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Why I Chose New York

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Re: Why I Chose New York

#101

Post by chrishaum »

jballanc wrote: post #87
dev_jim wrote: post #77

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I live in Manhattan (formerly in the Village and now in TriBeCa) and I think you are exaggerating/cherry picking the lack of costs in NYC. Sure, you can find a few $2,000 1BRs here and there in Manhattan, but they are rare, tiny, and not all that nice. The average 1BR in the neighborhoods surrounding your office is more than 3k. New construction is more than $4k. In the nice areas of Brooklyn you are paying almost as…

Since I am moving out of the city (and the country) at the end of this month, I have no qualms sharing a little secret for anyone looking for a place in Manhattan... There's an area of about 6 city blocks bordered by Columbia University on the south, 125th St. on the north, Broadway to the east, and Grant's Tomb on the west...and rent is ridiculously cheap! 2BR for $2700 or less (we're paying much less) are not unusu…

Yes, this area is called "Manhattan Valley". I lived there for two years while studying CS at Columbia and loved it. We had 5 guys in a 4-bedroom (actually 3BR with a walk-through room with an office that we used as a small bedroom) apartment at 108th St and Broadway. $3k/mo in rent. The location was amazing: 10 minute walk to Columbia, 3 minutes to the 1 train stop at 110th St, 2 minutes to Thai Market (my favorite Thai place in Manhattan).

Re: Why I Chose New York

#102

Post by rayiner »

untog wrote: post #15
tstegart wrote: post #12

This is great, I left NYC for many of the same reasons the OP cites as wanting to move there. Really, I should write a post on "Why I'm choosing the Midwest" NYC has so many women. Beautiful women. But if you're looking to have kids, settle down and move away to where your kid has his own lawn to play on, your odds drop close to zero. So many people date in NYC, so few commit for the rest of their lives. I was so nai…

I think this gets to the point of why these debates are useless when talking on a personal level- everyone is different. I'm 28, and I still don't want to get married. I have no problem with buildings dotting the horizon (when I want to leave the city, I fly away somewhere far, far away. Or go to Prospect Park). So, I probably wouldn't care too much for the Midwest. Everyone is different.

> So, I probably wouldn't care too much for the Midwest.

Hey, we have Chicago in the midwest you know. I'd wager more people here, as a percentage, live in skyscrapers than do in lower Manhattan.

Re: Why I Chose New York

#103

Post by maratd »

jballanc wrote: post #87
dev_jim wrote: post #77

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I live in Manhattan (formerly in the Village and now in TriBeCa) and I think you are exaggerating/cherry picking the lack of costs in NYC. Sure, you can find a few $2,000 1BRs here and there in Manhattan, but they are rare, tiny, and not all that nice. The average 1BR in the neighborhoods surrounding your office is more than 3k. New construction is more than $4k. In the nice areas of Brooklyn you are paying almost as…

Since I am moving out of the city (and the country) at the end of this month, I have no qualms sharing a little secret for anyone looking for a place in Manhattan... There's an area of about 6 city blocks bordered by Columbia University on the south, 125th St. on the north, Broadway to the east, and Grant's Tomb on the west...and rent is ridiculously cheap! 2BR for $2700 or less (we're paying much less) are not unusu…

> If you are going to move to New York, your best bet is to talk to someone who knows New York

So talk to me. I grew up and live here. And your best bet is actually NJ. Hoboken or Jersey City. They're on the PATH. Your commute to Manhattan will be 15 minutes and a ticket costs $2. Less if you buy in bulk or get a pass.

Also, you pay less in taxes (income and sales tax) since you're in NJ.

Re: Why I Chose New York

#104

Post by jwwest »

mcguire wrote: post #60
simonsarris wrote: post #28

I have a feeling my own "Why I Chose New Hampshire" would not have the same traction on HN, though it would bear some similarity to this post. Maybe I should write it anyway. I live in an 1840's house that I love. I walk seven minutes to main street (and work) every day. I live a mere hour from the mountains, the ocean, boston, minutes from country. I don't have any wants, I just like programming and reading and maki…

Strangely, New York and Silicon Valley are the two places that I've always eliminated when I considered moving. I, too, graduated from utexas, and then stayed in Austin for about 20 years. I never wanted to take the cut in my standard of living that either SV or NY would mean. A few years back, I did move, even further from civilization. Back in 1994, I bought a three-bedroom townhouse for $45,000; during the dot-com…

Austin is a great place to live. Great food, the best music, a very low cost of living and a thriving tech scene. Since the city is home to one of the best CS programs in the country (UT Austin) you have a plethora of fresh engineering talent for the picking.

It continually surprises me how many folks make it out to Austin for SXSW each year, and yet still go back to California. As a native Texan and Mexican food addict, I found the lack of great food options in Norcal lacking. :)

(disclaimer: I actually live in Dallas, which is a nice city, just not as nice as Austin)

Re: Why I Chose New York

#105

Post by mahyarm »

fjabre wrote: post #72

Why don't more hackers consider Los Angeles? Cheaper and easier to find housing than the bay or NYC hands down, better weather, and plenty of single women who jump at the chance to date guys that aren't actors and/or yoga instructors! Given, the tech scene in LA isn't great but it's not that far from SF and there are definitely some hackers around UCLA and the Westside. I love New Yorkers but New York City is a zoo.…

The Traffic, the Driving, the Sprawl. LA has a reputation of being a 24hr traffic jam.

Re: Why I Chose New York

#106

Post by jballanc »

chrishaum wrote: post #101
jballanc wrote: post #87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Since I am moving out of the city (and the country) at the end of this month, I have no qualms sharing a little secret for anyone looking for a place in Manhattan... There's an area of about 6 city blocks bordered by Columbia University on the south, 125th St. on the north, Broadway to the east, and Grant's Tomb on the west...and rent is ridiculously cheap! 2BR for $2700 or less (we're paying much less) are not unusu…

Yes, this area is called "Manhattan Valley". I lived there for two years while studying CS at Columbia and loved it. We had 5 guys in a 4-bedroom (actually 3BR with a walk-through room with an office that we used as a small bedroom) apartment at 108th St and Broadway. $3k/mo in rent. The location was amazing: 10 minute walk to Columbia, 3 minutes to the 1 train stop at 110th St, 2 minutes to Thai Market (my favorite…

Actually, Manhattan Valley is just to the south of Columbia. The area to the north where we are is called Manhattanville (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manhattanville), though most won't know that name.

Another tip for prospective New Yorkers: find out where filming permits are being issued. Film crews will stay away from the overly expensive (stuck-up-ish, NIMBY-ish) neighborhoods, but they also won't go anywhere overly risky. As a nice added bonus, typically the area will be picturesque (though not always).

For example: "Person of Interest" was filming in front of our building on Monday, episodes of "Blue Bloods" and "Gossip Girl" have filmed within a couple blocks, and the outdoor scenes at the end of Lady Gaga's video for "Marry the Night" were shot right by the Fairway 3 blocks away.

Re: Why I Chose New York

#107

Post by jballanc »

maratd wrote: post #103
jballanc wrote: post #87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Since I am moving out of the city (and the country) at the end of this month, I have no qualms sharing a little secret for anyone looking for a place in Manhattan... There's an area of about 6 city blocks bordered by Columbia University on the south, 125th St. on the north, Broadway to the east, and Grant's Tomb on the west...and rent is ridiculously cheap! 2BR for $2700 or less (we're paying much less) are not unusu…

> If you are going to move to New York, your best bet is to talk to someone who knows New York So talk to me. I grew up and live here. And your best bet is actually NJ. Hoboken or Jersey City. They're on the PATH. Your commute to Manhattan will be 15 minutes and a ticket costs $2. Less if you buy in bulk or get a pass. Also, you pay less in taxes (income and sales tax) since you're in NJ.

This man does not lie...(we lived in Hoboken for 1 of our 7 years in the area). Some of us just can't stand Jersey, though! :-P

Re: Why I Chose New York

#108

Post by mahyarm »

weeksie wrote: post #85
driverdan wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The cost of living in the valley is on par with NYC.

I would be extremely surprised if that was true. Even if you count not having to own a car or commute as long-distance in New York. I live in a 1 bedroom apartment that is 2550/month and _everything_ is more expensive here. A bottle of wine that might cost $9 in most places is $14 here. Bars and restaurants are far more expensive than they are elsewhere in the states, and city tax kills me to the tune of around $800/…

Rent prices have reached about par according to padmapper.com. Mountain View, a somewhat shabby and boring suburb, that wouldn't be costly if it wasn't for SV, is the same price as brooklyn.

Amazon Prime pretty much removes most of the price and sales tax inequality.

The tax difference is real. But then again, the tax difference compared to austin or seattle is also very real too.

Re: Why I Chose New York

#109

Post by ashishgandhi »

jballanc wrote: post #87
dev_jim wrote: post #77

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I live in Manhattan (formerly in the Village and now in TriBeCa) and I think you are exaggerating/cherry picking the lack of costs in NYC. Sure, you can find a few $2,000 1BRs here and there in Manhattan, but they are rare, tiny, and not all that nice. The average 1BR in the neighborhoods surrounding your office is more than 3k. New construction is more than $4k. In the nice areas of Brooklyn you are paying almost as…

Since I am moving out of the city (and the country) at the end of this month, I have no qualms sharing a little secret for anyone looking for a place in Manhattan... There's an area of about 6 city blocks bordered by Columbia University on the south, 125th St. on the north, Broadway to the east, and Grant's Tomb on the west...and rent is ridiculously cheap! 2BR for $2700 or less (we're paying much less) are not unusu…

One of the one bedroom units here in Stuyvesant Town is listed as $2820 (http://www.stuytown.com/view-availability.aspx). And if you've been to Stuyvesant Town you know the units are HUGE. And most people convert one bedroom to a two bedroom, two to a three, etc.

Stuyvesant Town may be the biggest real-estate default in American history but it is really really nice. We have our own reading rooms, movie shows, ice-skating in winter, gym, 24-hours security with video, etc. It's just worth checking out the website http://www.stuytown.com/.

Disclaimer: I live here with roommates but have no other affiliation with Stuyvesant Town.

Re: Why I Chose New York

#110

Post by mahyarm »

georgieporgie wrote: post #93
tstegart wrote: post #12

This is great, I left NYC for many of the same reasons the OP cites as wanting to move there. Really, I should write a post on "Why I'm choosing the Midwest" NYC has so many women. Beautiful women. But if you're looking to have kids, settle down and move away to where your kid has his own lawn to play on, your odds drop close to zero. So many people date in NYC, so few commit for the rest of their lives. I was so nai…

So many people date in NYC, so few commit for the rest of their lives I've found that to be the case in the SF area, as well. A (female) friend moved out to DC. She was shocked at how female acquaintances behaved there. She relayed their statements like, "well, yeah, Larry has some anger problems when he's drinking, but he's a good man." Our shared opinion was that SF suffers from grass-is-always-greener syndrome, wh…

I've heard DC women are not as nice compared to the rest of the USA.
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