I'll bite, where, other than the usual suspects (similarly high CoL areas like NYC and arguably Seattle), or Chicago for the slim group of people working at the finance companies there, are making the same take home compensation as someone in the bay at one of the better paying companies (Google, Facebook, unicorns, etc.)?
You're looking at 160K gross for a new grad + the value of the various perks, and that doubles for someone with 5 years of experience. You're correct that for someone who wishes to own a home right out of school/within a year, the bay may not be the best choice (although working there for a year or two and then moving elsewhere probably is), but there are basically no other places where a SWE in their mid twenties can bank 100K a year after expenses.
That first sentence needs to be taken out back and shot. :-)
I agree that "new grad" is the best case for being in the BA. Once you're ten or fifteen years into your career and have a wife and kids, the downsides of the BA are far more painful. And if you didn't spend those ten or fifteen years building up capital while living in the BA, moving there later can be all but impossible. That talent is simply not accessible to BA companies unless it's remote.
All that said, my point that given the same salary, or even a modestly smaller one, you net more if you're not paying for housing in the BA.
You're looking at 160K gross for a new grad + the value of the various perks, and that doubles for someone with 5 years of experience. You're correct that for someone who wishes to own a home right out of school/within a year, the bay may not be the best choice (although working there for a year or two and then moving elsewhere probably is), but there are basically no other places where a SWE in their mid twenties can bank 100K a year after expenses.