apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Whoa! I can get a place for as low as $790,000?!? That was sarcasm.

I don't know if you've ever explored the National Low Income Housing Coalition's (nlihc)website, but it's a real eye-opener. It contains the same kinds of statistics for all over the US.

Main page:
http://www.nlihc.org/template/index.cfm

It's their "Out Of Reach" (OOR) that has the statistics:
http://www.nlihc.org/oor/oor2008/

Want to just browse San Francisco?:
http://www.nlihc.org/oor/oor2008/data.cfm?getstate=on&getcounty=on&county=223&state=CA

Combine that with the info from the US Census:
http://factfinder.census.gov/home/saff/main.html?_lang=en
Site map might be easier to navigate:
http://factfinder.census.gov/jsp/saff/SAFFInfo.jsp?_pageId=gt1_site_map

I hope the rich enclave starts to brush up on their basic road repair, office work, food prep, and janitorial skills. With the costs of living in this area, and the costs of gasoline, it is not profitable for people to work at lower wage jobs.

The brilliant chef at the trendy restaurant may be able to live in the area...but all the support staff will not. The CEO may be able to live in the area, but not all the support staff.

All the businesses that rely on support staff consumerism will begin to fade.

Cities should not be melting pots. Where everyone is absorbed into a dominant theme, and those that don't blend well end up getting thrown away as waste.

Cities should be more like salads. Where there's a taste of everything, a surprise, a vibrancy with each neighborhood. And in many cases, even in the saddest neighborhood, there can be hope. And joy. And a celebration of life.

I'm sure that the rich enclave will enjoy it at first...being the only ones...but who will do all the work?

I would've done ANYTHING to stay in my Duboce Triangle apartment. After I started to realize how much I was giving up just to stay in the City, I moved to Oakland. Definitely well worth the move.

We're willing to do a lot to stay in the city itself, because of the easy commutes to work (I walk and my husband takes an express bus), the amenities, and so on. And "a lot" includes not having a car, living in a small apartment and paying outrageous rent, among other things.

However, the school lottery system may break us. The kid of friends of ours was assigned to a school one hour away from their apartment, in the opposite direction from their work. They don't have a car and SF doesn't bus. They bid for placement in 14 schools that were closer and didn't get any of them. In that (increasingly common) situation I would, like them, be planning a move to Marin. In one of the classes at my son's preschool, one family out of 20 received a placement at ANY of the schools they requested. It's no mystery why families staring down the barrel of the SFUSD lottery start checking out the suburbs.

This is a common problem in pretty much everywhere. I used to live in London and between the rent and expensive transportation costs it pretty much left me broke each month. It's insane that rat infested studio crap holes still get rented out at 1-2 grand a pop! Ugh.

"Cities should be more like salads. Where there's a taste of everything, a surprise, a vibrancy with each neighborhood. And in many cases, even in the saddest neighborhood, there can be hope. And joy. And a celebration of life".

Great analogy by True Blue.

Last time I checked there were lots of houses for sale at well below that "$790,000 median" level in my neighborhood. In fact, a two bedroom fixer just sold for under 500K a block away. FYI - I live in Crocker Amazon, an often overlooked ‘hood on the south edge of San Francisco. I think if some of those “middle class” types were willing to shop for homes in some of SF’s less “desirable” neighborhoods (Ingleside, Outer Mission, Excelsior, Portola, Crocker Amazon) they might actually find suitable family homes going for much, much less than in the more northern and “cutified\hipster-ified” parts of the city. There are plenty of real “working” people down here, and a diverse ethnic mix (Chinese, Vietnamese, Latino, Filipino, Pacific Islander, and Afro & Euro American). You know – diversity – it’s what every San Franciscan “claims” to want from their neighborhood…right?

What I’ve generally found is that many (northern) San Franciscans don’t really know much about any of the neighborhoods south of the 280 – and even though many claim to want to live in a “diverse” neighborhood, they wouldn’t really consider some of the more skuzzy areas the city has to offer. Sure, we don’t have any cool mid-century modern furniture stores, trendy shoe shops, wine bars or “fusion” restaurants, and there isn’t a Peet’s for miles, but I can walk to BART (Balboa station) and be downtown (or in any number of other neighborhoods) in half an hour or less, and find any of that stuff.

So, please - yes there are STILL parts of SF that the middle class can (just) afford – a lot of the griping seems to me to be coming from people that feel like they’re entitled to a 3 bedroom Victorian in Noe Valley – and unless you’re a (multi) millionaire, that just ain’t gonna happen.

good lord, Novabass, shut up!!! some of us live and and like those neighborhoods you mention and are hoping to buy there... which will *never* happen if the whiny hipsters get wind of them! let them keep thinking noe valley is their only option...

....which is why most of my friends are moving back to the midwest.

I live in a small town in rural Illinois. My four bedroom, three bathroom, full basement house with detached garage and a 1/4 acre of land would probably sell for $120,000 on the local market.

I can't imagine how you guys can afford to live.

I can't imagine how you guys can afford to live.

It takes long-term planning. But even for such a great city the school problem is not worth it. Better to move to a place where you know you can get the school you want. I won't be sending mine to private school.

That's right everyone, the Bay Area is totally horrible! Housing, Traffic, etc. Don't even THINK about moving here. And if you are living here, it's time to think about leaving.

Did that work? Nope? Of course not! Frankly it's wonderful here. That's why so many of us have used our noggins to come up with incredibly inventive ways to stay. Not that I want to encourage more competition. So, uh...yeah...that Midwest sure sounds wonderful, huh. 1/4 Acre and all...

"I can't imagine how you guys can afford to live."

Cause a lot (i.e. enough) of us earn a hell of a lot of money. It sucks for people who don't, but relatively speaking, there are a huge number of ridiculously well paying jobs which forces up the prices for everyone else. In the whole debate about housing affordability, somehow the jobs side of the equation is largely lost - for a diverse city of all income levels, we need diverse jobs, not just the fanciest six figure ones which is all we seem to pursue. As a result, that's increasingly who ends up living here.

No one here is immune to illness, injury, accident, and disability.

And...

Chances are...

That everyone here, regardless of their income, is one pay check away from doom.

Unless you have put aside enough money to survive on for a YEAR without working, that is doom.

Because you will not have the income to pay for the rent or the housing payments. If your auto isn't paid for, it will be taken. If your home isn't paid for, it will be taken. If you can't pay rent, you will be evicted.

If you have credit, you won't anymore. Because they too expect timely payments. And you might not have any income. Get laid up in a hospital for a few weeks, and you can lose most everything.

You can zip over to the Social Security Administration site, right now, and see exactly how much you'd get for being permanently disabled:
http://www.ssa.gov/

You also get a statement from them at the beginning of each year, giving you that info. Did you look at it?

But that doesn't mean you start getting money right away. NO. It does not. You will have many hoops to jump through, grasshopper.

The condition has to have lasted or is expected to last at least a year. Only lasts nine months? No disability for you.

How long does it take to get it, assuming it is something that will for sure last at least a year, like if your arm falls off and you were a symphony conductor? THREE TO FIVE MONTHS.
http://www.ssa.gov/disability/disability_starter_kits_adult_factsheet.htm#disability

It's obvious your arm isn't going to grow back, but it will still take that long.

During that period of time, the only income you will have is whatever might come from your employer, like if you had vacation leave or something.

If you don't have money put away for at least six months AND have the ability to LIVE on the amount that you could get from being disabled, ...

YOU ARE SCREWED.

I know this, because I am screwed. LOL! I have faced doom. And have been doomed. And continue to deal with doom daily.

But wait, there's more...

I know a lot of folks here are young and well-educated. Got student loans? They are real bastards. There are so many unwritten rules that I don't think I will ever get those written off, even with a spine condition.

If you have ANY Federal or State subsidized loans, guess what? They can take your Disability payment...as long as they leave you with $750.00 per month.

So even if you were going to get $5,000 a month for being disabled because of the income you have been making at your six-figure job, they can take all but $750 dollars...and you are expected to be able to provide for all your needs with that amount.

SURPRISE!

At least that is what they are doing to me.

And thanks to things like density laws, a bunch of us couldn't get together and live in a big home, paying smaller than rent amounts because we crammed a bunch of people in the home.

Why? Because the single families in giant mansions complain about the comings and goings of too many people. And it is true, the roads and streets in single family homes, regardless of size, are not set up to accommodate 30 people living in a single family home.

Which again brings us back to SMALL COOL LIVING. Whether it's stacked affordable basic apartment units or deliciously small homes, that stuff needs to be present and available.

Think of it this way, there would be no homeless people if housing was available. You want to see what is "home" to some people, that is so cool and provides for basic shelter requirements:
http://www.madhousers.org/index.shtml

It's their own home. They have a wood stove for heat and cooking. The have a lock. They have a tiny loft for sleeping.

Here's where Eric lives, the low-rider (low profile) style:
http://flickr.com/photos/nickehret/387459284/in/pool-madhousers

Here's David's house, which has the sleeping loft:
http://flickr.com/photos/nickehret/372525945/in/pool-madhousers

And Elliot's space:
http://flickr.com/photos/nickehret/372538082/in/pool-madhousers

Another model:
http://flickr.com/photos/98909500@N00/2378574022/in/pool-madhousers

Perspective is everything.

By the way, THIS is what we need for the US market:
http://tinyurl.com/3p836f

About $20,000 for this:
http://tinyurl.com/4wdtyd

Things like this (about $12,000):
http://tinyurl.com/3qkmmv

Or this (about $10,000):
http://tinyurl.com/4xy7zu

That last one, the Koti log cabin, there's enough room to cram in a tiny kitchen and a small bath. And unlike the majority of the things like weeHouse, this is affordable. The structure itself is affordable.

Not only is it affordable, if one starts with one of the above units, that consists of a kitchen, bath, and minute living space, additional smaller units could potentially be added later.

So you start with a tiny bath that has a dinky shower and no bedroom proper. Later one, you buy a second unit, that can have a more substantial bath, walk-in closet, and bedroom:
http://tinyurl.com/49xb9r

The area between buildings can be a deck, that can be sheltered or exposed. It can be gated, like a little courtyard. And another small building can be attached if an office or secondary bedroom is needed, like if someone has a child.

But you do not have to buy more house than you need at the moment, and can start with the most basic unit to provide shelter.

The whole neighborhood with such an arrangement could have lots set up for water and sewer on the one side. There could be a variety of pre-approved structures, like the ones on that site, that could go in.

Some folks will probably be able to get along fine with just one unit. Other folks will have a compound of surrounding structures with coordinated uses. But the size of the lot and the kinds of structures could be limited, to prevent McMansionization. Which would totally ruin the effect of being able to have a small, inexpensive home.