Re: The Truth About Silicon Valley

[Steve Arrants <stevea -at- CNET -dot- COM>]

Oh boy....Maurice King's posting on "The Truth About Silicon
Valley" deserves response. Though it is (quite) peripherally
related to technical writing, I think it deserves a response

> The person in question is a case worker who has dealt with
> numerous persons who came to the Bay area, enticed by
> handsome salaries and relocation packages from companies in
> Silicon Valley. The stories the case worker told me were
> particularly frightening: families in which both husband and
> wife worked in full-time jobs who ended up on the streets
> without money for food because they did not take seriously
> the warnings that the cost of living in the area is
> exorbitant beyond all imagination. The warning I received
> was, "Don't come here without a sack of money."

It isn't a good idea to relocate anywhere without investigating
the new area. Even if your new employer offers relocation
expenses, you need to do your own research to make your own
decisions.

A "sack of money" is nice. Three to four months living expenses
(or a couple of months housing allowance from the new
employer) is better.

> The case worker went on to talk about housing, a major
> headache for persons who relocate to the area. Housing, so I
> heard, is unaffordable for any except the independently
> wealthy.

Untrue.  Housing in the SF Bay Area *IS* the most expensive in the
USA, but there are places to live that won't break the budget, are
in nice areas, and convenient to public transport.

>Rentals for a family will run up to $2000 monthly,
> meaning that without $4000 to fork over up front for housing
> alone, a family cannot live in the area.

Depends on where you live.  $2000/month is probably usual for
Silicon Valley.  You can get the same type of rental for half
that or less in the East Bay or North Bay.

>Purchasing housing,
> so I was told, is out of the question; every time a house is
> put on the market, people are willing to pay 15-20% above the
> asking price because the demand is enormous.

Again, depends on the area. Yeah, those of us out here know about
the house in the Ingleside district of SF listing for $349,000 and
being sold within an hour of listing for $400,000.  You really need
to be flexible as to where you live.  BART, CALTRAIN, GGT, ferries,
etc. can make a longer commute bearable.

> Beyond the problem of housing is the price of food, which
> runs well above justifiable price levels, so I heard. If a
> person can afford housing, food will take the rest of the
> budget.

This is so untrue to be laughable.  "Well above justifiable
price levels"?  A joke, right?  I mean, California produces
more dairy products and cheese than any  other state, many of
the fruits and vegetables y'all eat...I could go on and on.
I've found that prooduce prices are much lower here than in other
areas of the country.


I think the "case worker" may be pulling your leg. Salaries are
higher here in art because of living expenses.
Bottom line is that relocation is expensive for both the employee
and employer. An employer is NOT going to give someone a job and
let them become homeless in a month or two. It is your
responsibility to research and plan your relocation.  A look at
housing prices (http://www.sfgate.com) and looking at supermarket
prices in a California paper (SJ Mercury) is a goos start.


steve arrants

Stephen Arrants
CNET: The Computer Network
Documentation and Training
stevea -at- cnet -dot- com
415.395.7805 x4766

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