Why I moved to Miami • Hacker News Board

Re: Why I moved to Miami

#271

Post by kbenson » Sat, Oct 19, 2013, 5:22 PM UTC

mahyarm wrote: post #177

TheLegace wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I actually really prefer the Winter. I personally think when you start feeling like a Canadian is when you enjoy the winter weather. For whatever reason the sun in Canada really seems to burn(at least in Toronto area) and it can get really humid in the summers. But in the winter you can always just bundle up and feel comfortable.

I'm a canadian, I really appreciate the weather down in the bay area after growing up in seattle weather for my childhood and college years. Don't miss the rain and the cold, or the 'lack of seasons' some friends seem to complain about.

> Don't miss the rain and the cold, or the 'lack of seasons' some friends seem to complain about.

Mother nature is apparently great at causing Stockholm syndrome. You're lucky to have gotten out unscathed. :)

Re: Why I moved to Miami

#272

Post by wpietri » Sat, Oct 19, 2013, 5:28 PM UTC

hollerith wrote: post #203

wpietri wrote: post #192

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Since you're a native, maybe you can address something subtle: the extent to which the business community favors positive-sum vs zero-sum thinking, and innovation over marketing. One of the things I like about Silicon Valley is that people are generally focused on creating value rather than making money. (The difference being that I can make money in ways that transfer money from your pocket to mine, without a net in…

I lived in South Florida for 5 years, and have lived in the Bay Area since 1986, and you have described what I consider one of the essential differences between the two places. There was an article in a local business magazine or the business section of the paper when I was living in South Florida about the new CEO of the local power company (Florida Power and Light). The new CEO was quoted as saying that one of his…

Whoa. If you can find a source for that quote, I promise to use it forever as an illustration of what not to do. Great point on drug smuggling as well.

As a Michigander who has lived in SF a dozen years, the point about Detroit is especially interesting. Detroit lost out because they got complacent and exploitative. It allowed foreign competitors to come along and kick their asses in ways they couldn't even understand. (If you like This American Life, their episode NUMMI gives a very useful take on the cultural issue.)

I don't think we'll lose it that way, just because we self-define in ways that honor competition and user experience. But it's certainly possible. Google keeps growing, and Google Plus is a fine example of a dominant player getting fat and sassy and shifting toward exploitative behavior.

Re: Why I moved to Miami

#273

Post by xm1994 » Sat, Oct 19, 2013, 5:33 PM UTC

I was pleasantly surprised to wake up to a HN post on Miami!

I find the tech scene pretty miserable here but then again I've worked from home for almost 10 years and I'm terrible at networking events. So it could just be my self-imposed social prison! I live further south (Pinecrest), a little further away from our "tech hubs" in downtown and midtown.

If you're in Miami and are looking for any events, Startup Digest does a good job of showing you what's happening each week: https://www.startupdigest.com/digests/miami

I'd love to meet some HN minded brethren though.. Maybe we should try and do an HN Meetup, anyone else interested?

Shoot me an email.

Re: Why I moved to Miami

#274

Post by dmethvin » Sat, Oct 19, 2013, 5:37 PM UTC

nolite wrote: post #189

igorgue wrote: post #184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This have changed a lot, specially in the Wynwood / Design District / Midtown area (3 of Downtown's neighborhoods). And I gonna be the first one to say it I think... I remember during PyCodeconf 2 years ago many of the attendees from SF were really impressed by the amount of women here (beautiful ones) that even the most introverted (I am one of those) can find someone here. For girls too, also, since people are real…

Your building is amazing.. How's the walkability compared to someplace like NY or Boston?

Looks pretty good in the immediate area: http://www.walkscore.com/score/253-ne-2nd-st-miami-fl-33132

Re: Why I moved to Miami

#275

Post by toomuchtodo » Sat, Oct 19, 2013, 5:38 PM UTC

DanBlake wrote: post #110

grogenaut wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

State sales tax in FLA is %6 currently. Obviously it varies by jurisdiction but thats a pretty good rate for the US. Sales tax == VAT in the EU

San Francisco/CA is 9%

Chicago/Cook County: 10%

I don't even get a decent startup scene for that.

Re: Why I moved to Miami

#276

Post by wpietri » Sat, Oct 19, 2013, 5:40 PM UTC

AJ007 wrote: post #243

wpietri wrote: post #192

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Since you're a native, maybe you can address something subtle: the extent to which the business community favors positive-sum vs zero-sum thinking, and innovation over marketing. One of the things I like about Silicon Valley is that people are generally focused on creating value rather than making money. (The difference being that I can make money in ways that transfer money from your pocket to mine, without a net in…

My general impression is that people in south Florida (in business) are looking for easy money. Not easy as in no work, but easy as in huge sums for minimal work. The homesteading act certainly attracts people from outside Florida who believe they could be sued for everything they've got. May be was a combination of the drug money in the 70s & 80s, along with the real estate boom more recently, but they don't seem ve…

Fascinating. I didn't know that bit about homesteading. That explains quite a bit. And I had forgotten that the governor apparently made his money partly via a giant medicare fraud, which definitely says something about the business culture there.

Re: Why I moved to Miami

#277

Post by LogicX » Sat, Oct 19, 2013, 5:41 PM UTC

javajosh wrote: post #13

I'm not sure if others have experienced this, but my brain doesn't function very well in tropical heat and humidity. It just seems to slow down, and mental games don't seem as interesting. It may be that I've been conditioned by many episodes of tropical vacations growing up, but whatever the reason, I can't (and indeed, don't really want to) code below about 30 degrees latitude.

We're recruiting in Myrtle Beach, SC: WhyNotTheBeach.com

Not quite so far south, great weather, big city amenities, even lower cost of living, fiber to the home...

Re: Why I moved to Miami

#278

Post by toomuchtodo » Sat, Oct 19, 2013, 5:42 PM UTC

levosmetalo wrote: post #221

paul9290 wrote: post #60

Taxes here in the states are overall disgusting, though you don't realize it until your salary inches upwards. When your making 40K to 55K here in the states the amount of taxes taken seems like a fair share. Though when you almost double that you wonder what's the point of making more money on paper as in your pocket you only make 60 to 65 percent of of your earnings - WTH?

I guess it's not only about the amount of taxes, but also what you get out of them. Recently I was considering moving from Germany to California, and decided it's not worth it money wise. Yes, the nominal salary is a bit better, and nominal taxes are a bit lower in the USA, but what would I get for it? Here, I get full health insurance included in my taxes, retirements contribution also. In addition, I get 4k€/year i…

This is why I contemplate moving to Europe. In Illinois, I'm making ~$120K/year salary. After payroll taxes, I see ~$72K of that. Then take into account sales tax (10%) and property taxes (~$3K/year).

I'm effectively paying EU tax rates without any of the benefits (child care, universal healthcare, etc).

Re: Why I moved to Miami

#279

Post by bdesimone » Sat, Oct 19, 2013, 5:52 PM UTC

nolite wrote: post #189

igorgue wrote: post #184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This have changed a lot, specially in the Wynwood / Design District / Midtown area (3 of Downtown's neighborhoods). And I gonna be the first one to say it I think... I remember during PyCodeconf 2 years ago many of the attendees from SF were really impressed by the amount of women here (beautiful ones) that even the most introverted (I am one of those) can find someone here. For girls too, also, since people are real…

Your building is amazing.. How's the walkability compared to someplace like NY or Boston?

It's different. Viscayne is located downtown Miami which lacks the restaurants / culture/ yuppy-ness of places like Brickell and Midtown. There is a small outlet mall type thing at Bayfront park -- but the shops and restaurants there overwhelming cater to the bus loads of cruise-ship tourists there for a day. Downtown is a ghost-town during the weekend, as most places are closed. Bayfront park itself is a nice walk, and has pretty views. It's pretty safe there too.

West you will find the courthouse and the feared overtown -- which as I mentioned elsewhere -- isn't the safest of areas.

Brickell is a short (15minutes or less) walk. There you will find better restaurants and droves of young urban business professionals who probably work in some form of consumer banking.

Wynwood is close, but you can't walk there because you'd have to go through Overtown which is, again, a really scary place to be even during daylight hours. It's full of artists , trustafarians, and some tech people. But mostly hipsters.

To get to any beach you will need a car.

Re: Why I moved to Miami

#280

Post by LogicX » Sat, Oct 19, 2013, 5:53 PM UTC

chrissnell wrote: post #11

There are so many great places to live outside of SF and NYC. For the price of my old Bay Area rental, I rented the upper half of a gorgeous house in the Old Town of Park City, Utah. I was a 35 minute commute from Salt Lake (half of my SFBA commute) and my front doorstep was two short blocks from the ski lift. I could walk or ride my bike to everything that I needed. Sundance screenings were half a block away. In the…

Now you can build a startup community almost anywhere leveraging the benefits of the particular area.

We're doing it in Myrtle Beach, SC: WhyNotTheBeach.com based off the low cost of living, high quality of life, big city amenities, fiber to the home, etc.