[AYBABTME]

Not really, there's cities all over the world with conditions that lead to crazy high real estate/housing costs. Most every metropolis ends up with a similar situation. Slightly different settings that all sum up to "high demand low supplies". NYC, London, Vancouver, Hong Kong, Tokyo, ...

[ben_w]

SF is an outlier compared to London. From expatistan.com:

Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 Sqft) furnished accommodation in NORMAL area:

SF: $3,663 (£2,789) London: £1,766 Difference: 58%

[foldr]

Worth noting that the difference there is exaggerated somewhat by the unusually low value of the pound at the moment.

[onlyrealcuzzo]

Worth noting that tech workers in London make about 1/2 to 1/3 of what they do in the Bay.

[foldr]

It might be worth noting in another context, but tech worker salaries don't determine London rents.

[ben_w]

The unusualness of the pound is about 10%, +/- the usual variations, isn’t it?