moving to Palo Alto? (San Jose, San Francisco: apartment, rent, crime)

[Canucks604]

I currently work in Vancouver, BC (Canada) and am considering a 2-year job opportunity at Palo Alto. Don't know any one in the area so I really need you help in making this decision!

A little background:
the job will be near El Camino Real and Page Mill Rd.
perfer minimal commute, under 30min on public transit.
looking for 1 bedroom, maybe studio. (I am currently living in a $850 1 bedroom apartment, less than 30min away from downtown vancouver)
Single female late-20s
early in career with limited budget
not looking for a lavish lifestyle but would like to travel back to see family a few times

Questions:
cost of living? rent cost?
do I need a car?
how much will I need to make to live comfortably with some saving?
local demographic? lifestyle?
comparison to Vancouver?

any input is appreciated! Thank you so much!

[80skeys]

With your current budget you wont' be able to live by yourself, you'd have to have roommates and rent a room or share an apartment.

Prices get higher as you go north along the Penisula towards San Francisco and lower as you go south from Palo Alto. You can't rent a studio anywhere along the Peninsula for $850 so if you want to live by yourself you'll have to budget for, what, how much are studios renting nowadays? $1200?

It's kind of difficult to live in the area without a car. Public transportation is pretty good at getting people to and from work, but for groceries, shopping malls and things like that it seems like its might be more difficult. I take Caltrain but I don't know about the buses.

The local demographic is highly international, similar to Vancouver. Lifestyle wise, San Francisco and Vancouver are probably similar. The Peninsula is different because it's the "suburbs."

There's another post in a different thread I did a few days ago where I gave a breakdown of monthly costs including utilties, food, etc. Do a search for it.

[sonarrat]

Anywhere in the Bay Area is going to be more expensive than even central Vancouver. Palo Alto is about as expensive as it gets. That's just the tradeoff. When I started out on a limited income, I rented a room in a house with a Filipino family in the Milpitas foothills. They were great and I had no trouble with them, and after a year I was able to get a better job and then rented my own one-bedroom.

[Canucks604]

Thank you for the replies.

After some research, I think rent will be at least $1200.
Although I will get a raise by moving down to SJ, I'm not sure if the raise will cover the high cost of living. Any recommendation on a comfortable income for a single person family living in the area?
ie. 1 bedroom/studio rent, car, & some savings

Also, which area should I look to live? I'm happy with a $1200 studio... but would like somewhere safe.

[sonarrat]

If you're going for an apartment, avoid East Palo Alto like the plague, and avoid San Jose anywhere east of 101 (traffic and often crime issues) or near SJSU. You could probably get a studio in Sunnyvale or Mountain View on your budget, maybe Palo Alto if you're lucky.

[ReidAllen]

Why avoid East Palo Alto?!

[bigdumbgod]

Originally Posted by ReidAllen

Why avoid East Palo Alto?!

They'll eat you. And then take your new Ikea stuff.

[80skeys]

Originally Posted by bigdumbgod

They'll eat you. And then take your new Ikea stuff.

Hahaha good one

[mstnghu2]

Originally Posted by ReidAllen

Why avoid East Palo Alto?!

While not as bad as it used to be, East Palo Alto was once the per-capita murder capital of the United States. It's better now but it's still pretty crappy. FYI, it's not actually part of the city of Palo Alto. It's a separate city that sits mostly on the opposite side of hwy 101.