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I have these three cities as options to move to in 2020. After living in Chicago for 30+ years I am ready for a move.
About me.
-Single gay male, 33 years old
-Latino male here that also speaks Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese
-I work in digital marketing, but I am a writer on the side hoping to get published.
-I can work remotely with my current job. My salary is $90k which is what I would be taking with me.
-Loves the outdoors, be it the beach, hiking, scuba diving, paddleboarding, jogging, etc.
-Nightlife is a nice to have but not as important anymore. I want to have good options for nightlife, but I don't plan on going out partying every weekend.
-Food is important. I love eating and trying high quality restaurants and want diversity. Be it Latin, Asian, European food. I want to try it all.
-I want a city with a more international flavor. I have noticed that I tend to make friends much easier with people from other countries or people who are first generation. All my friends in Chicago are either from other countries or like me, first generation with parents who are immigrants.
-A city with diverse culture, be it through cultural events, museums, etc.
-Walkablity is fairly important. I am aware that none of these cities are like Chicago or East Coast cities in terms of walkability. That I will need a car. But I want to live in a city where I have multiple options of neighborhoods and places that are walkable for the basic stuff (pharamacy, gym, groceries, etc).
-Some solid public transportation. Again I will be taking a car with me, but if LA or SD I will have to work from my company's local offices in those cities, which both are located in their downtowns. I would prefer to have a walking commute or an easy/quick bus, light rail or train commute to work rather than driving every day.
I'm not a fan of Miami. Expensive and hurricane prone. I Never have liked the vibe of the area. I do like FL beaches more than CA beaches. LA and SD are expensive too and they have earthquakes and wildfires to contend with, but I think they have a better quality of life, from my experiences. I like the CITY of SD better than the CITY of LA. But I like the METRO of LA better than the METRO of SD. The LA area just offers more to do recreationally overall. I think you can get all of the things you want in each city/area and you work remotely. My choice of these 3 would be LA.
All three are great options imo. But in Miami you will live very comfortably on $90k, which I don't think can be said for SoCal. Plus with your Spanish and Portuguese skills, you would be very competitive should you seek other jobs in marketing. It seems one of the major knocks on Miami for many people is the regions reliance on Spanish (and Portuguese to a lesser degree) but that wouldn't matter to you.
LA is gonna give you the most walkable options and imo you'd have the possibility of living carless. But that is another debate for another time. Coming from Chicago, it will offer the most similar big city feel. Also, LA/SD would offer the most varied excellent cuisine. Miami is great too but the plethora of cheap, Asian food out there tips the scales.
Overall, based on just knowing a couple paragraphs about you I would say Miami is the best choice.
All three are great options imo. But in Miami you will live very comfortably on $90k, which I don't think can be said for SoCal. Plus with your Spanish and Portuguese skills, you would be very competitive should you seek other jobs in marketing. It seems one of the major knocks on Miami for many people is the regions reliance on Spanish (and Portuguese to a lesser degree) but that wouldn't matter to you.
LA is gonna give you the most walkable options and imo you'd have the possibility of living carless. But that is another debate for another time. Coming from Chicago, it will offer the most similar big city feel. Also, LA/SD would offer the most varied excellent cuisine. Miami is great too but the plethora of cheap, Asian food out there tips the scales.
Overall, based on just knowing a couple paragraphs about you I would say Miami is the best choice.
I am starting to think I am might try LA first and if not then do Miami. The thing is I already know I will like Miami, that's because I have been there about 20 times in my life and the city I am the most familiar with after Chicago. I am going to go to LA for 2 weeks and in May and get a feel for it.
With that being said it seems like Miami and LA is what it might be narrowed down to. It seems SD is a fine place to live (I loved it when I visited) but perhaps too laid back for my tastes and not "big" enough either. I know Miami isn't that huge but it has a good sized metro and feels more like an urban city.
I am starting to think I am might try LA first and if not then do Miami. The thing is I already know I will like Miami, that's because I have been there about 20 times in my life and the city I am the most familiar with after Chicago. I am going to go to LA for 2 weeks and in May and get a feel for it.
With that being said it seems like Miami and LA is what it might be narrowed down to. It seems SD is a fine place to live (I loved it when I visited) but perhaps too laid back for my tastes and not "big" enough either. I know Miami isn't that huge but it has a good sized metro and feels more like an urban city.
When it comes to "urban" feel, neither one are particularly impressive. San Diego might actually have an edge over Miami on this. Its urban footprint is slightly bigger IMO.
Last edited by Arcenal813; 02-01-2019 at 09:38 AM..
When it comes to "urban" feel, neither one are particularly impressive. Sand Diego might actually have an edge over Miami on this. Its urban footprint is slightly bigger IMO.
Wouldn't you say though that Miami feels more urban though? It's a lot denser than San Diego. I believe the Miami metro area too is denser. I know for urban feel neither Miami nor SD is impressive, not expecting that, but the more urban feel the better.
Location: Miami (prev. NY, Atlanta, SF, OC and San Diego)
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I lived in both cities...Miami and Miami Beach are more urban than downtown SD which is fairly small and definitely has a smaller town vibe, which SD prides itself on.
Since you have added that you are gay in this 2nd post, you might consider Hillcrest (SD) and West Hollywood (LA) for urban...in that regard, the West Coast might be better for you. In terms of SoFla, you might consider Ft Lauderdale over Miami.
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