Made in SF with ❤️
Are you considering a move to San Francisco? Moving to San Francisco can be an exciting opportunity, but there are several factors to consider before making a decision. Here are some pros and cons to help you weigh your options:
Why you should move to San Francisco
- Vibrant Culture: San Francisco is known for its diverse and vibrant culture, with a thriving arts scene, stellar music, world-class dining, and numerous festivals and events throughout the year. There are delicious restaurants and bars aplenty.
- Job Opportunities: The city is a hub for technology and innovation, with many job opportunities in tech, finance, healthcare, and other industries. Artificial Intelligence is the new hot spot. That being said, the job market can be competitive, especially in certain industries.
- Beautiful Scenery and Great Getaways: San Francisco boasts stunning views of the ocean, the bay, and the iconic Golden Gate Bridge, as well as nearby natural attractions like Muir Woods and Point Reyes. San Francisco itself has a very high concentration of parks and urban hikes that are easy to take advantage of. Golden Gate Park and the Great Highway have sections that are closed off for any and all of your running, cycling, lindy hop-ing, skating, and walking needs. You also have Tahoe nearby if you enjoy snow sports and Napa/Sonoma if you like wine. There are plenty of great places nearby to visit: Mendocino and Sea Ranch, Carmel, Yosemite National Park, and Lassen National Park.
- Mild Climate and no bugs (not many): The city enjoys a mild climate year-round, with cool summers and mild winters, making it a comfortable place to live. It’s especially wonderful for hiking, cycling, or any outdoor activity. As such, most of the housing options in San Francisco do not have A/C and it’s generally not needed except for maybe a week / year or during wildfire season. For more about San Francisco weather, check out my other post. I did not really consider the bug factor as a huge thing before living here, but there are actually very few bugs here. Roaches are not commonplace and you don’t see a high concentration of gnats.
- Public Transportation: If you are coming from New York City, you might not think that San Francisco’s public transportation is all that great. It is truly hard to compare to the New York City subway. That being said, for the United States, San Francisco has a very extensive public transportation system. It includes buses, trains, streetcars, and cable cars, making it easy to get around without a car. There is also a bike share with electric bike options. While it is certainly nice to have a car for day trips and the like, it is great to not need to have a car.
Some things to consider:
- High Cost of Living: San Francisco is one of the most expensive cities in the United States, with high housing costs, transportation costs, and general cost of living.
- Housing Shortage: The city faces a shortage of affordable housing, with high demand and limited availability leading to high rental and home prices.
- Traffic Congestion: Despite its public transportation options, San Francisco can experience heavy traffic congestion, especially during peak commute times. It’s sometimes more difficult to cut across town than it is to go outside of San Francisco.
- Homelessness and Crime: San Francisco is a relatively safe city but unfortunately petty crime is a larger annoyance. Visitors and residents both are encouraged not to leave anything in their car for fear of break-ins and hybrid car owners should definitely install a CAT shield so their catalytic converter is not stolen. San Francisco has a visible homelessness issue, and some neighborhoods may have higher crime rates than others (Tenderloin and parts of SOMA).
- Natural Disasters: San Francisco has experienced some really bad earthquakes in its history. However, the city has tried to learn from this by requiring seismic retrofits and other regulations. You can review liquefaction maps in the case of a big earthquake and 100 year flood maps. The hilly terrain can make driving, walking, and biking challenging but not insurmountable. Though wildfires should not impact SF directly, wildfire smoke during fire season can be problematic and you might need to keep your windows closed.
A Note on San Francisco Politics
- San Franciscans are heavily liberal and largely identify as Democrats. If you’re heavily conservative and Republican, you might have trouble finding folks who agree with you. City Hall is generally agreed upon as a bit of a mess, and there have been a fair number of corruption scandals. That being said, you can get as involved as you would like to be. There are many propositions that you get to vote for. I talk more about this subject here.
Ultimately, whether or not you should move to San Francisco depends on your personal preferences, financial situation, and career goals. I would highly recommend coming to visit the city for an extended stay if you can to explore different neighborhoods. I would also research the cost of living and job market before making a decision.
As you might know, I’ve lived here for 8 years and really enjoy living here, but it is certainly not for everyone. If you do make the move, welcome friend! If you do decide to move here, I have an article on some great resources for events, activities, and news outlets that you might want to check out. I also have a guide to where to live in San Francisco!
