>...your company in say DC then why would you continue to pay your engineers SV-sized wages.
Because you value great employees? I mean think of it this way. A lot of people can't just pack up ship and move to SF. But a lot people can! Companies keep their salaries on par with the valley to keep up. Granted the numbers aren't a science. It is hard to compare salaries in different areas but It has been my experience that SV wages are not that much more than any other city in the US.
> You'd be amongst the wealthiest people in DC if you were paid what a typical engineer is offered here
This is just blatantly false. Do you know how much government workers and politician minions make? It makes engineering salaries look laughable.
1.) http://www.indeed.com/salary/q-Web-Developer-l-Washington,-D...
2.) http://www.indeed.com/salary?q1=Web+Developer&l1=San+francis...
I do think that a developer getting paid 300k (not unheard of for top talent at top companies) in a place like Austin would be ridiculous.
Also, the wages here in SV can not be matched anywhere else. It's economically impossible to pay someone a SV wage anywhere else. Economically impossible because if you're a business that has intentionally based your company in say DC then why would you continue to pay your engineers SV-sized wages. You'd be amongst the wealthiest people in DC if you were paid what a typical engineer is offered here.