California dreaming over here. Tell me about living in San Francisco: what you like, what you don’t like, what they don’t tell you about in those “Come to California” pamphlets.
Also, for anyone who has also played Driver:San Francisco, how accurate is it?
I’ve lived in San Francisco for over 30 years; the first 30 years I spent in Portland, Oregon, with a couple of years in school in Chicago.
I like: the weather (rarely very hot, almost never very cold, never any snow or ice); the cultural opportunities (from high to low); the walkability; BART (intercity mass transit) but not Muni Metro (in-city light rail); the cultural diversity, along with all the ethnic stores and restaurants; the unexpected views - driving north on 19th Ave and cresting a rise, and seeing the Golden Gate Bridge in the distance, for example; the clean air (sorry, Sacramento, you get all our pollution); the apparent skew towards young, bright people.
There’s probably more that I can’t think of. There are disadvantages, chief among them the cost of living.
If I were to move anywhere (after retirement, for example) I have been thinking I would go to a place with more distinct seasons. But maybe not, I’m pretty spoiled by now.
San Francisco is not California, by the way. Based on your user name, if you are expecting semi-tropical weather, don’t come here. Southern CA would be more in that line.
Roddy
San Francisco is an amazing city. Things I’d make sure someone knew before moving there:
It is shockingly expensive. Make sure you have a realistic idea of what rents cost in the area you plan to live, because otherwise you’re in for a nasty surprise.
The weather can be surprisingly terrible: freezing cold in the middle of June, for example. What’s even worse is that everyone else in the SF Bay Area will still be having perfect weather, it’s just you that’s freezing.
The best parts of San Francisco are tucked away in the various neighborhoods – don’t just get off BART and walk around the financial district or you’re going to be disappointed. If you know any locals, they can be an invaluable resource.
Everything they say in the travel brochures about San Francisco is true, and then some. It is truly a wonderful place.
What they are not telling you:
California is a huge and diverse state, and as stated, San Francisco is not typical of cities you will find here. There is something here for everyone, tho, it seems.
Agree with folks above, also off the top of my head:
Pros: FOOD! Amazing food, especially on the middle-to-high end. Diversity of people, opinions, backgrounds, etc. Close to Silicon Valley and that entire culture of innovation / entrepreneurship. Lots of interesting cultural stuff going on. People are generally NICE by default (I grew up in Detroit, which seems to have “pissed off and hostile” as the default; I think it has to do with the weather.) Oh yeah, good balance of weather, not too hot, not too cold.
Cons: crazy expensive real estate, parking, traffic, somewhat overzealous politicians / voters (I’m bleeding-heart liberal and even I think SF folks go too far sometimes). Most stuff doesn’t stay open late, compared to Chicago/NYC/Europe. The beaches are for hardcore folks… this ain’t L.A., the water’s cold and shark infested 
School system is a mess (if you have school-age kids)…
SF to me is basically bohemian, scaled-down NYC. Not as crowded, not QUITE as expensive, more polite, but just as cosmopolitan.
And yes I play Driver:SF, but I don’t find it particularly realistic on any level. It’s amusing to see the landmarks etc. that they do reproduce somewhat faithfully, but theres a LOT of license taken with the ‘internal’ streets especially. The ones around the edges are kind of OK, and the neightborhood are vaguely in the right places. SF isn’t nearly as clean in real life as it is in the game (and actually, seems a little SMALLER in real life too, maybe that’s just an illusion). The game is a blast though
It’s the Cool, Gray City of Love.
SF is a very good walking city, mostly because it’s so small and compact. There’s a great diversity in neighborhoods and they’re relatively close together, so within a few minutes you can see vastly different types of architecture and people.
The weather can be hit or miss depending on what you’re into. Compared to most parts of the country it’s very moderate, rarely getting below the 40s and above the 70s. It can be unexpectedly cold due to the wind though, even in summer time, so make sure you always have a sweater with you no matter what time of year it is. Even if it’s hot during the day the temperature can drop quite a bit at night so you’ll have to be prepared for anything. Despite the small size of the city you can have wildly varying micro-climates as well; there can be as much as a 10 degree difference within just a few blocks.
The city is overall pretty clean but you’ll have to put up with homeless people a lot. They’re usually not aggressive so it’s not that big a deal.
One cool thing about SF is that despite being a big city, it’s surrounded by nature. Gorgeous seaside views and redwoods make for some great hiking spots.
It is true that San Francisco is colder than the rest of the Bay Area - a plus on the rare days it gets hot. But as an East Coaster now living here, one characteristic of residents is calling a 50 degree day in June freezing. Weather-wise, people are spoiled here. It is rarely really freezing, and never actually cold. My heavy East Coast coats have been in the closet for 15 years.
But it’s not the kind of weather that would make you want to go to the beach or wear shorts, despite it being summer in California, and despite there being palm trees around. You can always tell who the tourists are in San Francisco- they’re the ones wearing shorts. Your heavy winter coats won’t get a lot of use, but neither will your shorts, unless you go inland.
The Bay Area in general has microclimates. This is something you might not be used to if you are from the East Coast. On the East Coast, generally the weather in Washington DC is going to be only a few degrees different from the weather in Baltimore, and probably not all that different from the weather in New York. This is not the case in California. San Francisco has very different weather from San Jose, even though they’re only 45 miles apart. It can easily be 20 degrees warmer in San Jose than it is in San Francisco.
Real estate is going to be expensive. Really expensive. Rents as well as home prices.
It’s going to be difficult to find parking. Public transit is good, though.
Traffic is pretty bad. San Jose is 45 miles away, but that does NOT generally mean it will take 45 minutes to drive there.
If you want warmer weather with access to San Francisco, and slightly lower real estate prices (but still really high compared to the rest of the country), you might want to look at the East Bay instead. That would be places like Oakland, Berkeley, or Alameda or Contra Costa counties.
I lived in SF for about three years, back from 99 to 02-ish. I loved every minute of it. Very laid back - lots of diverse people and things to see - great public transpo - shit-tons of homeless people - fun city to explore. But then, like I said, it’s been over ten years since I lived there so I don’t really have a decent frame of reference anymore.
Now … Driver: San Francisco - is it accurate? Oh, I so hoped it would be, but it ain’t. It’s a pseudo-representation of the city with all the big landmarks included, in sort-of, but not quite the right geographic location. But, no. They could have called it *Driver: San Fiero *and gotten away with it.
It’s reported that the people there close their eyes when speaking to you and love the smell of their own farts, but I didn’t witness that when I visited.
It’s insanely beautiful, ridiculously expensive, and incredibly welcoming. It’s always been a city for newcomers and visitors, so it has a generous and warm heart. People sometimes make comments about the tourists, but for the most part we love them and know we need them. This same attitude extends to everyone, which makes the city feel like it wants you, like everyone belongs.
The problem with the weather is not so much that it’s freezing (which it is, but only in the context of San Francisco, where 47 degrees is freezing), but that it’s never warm. I had to stop buying T-shirts because I could only wear them approximately 10 days a year. I have lived here for 22 years, and I love it, but if I could change one thing, I would like to be warm…just a little warm… for more than one or two days in a row…
I don’t drive, which is both a cause and a result of my living in San Francisco. Aside from the weather, most of the bad things about San Francisco disappear if you don’t even try to drive. Public transportation is excellent and easily available – I never have a problem getting anywhere within the city. I will say that the taxi situation is terrible. Unless you’re going to or from the airport or hotels, taxi service is erratic at best.
There is very little that cannnot be found in San Francisco. I probably don’t leave as often as I should, but that’s because almost everything I want is here. Maybe the best thing is that after so many years, I keep finding new things to love – a new view to enjoy; a new walk to take; a new ice cream store; a new little piece of history.
I have a strong emotional connection to the city. As sentimental as it is, the song “I left my heart in San Francisco” rings true for me.
One thing that no one has mentioned is San Francisco vs. the suburbs (not that anyone calls them that), particularly down the peninsula. If you’re thinking about living here, learn that SF is only 7 miles long and 7 miles wide. It is a TINY city (and county). Everywhere else is part of the Bay Area. So you may be living in San Mateo and commuting into the city. San Franciscans are very touchy about people who say they live in SF, and when asked what neighborhood reply “San Bruno” or “Pacifica.”
There are 100 (slight exaggeration) neighborhoods in the city. Some are more desirable than others. And more expensive. The 1 bedroom / 1.5 bath / 6 room / middle class Victorian house next door to me is on the market for $1,560,000. 1.56 MILLION! See Craig’s List for rents in the city and have an aspirin handy
San Francisco is an amazing place. If you move here, be prepared to embrace it, weather, homeless, mass transit and all. You may not stay beyond a couple of years, and the politics may drive you crazy, but you’ll leave a little piece of your heart here;).
Wow, thanks for the info, dopers! I’ve gotta say, you’re just increasing my desire with the warnings about the weather; I am from Alaska and I tend to find “shorts weather” terribly uncomfortable. It is snow and ice that I have renounced forever, I would happily wear a light jacket.
I’ve visited there several times, and my wife spent 25 of her adult years there and loved it. For her, the weather was perfect. As a tourist, I was impressed by the public transportation and the walkability of the place. Also the food. We’re thinking of spending a bit of snowbird time there in coming winters, as Portland’s gloom can be a bit daunting at times.
[QUOTE=Anne Neville]
It can easily be 20 degrees warmer in San Jose than it is in San Francisco.
Real estate is going to be expensive. Really expensive. Rents as well as home prices.
It’s going to be difficult to find parking. Public transit is good, though.
Traffic is pretty bad. San Jose is 45 miles away, but that does NOT generally mean it will take 45 minutes to drive there.
[/QUOTE]
It can easily be 20 degrees warmer in the Financial District than it is in the Sunset. Get ready to hear the term “microclimate” a lot, and to get used to the concept.
Did we mention housing is expensive?
Parking can be horrid - more than once, I’ve abandoned thoughts of going to a particular store or restaurant because I was unable to find legal parking within walking distance.
Get used to the idea of referring to driving distances in terms of time, rather than miles.
I take it city living appeals to you on at least some level, or you wouldn’t be thinking of moving to San Francisco. Living in San Francisco is city living, turned up to 11.
There are two different kinds of people. One is people like my parents, who like living in a rural or small town area. They like things like:
[ul]
[li]Having a big house[/li][li]Having a big yard[/li][li]Owning their house is a big deal[/li][li]Not hearing their neighbors at night[/li][li]Having a three car garage[/li][li]Having big cars[/li][li]Not having a lot of traffic[/li][li]Driving everywhere when they go out[/li][li]Finding free and abundant parking when they do drive somewhere[/li][li]Living in an ethnically and economically homogeneous neighborhood[/li][li]Living in a small town or rural area[/li][/ul]
People like this tend politically conservative.
The other is people like me, who prefer things like:
[ul]
[li]Not having a huge house or yard (for me, with my allergies and brown thumb, a big yard is actually a minus)[/li][li]Don’t mind living close to their neighbors and even hearing them sometimes[/li][li]Renting rather than owning is not a big deal[/li][li]Would rather walk or take public transportation than drive to get places[/li][li]If we must have a car, it should be a small car[/li][li]An ethnically and economically diverse neighborhood[/li][li]Living in a big city[/li][li]Living near a major airport[/li][li]Being able to find ethnic markets near where we live[/li][/ul]
People like this tend politically liberal.
If you see more of yourself in the first list than the second, don’t move to San Francisco. You won’t like it. If San Francisco’s climate appeals to you, but city living doesn’t, consider Marin County or farther north along the California coast.
There are two kinds of people who own houses in San Francisco. They are: people who have lived there a long time, and rich people (maybe not all 1%ers, but certainly in the top 10%, economically speaking). Working- and middle-class people do not own houses in San Francisco, unless they’ve been there for a very long time. Most of the people who do those jobs either rent and aren’t likely to buy a house any time soon, or they commute in from a long way away.
It only rains in the winter in San Francisco (and in California in general). Rain in the summer is very rare.
I simply cannot grok a price like that for such a small house. Its crazy to think that in my neck of the woods, that kind of money will literally buy you a mansion. A big one, too.
Heck, my house is a 3BR 2.5BA bi-level ranch on a half an acre lot and only cost me $150,000 in 2007!
It boggles the mind.
The cognitive distortion works the other way as well. If I hear that someone owns their own home, I tend to assume that they are in the 1%, or have an incredibly lucrative career. I think it’s primarily from reading the Dope (and some stuff from the housing crisis) that I’ve even realized that you can own a home for less than a quarter of a million dollars.
Its interesting to look at it that way. How on Earth does someone even afford to rent a house like that when its worth so much? I assume that the per capita income in San Francisco is way above the national average.
