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Who hasn't been put off at least momentarily, after hearing an old roommate just purchased a 5BR house in the 'burbs? When a few years ago, his or her assets consisted of the crappy TV you're still watching and a couch you wish they'd taken with them when they left. You're sure he hasn't stumbled onto a highly lucrative cure for toe-stubbing in the dark, so what happened? Short answer: he or she moved out of NYC.
The city can be your best friend, but also a free-loading companion who will suck your wallet dry. Above is a chart about what it takes to live at the same level of comfort as a New Yorker living in Manhattan making $100,000 a year. It was derived from a CNNMoney.com online calculator that determined the differences based on the costs of housing, transportation, food, and health care. [Somewhat related: Last week's New Yorker article about commuting: "Commuter-wise, New York City is an anomaly. New Yorkers have the highest average journey-to-work times (thirty-nine minutes) of any city in the country, but are apparently much happier with their commutes than people are elsewhere."]
PARADE has an interesting hourly wage comparison device that is more annoying than helpful. Unless you care to be informed that your labor is worth less than 1/10th of a penny for every $1 that Adam Sandler earns.
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Americus, Georgia? Why of all places in the US Americus? I drove thru there all the time, I blinked and missed it. There is nothing going on there.
I call shenanigans. No way are Boston and San Francisco that much cheaper if you want to live in the city's core area. The apartments might be slightly larger but they aren't much cheaper.
There are many things that these figuresdon't take into account. First of all, this includes things like gas and car insurance in "transportation," which most Manhattan residents do not pay. It also clearly overestimates the cost difference in terms of groceries and my guess would be that it assumes a similarly-sized dwelling. Most of these "cities" don't even have a well-populated urban core. New York is unique in a number of ways and this calculator by necessity bases its number for each city on a common profile (car, house, etc.) that just does not work for NYC, particularly Manhattan.
NYC - the ones who love it are either newly arrived, or folks who haven't left it for long enough.
Like every mathematical equation there are two sides to this, you can either earn more money here, or lower your standards and move.
why not take into account the boros? probably cheaper than manhattan and queens and brooklyn are ike their own cities.
I know Hartford fairly well, and the $54K figure is at best very misleading. Very few residential sections of the city aren't poor and run-down. Anyone in the middle class or even the working class would want to live in the suburbs, unfortunately housing prices in the Hartford 'burbs aren't cheap. If you moved to Hartford and earned $54K you'd be in quite a pickle. You wouldn't want to live in the city, but unless you had a very large down payment you'd have a great deal of difficulty buying anything in the suburbs.
The data these calculators rely on overstate's the cost of living here. The tipoff -- the cost if for Manhattan. Well, the only people moving to Manhattan these days are those so rich they don't have to worry about what it costs.
ACCURA generally reports on a "mid-management" standard of living, which involves a house and a couple of cars. That isn't relevant here.
What about the whole "car" thing? I pay more rent than I'd like to in order to live within walking distance of my office, but that means I don't need a car (and hence, insurance/gas money) or even a monthly subway pass. It's great.
Ditto to Caroline - I pay a lot more for a smaller apartment than when I lived in Seattle, but after factoring out the car, insurance, and gas the increase becomes much more bearable.
What about the whole "car" thing? I pay more rent than I'd like to in order to live within walking distance of my office, but that means I don't need a car (and hence, insurance/gas money) or even a monthly subway pass. It's great.
Not saying you aren't right, but slow down a bit. Rent/mortgage + car + expenses is still way the hell less than NYC rent. And it doesn't increase yearly at a rate above inflation, which is nice.
I've lived in NYC, College park MD and in rural america... when in NY i complained about the ususal, high pricess, overcrowding, dirt and crime. What I miss is the accessibility, proximity, culture and diversity that is NYC.
Granted get in where you fit in, I just realize after being borna nd raised in NYC it's a challenge to live elsewhere when you grow accustomed to all thet NY has to offer.
I'm on a 6mo plan to return, that said. No place like home!
Owning a car will set you back about $6K a year in maintenance and gas, plus the cost of buying a car. Moving itself costs a fair amount of money, which never gets factored into these equations. I haven't moved in six years, but you have to factor in a brokers fee, any payments for breaking your lease, the cost of moving your goods, plus lost income since you will have to take time off of work to move.
The other problem is that the economies of many of these cities, particularly the Midwestern cities are, well, dead, and you will have a hard time getting a job, even if you are willing to take a pay cut. Yes, you can live more cheaply in Detroit, but you still need some sort of income. There are a few types of jobs that mostly exist only in New York, or some place almost as expensive like LA or San Francisco. I'm pretty convinced that one reason for the influx of Midwesterners into NYC in recent years has been the bad economy in the Midwest.
Costs in Manhattan, and in New York, are definitely inflated. I also think the quality of life is going downhill as well. If could retire, I'd be out of here, and I'd have no problem relocating if I got a job elsewhere. If you factor in the car and costs of moving, most places where the economy is strong are just as expensive.
What about the whole "car" thing? I pay more rent than I'd like to in order to live within walking distance of my office, but that means I don't need a car (and hence, insurance/gas money) or even a monthly subway pass. It's great.
Whatever! A paid up car + free parking + insurance (less than $180/month unless you suck) + OWNING a 2 bedroom/2 bath home ($1600/month) versus $3000/month rent + OWNING nothing.
The crazy thing is: NYC really doesn't have the best of anything for the most part (doctors, schools, food) but you sure pay as if it did. What it does have is population density and public transportation. I agree you can only place NYC at the top if you are newly arrived, haven't been anywhere else, or your cash flow is so high that NYC inconveniences don't exist.
Left NYC last year after 15 years there. We make a bit less money but are putting money into savings at last. Our monthly expenses are less than half of our NYC expenses. The cost of our new car, insurance, and rent (this apt is 3x bigger) combined is half the cost of our NYC rent alone. Our new town offers a great quality of life, green space galore, good new friends who actually have time to get together, and plenty of fun and interesting things to do. I was skeptical that life outside of NYC could be this good, but consider me convinced.
I agree, NYC is not that great if you don't make muc h money. I should know, having made not much more than $35,000 a year since I've lived here. I don't even (obviously) live in Manhattan.
The crazy thing is: NYC really doesn't have the best of anything for the most part (doctors, schools, food) but you sure pay as if it did.
Jealous much? And by the way...NYC is hands down the best food city in the country--possibly world.
My spouse and I moved to NYC after living in two mid-size Southern college towns and we are far better off financially. Our rent (for a huge 1 BR in Inwood) is about the same as our old mortgage payment, but our total income has almost doubled. Plus we sold the car. Oh, and we live in New York City. It's not perfect, but we prefer urban density and culture to Red State hell.
P.S.: Don't tell anyone about Inwood.
Joan Didion y'all: "It is often said that New York is a city for only the very rich and the very poor. It is less often said that New York is also, at least for those of us who came there from somewhere else, a city for only the very young."
"NYC is hands down the best food city in the country--possibly world."
obviously you don't eat fresh produce. #17 is right on all 3 counts.
Ok...my friend and I are from Iowa and have lived here for about a year. We are in our mid 20's and yes, NYC is great for being young and single, but what about the incomes that come with being young and single? We make a little less than the median income and we're struggling to make ends meet. We live in Washington Heights in VERY modest apartments . We live without many of the everyday conveniences we had in the Midwest...central air, clean carpet, grass, cars, free parking, cheap food/drinks (bars, restaurants, etc.), and safety. We're both fed up with living here because we can't even afford to experience the great things about NYC. And yes, whoever thinks that adding a car/gas/insurance to cheaper rent would make it just as expensive as NYC is seriously out of their mind...you're in denial...You should get out of here. Go somewhere besides LA and tell me that that's true. Oh, and whoever mentioned that NYC was the best because of the food? Who ARE you!? Does that make up for the dirty sidewalks and the unsafe neighborhoods that are still expensive? Like someone else said...NYC doesn't have the best of much including schools, doctors, or food...who cares about a few good restuarants? The qualify of life here sucks.
Why do Iowans always have it the hardest!? We have pictures on our hard drive of a young woman's living space crammed in a closet underneath a staircase. It was so remarkably crazy that we were obviously prompted to whip out the camera to document it. Where was she from? Iowa, of course, and she's since gone off to live much more nicely in her home state.
As for Misplaced Midwesterners, please don't despair. Salad days in NYC are often characterized by hunger and longing. We suggest stiffing museums on the "suggested" admission price whenever the opportunity arises. Surrounding onesself with high art on the cheap can be a tonic for any city dweller trying to cope with the ridiculous cost of urban living. Also, NYC Parks are free, and an afternoon well-spent with a good friend and/or beautiful woman on the Great Lawn in Central Park is the most luxurious activity we can recommend to any New Yorker.