Ahem. I was born in San Francisco. We do exist. I moved to the North Bay when I was eight, though, so I don’t really qualify for “born and raised”.
But it’s true, it seems that most people in the Bay Area are from elsewhere. SF itself has, I believe, the lowest birthrate of any large city in the United States.
I’m over in Hayweird, East Bay. Lived in the city (Ocean Beach) while I was in law school. Rents over here are substantially cheaper than the city, peninsula, or Marin. But you generally get what you pay for…my neighborhood’s a bit of a dump.
If you’re working at the Med Center, and planning to live outside the city proper, I wouldn’t count on it. IMHO, the public transit 'round these parts bites. MUNI is legendary for not serving its customers well (mayors have lost elections for its condition), and it doesn’t operate much outside the city limits. Transferring from BART or SAMTRANS can be dicey and a bit expensive. Not to paint too dreary a picture of it. My mom worked in the Audiology Dept. on the Parnassus Campus. Great view, right near the park, but she rented a parking space nearby, and she lived in the city at the time.
Oh, and the commute’s a bear…your best bet would be in the Sunset or Richmond districts. They’re nearby and not as expensive as the rest of the city. Rents are coming down, but not as fast as you’d expect. There are lots of online rental services…Google “rent san francisco”.
I agree with Jet - live in S.F. proper only if you can handle life at high velocity; find a place elsewhere in the bay for calm.
IMHO, S.F. is a lot like bagpipes - either you LOVE it or HATE it. Very few who come here are apathetic…
And welcome to town… 
I’m in Alameda. It’s not cheap either, not by a long shot. But it’s quiet, mostly pretty, and central to basically the entire Bay Area ( with decent public transportation access ). Worth checking out.
Been here for a total of 22 years now ( including the last 20 ). Wouldn’t live anywhere else, expense be damned .
Well, I don’t entirely agree. From Alameda, for instance UCSF is quite doable ( with one transfer ), though it’s not a short ride and if you work regular hours it is pretty congested. I used to do it myself . Kind of depends where you are elsewhere in the Bay Area. In general the East Bay is a little easier than the North or South, but some neighborhoods aren’t well-connected, true enough.
On the other hand, this is sound advice . I used to live in the Sunset myself, right across the street from the park. I do prefer to live outside the city myself, but the Sunset ( a little more than the Richmond district, though that would be second choic - It’s on the other side of the park from UCSF ) would be vastly more convenient for you. When you get here take a look around the whole area to try and get a better feel for your comfort zone.
Welcome to the Bear Flag Republic, Tars. I was born in SF, raised in Marin County, which is just across the Gate. Live there now. Marin is some of the most beautiful real estate in the country. Rent is out of control, although getting a bit better thanks to the lack of a national economy in the past few months.
Important tip on living in the City: Try to avoid riding any Muni bus for more than a half hour. As part of a state-wide enviromental iniative, all Muni buses were converted from gasoline burning engines to an experimental design the powers itself by sucking the life energy out of the passengers. A forty-five minute ride could leave you a withered, lifeless husk. Although you would be eligible for the senior citizen pass, so there’s an upside.
Au contraire, mon frere. There is no better entertainment in the city than public tranportation. The Metreon is a trigonometry lecture compared to the varitable schmorgasboard of human oddities and characters, you find on your average Muni bus.
Why once I was even made privvy to the real killer of JFK. Decorum prevents me from spreading this news. That, and I’d have to kill you.
Born and raised in San Francisco, now living in Sacramento. It’s a long commute and I wouldn’t consider it.
Rents have gone down a bit, partly due to 9-11 and the false prediction that California bridges are next on the terrorist To Do List. We are already aware that the Big One (earthquake) will hit at any moment but complacently go about our business.
Downtown is a disappointment. SF is hugely political and the homeless have pretty much taken over the downtown area without much police action. Go a short distance to any of the neighborhoods and you’ll fall in love with The City (and don’t call it Frisco!)
A friend owns a wonderful home in Sausalito. She rents out a second story. In the past, when she placed ads for the rental, she was given flowers and gifts and offered bribes by potential renters. Now she’s had an ad in the paper for three weeks and has had few bites.
If I ever win Lotto, the first thing I’ll do is purchase a small flat in SF and enjoy the best city in the country, or even the world.
It’s not just a transfer or a move, it’s a lifestyle. Whether you settle in SF, Berkeley, Alameda, Oakland, etc., you’ll eventually be caught up in the magic. I do suggest the East Bay (cities mentioned above) if you can’t afford SF - BART is a doable system.
Damn! I wish I’d had that job offer!
You’ll crap when you see how expensive housing is in SF. I’m paying $1820/month for a 1000 square foot, 2BR apartment in an outlying suburb (Fremont). I moved here two years ago from the Midwest and the prices started out extremely high and since then have become astronomical. The dot-com crash and recession have not made prices go down, just stop increasing. Most everything else is not much more expensive than anywhere else (and you save on cooling and heating bills), but gas is pretty steep ($1.50/gal right now.)
I’d suggest looking along the “delta” (San Joaquin river). This is a formerly industrialized area that is reasonably close to SF, has nice weather, and is affordable. Try Vallejo, Martinez, Benicia, or Richmond.