LBJC

Hi all. First post; hoping for some guidance from those in San Francisco.

I am an Australian making the move to SF on the E3 visa in 3 weeks time. After considerable research and time invested in learning about the city, I am starting to become anxious over a couple of matters.

Rent - whilst I can accept the price (hoping to secure a studio for circa $2-2.5k/month), I am worried that without US credit history I will be snookered. What are the options for expats? Should I expect many application rejections? How long has it taken others to secure an apartment?

Furthermore, I own 2 small dogs (who barely leave the house) who will be making the move with me. From perusing craigslist, it seems pet friendly rentals are few and far between. Has anyone had any experience with this?

Location/Commute - I will be working in South San Francisco for a company who has a shuttle service, so I am hoping to go carless. I have narrowed down my search to somewhere near BART/Caltrain to get to the shuttle stop. The Tenderloin/Tendernob seems to be great value for money and in proximity to multiple options of public transport among other things. I am aware of the reputation in the area, but am hoping if anyone who is based in SF can shed some light on the matter? Is it hype or a genuinely terrible place to be?

Any wisdom or pointers are greatly appreciated. Thank you

Cape Blue

I would not live in the Tenderloin/nob - it's American-rough, i.e. lots of mentally-crazed drug addicts and an active shooting arena. I cycle through it on occasion and it's proper-rough (I used to live in Streatham in London if that helps).

md95065

Not having a US credit history will make getting a rental more difficult, but not impossible. You may want to try offering to a few extra months rent in advance.

Having dogs, even small dogs, will also make it more difficult.

Where exactly will you be working in South San Francisco, and where do your company's shuttles pick people up?

You may want to consider rental options that are not in the city center.

There is a reason why the Tenderloin appears to be "good value for money" - people don't want to live there - they really don't want to live there.

You do not want to live there.

Giantaxe

I wouldn't choose to live in the Tenderloin. I'm happy to walk through it during the day, at night not so much - just too much drug dealing/prostitution/assorted weirdos etc. I hate the name Tendernob, but if you mean the area south of California and north of Geary between Polk in the west and, say, Mason in the east, then each successive street you move north, the more ok it becomes. Pine and Bush are fine in that region, imo.

md95065

Yes, it does depend exactly where you are, but the one thing that you can be sure of is that, if a property is close enough to the edge of the Tenderloin proper that it could even remotely be considered to be in an adjoining neighbourhood, then that is how it will be described.

The area mentioned by Giantaxe, which I agree is probably just about acceptable, would undoubtedly be touted as "Lower Nob Hill" ...

LBJC

Thank you all for your input. It seems Tenderloin's reputation is warranted. It's a shame really as it is a great location.

I will be working at Genentech in South SF. I am of the belief the shuttle leaves from the Glen Park BART, so I am hoping to commute there each day, however there may be another way to go about it.

Regarding rentals, I have heard highballing or offering more per month is a good way to secure an apartment so this might be necessary?

md95065

Looks like they also have a shuttle service from Milbrae which opens up the possibility of living somewhere further south on the peninsula that is convenient for a Caltrain station.

Rent should be significantly less, but it would also be a lot more difficult to manage without a car if you are living outside of the city.

A lot depends on how much you really want to live in San Francisco itself and how much you are willing to sacrifice to do so.

rpjs

My brother lives in the Eaves Diamond Heights complex and has a small dog - I think he has to pay a little extra rent for her.

S Folinsky

I find this interesting inasmuch as I went to Law School in the City. My residences were Alamo Square [high crime - so moved out], Inner Richmond and then a home in Midtown Terrace. My school was in the Tenderloin. First job in the Financial District north of market.

I look at the cost of living in SF and I am amazed. It sure has changed since the 70's.

LBJC

Thanks for the tip on this rpjs. Looks perfect for what I am after

IlAlfie

Don't know if it's too late but Genentech has a shuttle that goes from the city. There's a stop near where I am: the Safeway on Market street near Duboce Triangle and I imagine it stops all over the city. That might make it easier to decide where to live so you wouldn't need BART. I understood that the shuttle was free....

Other thing, they're quite into 'pet rents' here, a completely ridiculous situation but it might be hard to avoid.

A new-ish apartment building often have fewer pet restrictions that the older apartments. We lived in the Paramount with a dog and cat and that was no problem. They have an upper weight limit usually.

powersmurf

Have you looked at Daly City area? They have a Bart train station and rent should run you at around $1.5k a month or maybe slightly higher.

SalopianFunk

Avoid the TL. It's ok during the daytime, but it's cheaper there for a reason.
Bayview is also crime riddled, but because the yuppies have been pricing natives and artists out of the bohemian enclaves, they're starting to move in there and thus it's progressively getting less sketchy.

That said, you could save a lot by doing a house share although finding places allowing any pets, let alone two, might be a struggle.

Assuming you will be one of those neighbourhood destroying techie yups, some companies have shuttles going as far north as Northbeach, and if you do decide to share you could pretty much get a place anywhere for less than 2.5k/month.