In San Francisco, the median household income was $120k. That’s 2 years ago mind you, and a lot of inflation has occurred since then.

https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/sanfranciscocitycalifornia

Doesn’t account for the fact that many are under rent control, own houses from decades ago, etc.

It’s better to look at the average incomes of people who are buying houses in SF.

The median household only has 2 people so presumably the median income for a family is higher.

Do their budgets balance or do they take on credit card and other debt to manage the deficit ? I am not claiming its one way or the other as I do not know the answer.

I'm going to guess that software developers, especially ones at FAANG, aren't aiming for a median household lifestyle. 200k post tax is easily ~140k a year. A san francisco mortgage is easily 4-5k a month for 30 years. And if their kids don't get lucky on the school lottery, they're going to be sending them to private school. And then there's college savings to account for.

But you need a house with a backyard, two teslas, a wine cellar and a college fund or you aren't really living /s

> What is median household income for families in both of these cities?

What is the median credit card debt for them in these cities?

What is the median annual savings for them in these cities?