Atlanta class obsession/Class insecurity. (wage, living in, restaurants)

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by Economicsman

I figured. I mean, what doesn't NYC have?

A sense of humility? I realize it's hard to be humble when your city is the Center of the Universe for everything, but...

[ATL_II_DMV]

Originally Posted by Mishap

Not superior but if I'm gonna blow a ton of cash I don't have on a luxury car, I may want to think about what it'll be worth in 3 yrs. To me it's a waste of a good car even if you ignore the thousands in finance interest. Parking outside is hell on paint and the interior. Parking a car that has a sticker more than you make in a year in a communal lot w/o security b/c you can't afford to keep it covered only accelerates how quickly your money disappears. I sacrificed a lot to buy an expensive car myself but I also took care of it so it'll last beyond the payment. You can have different priorities in life but if owning a car that's more than your rent is a priority, maybe you should consider preserving the "investment" since if you find yourself having to downsize your automobile, being 10k upside down is quite rough on your credit especially if a whole paycheck at a time goes toward the vehicle. Inevitably if you run your finances so closely to the edge, maintenance and repairs will get ignored when you've got no savings and the choice between a dented car and paying the rent.

The Asian thing was b/c half the comments in this thread rage on this as a Black thing or for the uneducated. Living beyond your means knows no race or education level. Spending inordinate amounts of income for rapidly depreciating luxury goods that you can't afford to maintain isn't demonstrating any form of rationality. I don't see a ton of difference between the woman driving a new Benz on a used Civic's budget or a buddy asking me if he should get a 70k used sports car for weekends on 100k salary when he still has payments on his 40k car. For a lot of people a car is the most expensive thing they'll ever own...outpacing things like homes and investments so it's crazy to see cars that cost as much as cheap homes in the 'burbs parked outside as bird toilets.

This is a smart individual.

I always felt that there was no need for a fancy car if you're renting and parking in parking lot at night too.

I don't like to purchase a home without a garage or private driveway

[4xtraATL]

Originally Posted by kelnic

maybe i shouldnt have said bums... that's sounds kind of condescending.

As a guy
YOU ARE correct and for whatever reason many brothaz feel **cough* pressured to "keep up" with all the other $30k millionaires in ATL

[4xtraATL]

Atlanta is what you make of it.
I am from the North, and been here about a year and I am STILL adjusting.
There are many good people here who quietly go on their own way but then you have the infamous....
"$30k millionaire" that is rollin around town in a leased BMW.

I have never seen so many "food stamp millionaires" in my life until I came here.
TV and music has SO MANY people (ages 15-55) trying so hard to be something they are not.

**Atlanta housewives, Hip Hop, Celebrity obsessed websites, Radio and TV shows**

Atlanta is also a very social class obsessed city as well.
IT is common to see or know someone who has
a new leased vehicle or even a renting a car for months at a time (I have seen this MANY TIMES)
rent an Apt. with 4 roommates
and run around ATL as if they are P Diddy or Lil Kim.
And if you are club goer (I am not) you will find in a hurry that the people in the club scene are so star struck the average Joe doesnt have a chance to even TRY to meet someone genuine or down to earth.

As a male I also find it funny how many of the sistas in ATL expect a man to be
rich
successful
Handsome
and if you arent any of these, they will ignore you.

But she is usually overweight, broke, has 3+ kids
and has enough emotional baggage to put Delta Airlines out of bizness.
(60-65%% of the sistas in ATL are obese)

I am sure someone will get upset about I am saying here but trust me..
I lived in 3 states
lived overseas
and traveled very extensively and I have never seen anything like it here.

[JoeTarheel]

I'm not upset about what you said because I know there are lots of people like you described in every city...but I hope you don't equate Atlanta with those housewives or any other wannabe celebrity. That type is just a smidgen of the population and really doesn't represent the city at all.

[rzzz]

I'm white and work with a bunch of nerds, and at least half of them do the same thing with cars.
At least two of them, the first thing they did straight out of college the day after they got hired was lease a 3 series BMW...
I did not see this kind of thing in Minnesota, where I grew up. In fact there you are considered kind of a ******** if you drive an expensive car.

[JoeTarheel]

Originally Posted by rzzz

I'm white and work with a bunch of nerds, and at least half of them do the same thing with cars.
At least two of them, the first thing they did straight out of college the day after they got hired was lease a 3 series BMW...
I did not see this kind of thing in Minnesota, where I grew up. In fact there you are considered kind of a ******** if you drive an expensive car.

Yeah, no one in Minnesota is materialistic. Come on now...be serious.

[rzzz]

It's not cool to be rich in MN, rich people try to hide it.

[JoeTarheel]

Originally Posted by rzzz

It's not cool to be rich in MN, rich people try to hide it.

And everyone knows that all rich people in a particular areas are the same...

I'm sure some rich folks think it's obscene to show off their wealth in both Atlanta and Minnesota while others are very proud of their wealth, but it's silly to characterize either place as one or the other. There are all kinds of people in every corner of the Earth.

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by JoeTarheel

Yeah, no one in Minnesota is materialistic. Come on now...be serious.

That aspect of general culture is a lot different up there than it is down here, believe me... Some folks are that way, sure. There's always a certain percentage. However, moving down here eight years ago was a bit of a culture shock for me in that regard. There are a lot of idiots down here when it comes to spending...

(My opinion, obviously )

Atlanta seems like a city of extremes to me in many respects. In terms of real estate, various social aspects (churches versus strip/sex clubs), crime, race relations, etc. The Twin Cities is a lot more even keeled ... we always joke that a "controversial" marriage would be a Norwegian marrying a Swede...