San Francisco California is a bustling city full of iconic landmarks. From the Golden Gate Bridge and the Painted Ladies overlooking the city, to Lombard St, the “crookedest” street in the US, known as “The City by the Bay”, “Fog City”, “San Fran”, or “Frisco”, this city is the fourth-most populous city in California, and the 13th-most populous in the US, with 870,887 residents based on 2016 estimates from the US Census Bureau.
Located on the West Coast of the US and only seven miles long by seven miles wide, San Francisco sits right along the Pacific Ocean and even includes several islands—Alcatraz, Treasure Island and the adjacent Yerba Buena Island, as well as small portions of Alameda Island, Red Rock Island, and Angel Island.
If you’re going to San Francisco, read on to find out what it takes to live and work in this city.
Working in San Francisco
Industry
San Francisco is well known for its tech companies and innovation, making it attractive for highly skilled professionals. Though tech is just a small part of its overall economy, the area boasts a low 3.1% unemployment according to recent figures from the US Census Bureau, beating the rest of the state’s average of 4.2%.
The city’s diverse economy has a range of professional services that account for a large portion of the economy, including financial services, tourism, and high technology. The latest from the Bureau of Labor Statistics from June 2017 show that along with professional and Business services (469,000 jobs), education and health services (349,800 jobs), trade, transportation and utilities (375,500 jobs), as well as government (327,300 jobs) were all major industry sectors in San Francisco.
The San Francisco Center for Economic Development named these sectors with the highest growth potential: IT and software, social and digital media, life sciences and biotech, environmental and cleantech, professional services, and international business.
Employers to note
Many recognizable companies find themselves in the Bay Area, including: Twitter, ZDNet, Uber, Tech Crunch, DropBox, Sales Force, AirBnB, Pinterest, Lyft, Venture Beat, Fitbit, Visa, Zynga, Craigslist, GAP, Yelp, Crunchbase, Beats Music, StubHub, Charles Schwab, Trulia, Eventbrite, and Wired Magazine, just to name a few!
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Did you know?
The bear on California’s state flag is based on a famous grizzly bear named Monarch that was actually kept in Golden Gate Park until 1911. Sadly, he was one of the last of a now-extinct grizzly bear subspecies and is now stuffed and part of California Academy of Sciences’ Mammalogy collection.
Living in San Francisco
Life in this city
San Francisco is a popular tourist destination, known for its warm-summer Mediterranean climate, with fog, and steep rolling hills. Living in the city can be expensive, with the cost of living here 62.6% higher than the national average according to the Council for Community and Economic Research. Not to mention that housing is also listed as nearly three times more expensive than in other US cities.
There are a lot of things to see and do in this city with an abundance of indoor and outdoor activities to keep locals and tourists alike busy.
The area boasts sports teams for those so inclined, including the San Francisco 49ers and the Golden State Warriors.
The culture of the city really wouldn’t be complete without San Francisco’s colorful roots which play a vital role in this beautiful vibrant city. The city’s large gay community is a powerful presence in San Francisco and is one of the most popular destinations for gay tourists internationally. The city’s San Francisco Pride Parade is a can’t-miss event!
Transportation in this city
Getting around the city without a car is easy, with the San Francisco Municipal Railway (Muni), being the primary public transit system of San Francisco. Muni includes buses, trains, cable cars and the F-line heritage streetcar. With high parking fees and seemingly endless amounts of traffic, you’ll find using the public transportation to be the best option for getting around the city. Those trolleys aren’t just for tourists!
House prices in this city
Though the quality of living in San Francisco may be high, it certainly comes at a price.
According to estimated 2016 data from the US Census Data Bureau, the median home value was $799,600. Smart Asset reports that this has increased by 36% over the past two years.
The rental market is just as high, with the average rent on a two bedroom apartment at $4,650 according to Smart Asset.
Education in this city
There are 136 public schools and 110 private schools in San Francisco and in the Bay Area more than 35 colleges and universities. The San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) is the seventh largest school district in California, educating over 57,000 students every year.
Public colleges and universities include: City College of San Francisco, San Francisco State University, University of California, Hastings College of the Law, and the University of California, San Francisco.
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