Lots of great things about California, but where you and I won't agree is the politics, and that is what is making people leave California now. You mention SF, Santa Cruz and a few other cities, but those are full of homeless and crime is on the rise. People in SF are in a mass exodus out of there, and it is the same in Los Angeles, Santa Monica, and even some part of San Diego. All due to what I call failed liberal policies.
++ Um, One of the reasons housing prices are so high is that more people want to live in SF. Homeless are everywhere, perhaps more in warmer places, naturally.
I really don't worry about "service workers" or where they live, or their commutes. If they don't want the work, they don't need to take the jobs. But what I see as a huge problem is the state demanding more low income housing and higher density housing, just to satisfy all the people coming to the state, who maybe can't afford to, or should go someplace else. Because building low income housing where the market does NOT demand it, is only bringing in low income people and their problems. And personally I don't like how those people vote, which is basically socialism.
++ Rich people need services. The higher density housing is a favor to the rich, but you could ask them to vacuum their own floors, I suppose. You can live in your ranch style house if you like, get a huge lawn so you can't hear the occasional pedestrian walking by. Look around. Great cities of the world have dense housing near public transportation, but I suppose by your comments you think public transportation shouldn't exist either.
No, nice places are nice for a reason, and high density low income housing is not a way to make any place nice. And one reason why many are leaving California. I know of a friend who lives in Los Angeles in a very nice neighborhood, who's neighbor just converted his 4 car garage into a rental, in addition to building another unit in the backyard---all now legal to do there. But then all of those cars now have to park on the street, and suddenly that nice neighborhood isn't so nice anymore. Yes, high property values, but too many people, especially too many renters.
++ So change the zoning laws. Can't do what you describe in my neighborhood, but if I could walk to public transportation I'd have no beef with a six story building nearby.
I live in a gated community where all of the lots are very large. We only have single family homes, many large, but no rental units or garage conversions. The state (Sacramento) still says they are legal to build and HOAs can't stop them. But we are lucky because we live in a high fire area, so there are bans on further housing structures here due to fire hazard, and also emergency egress--- so we are lucky.
++ Congratulation on your castle. I live in the real world.
But the OP is correct in some regard, and that is that policy in California is what is driving many people out of the state. At some point there is a tipping point, and for someone say who lives in 5 million dollar home in Santa Monica or Pacific Palisades, but there are rows of campers and trailers up and down their block with scores of people living in them, many of them drug addicts. Then why would you stay there? How is your 5 million dollar home a block from the ocean good living with squatters and dope heads right outside your driveway?
++ Obviously you need to lead the BLF, the Billionaires Liberation Front, to address these injustices.
You are going to hate living in Berkeley within a few years I guarantee you. Your city is looking to ban all current single family zoned neighborhoods. After that happens you will see a lot of people leave, and then a lot of neighborhoods turned into quadplex housing or even more density. And due to new rules in the state, many developments MUST have at least 15% low income units. Well, there goes the neighborhood as they say.