An In-Regulation Studio For $1800 (Plus Obligatory Full-Time Nanny Place): SFist

Want to live in your in-laws' 600-square-foot studio in Saint Francis Wood for a relatively cheap rent that comes with a big catch? Well, someone over there is looking for an unprecedented child care deal, essentially offering to pay $250 a week ($1,000 a month) plus free rent to be a nanny with the family six nights a week to stay overnight. This parent/landlord gives preference to teachers. So if any of you teachers out there want to get off work and look after the kids all day to go home and look after other people's kids all night and only have one night off a week, then do I have a deal for you?

The ad is currently on Craigslist and apparently this deluded parent thinks this is such a great deal that he/she didn't bother to include any pictures of the apartment, just a map showing the location. The text says it's “one of the most exclusive neighborhoods in San Francisco,” but that's a bit of an exaggeration considering it borders Muni and is basically located on West Portal on the edge of Saint Francis Wood. But sure, if you want to move to the suburbs without leaving the city and look after someone's kids for practically nothing so they can have a 9:30pm to 7:30am Monday to Saturday life, then that's it This is a good opportunity for you.

The deal is structured like this: Your childcare salary is technically $2800 per month, and you're asked to “help” care for an 8-year-old and a 10-year-old who come in at night to watch the kids Putting them to bed and taking them to school in the morning (Although they will probably be sleeping for most of these hours, that's basically $10-$11 an hour.) Your rent will be deducted from this wage. However, at $1,800 per month, the net profit is only $1,000 before taxes, and that's just a little money you're spending on top of your full-time job. But you won't have time for it, except perhaps on Saturday afternoons and your only free evening of the week, Sunday. No going out for you!

It seems like a high price to pay for anyone but the most devoted homebody and caregiver who just needs a place to rest their head. And for $1800 a month you might not find a studio you'd live in alone, but you could probably find a decent apartment in a place where you're not forced into servitude six nights a week, but I guess , the rent is “free”. is it worth it to someone.

And to reiterate, there are no pictures, so this place could be a dump.

All back issues of Apartment Sadness on SFist.