Quote:
Originally Posted by Replaced_Texan
Yeah, the people are definitely a major factor in the equation. A lot of my people, seem to be doing the Texodus from places like the Mission and the East Bay, including my sister, who just gave up after 15 years in the SFBA. She's living on a ranch for a year and then headed to Austin to grad school after establishing residency here. Out of state here is cheaper than in state in one of the UCs, and in state is worth a half year of unemployment followed by picking up contract work. (In a freak coincidence, she quit from her place of employment about a week after a headhunter representing them called me. Seems they always want someone from our family on the payroll. In another weirdly timed coincidence, my other sister's boyfriend is also being recruited to the same place.) I still have a fair number of good friends in the area, but ya'll are my only Peninsula people.
My major issues are expense, fear of suburbia, and fear of commute.
I currently live in a rapidly gentrifying Castro/Mission-esque neighborhood 3.5 miles from work (12 minute commute over surface streets by car, 45 by bike/light rail/walk combo, which yesterday in the 90plus degree heat wasn't all that bad). My mortgage is under a thousand dollars, and while taxes are going up, they're definitely not bad in the aggregate. I'm no where near underwater, so if we do end up selling we will have something to enter the terrifying real estate market there with. I love where I live, and I'd rather go through the agony of expanding/renovating than moving if we stay here.
Professionally, I think that the SFBA would be a better place for my spouse, but he's developing an international presence where it's not really important for him to be based anywhere in particular in the US. He has a ton of friends in the area, again in SF and the East Bay. For me professionally, I think it's a step up, but I technically won't be a lawyer if I'm offered and accept the position. Certainly it'd be a salary bump as I'm woefully under market, but I'm not sure how much of a difference it will make given the vast cost of living difference.
We're trying to start a family and miscarried twins at nine weeks in late May. Who knows what will happen, but we know we CAN get pregnant, so I'm guessing that within a year we'll probably be expecting again. (It took about 8 months of trying to get pregnant last time around.) Here, we have a ton of family support, which we won't have there unless my sister and her boyfriend move too. My spouse is flexible enough that he could be a stay at home dad for a bit, but we may need the extra income there much more than we would here.
All of this assuming I get an offer that's attractive.
ETA: It is the only place in the country where I don't immediately say "no thank you" when I get a recruiting call. I pay my inactive California bar dues every year just in case. Three or four years ago, I think I would have been much, much more excited about this as I am now, though. I think the kid thing probably plays into that the most, but it also may have to do with how much things have changed on the people front there in the last few years.
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I'm terribly sorry to hear about the loss of your twins. I'm a little sorrowful thinking about it so what's below might be overstated accidentally.
You originally asked for "
how to sell" a conflicted person — and I assumed that was your husband, not you. Now knowing your situation I'm conflicted about
whether to sell. I've had more than my fair share of babies, and have tried to help as dot-commers thousands of miles from their parents have tried to go it alone here on the baby front. Nearly all of them moved "back home," usually shortly after the arrival of Child 2. Truth be told, I'm very enthusiastic about the kind of suburbia we've cultivated here on the Peninsula — if you doubt, look at the beating I happily took two Fridays ago from Sidd and Less — but it has only worked well when either one or both grandparents was also local
or there was some other kind of kick-ass support system in place. For us, that took the form of local grandparents plus a hyperactively involved church community helping at all times. No offense, but if our peer group had been more heavily weighted toward DINKs and bohemian SF types who were 30 minutes away at best, I think we would have moved to Virginia by now to be closer to my wife's family. Having kids is a serious business and ours is the first generation to think we could do it thousands of miles from our hometowns (excepting Ma and Pa Wilder, I reckon) and it comes at an enormous toll — cobbled-together daycare arrangements, au pair drama, sick days off work out the wazoo. Being alone in the house with a baby while your rising star husband works nights is going to suck big time, and you'll have to stay committed to the decision it will be worth it in the long run, because during all the short runs on the way it will not seem worth it.
If the person you're convincing is you, I would recommend staying in Texas. Not because the Peninsula is not right, but because all places that are not with your extended family are equally wrong. If you're gung ho for SF but think the Peninsula is a different place, relax. The Peninsula is basically SF with parking and without the nightlife that is useless to young parents anyways. Yes, we're all soccer moms, but there's a place for cool-ass soccer moms in this world, and SF is a place where even the supposedly uncompromising liberals put their kids in $30K private schools, so don't take advice from anyone who is living a life there that you cannot.
If you need advice about cities or school districts, hit me up on FB chat — I wouldn't want to offend Flinty.
