princess_morbucks
04-11-13, 12:50
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/lifestyle/more-turning-to/873308.html
SAN FRANCISCO: San Francisco's astronomically high property prices have forced residents to look for alternatives to conventional apartment living.
Rent increases are among the highest in the country, and vacancy rates are at one to two per cent - this makes finding somewhere to live a highly competitive game.
For that reason, some young professionals are opting out of the bidding war and discovering creative solutions to the city's housing crisis, as the authorities rush to boost the stock of affordable homes.
23-year-old Genevieve Angle lives on water. The receptionist at a fertility clinic has set up her home aboard a 32-foot power boat in Alameda. It has a kitchen, toilet, two bedrooms and even central heating.
Ms Angle said she loves living on her boat but made the choice for financial reasons.
She said: I wanted to live in San Francisco but it's too expensive and in reality, everywhere's too expensive. So my dad convinced me to buy a boat, sell it in a couple of years when I can.
Ms Angle owns her boat and said the monthly cost-of-living savings are huge.
She said: I pay about US$400 for the slip fees and for my water and utilities, and I figure if I was living in a one-bedroom place in San Francisco, I'm not going to get it in a decent part of town for less than US$1,500.
In some San Francisco neighbourhoods, the cost of renting an apartment has doubled over the last year.
Plenty of young professionals earn a respectable wage, but they are increasingly choosing to opt out of paying large sums to landlords.
Blogger Tynan lives in an RV, or mobile home.
In a city where parking is a daily nightmare, he said he is afraid of being evicted from his spot.
He said: If you park in a really nice neighbourhood and people see your RV and they see you're flouting convention and not paying rent in this place where they're paying a lot of money, they do get upset so they'll call the police.
An influx of tech workers has ramped up pressure on San Francisco's housing stock.
Another problem is that during the recession, San Francisco barely built any new homes.
Now there are about 6000 units under construction, and the city has become a leader in the provision of affordable housing.
Sarah Karlinsky, deputy director at SPUR, said: For every unit of market rate housing that's constructed, developers need to either pay a fee to construct affordable housing or they need to build below-market-rate units within their buildings themselves.
So far, demand for such unconventional housing is far outstripping supply. But San Francisco city leaders hope that in time they can close the housing affordability gap before too many long-standing residents are forced to move away.
- CNA/xq
SAN FRANCISCO: San Francisco's astronomically high property prices have forced residents to look for alternatives to conventional apartment living.
Rent increases are among the highest in the country, and vacancy rates are at one to two per cent - this makes finding somewhere to live a highly competitive game.
For that reason, some young professionals are opting out of the bidding war and discovering creative solutions to the city's housing crisis, as the authorities rush to boost the stock of affordable homes.
23-year-old Genevieve Angle lives on water. The receptionist at a fertility clinic has set up her home aboard a 32-foot power boat in Alameda. It has a kitchen, toilet, two bedrooms and even central heating.
Ms Angle said she loves living on her boat but made the choice for financial reasons.
She said: I wanted to live in San Francisco but it's too expensive and in reality, everywhere's too expensive. So my dad convinced me to buy a boat, sell it in a couple of years when I can.
Ms Angle owns her boat and said the monthly cost-of-living savings are huge.
She said: I pay about US$400 for the slip fees and for my water and utilities, and I figure if I was living in a one-bedroom place in San Francisco, I'm not going to get it in a decent part of town for less than US$1,500.
In some San Francisco neighbourhoods, the cost of renting an apartment has doubled over the last year.
Plenty of young professionals earn a respectable wage, but they are increasingly choosing to opt out of paying large sums to landlords.
Blogger Tynan lives in an RV, or mobile home.
In a city where parking is a daily nightmare, he said he is afraid of being evicted from his spot.
He said: If you park in a really nice neighbourhood and people see your RV and they see you're flouting convention and not paying rent in this place where they're paying a lot of money, they do get upset so they'll call the police.
An influx of tech workers has ramped up pressure on San Francisco's housing stock.
Another problem is that during the recession, San Francisco barely built any new homes.
Now there are about 6000 units under construction, and the city has become a leader in the provision of affordable housing.
Sarah Karlinsky, deputy director at SPUR, said: For every unit of market rate housing that's constructed, developers need to either pay a fee to construct affordable housing or they need to build below-market-rate units within their buildings themselves.
So far, demand for such unconventional housing is far outstripping supply. But San Francisco city leaders hope that in time they can close the housing affordability gap before too many long-standing residents are forced to move away.
- CNA/xq