DISQUS

louisgray.com: http://blog.louisgray.com/2009/03/is-valley-too-expensive-for-normal.html

  • andy brudtkuhl · 9 months ago
    Come to Iowa! It's cheap!
  • Jeremy Chone · 9 months ago
    I think we are moving from a Scale First to a Monetize First model. The transition from .com to Web 2.0 was already in this direction. Now, I leave in SF, and it is very hard to leave this city even without the Silicon Valley around.
  • Nicholas James · 9 months ago
    Andy you have to consider what the Valley has, in comparison to other areas. Notably Venture Capitalists ready to fund the venture, Access to people with Experience ready to help develop the product and Tech News Reporters who are highly unlikely to travel far to see your product.
  • Jesse Stay · 9 months ago
    This is the reason I, a father of 4 kids, am founding my bootstrapped startup, SocialToo in Salt Lake City, UT instead of Silicon Valley. I simply can't afford it. The networking is amazing there, but I am doing just fine so far connecting with people one state away as I would probably be able to do from the same city. Social Media and blogging makes all that possible now.
  • Jesse Stay · 9 months ago
    Hey cool - Disqus finally launched Trackbacks! (look below)
  • Chris White · 9 months ago
    Don't worry. SF and the valley will become much cheaper soon.
  • Jeff P. Henderson · 9 months ago
    @Chris, it already has!
  • EFFETTI · 9 months ago
    What is "normal", what is "too expensive", and what are the essential ingredients needed to launch a success ??? While Venture Capital started here in Silicon Valley, and has become a worldwide phenomena with many other pockets of venture activity, it may be that Social Media will be a determining factor in reducing, or eliminating geographical boundaries !? At the end of the day, great ideas, and great people continue to attract great things !!!
  • Chris White · 9 months ago
    Jeff, nowhere near what will happen soon. Palo Alto commercial rents are off by roughly 25%. Eventually it will go back to 2002 levels. We rented the Android space (now Facebook headquarters) for about $1.90 per sqft. It was at least $6 per sqft until recently. In early 2000, there were spaces going for as much as $11 per sqft. It's a cycle, and it's going down now.
  • Glen Campbell · 9 months ago
    lazy Tech News Reporters…
  • Chris White · 9 months ago
    Also, Palo Alto real estate is touted as the most resilient in the bay area. Real estate agents there still advocate bidding over asking price. When there are more layoffs and no IPOs to prop up the market, this market will finally face what everyone else is experiencing. Watch for the smart people to start selling this spring.
  • Jesse Stay · 9 months ago
    The reason the valley *is* worth it is because its full of so many people that have been successful before. It's a chicken and the egg problem. To live there you have to be successful, but to be successful you have to find some way to connect with people that live there.
  • Chris White · 9 months ago
    If you want to live in the bay area, wait a year or two. It's going to be a lot easier. Of course, you might want to label your startup company something besides Web 2.0, because that might look like a big crater in the ground.
  • Jason Kaneshiro · 9 months ago
    I'd also add there's a cultural acceptance of startups in SV. Tell your boss you're quitting your stable job plus benefits to work out of a closet at a startup eating nothing but pizza and nobody bats an eyelash. Seems everyone gives it a shot once in their life around here. That makes it easier to attract employees
  • Chris White · 9 months ago
    Jason, part of what you say is true, but I've never given much consideration to whether my boss cared about why I was quitting. That's part of why you quit, because you don't want a boss. if he's your friend, that's different, but still. You have to do what you think is right for you wherever you are. (BTW, you always have a boss, I didn't mean to imply you didn't. It's your customers, your board, your investors, your wife, yourself...)
  • Adam Wexler · 9 months ago
    I think it's a great point. You have similar problems for those getting started out of NYC.

    This just shows the need for new breeding grounds. I think Austin, Boulder & Atlanta, three up-and-coming technology hubs with y-combinator clone to boot, offer more promising and practical living+working situations. Let's see if each gets some new transplants over the next couple years..
  • Jason Kaneshiro · 9 months ago
    Maybe the boss thing was the wrong example. I could replace that with family or friends. I just meant to say, you won't get as much social pressure that the risk isn't worth it. I know most people say they ignore social pressure, but it does matter in subtle ways when it's you making the step. It's to say, out here, you're more likely to get support from everyone and that even failure would be acceptable, vs. people shaking their heads that working at a startup is a big career mistake.
  • sofarsoshawn · 9 months ago
    Only if you're poor
  • Chris White · 9 months ago
    My first startup was right out of school at a company called Applied Logic Systems in Syracuse, NY. I guess it's not the typical scenario, but it worked out pretty well for me. I learned a lot from some really smart people, and only a couple of them ended up in the bay area. I'd recommend doing a startup wherever you are, because you might attract talent that would be hard to get otherwise.
  • Nicholas James · 9 months ago
    Chris has a valid point. I don't think it matters where you startup its about the execution and being in Silicon Valley helps you to execute better due to the resources there (previously mentioned), although thats not to say you can't execute effectively anywhere else.
  • Chris White · 9 months ago
    People might not want to hear this, but if you come to the bay area, I would recommend you work for a big company first, like Google or Apple. Why? Because you'll meet the people who you may want to start a company with, and you'll learn more about how the valley works.
  • Cains · 9 months ago
    There's certainly a 'brain drain' going on, whether people are leaving because of a lack of capital or new opportunities. Last week I stumbled upon this stat; 'immigrants have started 52% of Silicon Valley's technology companies'. Apparently now, many are heading elsewhere because of tighter immigration rules & emerging markets providing more opportunities.
  • Daniel J. Pritchett · 9 months ago
    Penelope Trunk is the presenter I'd most like to see at sxsw. I hope you enjoyed it!
  • Joel Webber · 9 months ago
    Silicon Valley is pretty damned expensive, but to echo previous statements, it's impossible to start a company without the right people. If you know the right people to get going, and are somewhere where you have a reasonable chance of finding more good people, you'll be ok. Northern California just has a much higher density of such people than most other places.
  • Neuro · 8 months ago
    Its the money stupid to quote Bill Clinton :-) Penelope Just wants to have her cake and eat it
  • Charlie Anzman · 8 months ago
    Define normal person in the valley? :)