I live in California so i put some of Californias big cities, but what i want to know is what is it like for those of you who live in a big city like this? Or do you want to live in a the cities in the future sometime, and why or why not?

I am going to try my hardest to get an internship somewhere over next summer at a business and it will most likely be in san francisco, then i see myself moving there after college to work for a few years adn get some experience in the business world. I noticed that all of the apartments have a pretty high monthly rent rate (over $1,000 for a studio room) and is it really worth it to live in the city for that money? I mean if im going to be making 30-40k a year i would barely be able to afford the [censored]tiest apartment.

Is it actually worth it though so you dont have to commute to the city everyday through traffic? And is there actually enough things going on everyday that you could get out if you dont want to be stuck in that [censored] apartment?

Even if it isnt the best place to live i would still be happy to be away from home i dont want to be here any longer, i want to take care of my self, but i at least want a bedroom in my place i live.

What are your guy's opinions on this?

(also i dont want to have any roommates touching and using my things and being loud at night if i have to get up early and such so i want to have a place to my self)

I've lived in and visited several big cities across the world. That includes, but is not limited to: Los Angeles, San Diego, Sacramento, Chicago, Miami, Toronto, Vancouver, London, Birmingham, Paris, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Dubai, Amman, Karachi, Mumbai, Glasgow, Riyyadh, Nairobi, Cape Town, and probably some more I cannot remember at the moment.

I personally would want to live in a big city, but that's mainly because I know how to fend for myself in one. I'm more of a city boy, I guess. In most cities, living expenses are high, but quality of life usually is too.

Gah how old are you to have lived in so many places?
i've lived in 3 so far and they are all towns not cities i guess.
But i see what you mean about quality of life, now i have absolutley nothing to do with my life. I work a few hours, maybe go to the gym and that it. I could find a lot more things to do in a city, Especially when im finally over 21 and allowed to go to bars :celebration:

It would be a lot more expensive to live in the city, I know that much. Commuting may end up being cheaper if you take the subway.

I'm 18. Only lived in 3 of those places. Merely visited the rest.

Don't drink the water.

Do not look people in the eye. City folk are skittish and may attack.


City women lack grace. What you may interpret as drunken degeneracy may in fact be the start of a complex mating ritual.

You may think that a park would be a nice place to be. However, city parks are not like our native woods and grasslands, and wil be full of drug paraphenalia, prophylactics, six offenders and dog excrement.




These are my experiences after three years in the city. Hooray for country life! :poke:

Are you opposed to renting a private room and sharing the house with a few other housemates? I live in San Francisco and that's what I'm doing because as I college student I can't afford much better. But even if I could, using transit to get into the city is a breeze, and I'm near one of the train lines so I have no desire to pay more just to live in the city. If I lived even farther away, I could just take a bus to a train or a bus to another bus to bring me in. Despite ridiculously common delays, SF's transit system is good enough that you really don't need a car.

If you do decide to move here, or any other city, make sure to avoid moving into a bad area just because the apartments are cheap. Do research on a neighborhood (google it) before following up on an advertisemant for an apartment. Oh, and use Craigslist to find rented rooms.

Its all about Bart but you gotta be carefull cuz cops shoot people for no reason :glare:

It's all about the Metro, as BART is only good for very short trips, very specific destinations within the city, or for going outside of the city and down the peninsula or across the bay.

And don't worry about cops, it's very rare to see a cop in a train station, which is probably why there was such surprise to a BART cop shooting a guy. "You mean there's such a thing as BART cops!? I thought they were only myth!"

huh that might work, maybe if i know the people. If i at least have my own private room i might be able to do that if its cheap enough. But still i would rather have my own place sompletely to myself. My last roommates used all of my dishes and cooking things and never cleaned them and out place was a complete mess the whole time which i want to avoid for the future.

How far in advance do you need to let the landlord know if you want to stay in the apartment complex if they have an oppening? i dont want to be trying to find a place a month or two before i need to live there and then be unable to find a room if that tends to happen to people. I would think a few months in advance would be enough but if not ill have to make sure i look for a place even sooner.

Hate cities. Much prefer the fresh air and the green of the countryside.

Give me the smell of cow dung over car fumes any day of the week.

Most ads on craigslist are for rooms that have been vacant for a very short time or will be vacant at the end of the month. When I got mine I moved in just a few days after contacting the landlord, but I would image that if you want someone to hold a room for you you'll have to pay them. There's a good amount of competition for cheap housing here, you're not going to find someone who will hold it for you without getting paid.

By the way, how much do you want to pay per month exactly? The cheapest you'll find here is ~$600-$700, but you wont be getting a top quality room and house, that's for sure.

the heaper the better haha. but i think i could probably go up to about 1,000 a month if i can get into my field of work pretty quickly

There's way too many factors that go into where you're living, what your financial status is, what your sociability and tolerance is, your "technophile" status is, and so on.

I've lived in San Francisco, San Jose, and currently live in the GTA (Greater Toronto Area). The main thing to consider when moving to any metro area is their transportation and which places have the best cost of living as well as are more geared toward working individuals (latter of which is more for the sake of avoiding living around dense crime areas). For instance, if you were in the San Francisco area and could not tolerate living in the city, I'd advise Redwood City, which is a short commute. If you were in San Jose and didn't like living downtown I'd advice, depending on your budget, anywhere but East San Jose, but in particular, Campbell. If you were in the GTA I'd advise the North/East areas of Brampton or the Northeast Mississauga. These are places where there is significant transportation, semi-low cost of living as far as metro standards are concerned, lots to do, and of course plenty of options for broadband, cell service, etc.

The higher cost is certainly worth it to be able to have a short drive/ride to work, and to be able to have more to do, places to go, and easier time getting from A to B (i.e. going to an airport). The offset is you have quite a bit of noise going on, and have to have a higher tolerance for different things and people. It's not for everyone.

I wouldn't bet on making 30-40k a year. Job market in SF is tough right now, with or without a college degree. If you're looking for cheaper prices look for in-law apartments in the Richmond, Sunset districts, maybe outer mission. Many of these landlords cater to students cause it is close to sfsu. But beware some of these apartments are shady and will often not mention that you have to share the kitchen / bathroom with the rest of the household. I've seen in laws where their idea of a kitchen is a mini fridge and a hot plate. Renter beware.



Plenty of stuff to do all day everyday. As long as you got the cash to fund your fun. Commuting svcks and you'll have to go to the east bay to see the rental prices drop. You can commute from oakland / berkeley fairly easily on b.a.r.t. I'd get to know the lay of the land before deciding if you want to bring your car to the city. A bike is pretty much your best bet for transportation.



Good luck with that. I've had so many psycho roomates...

honestly I wouldn't develop alot of expectations about what you want when you move here. Take what you can get a move up from there. After you make friends, it is alot easier to make a group move than having to do it solo.

Hope this helps. Don't let the city chew you up. :thumbsup:

I lived in London for a year when I was 12, I was mugged 3 times.

Never been mugged out here in the middle of nowhere.

They put something in it to make you forget... I don't even remember how I got here.

With the obligatory Half-Life 2 reference out of the way... I've been to big cities for vacation, baseball games, and such (plus the college I attend is in a fairly big city). Honestly, I prefer small towns and the country. I'm not a fan of huge crowds or the traffic that cities get.

You were mugged 3 times when your were 12, damn I didn't know london was so hardcoe?

really? making 30k is only like 15 an hour for a 40 hour week. If im not able to get that im gonna be working my [censored] old job at home for a few years then..
well that in law apartment sounds like complete [censored] i would rather live out of my car and save some money then that.

do you guys think yelp is something to go by when looking for apts.? i checked out some on there and they all had like 1.5 stars out of 5 and all of hte reviews talked about how horrible the place was, do only people who really hate the place do that or do you think they represent a much larger portion of the overall complex? some of these places sound like its mroe of a burden to live there then a conveiniance of having a roof over your head.

I like living in a small city, I've been to Osaka and Tokyo and they were dauntingly big compared to Wellington.

Wellington is the perfect size, big enough to attract bands from overseas, but small enough to get around on foot.

I prefer the countryside. Seattle was just bad..

The job market definitely does svck, I've been looking for about 2 months now, during my break from college, and I've yet to hear back from a single employer. Of course I don't have a degree yet, and really don't have any experience, but the point is that it's tough to find a job here. Definitely have a job lined up before moving here, if you can.

I never thought about using Yelp for apartments, really nothing is as good as actually going there and seeing it for yourself. Just a thought, maybe you can get a short lease (or month-to-month) on a more expensive apartment that you normally couldn't afford, then after you get settled you can spend a few months looking for a cheaper place.

If all goes well i will have a job lined up before i go to the city. I dont think i will move to SF unless i have a job for sure. I am going wherever i get a job, but i am majoring in business accounting and there are a bunch of firms in SF so thats where i am expecting to go.

When do you expect to graduate Antibody?

i am going into my 3rd year and i am 85% sure i will be done in 4 years. Hopefully over next summer i can intern somewhere and maybe ill be offered a job there for after college or the experience i get from it will help me find a job elsewhere. This is a lot of hoping from me i know but im trying my best to get my own place as soon as i can and SF seems like it would be a good experience as well haha.

Do you know anything about Daly City also? Those apartments seem to be a lot cheaper and it is a pretty close commute to sf, easy public transportation.

I've been to NYC a bunch of times in my life, but I don't think I'd want to live in a city. Too noisy and hectic.

If my choices were between commuting to LA every day or living in LA, I'd rather live in LA. Commuting into a large city is my definition of hell, especially 9-5 worker traffic.

Of course I plan on never doing either of those things ^_^