Biglaw - paying premium to walk to work (esp. SF) Forum

[Anonymous User]

Who here pays a premium to live a 10-15 minute walk from work? If so, do you think it's worth it? For SF folks - anyone live in SOMA, North Beach, FiDi, Nob, etc.? Would like to move downtown to save time but am daunted by the price.

[dabigchina]

Who here pays a premium to live a 10-15 minute walk from work? If so, do you think it's worth it? For SF folks - anyone live in SOMA, North Beach, FiDi, Nob, etc.? Would like to move downtown to save time but am daunted by the price.

not in biglaw but do work long hours in fidi.

never underestimate how much it sucks to commute 40 mins on bart after a long day. i actually dread my commute more than i dread my work. i would move into the city in a second if i werent getting a screaming deal in the east bay.

[Anonymous User]

Who here pays a premium to live a 10-15 minute walk from work? If so, do you think it's worth it? For SF folks - anyone live in SOMA, North Beach, FiDi, Nob, etc.? Would like to move downtown to save time but am daunted by the price.

not in biglaw but do work long hours in fidi.

never underestimate how much it sucks to commute 40 mins on bart after a long day. i actually dread my commute more than i dread my work. i would move into the city in a second if i werent getting a screaming deal in the east bay.

OP here: fully agree, and believe me, it sucks even more to commute that distance on MUNI rather than BART, my current situation. Even though I have a relative deal in the outer reaches of SF, I'm considering throwing financial caution to the wind for the sake of getting to/from work easily (and having a nicer place with hard to come by in SF "luxuries" like in-unit W/D.)

[domino9028]

I would bite the bullet and move closer to work. I live in LA and I used to have a 1.5 hour commute to work. I sucked it up and pay a premium for rent to live 20 mins from work (8 minutes without traffic today). I don't know if I could have survived much longer with the long commute. I'm much happier and I can use that extra 2.5 hours a day for something more productive.

[KM2016]

I would bite the bullet and move closer to work. I live in LA and I used to have a 1.5 hour commute to work. I sucked it up and pay a premium for rent to live 20 mins from work (8 minutes without traffic today). I don't know if I could have survived much longer with the long commute. I'm much happier and I can use that extra 2.5 hours a day for something more productive.

Same here. Don't regret it for a second.

[hiima3L]

Who here pays a premium to live a 10-15 minute walk from work? If so, do you think it's worth it? For SF folks - anyone live in SOMA, North Beach, FiDi, Nob, etc.? Would like to move downtown to save time but am daunted by the price.

The Tenderloin is an underrated part of SF. I would not rule it out.

I personally would think it would be worth it. Public transit in SF can be absolutely terrible to/from some parts of the city. I lived in the Richmond to save money one year and I really, really regretted it some days. Spending an hour or more to get home 5-6 miles away is not fun.

[dabigchina]

Who here pays a premium to live a 10-15 minute walk from work? If so, do you think it's worth it? For SF folks - anyone live in SOMA, North Beach, FiDi, Nob, etc.? Would like to move downtown to save time but am daunted by the price.

The Tenderloin is an underrated part of SF. I would not rule it out.

I personally would think it would be worth it. Public transit in SF can be absolutely terrible to/from some parts of the city. I lived in the Richmond to save money one year and I really, really regretted it some days. Spending an hour or more to get home 5-6 miles away is not fun.

best value in the city is the "tendernob" area between bush and post past powell street. I used to pay 1300 for a small studio. granted this was like 4 years ago.

[sublime]

..

[lapolicia]

Who here pays a premium to live a 10-15 minute walk from work? If so, do you think it's worth it? For SF folks - anyone live in SOMA, North Beach, FiDi, Nob, etc.? Would like to move downtown to save time but am daunted by the price.

The Tenderloin is an underrated part of SF. I would not rule it out.

I personally would think it would be worth it. Public transit in SF can be absolutely terrible to/from some parts of the city. I lived in the Richmond to save money one year and I really, really regretted it some days. Spending an hour or more to get home 5-6 miles away is not fun.

best value in the city is the "tendernob" area between bush and post past powell street. I used to pay 1300 for a small studio. granted this was like 4 years ago.

It's around $2000-2100 now. Prices are crazy compared to even 2 years ago.

[shock259]

I live about 30 minutes from work. For me, it's the sweet spot between rent cost and commuting time.

Other things to consider: when you work late, you will be taking cabs home (which may cut down on your commuting time significantly depending on how you get to work in the first place). Also, most firms are pretty tolerant about letting you work from home on the weekends/holidays/etc. I'm doing NYC transactional work but I have almost never had to come into the office on the weekends (despite the fact that I have to work on the weekends a lot).

[Anonymous User]

OP here. I think some people may have read my question as though I'm a 3L or incoming associate deciding where to live, so I should clarify: I've been in biglaw for several years. I definitely take cabs home late at night, and I work from home without exception on weekends. I've just always had a > 30 minute+ commute (currently even further away) and have never gotten to walk to work. My hours are getting more and more intense as I turn senior, which is causing me to reconsider my current choice of living further away to save money.

Essentially, moving to one of the neighborhoods I mentioned would save me more than four hours a week in commute time, even accounting for cabs home and no weekend facetime. Everyone billing 2400-2500+ gets why that's a huge deal. At the same time, moving downtown would double my rent, or more. That's also a huge deal. (There is the purchase option, and I haven't absolutely ruled it out, but the SF real estate market is so hyperinflated right now that I'm not sold on buying being a great idea. I have crunched the numbers, and even accounting for mortgage interest deduction, buying downtown is also not cheaper than renting downtown in my situation.)

So just interested in different perspectives. My colleagues are divided between those who walk to work and those who live further away to save money (many in the East Bay) or to live in a neighborhood with a more residential feel; both groups think their choice is worth it.

[rpupkin]

What about downtown Oakland? It's a relatively short BART ride from the Financial District, and, though Oakland is a lot more expensive than it used to be, it's still considerably cheaper than the places you're considering in SF. No, you can't walk to work from there, but it would be a much shorter commute than taking MUNI to the Outer Richmond or the Sunset or wherever it is you're currently living.

[Anonymous User]

What about downtown Oakland? It's a relatively short BART ride from the Financial District, and, though Oakland is a lot more expensive than it used to be, it's still considerably cheaper than the places you're considering in SF. No, you can't walk to work from there, but it would be a much shorter commute than taking MUNI to the Outer Richmond or the Sunset or wherever it is you're living.

You're not wrong that it's cheaper and a short commute, and many of my colleagues love Oakland. But I'm one of those pesky diehards who is not open to leaving San Francisco.

[johndhi]

if by living "downtown" SF you mean living in the fidi, you are crazy. I pay a premium to live a convenient place. MUNI and BART are quite reliable if you're in the right spots. from any of these places it isn't more than 15 minutes to my work in the fidi:

near 16th or 24th street mission
van ness, church, or castro muni stops (where it's underground they come all the time)

I know people who live in those big SoMa towers and work in the fidi. it's a boring neighborhood IMO but at least better than actually being in the FiDi. Rent in North Beach is pretty cheap as things go, so that is an OK option, too, although it's hard to get anywhere other than the FiDi from there.

[Anonymous User]

if by living "downtown" SF you mean living in the fidi, you are crazy.

I meant the neighborhoods I listed in my first post, including SOMA and North Beach. I did list the FiDi as well, but I agree with you that it's probably the least desirable option - though, ironically, the very closest to work.

I pay a premium to live a convenient place. MUNI and BART are quite reliable if you're in the right spots. from any of these places it isn't more than 15 minutes to my work in the fidi:

near 16th or 24th street mission
van ness, church, or castro muni stops (where it's underground they come all the time)

Yeah, I agree with you that 16th/24th Street BART are pretty good options, but the truth is - call me weird - I don't want to live in the Mission, making me the only San Franciscan who doesn't, I suppose. I like going out there, but it's just not my cup of tea. As much as I have mixed feelings about SOMA/South Beach, I'd prefer to live there than the Mission. (My favorite neighborhoods are not even listed in this thread because they'd mostly force me to rely on a MUNI bus to get to work.)

I always used to think MUNI KLM would be the way to go (i.e. Duboce Triangle or Castro), but I've tested out the morning commute and am not sold on the sardine-packed unpleasantness and issue with train after train arriving that's too packed for any riders to board. (This is worse at Church than at Castro, of course.) Yeah, it's a short train ride and not the end of the world, but the thought of a brisk 15 minute walk to work while enjoying Nob Hill views or Bay views along the Embarcadero from South Beach just sounds way more pleasant..

I know people who live in those big SoMa towers and work in the fidi. it's a boring neighborhood IMO but at least better than actually being in the FiDi. Rent in North Beach is pretty cheap as things go, so that is an OK option, too, although it's hard to get anywhere other than the FiDi from there.

Yeah, both of those are options - big SoMa towers (could be an interesting change of pace since I currently live in a low-rise residential part of the City) or North Beach (way more bustling neighborhood than my current one, although tourist-heavy.) I honestly don't think that any of these options are going to be bad experiences - it's just the high cost.

[iShotFirst]

Wasnt working in law but rented in North Beach, fifteen minute walk to work, never regretted the premium. Ride metro (in another city) now and really miss that commute.

[84651846190]

best value in the city is the "tendernob" area between bush and post past powell street. I used to pay 1300 for a small studio. granted this was like 4 years ago.

It's around $2000-2100 now.

jesus

[Anonymous User]

I do this in LA and love it.

[Anonymous User]

I do this in LA and love it.

Whereabouts do you live in downtown LA? Any recommendations?

[hiima3L]

I do this in LA and love it.

I have a handful of friends who live and work in downtown LA and they uniformly love the set up. If I were ever forced to move to LA (god forbid), I'd do whatever I could to be able to walk to work.

OP, it seems like you've really limited yourself to a very small part of the city. (That's fine, just what I am gathering.) Have you looked to see if anything is available? Even assuming you would be willing to move, is it possible? Finding a place to rent in SF was a nightmare when I lived there (09 to 12), and I've heard it's gotten dramatically worse.

[Anonymous User]

Hi all,

This thread topic also interests me. Starting work in FiDi in the Fall. Generally speaking, what is the consensus regarding biking to work in SF? Do people do this? Is it prudent?

Thanks.

[PvblivsScipio]

I do this in LA and love it.

Whereabouts do you live in downtown LA? Any recommendations?

Delete

[Anonymous User]

Hi all,

This thread topic also interests me. Starting work in FiDi in the Fall. Generally speaking, what is the consensus regarding biking to work in SF? Do people do this? Is it prudent?

Thanks.

I know many people who bike to work in the FiDi or SOMA, but your question made me realize that none are lawyers. I've never heard people at my current or former firm talk about biking in. When you say that, I think Mike Ross in Suits. But I don't see any reason you couldn't, as long as you were set up to carry your laptop and other papers back and forth (small laptop backpack?). Market, Folsom, etc., are well set up with bike lanes and bike commuting is on the rise in SF.

[Anonymous User]

Don't live in such an overpriced and overcrowded city would be my main advice. SF real estate is a total ripoff.

[dabigchina]

Who here pays a premium to live a 10-15 minute walk from work? If so, do you think it's worth it? For SF folks - anyone live in SOMA, North Beach, FiDi, Nob, etc.? Would like to move downtown to save time but am daunted by the price.

The Tenderloin is an underrated part of SF. I would not rule it out.

I personally would think it would be worth it. Public transit in SF can be absolutely terrible to/from some parts of the city. I lived in the Richmond to save money one year and I really, really regretted it some days. Spending an hour or more to get home 5-6 miles away is not fun.

best value in the city is the "tendernob" area between bush and post past powell street. I used to pay 1300 for a small studio. granted this was like 4 years ago.

It's around $2000-2100 now. Prices are crazy compared to even 2 years ago.

I hate this city sometimes