Moving to the Golden Gate City
San Francisco is often called the City by the Bay, Frisco, the Fog City, The City that Knows How, The Paris of the West, and other creative names that perfectly describe it. Nevertheless, no matter what you end up calling this beautiful city, you are in for a thrilling adventure as soon as you begin your new life there.
Many people are choosing the global tech industry hub for launching their own startup, opening a small business, starting a new family, or applying for that dream job at Google or Apple.
With a population of over 870,000 people, San Francisco is ranked as the fourth-most populated city in California and the thirteenth in the US. Compared to Chicago’s humid continental climate with cold winters and hot, humid summers, San Francisco has a warm Mediterranean climate with mild winters and dry summers. As the city is constantly influenced by the Pacific Ocean’s cool currents, expect the temperatures to constantly swing year-round.
Housing and Living Costs
Just like your monthly salary is expected to double or triple once you move to San Francisco, expect the housing and living costs to be much higher than in Chicago as well. Overall, the living costs in San Francisco are 151.9% higher than in Chicago, while the median home cost is 501.6% more expensive.
Monthly rent for a one-bedroom apartment outside the city center can easily exceed $3,000. In case you are wondering about buying a house in San Francisco, the average sale price of a home in the city is $1.4M .
Economy and Employment
San Francisco County has one of highest personal income rates in the US. Apple, Google, Facebook, Levi Strauss & Co, Fitbit, Salesforce, Dropbox, Reddit, Dolby, Airbnb, Yelp, Pinterest, Twitter, Uber, Lyft, Mozilla, Craigslist, and many other big companies have their headquarters in San Francisco and the neighboring cities.
The city’s rich economy is mainly fueled by key industries such as financial services, tourism, information technology, education, and healthcare. Finding a job in San Francisco is not an easy task, but rest assured that there are endless job opportunities in various types of industries. The City Government, University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), and California Pacific Medical Center are among the top employers in the city.
Things to do and see in San Francisco
It won’t take long for you to notice how great it is to live in San Francisco, where the weather is perfect, the people are nice and full of energy, and festivals, live music shows, and other entertaining gigs take place throughout the year.
Visit the Golden Gate Bridge, the Alcatraz Island, Lombard Street, Coit Tower, the San Francisco Dungeon, Pier 39 Festival Marketplace, San Francisco Zoo, San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park, San Francisco Botanical Garden, and museums like de Young Museum, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA), the Beat Museum, and Legion of Honor Museum whenever you get the chance.
Moving to San Francisco with a car
After you officially make your move to San Francisco and become a new resident, you will have 20 days to get your vehicle registered. In order to register it, you also need to have your car insured. Keep in mind that once you become a resident of California, you will also need to obtain a California driver’s license within the first 10 days of your move. Go to the official website of DMV California to learn about car registration and more.