Ask HN: What's your cost of living in the Bay Area now?

If you live in the Bay Area,

1) How much do you spend on housing, food (do you cook?), car/commute, child care, or other major budget posts? Total expenses is also helpful if you don't care to break it down.

2) In what area do you live? What type of housing?

3) What's your household? Single? Couple? Children? Friends?

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Why do I ask?

I'm considering a post-doc at Stanford that would include relocating my family (wife + 2yr old) from Sweden. We're obviously not in it for the money, but we need to know how much to ask to make ends meet.

The base offer is ~$60k/year + medical insurance + one or two trips to visit home. My feeling is that I need additional funding, or my wife (also engineer, biotech) needs a job. Judging from Craigs List about $40k/year goes directly to rent for a small family.

Your answers help us form a realistic view on what we can expect, and what income we need to live near Stanford for a year or two. Hopefully it helps someone else, too.

Any comments welcome. My mail is in my profile for anything off-topic.