Empire State of Mind

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101

[quote]Professor X wrote:

[quote]XanderBuilt wrote:

[quote]Professor X wrote:

[quote]Power GnP wrote:
Sounds kind of depressing…so what actually keeps you guys in NYC if it’s that expensive, opportunity? thin-crust pizza?[/quote]

Good question. From what I gather, for what a one room apartment/closet runs for monthly in the middle of New York, you can get a 4 bedroom house 20min or less from downtown Houston with a garage…and you actually have places to park.[/quote]

And better weather too?[/quote]

If you can stand the heat from May to September, I just don’t see the appeal of the Big Apple today. I think Houston is the 3rd largest city, and even though we are getting crowded, the chaos New Yorkers deal with is just a lesson in insanity.

One doc told me the amount she paid for parking in New York would have been rent down here.[/quote]

Holy shit - that’s a big difference in cost of living. When you said 3rd Largest City you mean in TX or USA? I can stand the heat, we’re humid here in Singapore almost all year round and have 2 to 3 months of rain.

It’s congested here, parking is expensive but not sky high like NY (inner city parking peak hours is maybe USD4/hour max), 1200 sq ft places in town can cost USD1500/month, of course it’s much cheaper in the suburbs. Not a big country either - 274 sq miles?.

It makes no sense to live in NY without the education, money, savings etc. And even if you could, why not live in a less expensive city, have space and better standard of living. To each, their own.

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[quote]XanderBuilt wrote:

Holy shit - that’s a big difference in cost of living. When you said 3rd Largest City you mean in TX or USA?
[/quote]

3rd in the USA. You just don’t see it featured as a backdrop in a ton of Hollywood movies…even though I now wonder why.

It isn’t like we don’t have tons of famous people here.

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[quote]Professor X wrote:

It isn’t like we don’t have tons of famous people here.[/quote]

No state income tax is a big deal when you are pulling in millions a year. AMT normally makes the federal deduction pointless, so you save anywhere from 5-12% living in places like Texas and Florida. Pretty sweet actually.

I think the appeal of NYC is teh fact it is NYC. I mean it has some of the most famous places in the world. It is charming and “beautiful” in it’s own right. I wouldn’t live there myself, but it is a cool place to visit a couple times a year.

104

[quote]attydeb2005 wrote:
One more thought. An associates degree in NYC really isn’t going to get you a job other than fast food. You need at least a bachelor’s…and probably with some other major. [/quote]

Yeah a 4 year degree isn’t working here for anyone. That’ll get you a job at Best Buy where most of my friends work now. Getting a masters degree will get you a respectable job here and in a worst case scenario you can go back to school and teach while you work on your PHD. It’s PHD or bust around here when trying to get a career. Everyone and there momma has 4 year degrees including drug dealers from my block.

I think a good question for him would be " Who is the person you already personally know of that has pull off this plan?"

$1500 is a clothes shopping trip over the weekend with no stay in any hotels during the duration of that time. If this was the 1800’s maybe but it’s 2010 almost 2011. lol @ $1500. sounds more like 4 pairs of jeans, 4 shirts, 2 pairs of shoes and a " I Love NYC " hat.

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[quote]Onslaught2099 wrote:

$1500 is a clothes shopping trip over the weekend with no stay in any hotels during the duration of that time. If this was the 1800’s maybe but it’s 2010 almost 2011. lol @ $1500. sounds more like 4 pairs of jeans, 4 shirts, 2 pairs of shoes and a " I Love NYC " hat.
[/quote]

LOL!

…only to have it all stolen on the subway all before he can even find a 5x5 “apartment”.

106

Parking is such a small issue in NY; I really don’t see the need to own a car there. That saves money in itself not paying a car note, parking, etc.
And all the damn rules; don’t park here on this day, move your car after this time… ugh.

And while the expenses to live there are higher, you also get paid more money. Don’t think that what you make in other states as a manager bringing in 30k a year is what you’ll get in NY. They pay you more so that they can take more :slight_smile:

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[quote]Nikki9591 wrote:

And while the expenses to live there are higher, you also get paid more money. Don’t think that what you make in other states as a manager bringing in 30k a year is what you’ll get in NY. They pay you more so that they can take more :)[/quote]

Yeah but the numbers arent close to proportional. Someone making a wage that puts them in the ‘middle class’ nationally is not living a comfortable stress free life in NYC. A family of 4 needs to be making around 200k+ per year to live ‘middle class’. And thats probably too low of a number.

People stay in NYC because its the best city. The opportunities to do anything are endless. And pretty much anyone that comes here could find somewhere where they feel ‘at home’. I dont live in the city though. Manhattan is way too crowded for its own good. Living about 20 minutes/10 miles away is nice though.

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[quote]BONEZ217 wrote:

[quote]Nikki9591 wrote:

And while the expenses to live there are higher, you also get paid more money. Don’t think that what you make in other states as a manager bringing in 30k a year is what you’ll get in NY. They pay you more so that they can take more :)[/quote]

Yeah but the numbers arent close to proportional. Someone making a wage that puts them in the ‘middle class’ nationally is not living a comfortable stress free life in NYC. A family of 4 needs to be making around 200k+ per year to live ‘middle class’. And thats probably too low of a number.

People stay in NYC because its the best city. The opportunities to do anything are endless. And pretty much anyone that comes here could find somewhere where they feel ‘at home’. I dont live in the city though. Manhattan is way too crowded for its own good. Living about 20 minutes/10 miles away is nice though. [/quote]

Middle class isn’t even comfortable for most, including me. I do think that at a ratio, NY compared to other states is about fair. And “fair” meaning just like other states, there’s ups and downs, and nothing comes easy. There is no perfect state where cost of living was low and pay was high.

NY is just a popular place, it’s easy to point out their “flaws” when the same thing is happening in all the other states. For instance, degrees were mentioned earlier that Bachelor’s doesn’t mean anything to employers anymore; truth is, that’s everywhere. I know plenty of people in FL with Bachelors working in fast food. Soon, Master’s might be the equivalent of an Associates.

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[quote]Nikki9591 wrote:

[quote]BONEZ217 wrote:

[quote]Nikki9591 wrote:

And while the expenses to live there are higher, you also get paid more money. Don’t think that what you make in other states as a manager bringing in 30k a year is what you’ll get in NY. They pay you more so that they can take more :)[/quote]

Yeah but the numbers arent close to proportional. Someone making a wage that puts them in the ‘middle class’ nationally is not living a comfortable stress free life in NYC. A family of 4 needs to be making around 200k+ per year to live ‘middle class’. And thats probably too low of a number.

People stay in NYC because its the best city. The opportunities to do anything are endless. And pretty much anyone that comes here could find somewhere where they feel ‘at home’. I dont live in the city though. Manhattan is way too crowded for its own good. Living about 20 minutes/10 miles away is nice though. [/quote]

Middle class isn’t even comfortable for most, including me. I do think that at a ratio, NY compared to other states is about fair. And “fair” meaning just like other states, there’s ups and downs, and nothing comes easy. There is no perfect state where cost of living was low and pay was high.

[/quote]

Thats not what Im takling about. Its not even close to fair. A single guy making 300k per year is going to live well no matter where he is. But hes going to live a lot better in Miami than he will in NYC because there is no income tax in Miami. The salaries people make in NYC do not overcome the extra taxes they pay. Taxes that are not as high in most other places. Until you make so much money that your salary is unaffected by the graduated tax system it’s a lot harder (financially) to live in NYC. People at the very bottom of the cutoff for the highest tax bracket get destroyed.

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[quote]BONEZ217 wrote:

[quote]Nikki9591 wrote:

[quote]BONEZ217 wrote:

[quote]Nikki9591 wrote:

And while the expenses to live there are higher, you also get paid more money. Don’t think that what you make in other states as a manager bringing in 30k a year is what you’ll get in NY. They pay you more so that they can take more :)[/quote]

Yeah but the numbers arent close to proportional. Someone making a wage that puts them in the ‘middle class’ nationally is not living a comfortable stress free life in NYC. A family of 4 needs to be making around 200k+ per year to live ‘middle class’. And thats probably too low of a number.

People stay in NYC because its the best city. The opportunities to do anything are endless. And pretty much anyone that comes here could find somewhere where they feel ‘at home’. I dont live in the city though. Manhattan is way too crowded for its own good. Living about 20 minutes/10 miles away is nice though. [/quote]

Middle class isn’t even comfortable for most, including me. I do think that at a ratio, NY compared to other states is about fair. And “fair” meaning just like other states, there’s ups and downs, and nothing comes easy. There is no perfect state where cost of living was low and pay was high.

[/quote]

Thats not what Im takling about. Its not even close to fair. A single guy making 300k per year is going to live well no matter where he is. But hes going to live a lot better in Miami than he will in NYC because there is no income tax in Miami. The salaries people make in NYC do not overcome the extra taxes they pay. Taxes that are not as high in most other places. Until you make so much money that your salary is unaffected by the graduated tax system it’s a lot harder (financially) to live in NYC. People at the very bottom of the cutoff for the highest tax bracket get destroyed. [/quote]

Very true, and the taxes are a dealbreaker for most, including Limbaugh :slight_smile:

I’m just biased towards NY, and I think the taxes/expenses is worth it if you can afford it.
We moved to FL thinking that the cheaper expenses will be a good tradeoff, and now I’m just counting down the days 'til I move back to NY.

111

[quote]Professor X wrote:

[quote]Onslaught2099 wrote:

$1500 is a clothes shopping trip over the weekend with no stay in any hotels during the duration of that time. If this was the 1800’s maybe but it’s 2010 almost 2011. lol @ $1500. sounds more like 4 pairs of jeans, 4 shirts, 2 pairs of shoes and a " I Love NYC " hat.
[/quote]

LOL!

…only to have it all stolen on the subway all before he can even find a 5x5 “apartment”.[/quote]

Hell Yeah! That’s why you gotta roll deep when you go to NYC because you will get jacked looking like a tourist.

112

[quote]Nikki9591 wrote:
Parking is such a small issue in NY; I really don’t see the need to own a car there. That saves money in itself not paying a car note, parking, etc.
And all the damn rules; don’t park here on this day, move your car after this time… ugh.

And while the expenses to live there are higher, you also get paid more money. Don’t think that what you make in other states as a manager bringing in 30k a year is what you’ll get in NY. They pay you more so that they can take more :)[/quote]

That’s a very good point. Once you factor in State/Federal Tax coming out of your check along with tax on everything you buy 30-40% of your pay could just be tax so you need to have that difference made up with another job or 2.

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It would be a fun place to do for a year or two. My sister lived in the upper East side while doing her dental residency and she went partying/clubbing 4x a week! It’s for people who want that fast paced life.

114

NYC is a wicked place. Don’t listen to these fuckers. Since you are obviously a T-Nation meathead, you will have no problem getting male escort work servicing high paid professional ladies who have no time for a normal relationship and just need regular servicing. You’d better be able to go the distance though.

115

The city is a great place to live/be if you can make it work. I’d definitely have a job lined up before I moved anywhere though, it’d be idiotic not to, and I’d also research the cost of living of these places too. Not smart to blindly move somewhere.

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[quote]Stength4life wrote:
Thanks T-Nation for shitting all over the plan.[/quote]
Better than getting your face shitted on by some random chick when you’re sleeping on a park bench cause you couldn’t afford to stay anywhere

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[quote]Professor X wrote:

[quote]XanderBuilt wrote:

Holy shit - that’s a big difference in cost of living. When you said 3rd Largest City you mean in TX or USA?
[/quote]

3rd in the USA. You just don’t see it featured as a backdrop in a ton of Hollywood movies…even though I now wonder why.

It isn’t like we don’t have tons of famous people here.[/quote]
I was suprised that you said that considering LA,NYC and Chicago, then I looked it up and it is definitely the 4th largest city with 2.25 million to chicagos 2.85 million. Close though, maybe only a matter of time till it moves into 3rd.

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[quote]Power GnP wrote:
Sounds kind of depressing…so what actually keeps you guys in NYC if it’s that expensive, opportunity? thin-crust pizza?[/quote]

Greatest. City. On. The. Face. Of. The. Planet.

Nothing else compares. After New York, everyplace else is boring.

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[quote]Damici wrote:

[quote]Power GnP wrote:
Sounds kind of depressing…so what actually keeps you guys in NYC if it’s that expensive, opportunity? thin-crust pizza?[/quote]

Greatest. City. On. The. Face. Of. The. Planet.

Nothing else compares. After New York, everyplace else is boring.
[/quote]

QFT

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[quote]carbiduis wrote:

[quote]Stength4life wrote:
Thanks T-Nation for shitting all over the plan.[/quote]
Better than getting your face shitted on by some random chick when you’re sleeping on a park bench cause you couldn’t afford to stay anywhere[/quote]

Ahhhh, the truth comes out. THIS was his plan all along!!