Exodus of S.F.'s middle class

San Francisco Chronicle ^ | 6/21/8 | James Temple

[SmithL]

It's urban flight flipped on its head: The number of low- and middle-income residents in San Francisco is shrinking as the wealthy population swells, a trend most experts attribute to the city's exorbitant housing costs.

Many worry it's increasingly turning San Francisco into an enclave of the rich, where nurses, firefighters, cops, teachers and others professionals aspiring toward homeownership or in need of cheaper rent can no longer afford to stay.

"A kind of derogatory term for the city would be Disneyland for yuppies," said Hans Johnson, demographer with the Public Policy Institute of California. "There is a legitimate public policy concern when a city that many people have lived in for many years and regard as their homes, becomes so expensive they can't afford to live there anymore."

From 2002 to 2006, the number of households making up to $49,000 per year dropped by 7.4 percent, those earning between $50,000 and $99,999 declined by 4.4 percent, and those bringing home between $100,000 and $149,999 fell by 3.9 percent, according to Census Bureau estimates. In polar opposition, the number of households making between $150,000 and $199,999 surged 52.2 percent and those earning more than $200,000 climbed 40.1 percent.

Certainly, some of the movement can be attributed to people earning their way into higher income classes. But a separate analysis of census data from those who reported moving from San Francisco to elsewhere in the United States confirms the overall trend: The less you make, the more likely you are to leave the city or not move here in the first place.

The chance of departing in 2006 stood at less than 8 percent for those making $150,000 or more, but jumped to greater than 11 percent for those making between $25,000 and $50,000, according to the Public Policy Institute. "The net effect is...

[SmithL]

Mike and Sarah Northrop at their Pacifica, Calif. home with their daughters Sylvanna, 4, with dad, and Nerea, 2, with mom, on June 13, 2008. After renting a home in San Francisco for seven years the family moved to Pacifica because they couldn't find a home they could afford to buy with enough room for the four of them.

[Kozak]

Who would WANT to raise kids in Sodom and Gomorrah?

[givemELL]

Trailer parks are going to be a booming businesses in the US, and, 3 or 4 years from now will be superstellar performers. Looking to buy a stellar RV for a second home 4 years from now for almost nothing. Any predictions for sooner?

[Clemenza]

If the alternative were a sh-thole like Tracy or Stockton, I’d choose Sodom and cover my ass...

[dragnet2]

"I think it's a shame, a real shame that it costs so much," she said. "I believe if you work here, you should be able to afford to live here."

Huh? I know people that work in Newport Beach and Brentwood...But they sure can't afford to live there.

It's simple, you have to live where you can afford.

[Theresawithanh]

For all it’s problems San Francisco is a beautiful city, and one of the things I really miss since I moved to Washington State from the Bay Area is being able to hop on BART for a day trip there with my friends.

I moved from California to Washington for several reasons, the most important being to move closer to my family, and the second most important was that the high cost of living in the Bay Area.

[buck jarret]

Trailer parks, yes, but not RVs at $4/gallon or more.

[wideminded]

The same thing is happening in lots of other cities.

[roadcat]

Things have sure changed in S.F. Originally from Philadelphia, my dad moved to S.F. in 1950. He had shipped out from S.F. during WWII, and liked what he saw. He and my mom bought their house in S.F. for $6000, fully furnished too. My mom sold it in the early 1970's for $23,000 to yuppie Sunset Magazine writers. We couldn't believe the plans they showed us, wanting to sink more than $60K in remodeling. They made a ton of money, as the whole neighborhood went upscale.

All the old neighbors we knew couldn't afford to fix up, so they sold and moved on. The newbies had the cash, but not the old-timers. Those homes now sell between $1M to $2M. Of course, they have stuff we didn't have, like wine cellars, in-door saunas and multiple decks. Like I said, things have changed.

[willk]

Unfortunately, many of the Bay area liberals have cashed out their overpriced houses and infested our county (Placer). You can always spot them. The backs of their cars are covered with anti- Bush, free tibet, coexist, peace is patriotic etc. stickers. AWL (angry white liberals).

[webheart]

Perhaps the new owners will finally decide to give the residents of Golden Gate Park the boot, and clear the alleys and doorways of the very lowest echelons of the city dwellers, those who don’t have any houses, and spread their excrement all over the sidewalks. I see this as a trend for the better. Maybe I will want to go visit there again.

[HarryCaul]

I thought the same thing. Sounds like big chunks of LA.

[DGHoodini]

Ah yes...One of mankinds most catalytic mixtures...the degenerate super rich, and the dangerously poor...

[MovementConservative]

So what? It’s market forces at work. If that’s what the market will sustain, then that’s fine. If the city government wants to build subsidized housing, then let them. People are voting with their feet. Why they want to live in SF is a mystery to me. Must be a better place than what it looks like from an outsiders perspective. I have no sympathy for those who can’t afford to live in the city. You wanna live there, make the necessary sacrifices.

[Pontiac]

"It's not very healthy for the city's social fabric or the city's economy," said Roberta Achtenberg, an economic development consultant who focuses on workforce housing.

One thing they don’t mention in the article is this trends effect on the crime rate specifically violent crime and burglary crimes usually associated with lower income individuals.

Seems to me that with the lower income families moving out and families with children moving out the crime rate should be falling.

[GodBlessRonaldReagan]

I thought Roberta Achtenberg's name was familiar, so I Wiki'd it:

She was elected as a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1990 and resigned in 1993 when she was appointed Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development by President Bill Clinton. Her confirmation was famously held up by Senator Jesse Helms who refused to vote for 'that damned lesbian.'

I miss Jesse!

[Dedbone]

Sylvanna and Nerea

???

[Jimmy Valentine]

"Roberta Achtenberg, an economic development consultant"

She was in the Clinton Admnistration for a bit.

Used her position to threaten homeowner groups with legal process for disputing her leftist, lesbian, totalitarian agenda.

Sorry to see she is still operating.

[Vision]

From 2002 to 2006, the number of households making up to $49,000 per year dropped by 7.4 percent, those earning between $50,000 and $99,999 declined by 4.4 percent, and those bringing home between $100,000 and $149,999 fell by 3.9 percent,

Wow.

[Pontiac]

I miss Jesse!

Me too