BG, you’re hilarious. Comparing a place that would take you 40-60 minutes commute to a place that’s 10-15 minutes from high paying job centers? You should be comparing those bay area places to Temecula if you what to compare apple to apple (i.e. commute time).
I would pick MM over Mt. View any day, purely because of the schools. I’m not sure if $300k is even enough for me to maintain my life style in the bay area. It might end up having to be $400-500k. I expect to have the same living standard when I compare different cities. I don’t care how old an area is. I don’t care if there are a billion jobs in the bay. It doesn’t do me any good if I have to downgrade my living standard. That is what I mean when I expect to be paid $x in order to make me move. Which is why I’m still in SD instead of moving to the bay. I’m sure if I really wanted to, I could find a job up there pretty easily. But why would I want to, when I get better weather here and a much better living standard? I would only want to sacrifice my weather if I can get a better living standard. If I have to sacrifice both weather and living standard, why would I would to another nondescript suburb? I would shoot myself after 1 month if I have to commute 30+ minutes to work. My limit for a sane commute is 20 minutes with no traffic or 10 minutes with traffic. Life is way too short to put yourself through hell. Especially when the working life span of a tech worker is pretty short.
I would also pick Carmel Valley/La Jolla/Del Mar/RSF over Cupertino too. For $3M, I rather have an enclave in RSF or a house with ocean view in La Jolla/Del Mar over a nondescript tract home in Cupertino. But that’s just me.
