# Relocating to SFO



## boblah (Sep 30, 2010)

Hi Everyone,

Need some help. Our company is moving me from Singapore to US (SFO). Their offer only includes the following at the moment:
- annual salary of USD78k gross
- 1month temporary housing
- one way ticket to SFO
- visa cost
- and other regular benefits

Is 78k good enough to live comfortably in SFO given income tax, cost of living, etc? What are the other things I should negotiate/ask for?

Thank you very much!

bob


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

I'd be a bit wary of that bit about "visa cost" - for a working visa you normally need the employer to sponsor you, which means they are in essence responsible for getting you the visa.

What about relocation costs? There's more to moving over than the airline ticket.
Cheers,
Bev


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## MichaelS (Nov 8, 2008)

San Francisco is one of the most expensive areas to live in the US, and $78K is just about the average salary there. You can, of course, live fine on $78K but your housing choices (size and location) will be limited. If you don't mind the commute, then you just move further out to get (somewhat) cheaper options. I know Singapore is a fairly expensive place to live too, so maybe you are used to this, but if you are currently living a pretty high class lifestyle, I wouldn't expect to maintain that on $78K in San Francisco.

By the way, SFO is the acronym for the San Francisco Airport (which, of course, is not in San Francisco). The San Francisco Bay Area is a pretty big area, about 4 times bigger than Singapore, with around 7 million people, so maybe you are not planning to stay in San Francisco itself.


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## boblah (Sep 30, 2010)

thanks Bevdeforges. the company will sponsor and process my L1 visa. as for relocation, I am checking with then moving/shipping allowance or cost to buy initial house set-up cost. is there anything I need to ask under relocation cost?

hi michaels, the office is in San Francisco Bay area and I am planning to stay there. will you be able to give average housing cost? say a 2 bedroom flat? how about income tax? in SG, income tax is ver low (less than 10%). lastly, you mentioned this salary is average. can you give a figure which is somewhat on the high side? is it 100K? thank you very much for the help.

bob


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Normally, a relocation allowance would provide for packing and shipping you household goods, plus storage for the month you are in temporary housing. Not sure if it's customary these days, but in the past, they normally offered one month's salary as a fund to cover replacement of small electrical appliances - lamps, television, kitchen appliances, etc. - on arrival. If you're coming over with your family, you may want to ask about a relocation agent to help with finding housing, schools, etc. for the family.
Cheers,
Bev


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

The initial post sounds like a sweat shop contract.
It is pretty simple - what you do not have in writing you do not have. Vacation, overtime, holidays, flight/household shipment back to your homebase, cost of living adjustment, tax preparation, job continuity at homebase after US job is no longer applicable, relocation assistance (drivers license, social security office, utilities ...), medical/dental coverage, insurance/retirements at home base, ... 78k will allow you to survive; there will be no savings and no play money after you deduct 25-35% tax. irs.gov will give you details.


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## boblah (Sep 30, 2010)

thanks for all the info. cheers


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## JenniferNavi (Oct 5, 2010)

Yes that's plenty to live there, it depends on your family size and the like though. You can definitely commute in from San Bruno or nearby 15 min away for relatively cheap.. and make that 78k go far.


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## JohnSoCal (Sep 2, 2007)

I lived several years in the San Francisco Bay area. I don't know what your occupation is but $79k is a low salary for that area for professionals. My salary as a senior software engineer in 2000 was $140K. Junior engineers were making $95-100k.

The cost of living is pretty high throughout the SF Bay area. If you are single, you could live OK on $79K.

It is a great place to live.


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## boblah (Sep 30, 2010)

thanks jennifer.

hi johnsocal, i'm in marketing with 9 years of experience. so looks like 100k is the minimum to live comfortably? thanks


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