[davidf560]

Believe it or not, I have no interest in living in the bay area - even if the costs were the same. I personally would like somewhere that didn't get quite so cold in the winter but still has 4 seasons.

I can honestly tell you that out of all the people I know, I can't think of a single one who would move to the bay area even if the costs were the same. Weather isn't everything.

[ghaff]

The Bay area is nice and I certainly understand the attraction when I visit. And I probably wouldn't want to live in Chicago; winters are especially brutal in the upper Midwest, there aren't "real" mountains, and I have no connection to the area. But I have no problems with winter generally and I doubt I would move to the Bay Area even if you took money off the table. Silicon Valley is meh and SF is nice to visit but has a lot of problems. Santa Cruz mountains maybe--if one ignores the wildfire problem.