, which makes a world of difference. I suppose that on AT, I was simply reacting to what I tend to see in the comments of a lot of readers-- a tendency to weigh immediate gratification more than achieving long-term goals. I'm not saying that everyone should live with ten roommates forever, but I do think that the general decrease in financial literacy isn't doing a lot of people any favors. In addition, for many reasons-- and the political direction of the country certainly included in this-- making housing affordable to low and middle-income Americans is just not a priority anymore in the US. As someone who had to move repeatedly when my mother and I were priced out of "gentrifying" and "discovered" neighborhoods, I certainly identify with a lot of the financial burdens that people face in our most expensive cities.

Like LouiseVN above, I live in New Zealand, but I live in Wellington. In comparison to the rent/income table above, I would say it is much more expensive than even San Francisco as our median wage/salary is far below that listed above.

We currently pay about $1800NZD ($1500USD) a month for a two bedroom, moderately sized (about 800sqft) and appointed apartment in the central city, right in the middle of the entertainment district (the building we back on to is quite literally, a strip club). Before I left my full time job to become self employed, we earned around $74,000pa gross (before tax about $61,000USD) combined in our moderately skilled incomes - my husband is a butcher and I used to be a retail store manager. So, comparably, if those figures above are for individual incomes, then I'm a little baffled at how these rents can be considered 'expensive'.

We lived very comfortably before I left my job and were able to purchase frivolous items without too much forethought, and do any entertainment activities we felt like, in fact comparative to many people we would probably have been considered reasonably wealthy.

Compare that to Nelson, where we used to live where our mortgage is $200 a week (we still own the property) but our incomes were around $8k lower each a year, and quality of life was probably comparable to here in Wellington, but with less fun stuff to do. I'm not planning on going back to the cheaper housing any time soon, it's more fun in the capital!

With good savings and good timing we managed to buy a small townhome in Old Town Alexandria right outside DC. Everything is expensive here. But our jobs are a quick drive across the river and we did not want to spend our time commuting.

One interesting factor to keep in mind is that there aren't very many older children living in these kinds of areas. They've all left for better schools and bigger homes. So my children are having trouble making friends with anyone who lives within walking distance from us.

But we are living in an exciting area near a metro and near museums, National monuments, parks, etc. It's all about trade offs.

My fiance' and I just purchased a condo in Downtown Long Beach. We absolutely love it! A stone throw away from the "OC" where we both grew up. And a quick drive up the freeway lands us in Hollywood/Beverly Hills. Our condo with ocean view is 2/3 our previous rent in the "OC". Not to mention we love, love, love living in Downtown Long Beach. Long Beach is a hidden gem, I am sure there are plenty of these places out there. Sometimes you have to think outside the box.

I live in Sao Paulo, Brazil and despite here we have no transportation, security and infra-structure enough for the population in general, the living cost is huge!
The past 3 years real state and cost living growth and became unsustainable.
I am seriously thinking about moving out in some years...

"Hold on for as long as you can, and savor it fully and profoundly..." Exactly @Chenell. I am currently going through a divorce. What has, to this point, been an affordable city for me, may soon be out of my reach. So how long can i keep this up? I have no idea, but I will do my damnedest to extend my stay for as long as possible - moving to a less expensive neighborhood and cutting my living space in half. Some may think I'm misguided and should head out in search of a cheaper cost of living, but right now, this is where I need and want to be.

I live in London and I'm never ever leaving. Why would I ever want to leave my fabulous city? Never mind the fact that half of my take home goes to my mortgage...

i moved from nyc to houston and did not regret it one bit....houston has awesome restaurants (i think better than nyc) and a bar scene...great museums and theaters...tons of green space...beautiful parks...an awesome mayor :)...i bought a 2000 sq ft town home in mid town...i make about 60,000 a year and still able to save and travel...i go on vacation twice a year...and now i can truly enjoy all the expensive cities :P

I live in Brookline, in a tiny condo, but I love it. 40% of my take-home goes to my mortgage, but I don't regret it as this apartment hasn't lose any of its value (at least, according to Zillow).

Considering Boston is the 2nd most expensive metro (last I read), it's really strange it's not on the list. The jobs here pay better than in some other cities, but not enough to make up for the increased cost of living. Anyway, almost everyone I know here lives with at least 1 roommate. Usually 2 or 3. Even many of the married couples I know have a housemate. I don't see how else you could do it.

Don't eat out. Live in a commune. Don't get cable TV. Take public transit. DON'T HAVE KIDS. *shrug*

It's not easy. For what I paid for my home in a sketchy neighborhood here, I could have bought a mansion in a beautiful neighborhood in Ohio. Then again, I'd be in Ohio. I guess it all comes down to what is it worth to you to not live in Ohio?

Boston doesn't make the list for the same reason NYC doesn't make the list. When people think of NYC, they usually aren't thinking of Queens and Brooklyn. This study must be based on city proper.

When people think of Boston, they're not thinking of the more affordable annexed towns (now "neighborhoods") like Dorchester, Mattapan, Hyde Park, Roxbury... Each of these places is essentially a city in and of itself and culturally different from what we think of as "Boston". If you lived in one of these, you wouldn't really think of yourself as in 'the city' or 'in Boston'. My friends say "I live in Dorchester" or "I live in Roslindale", they don't say "I live in Boston" though the census would say that's the case.

I thought the great American dream was to have a detached, 4,000 sq ft house in suburbia, with two vehicles in the driveway. I think it's time to reassess this post-war model of (unsustainable) living. After all, all people do is shop, shop, shop to fill those rooms with furniture (with the overflow going to the garage and the crawl space!).
Living smaller is probably a good idea for society in general. Would any of you trade your bustling, compact urban neighborhoods for a chance of home ownership in...vacuum land? I know I wouldn't. I like being able to walk to my grocery store, and generally enjoy the goings-on of my local community. I do not have to rely on a car to get everywhere, and instead have a bike for going slightly further afield, and for really far afield use a car co-op or taxi. Yes, urban rents/ownership are high, but how much does a car, gas, insurance, and maintenance cost – $1000/month? How much is your time worth waiting in traffic jams getting home to suburbia? Smaller places also mean fewer furniture purchases, and a certain craftiness with making a smaller space work (this is Apartment Therapy, after all). Even families with children can make smaller-space living successful; the idea of what constitutes enough space is a relative concept anyway.

@Snoozy: I agree with much of what you say regarding smaller-space living, and the urban v. suburban lifestyle. It's not always that clear-cut, though, especially for families with children. Even if you're prepared to sacrifice space, their are other considerations such as schools. Here in London, it is extremely difficult to find good schools in many central (and most not-so central) locations, unless you're prepared to fork out £6,000 (about $9,700) per term for a private school. Or £10,000 ($16,190) for boarding school - I guess that would solve the problem of space during term time, at least.

WHERE did you find an SF 2 bedroom apt for 1900? I paid that (after including the sewage, water and trash service I was responsible for !!!) and I lived 30 miles away. My friends either lived with roomates (in their late 30s!) or in $1500 studios with no parking.
St Paul isn't San Francisco, but it's much more affordable. And I'm falling in love with a new old city full of artists

sheez. I've never paid more than $750 in rent, which is what I am paying right now for a HUGE three bedroom house, with a large back deck and yard, a front room, breakfast nook... BUT this is Mississippi and nobody in their right mind would want to actually move here. We are planning on moving to Texas in the next year because, well, it sucks here. I really wanted to move to California( we went to SF for our honeymoon, and I fell in love!), but it's just too damn expensive!

i guess it's just a matter of perspective and value. sure, lots of folks would think spending the majority of your take home income on rent is crazy or a waste of money. but, i am sure folks might think the same thing about other things people spend their money on. a LOT of their money on. if being in an expensive city is worth it to you (and feasible) then more power to you :)

i miss san francisco all the time. more to the point is i miss living in a vibrant city where i didn't need a car, and i was so close to my family. i never realized just how important that was to me until i moved to the outskirts of san antonio, texas. while i might never live in san fracisco again, i would definitely pay more than what we are now (within our means) to get back some of the things we miss about city living.

it's give and take and finding a balance and examining what is important to you. i would never think to snub someone who wants to live in a big city, in the suburbs, out in the country of some unknown city or even couch surfing, since i know everyone has different values when it comes to where they live.

I've lived in NYC and San Francisco, and I've never understood the delusional arrogance factor of why you can't possibly move and people/food/weather/beer/museums are so much better here. This is a huge country with so many cheap, livable cities. It's not news NYC and SF are expensive.

I have friends in DC who are facing this exact predicament: how long do we stay here with our jobs and postpone the things that we want (home, kids, etc.) but cannot afford due to the cost of real estate in this area. I've always understood it but *not* understood how they could be so torn. Apparently it's a much bigger deal that I ever thought.

My husband and I live comfortably in Houston (not downtown, but not in the 'burbs either), and like others have already said - we enjoy the things the city has to offer and enjoy our ability to have more of our income available for traveling or future planning. We have a great neighborhood, great neighbors and we both have ~10-15 minute commutes (if you've ever been to Houston, you know this is pretty rare). My company's headquarters are in New Jersey, so we are able to extend some business trips and get around the northeast; my husband's current project is outside Sao Paulo so we are able to extend his business trips as well. Houston is a very international city and has a great economy and job market. And low rent. And delicious food. Really, really delicious food.

NYC is relative.... no car payment, car insurance, parking or gas, only $100 a month for the subway. adding those cost to rent in most cities would be comparable.

What can I say, I'm in Geneva, Switzerland ... one of the most expensive cities in the world (_particularly_ because of the rents) and the second-best in terms of salaries. Unfortunately I'm paid by a foreign organization so I don't get to the second part ;)
Still more attractive than most of european cities, less clean than you'd expect and a bit quieter than you'd like; not too much though!

I currently live in San Jose, CA with my husband and toddler. Despite both of us being employed full-time (but not in the tech industry), not having any debt, and living a modest lifestyle, we are not keeping up with the cost of living. Sure, there are many wonderful things about living in the SF Bay Area but, alas, we're not able to afford much of it so what's the point of struggling so hard just to survive here?

Trulia Trends blog had an article recently that gave stats on how long it'd take to save for a down payment given the average home price and income for places around the country. In San Jose, for example, if you make $1,800 a week, want to buy a home in the median price range ($325/sq ft), it'll take you nearly 13 years to save up that down payment if you're socking away 10% of your income. In SF? 20 years.

So, we're formulating an escape plan. Detroit, Ann Arbor, Portland, and Albany (NY) are high on our list of possible relocation destinations.

I moved to Lincoln, NE, for a job this summer. It pays well enough and rent is cheap enough here for me to spend less than 25% of my income on rent. And I work at a non-profit.
There ARE apartment buildings here where the owners must believe we're in SF/NY/Chicago. Lincoln doesn't even have a proper "downtown" (and I hate that), but any apartments near "downtown" cost $1200+. It's ridiculous what people will pay in this place... I live 10 blocks south of "downtown" in a "rougher" part of town (the locals have all warned me that this is not a safe area, but I disagree after being a REAL city-dweller since college) and I pay less than $500 for a huge historic 1 bedroom with a full living room, dining room, kitchen. Hardwood floors. All electric. Water, garbage, & snow removal all paid for. So... what in the world?? How are the other apartments getting away with murder??

Here's a vote for Philadelphia.

I bought a 3 bedroom little rowhouse last year for $100K. It was a Grandma Special, so we did some DIY decorating upgrades, but nothing drastic. We're close to a recently renovated park, the Italian Market, the subway and lots of buses.

It's not as exciting as many other parts of Philly, I'm sure, and certainly not as exciting as NYC bars closing at 4am. But, since we're starting to think about a family-plan, we're not really going out to bars until 4am.

There's a tiny little farmers' market and some good local culture stuff. I think people get mired in "Biggest," "Best," or "Coolest." "good enough" may not be exciting, but it's very calming to not worry about money on a daily basis and to actually enjoy a night on the town once in a while.

But, maybe I'm just getting super old; I am 35 after all.

I need to say something about his small city / big city dichotomy. Just because people don't live in NY, Boston, SF or Chicago doesn't mean we spend our extra money on barrels of crude oil. I live in Pittsburgh, bike to work, buy food from the farmer's market and walk to shops, restaurants and bars. I don't want to live in NY because I'd like to save money for retirement and starting my own business. For that you need to have extra money to SAVE.

The rest of us aren't just pumping gas pedals and downing hamburgers. I'll skip the bagels and save a third of my income.

I just think it's interesting that everyone assumes that art and culture or whatever can only be found in NYC or SF. I've lived in big cities for most of my adult life and grew up in a mid-sized city. And the truth is there was culture in all of them. Good food in all of them. Art in all of them. Music in all of them. Just because it wasn't overly expensive or commercialized doesn't mean that it wasn't worthwhile.

It's true that this is all about priorities. What is important to you and what is necessary for your quality of life? For me, I want to travel and save for retirement and maybe have at least one kid. I had a great time living in Chicago in New York. Love love love DC and San Francisco. But I recently moved from Boston to Lexington, KY, and couldn't be happier. My partner and I can live in a huge 1100 SF 2-br, downtown, on just his salary. He's not rich and it's not more than 35% of his income. This means my salary is for saving and funsies, like trips to NYC or the Caribbean or wherever we want to go. And because Lexington is a college town, it's full of all the things Coasters think they have a monopoly on, like a thriving art community, a foodie scene bolstered by lots of new, small businesses (side rant that people down south have *been* doing the locavore/farmer's market thing, long before everyone on the coasts started patting themselves on the back about it), and an interesting music scene (hipsters are the same everywhere, please believe that). Plus the usual small coffee shops, indie theaters and amazing consignment shops to boot AND it's walkable. My partner and I live downtown and both walk or bike to work.

For people who are wrestling with whether to leave the big city for a lower cost of living, I would just urge you to realize that everything is what you make of it anyway and life is all relative. Don't shade a smaller city just because Jean-Georges doesn't have a restaurant there or because you **think** the art scene doesn't stack up to the mostly overhyped stuff that you saw at a gallery in the West Loop. You don't have to actually struggle and stress if you don't want to. You can make it work somewhere else.

*understood that for some people, jobs dictate location, but if you have some stuff you could do anywhere, think about doing it in a cheaper place.

"No, we all know we can't stay..." is the most accurate thought process for us longer-term residents that can't get past $2200 a month for a one bedroom. But why can't a continuously thriving economy exist in a city that will allow us to stay?!

@bourbonista so true..very nicely written...and home is where the heart is..you have your beloved with you and on the same page..that is what makes it work....I'm sure you get used to living in such a different type of place than Boston, where i'm from, I couldn't but def agree with everything you said...gone are days where my first apt in Everett, of all places, was 150.00 a month..behind Teddy Peanutbutter factory..It's worth a big thought for other young couples..or anyone if they dare..quality of life and money to enjoy it..

I'd love to live in Welly but my husband thinks it's too cold (he's from South Africa... so anywhere is cold!) but man, rents etc are on a par with Auckland!! Hopefully the job market will open up this summer like they are predicting and I can realise my dream :)

Thanks for your thoughtful response, Cooklyn.:) I also understand your point about the benefits of having long-term goals related to housing and in making wise choices that take future needs into consideration. It's so easy to lose sight when we're young and/or living for the moment.

And you're absolutely right - affordable housing isn't a priority in our society. It's become a dog-eat-dog world out there, even here in so-called "liberal" San Francisco, where greed rules (even if it pretends to be something other than greed). Unfortunately, so long as people continue to pay exorbitant prices for sub-standard housing (or any other product for that matter), I don't see much of anything changing.

I actually grew up in a SF housing cooperative (one of the first on the West Coast) whose stated objective was to build an interracial community that provided affordable housing to low and moderate income wage earners and their families. When the original loan was finally paid off a few years ago, they went condo. Utopian ideals don't fare well in our capitalist society.

The other thing that gets me is how -depending on your circumstances- you can be debt-free and even have a modest nest-egg, yet still have very few housing options. A lot of us with limited incomes rely on our savings to get by every month and wouldn't dare invest in real estate (even if we could afford it), since we'd risk not being able to handle an unplanned-for emergency, such as an illness, medical expense or unemployment.

I'm just venting - none of this is directed at you Cooklyn!

I'm a mid-twenties woman spending a large portion of money on rent in Boston, but my quality of life is so much better here than when I was commuting from the suburbs. I walk to work, I can bike anywhere I need for my daily necessities, even getting to the airport is a cake walk compared to when I lived in the 'burbs.
While housing costs are stressful at times, the thought of moving out of the city to conserve money still makes me shudder. I do wonder how I will deal with this when I decide to have children, but I will absolutely never commute into a city ever again. Period. It makes me a miserable person and those I love suffer for it.

I live in the "OC" in CA and have for the past 36 years. My secret-forever-dream is to be able to live as a local in France and soak up the culture and architecture and experiences and to be able to see Europe close up - but because of my beloved 20-something's sons, I want to stay in their proximity and to be able to watch their lives unfold as much as I can.

Where is that place in the western half of the US where people are real, architecture is noteworthy, arts and culture are a priority, an artisan mentality prevails, a sense of true community exists and is cultivated, a safe environment, and the weather is not crazy? (we are going on 3 continuous months of major heat and I am so over it right now) Is it like that saying in the ad agency - you can have cheap, fast, and good. Pick two? I think I am getting ready to spread my wings and try something new - I can feel it. Does this lifestyle exist aside from my long wishlist? Maybe all of we posters should pool our resources and start our own community. : D Count me in.

This article and the discussion in the comments is exactly what I need right now. After 9 years in Oakland/East Bay, I'm done and ready to move on. I'm thinking a smaller city, perhaps a college town, that has its own non-college things going on, would be a good choice. Trouble is, I haven't been able to save much of anything, so how does a move happen? My mom will help me move to San Antonio/Austin because my grandma is in SA, but I'd really rather live in Austin and the more research I do, the more it seems like it might not be all that different from here in terms of COL. It also sucks that I'd need help from mom & dad at 32 yo. I'd go to Portland in an instant if gloom didn't make me depressed (why I could never live in SF proper). KCMO is also a possibility. Now how do I find a job when I don't get paid vacation time to go interview?

the list of avg rent v. avg income is by individual county; nyc does not make the list b/c one of its five counties is the poorest county in the state, w/an ami that is 60% ami for the metro area & a range of rents from affordable to luxury. for metro areas in america, nyc & sf are the most expensive b/c they are nyc & sf and not comparable to other cities; people from all over the world know nyc & sf (and are buying that real estate, in cash). people in other cities are a bit defensive, but at least they are living in cities. the bigger problem is people who think that a huge house in the 'burbs is the end-all, when it is not. 'burbs are not as green/sustainable & how long is the commute to work & culture & good restaurants? it is not easier to live in the 'burbs or the countryside on a lower-than-average salary, unable to partake in culture or restaurants & needing a car, besides. nyc & sf also have rent controls, which contributes to the lack of affordable housing b/c there is no new supply when the suppliers cannot adjust to market forces but can sell the luxury housing for cash.

This article is absolutely perfect for what I'm going through at the moment. I grew up in the suburbs in Southern California, and had been living at home the whole time. I applied for a job here in SF on somewhat of a whim, and surprise, i got the job, and a week later i made the move. My current job is just enough to keep me stable, but that's also with sharing a studio in Oakland with a friend. I really do appreciate all the city has to offer, but I really miss the people I love back home, and can't help but wonder how much I can enjoy life just because of a place. That life might be more worthwhile with the person you love more than alone in a cool place. I haven't been here long, so I'm sure I will grow to love some people out here as well, but it's all coming back to the idea of what is worth it. I'm starting to fancy the idea of living in a smaller more quaint town with the person I love and having more time to just enjoy things. I also don't know if I really love the city like I thought I would. I'm entirely torn on what really makes me happy. But for now I've got a job (with a potential raise coming soon), and very solid prospects at a second job, and a potential roommate for a place in the city, but despite it all I worry that I might be better off somewhere else.

Good luck! It's such a great city, and even if you live out of the central city a bit, public transport is pretty darn good. We're actually moving to a semi-suburban location and there is a bus stop right outside the door, with a bus going past every ten minutes. Still no need for an expensive car!

WOW! Reading you all's posts is like I'm peering into another reality.

I live in West Virginia, and it's honestly just like what you might think.

As somebody with the same interest and aesthetic as many of you on AT, and having traveled around the world, why I am still here is beyond me.

My rent is $550 for a spacious 2 bedroom bungalow w/ full basement...the downside is...everything but affordable rent and safety.

I dunno how I'm going to get out of here, as I'm close to friends and family, and want to start a family soon, but soon I am going to try to make it happen!

I lived in San Francisco for 2 and a half years. For the first year and a half I was working part time as a server to supplement in my income as an actor. When I got tired of the "starving artist" gig and stressing about constantly being late on bills and having no money to eat I decided to do the full time "job" route. Then I was working so much to make my bills that I barely had any free time. All the while I had a 10X12 ft bedroom with the only view being the neighbor's mirroring window from 5 feet away (that provided plenty of awkward moments). After realizing that my life was passing me by at a rapid pace I decided it was time to move. I had to work 7 days a week just to pay rent in SF while saving money to get out.

Currently I live in SE Portland in an amazing apartment with my significant other which has a fireplace, free washer and dryer, hardwood floors, plenty of windows and great neighbors. Not to mention I only work 4 days a week which pays my bills and gives me plenty of spending money.

SF was a great experience but I could not imagine spending my entire life there.

Hear hear! You hit the nail on the head as to why I got out.

Bonjour,
I am a French woman (45 y old) who came to the US at the age of 22 and I have seen the rent tripled on me over the years!
I worked as a massage therapist in a spa in the bay area of San Francisco in 1995 and my salary was $25 per massage and my rent was $600 with a roommate in Palo Alto back then....until the rent tripled around 1999-2000 (if not before?) and then I had to have 2-3 jobs just to be able to afford living there.
now I am so disgusted by the high cost of living in California Bay area that I am back in my country in France....not working (Of course! everybody knows there are no jobs in France!!)...and hesitating to come back to California for work (as I found one thru internet) because I know the rent is going to get me broke once again:(
I either stay in France not working and not gaining....or I go back to the bay area and work like a slave to be able to afford living there!! Huummm! tough choice here!???!!!! LOL...
I tried New YOrk(the worst in my opinion!) I loved Chicago (but not in the winter!)...and Florida is still the capital of Scam Artists as I was scammed there for a room for rent (some woman stole $600 cash from me there last time!) and I am too young to move to Florida, I am scared of the people there driving badly on the highways and old kind...
I can't find a good affordable place to live in the US where I don't need to buy a car...!!
I am looking for a city where I don't need a car...
any tips anyone?
Thank you so much:)
MERCI:))

@Frenchpat

You might seek out Seattle (cold winter though), or Austin, TX.

Although Austin is in Texas, it's a liberal/progressive area if that's important to you.

Houston is also an option to look into.

All 3 are higher density urban areas (which you seem to prefer) with vibrant downtowns and mass transit available.

Just my opinion, good luck.

@Frenchpat

Ran across this website that you can use for further research

http://www.city-data.com/forum/austin/1529903-potential-move-austin-how-progressive.html

I've had to move from San Francisco, which was the first school district to EVER let me have an Algebra and Geometry and even French class as my schedule (as a public school high school Math teacher) with my choice of Prep period even after they'd seen me, to the less-expensive Santa Fe, NM - and in spite of what other New Mexicans complain about all the time I don't see Santa Fe on this list ANYWHERE. With almost the same salary as SFUSD and less than half the rent amounts for things that are actually right up IN the city of Santa Fe (unlike what you'd get for $475/month in San Francisco which is -- what, again? Nothing! HALF of a room for rent in someone's house, is more like it!) it's like getting a massive RAISE. And with Santa Fe ranking second nationwide in "gay friendliness" that works for me. Oh well, it has to. I couldn't afford to live and be a public school Math teacher in the one city I knew it was safe to be female, gay and nonwhite all at the same time.

That's how San Franciscans look at Santa Fe: ""only" $475/month? Sign me up!"

It's amazing what you can get used to... I lived in a two bedroom in Honolulu 1500 sqft for 2200/mo. and thought that was expensive. I now live in Monte-Carlo (for work reasons) and pay 2500/mo. for a 250 sqft studio which I live and work in with my husband.
You do save a great deal on utilities and furniture :-)

Hello,

I just wanted to find out about how you managed after taking a large pay cut. I live in Washington, DC and had my $85000 salary essentially halved after losing a job and needing to find an alternative. Have you been able to find better opportunities or is it still a struggle? I guess I just do not want to get discouraged. Have been applying to several jobs a week but cannot seem to find opportunities that would take me back to the level of pay I was earning.

Thanks

Hi there,

I feel like I am in the minority in the District with my salary being so low. You mention you are well below the median but still can afford a mortgage. What is the median for DC? 60,00? I earn about $45000 and survive because my condo is paid off from the days that I earned more money, but it is hard to keep up even without that major expense.

Why can't I print the comments?