average salary in san jose: i drum for tech bros and still can't afford a closet

so i’m a touring session drummer, which basically means i play for anyone who’ll pay me after the main act flakes. i’ve tracked every gig, every uhaul rental, every sad gas station burrito in this valley. and let me tell you about the average salary in san jose. it’s a number that looks good on paper until you realize that ‘paper’ is literally the only thing you can afford here.

first, the weird math: median household income is around $130k. cool! sounds like i should be eating avocado toast for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. but that’s for households. i’m a single human with a drum kit that costs more than my first car. my ‘average’? more like $45k if i’m hustling 5 gigs a week, which means no time to actually practice or have a life. the data says jobs are plentiful-tech, obviously-but for artists? it’s a different city. you’re either catering to the tech ecosystem or you’re invisible.

*the rent is the real villain. a decent one-bedroom in a non-condo-too-dark-to-see-ur-neighbors area is $2,800 minimum. that’s before the ‘oh, and we have a $75 ‘amenity fee’ for the pool you never use’ fee. i once looked at a ‘room’ that was essentially a converted garage with a curtain. the guy said ‘it’s great for musicians, no one complains about noise!’ i complained about the structural integrity.

overheard at a coffee shop in the sofa district (yes, that’s what the kids call it now):

> "my roommate’s a software engineer at the big ‘N’ and he sleeps on a mattress on the floor to afford his lease. says it’s ‘minimalist.’ i think it’s ‘i pay $3,200 for a 2bd and eat rice for dinner.’"

> "don’t move to alviso. you’ll save $500 on rent but gain a 45-minute commute each way in traffic that makes a sloth look impatient. also, it smells like old salt marsh and existential dread."

> "i tried to live in ‘downntown’ for the vibe. the vibe is ‘please don’t notice the scaffolding and the 3am delivery trucks.’ also, my landlord just raised rent ‘because of the google extension.’ the google extension is 5 miles away. i live above a vape shop."

i spend 40% of my income just on keeping my van registered and insured so i can get to gigs in mountain view, palo alto, fucking oakland sometimes. the weather? it’s a perpetual, soul-crushing 72 degrees with zero humidity. it’s like living inside a smart thermostat that forgot how to dream. you want seasons? you want a storm? drive 90 minutes to the coast and get fogged on in half moon bay, or fly to portland for actual despair.

the food is the only thing that’s fairly priced if you know where to look. hit up the vietnamese spots in berryessa for $7 banh mi that change your life. but your ‘fun money’ for record shopping at groove ton or vintage threads at the exchanges? gone. evaporated.

some drunk advice from a local at the brit (don’t go to the brit): ‘if you’re not in tech, marry someone in tech or leave. there’s no middle ground. my cousin’s a project manager at some ai startup and he makes i-bonds look like a lemonade stand. i make lattes.’

so, are the wages worth the costs? if you’re pulling a $150k+ package with stock options and your company foots your parking? maybe. you’ll get the sanitized, shiny san jose with the murals and the farmers market and the weirdly aggressive scooter lobby. if you’re in the gig economy, in the arts, just trying to scrape by? you’re a ghost here. you’ll rent a room from a stranger, your ‘commute’ will be your entire personality, and you’ll spend your days off in south san jose where rent is ‘almost affordable’ and the highlight is a 24-hour donut shop that judged my life choices at 2am.

i love this valley for its weird, flat, sprawling energy. i love the old mechanics’ shops next to glass box apartment complexes. i love that you can see the diablo range from the 280 and it looks both majestic and like a wall of dirt meant to keep us in. but the cost? it’s not just dollars. it’s your sanity, your community, your ability to ever own anything that isn’t a depreciating asset or a stressed-out plant.

check the raw numbers on zillow and then go to r/bayarea and watch everyone have a breakdown about balcony repairs. read the yelp reviews for ‘studio apartments’ that warn ‘landlord enters unannounced.’ this is the real data.

> r/SanJose - read the housing threads. it’s a cry for help disguised as a subreddit.
> Yelp: cheap eats under $10 - your survival guide.
> TripAdvisor: day trips from hell - get out before you’re swallowed whole.

i’m packing my sticks. next gig’s in sacramento. heard you can actually rent a closet there for less than a grand. a real* closet, with a door and everything. the american dream, circa 2024.

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