Originally Posted by
benajah
yeah, very true. I'm a real estate broker, and I still can't make sense of why the cost of living is so high here, and I'm supposed to be the expert. Manhattan and the SF Bay are are just these strange places that don't follow the normal course of economics.
i do have a theory based on my three hobbies...sailing, cycling, and skiing. Last winter I went skiing in the morning in Tahoe, drove back home, Saturday. Went for a ride the next morning, and spent the rest of the day sailing on the bay.
So three addictions satisfied in a weekend....from a purely business perspective it makes no sense to live here, but from a leisure perspective, there are few places that can deliver such.
???
It's EASY to figure out why Palo Alto South Bay is so expensive.
Between the natural beauty, amazing weather, convenience of living near all things you need, true multiculturalism, high level of education and income, and abundance of protected nature preserves even in busier residential areas, it's stunningly obvious to most people why this place is so expensive. The leisure is great, but the everyday LIFE is even better - as long as you can afford the place you live in.
One drive down the 280 in the stretch between Stanford and Burlingame tells you a lot about the area - that's a major throughfare for commuter traffic in the South Bay, yet it's more beautiful than probably 98%+ of highways in the US.
I'm not surprised that nearly everyone I knew who grew up in this area is fighting tooth and nail to find a way back in (given the insane housing costs etc.)