Observations about San Francisco (during COVID-19)

San Francisco has changed a lot since the pandemic. If you haven't seen San Francisco since the pandemic, then you are in for a surprise.

On a peaceful Thursday, I decided to take a drive to San Francisco and enjoy Crissy Field. Since it was a workday, usually the Bay Bridge toll plaza would be somewhat crowded but instead, there were a lot fewer vehicles than usual. 

When I arrived at the Financial District, the picture was quite stark. Very few pedestrians are driving. The number of cars I saw on the road was half of what I would usually see. Many of the streets within the city were like ghost towns. As I passed by Fisherman's Wharf, I started seeing more people. The thing is, there were a lot fewer people than usual. Street vendors that sold fruits and lunches had some business but the overall sidewalk had tons of social distancing, something you wouldn't see on a normal day. 

When I arrived at Crissy Field, I saw many families and couples enjoying their time with the water, taking pictures of the Golden Gate Bridge, and running shirtless. Crissy Field looked busier than many of the streets in the Financial District. Very odd considering that most people would be living in the city. 

As I left Crissy Field, looking at the various residential homes along the park and around the city, I started seeing a couple of "For Rent" and "For Sale" signs. With Bay Area housing being very hot, I wouldn't expect many buildings to be putting up "For Rent" signs or even "For Sale" signs. 

But, with the pandemic promoting work from home and the many layoffs that have been happening, it looks like San Francisco has been hit harder from the pandemic than other cities. 

Redfin

Taking a macro look at the Bay Area housing market, San Francisco has a lot more real estate listings than any other city. Oakland happens to be number two in the number of listings in the Bay Area. While San Francisco usually had the least amount of listings due to the low supply of housing, that all changed when the pandemic struck.

With more people working from home or getting laid off, leaving the city is something many either can afford to do or need to do. 

For those getting laid off, leaving San Francisco and selling their homes at high prices will give them the proceeds to buying a home in a cheaper area and have money to live off of while searching for a job.

Meanwhile, many of the workers that can work from home are fleeing to places that are more peaceful, have more social distancing, and have a lot of nature. Real estate brokers in Tahoe are experiencing unprecedented demand during these times. 

This pandemic has given these highly paid professionals an opportunity to leave a crowded and stressful city for a peaceful town in the mountains. Lake Tahoe provides people with peaceful living, cheaper housing (even though property prices are soaring), more nature, fewer crimes, and overall less stress. Driving in the city can be tough with all the traffic. 

This is just the beginning of the unraveling of the Silicon Valley housing bubble. Soon, home prices will go lower and lower in the country and more and more people will leave the area. On the bright side, homes will be more affordable in the Bay Area and the areas receiving tons of new residents will experience a lot of growth in population and in wealth.

Regarding the homelessness crisis, I'm not too sure how that's going to be handled. The homelessness crisis is very hard to solve as every homeless individual has their own issues. 

But altogether,

Silicon Valley will soon become a ghost town.