Home prices are only crazy in certain areas. I still periodically see condo listings in the $200-250 psf range in decent parts of SD. If you’re starting out your career, why not buy a 1/1 or a 2/1 depending on your salary and keep it as a rental when you start a family?

Bay Area == too many people chasing too little money. Like the stereotype of Hollywood. A lot of actors and musicians had to go back to NY to make it because the signal-to-noise ratio in LA was too low.