Its not as expensive as NYC but still expensive. A lot of people move to west oakland across the bridge because it's cheaper and is close by. My friends that still live there pay 1050 a month for a 4 bedroom apartment and it's 4 of them, I don't think that's bad but I guess it depends. Traffic is terrible and no one really knows how to drive most people take Muni or Bart. There are a lot of Asian girls here but I wouldn't call them hot, smart yes but hot no.