Rent (actual rent, not the musical)

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

(GQ like question, but it seems pretty mundane) …

So here’s the thing … lately I’ve been giving a lot of thought to the possibility of moving back to the west coast – maybe within the next year or two (once the kids graduate HS), so just for poops and chuckles I was persusing Craigslist to see what the rental situation is these days in the Bay Area, where I used to live.

Am I reading things right? I see 3BR condos for rent on the peninsula for $1000. I see houses for rent in Oakland for $600. I see a townhouse in Bernal Heights for $500. As far as I can tell these are all monthly listings, not weekly. Did I click on a joke site by accident? Is it really Gregslist I’m on? Or did I accidently click the link for San Francisco, Puerto Rico?

Have the rents in the bay area really plummetted that much in the 10 years since I lived there? Fuck man, we had a studio apartment in the city for $1200 in 1999! Goddamn, my rent in Maine is $650 for a 1BR!

Something just doesn’t seem right. Either that, or I’m moving back to Cali next fucking week!

What’s the story?

2

I Just left the Bay Area. For a tiny 1BR apartment I paid 1500 a month in rent. And that was the best, cheapest we could find.

3

They are scammers hoping the “OMG 4 bedrooms for only $500/month” part of your brain will win out over the “this doesn’t make sense” part of your brain and you will send in your security deposit before someone else snatches it up.

The lazy scammers re-use the same pictures for different properties:
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/pen/apa/1547216363.html
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/apa/1547198956.html

4

Unfortunately, that does make a ton more sense than a 3BR Condo on Nob Hill for $800 a month. Damnit.