San Francisco, CA
Equity Comp in San Francisco
FAANG, pre-IPO unicorn, and recently-public-company RSU/ISO/ESPP planning. AMT exposure on ISO exercises is the #1 unsolved tax problem in the Bay Area — $100k–$1M AMT bills are routine.
Why Equity Comp planning is different in San Francisco
San Francisco is global tech epicenter with the highest concentration of equity-compensation wealth per capita in the country. The combination of Tech, venture capital, biotech. Highest median household income of any large US metro. shapes how residents approach equity comp — including which tax levers apply, how state rules layer onto federal treatment, and where the highest-yield planning opportunities sit.
San Francisco at a glance
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Population
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Median household
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Home ownership
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Median home
Notable neighborhoods
Pacific Heights · Marina · Russian Hill · Noe Valley · Mission · Bernal Heights · Sea Cliff · Presidio Heights · Cole Valley · Palo Alto · Atherton · Mountain View · Menlo Park
Local landmarks
Golden Gate Bridge · Salesforce Tower · Levi's Stadium · Stanford University · Sand Hill Road · Apple Park
Local challenges this content addresses
- Tech-stock concentration risk (single-employer exposure)
- RSU vesting cliffs and 10b5-1 trading windows
- ISO AMT bills on private-company exercises
- Pre-IPO equity-comp planning
- California 13.3% + federal 37% combined marginal rate on equity
What equity comp planning covers
- RSU sell-at-vest vs. hold modeling with concentration-risk analysis
- ISO/AMT exposure calculations and exercise-timing strategy
- ESPP qualifying-disposition vs. ordinary-income tax-impact analysis
- 83(b) election decision support for early-stage employees
- 10b5-1 plan structure and trading-window guidance
Decision-stage resources
Model the numbers for your situation:
San Francisco starter kit
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