Sjjen

Hi, I know there are many similar posts but I wanted to ask separately in order to set out our particular circumstances.

Having spent 3 months in SF my husband has been offered a PostDoc position at Stanford. We know we love the area and lifestyle and would love to take this opportunity but we are not sure it would be feasible on the salary being offered, 55k. There are just the two of us so I have the following questions.

1. Could we live a relatively nice lifestyle on this? We'd need a car if not living too close to campus. We aren't looking for a lifestyle that is fancy but occasional meals out, cinema and perhaps an infrequent weekend away.

2. How much would we expect to pay for rent, we'd like at least a one bed (not a studio) and where would be the best places to live? We have stayed in Palo Alto over the summer but do not think this will be likely as the costs are so high there. As a young couple we'd like to be near some bars/food places and so on. Also can anyone recommend where to look to find accommodation? I've looked at Craigslist, but I never really trust those sorts of websites and would rather look somewhere reputable.

3. How much would he expect to be bringing home per month after tax?

4. Would it be likely that I could find work? I am British, with a BA and MA degree. If we thought it likely I would be able to work also we would be far more likely to take the risk.

Thanks for any advice you can give

sir_eccles

The answer to this question is heavily dependent on the visa your husband has/will get as that will determine the visa you get. Some allow you to work, others do not.

Sjjen

We believe he would be on a J1 and so I would be on a J2.

retzie

Congratulations! But fair warning - everyone here is going to say 'no'

HOWEVER postdocs do not fit the profile of a usual expat job, so I think people need to keep their hair on. Stanford has many, many postdocs, who all survive on similar wages. Get in touch with others in his lab/group and see what they have to say about their standard of living and areas to live that are accessible (in rent and proximity). Universities usually provide excellent health insurance, so that's one thing to cross off the list of potential money pits.

Your husband would be on a J-1 visa, which would have you on a J-2, so eligible to get an EAD and work. There's no magic to finding a job here - have a look around job websites and see if there are things that fit your skills. A personal favourite of mine is idealist.org, but that'd be my bleeding heart

It doubt it will be a walk in the park, but a postdoc at Stanford is a big deal career-wise, so it is worth making some sacrifices along the way. I say go for it

~Fellow academic

Sjjen

Thanks so much for this Retzie, it is great to know that the J2 would allow me to work, even if not straight away we can struggle through a few months on a low income!

As you say it seems for his career far too much of a good opportunity to pass up, and as long as it is financially feasible we would love to go. He has some names to contact in the group for their experiences.

scrubbedexpat091

You can survive anywhere on 55k, just depends on what lifestyle you want. Plenty of people working low wage jobs in San Francisco and area and manage to survive.

All boils down to the lifestyle you desire and what your used to.

Pulaski

Given the OP's number point 1, I think we non-academics are fully justified in saying "no". Could you survive in a student-like lifestyle, sure, probably.

$55,000 is going to lose about 30% in taxes and deductions of one sort or another, so net will be around $38,000-$39,000.

Bob

With the J2, you'd have to stump a few hundred bucks and up to 90 days wait for the EAD, which would allow you to work.

Places to rent, I'm sure the university would have recommendations or a list of places postdocs stay in that might be cheapish. If not, madmapper.com is a nice aggregator of all the sites.

I would imagine that it would be quite tight on the budget, certainly until you get a job, so depending on what your field is, might have no problems getting a job, or if you struggle, then you might have to scratch the weekends away from the plan.

Transport, I would imagine it would depend on where you end up staying. Cars aren't cheap though, certainly for the first year or two, with no US credit history or driving history.

Lack of credit history would mean you'd have a larger set up cost for most things compared to a local.

N1cky

My immediate reply would have been no, until I saw that it's at Stanford, so I'm changing my mind to a maybe. I know a few people who work at Stanford, and know they own a hell of a lot of property (they virtually own all the land in Palo Alto. I also know they can and do give people who work at Stanford incredible deals on mortgages and rent.

If you have to go into the private market, you're going to be looking at around $1,800 for a 600sq ft apartment, in Sunnyvale.

There's a Caltrain station opposite Stanford, so you could easily commute using that. Look at Redwood City to Burlingame, and Sunnyvale to San Jose in the South, everything in the middle will be too expensive. Cycling here is common, and lots of people bike to and from the station at each side.

System Map

As you have no kids, look at places with poor schools that are close to a Caltrain station, or VTA station that links in to the Caltrain (Redwood City and areas of San Jose spring to mind), these will be cheaper.

To be close to restaurants and bars, I'd try Sunnyvale or parts of San Jose, and maybe Burlingame. We've rented all 3 of our US houses through Craigslist, just be aware of the obvious scam signs. Lots of the apartments on there are through agencies, and are fine to use.

Weekends away can be expensive, unless you like camping, in which case it's a great location. Pack the car up and away you go, there's hundreds of great places within a 4 hour drive.

md95065

You won't be able to live "comfortably" on that amount (at least, not what I would consider to be "comfortable") but you should be able to survive, so you may be able to justify it as an investment in your husband's career. Of course, if you manage to get a job as well that will make things easier.

As already suggested, you should try networking with other Stanford post docs and, perhaps, consider looking for a house share rather than a place of your own.

username.exe

Great opportunity if you're willing to tighten your belts for a while.

lunarose

Stanford offer a lot of support to their Post Docs including subsidized housing. They also generally have a lot jobs working admin etc going, so you may well be able to work there and save money on gas etc. It is really worth a go for the long term benefit.

MarylandNed

You won't die. But you better get a job or bring lots of credit cards to help ease the misery.

RoadWarriorFromLP

You will want to have subsidized housing in order to make this work. Without it, you will barely be able to afford the rent, let alone pay for exotic luxury goods such as food and utilities.

That being said, Stanford will be winning addition to a CV. If you have savings or can borrow what you need to borrow, then it may be worth it.

sherbert

I'm looking in that area now for housing and you won't find a 1 bedroom for less that $2000. If you want to rent furnished, expect to pay around 3,000. Everyone uses craigslist here. Just keep your wits about you and don't give anyone ANY money up front for anything. And if you get a bad feeling about someone, move on. Try Airbnb for your first or even second month so you can figure out where you want to live and have a guarantee that the place you rented actually exists and looks like the pictures they show you.

As someone with no credit history, you're going to have to sweet talk a private landlord and probably pay a larger than average deposit to compensate. That said, I hope that Standford gives you some help: the university my OH was at did absolutely nothing for us