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Two early-30-somethings (my girlfriend and I) looking to relocate to one of the above cities. We are looking to launch careers after recently completing graduate school. One of us looking to work in hi-tech, ideally a startup.
We value good employment prospects, the outdoors, low cost of living, sports, good weather, cafes & restaurants, down to earth people.
We don't much care for traffic, stuck-up people, expensive real estate.
We know we can't have it all, and that there are pros and cons to each place. We would be interested to hear your perspective on the trade-offs associated with each place. Any insight/comments/thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
Off hand I'd say none of the places meet your criteria with the possible exception of Austin. They are all great places but you won't find the combination of good employment/recreation/culture/etc. at a low cost of living very easily. The traits you describe are what make a place desirable, and that high demand translates to high cost.
I think Austin is probably your best choice. The Silicon Valley and Boston are both plagued with very high real estate costs and are probably not the best places to launch careers in this economy. Also, depending on your definition of good weather, Minneapolis and Denver will probably not fit that bill. Austin has decent weather, a growing economy with lots of job opportunities compared to most other cities, lots of recreation, culture, dining options, and friendly people. Traffic isn't bad at all either, and Austin is one of the best college sports towns. Aside from Austin though, Denver, Minneapolis, the Silicon Valley, and Boston are still great places. I'd still look into all of these cities and apply to jobs in each of them because even though Denver is very snowy and Minneapolis is very cold, both cities have great winter culture and even though the Silicon Valley and Boston are expensive, higher average incomes in both those cities may help offset the cost of living. Good luck with whatever you choose, I'm sure you will both love any of those fine cities if you find the right job.
Yea I'm with krud and Henry on this one...you're going to find it tough to find a place which fits all your criteria.
Silicon Valley and Boston (in order) are the two best tech areas in the country, but they're also very expensive. However, usually pay will correspond to the high cost of living.
I think all the places you cited are great places. Based on your comments on trying to avoid traffic issues and expensive real estate, I'd suggest both Minneapolis and Denver. Both offer a great quality of life--Denver is sunnier and has the Rockies, while Minneapolis has the lakes and is greener. Winters are very cold in Minneapolis, which may or may not be a deal breaker for you depending on how you define good weather. Minneapolis has the four seasons and is very well prepared for winter weather, plus has a great cultural scene (though obviously Boston and San Fran do too). I've never been to Austin, though I generally hear very good things.
Cost of Living is an issue in the Bay Area, but its not as big an issue as you think. Even if you each only make an average salary in San Jose($90,000), your combined income will be $180,000 and that is more than enough to live very well in the SF Bay Area. You arent going to be living in a mansion in the hills, but you will be able to have a good home in a nice area with a pool on $180K a year in the Bay Area . For that amount of money, you'll be able to eat out several times a week at excellent restaurants or shop till you drop(btw, San Jose has excellent and I mean excellent shopping too), you'll be able to venture into SF all the time to catch a show or enjoy the nightlife. You might not be able to afford an S Class MBZ, but you'll be able to afford a C Class MBZ, which is cute too. You will be able to fly to Hawaii for the weekend a few times a year and vacation in Mexico or Europe or Asia, you can always go up to Napa(1 hr from San Jose in no traffic( or Santa Cruz(Beach) which is just on the other side of the mountains. The weather is to-die-for, the natural surroundings are divine, the diversity and open-mindedness of the people is on par with anywhere in the world.
Furthermore, you'll probably hit $200K quicker in the Bay Area than you will anywhere else in the country and you'll be able to upgrade to an even better lifestyle.
You've toiled in school for several years and are now at an age where you ready to flaunt your education-don't deny yourself the chance to make the most money possible now.
No need to apologize for wanting finer things-you've earned it.
That said, these are all top shelf locations. Boston is classy and its cultural bounty is unquestionable, Minneapolis is a vibrant, young and upwardly mobile place with lots of huge companies, Austin is a great place to live, save money and enjoy gorgeous surroundings and is full of awesome, educated young people.
Its a win-win situation for you no matter where you wind up.
Two early-30-somethings (my girlfriend and I) looking to relocate to one of the above cities. We are looking to launch careers after recently completing graduate school. One of us looking to work in hi-tech, ideally a startup.
We value good employment prospects, the outdoors, low cost of living, sports, good weather, cafes & restaurants, down to earth people.
We don't much care for traffic, stuck-up people, expensive real estate.
We know we can't have it all, and that there are pros and cons to each place. We would be interested to hear your perspective on the trade-offs associated with each place. Any insight/comments/thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
Your degree, need for good outdoor life, and desire to be by down to earth people says silicon valley, every other requirement does not.
Silicon Valley is laying off right now, not hiring, cost of living is high, sports are lacking, the weather can be hot in the summer. Never mind the fact that silicon valley is largely suburban and not really big on 5 star fine dining. Your more likely to eat at PFchang or outback steak house in a strip mall. Though SF has a foodie scene. Real estate is astronomical, pretty much real estate investors, doctors, engineers, execs, and a few lawyers and successful local businessmen are the only people who can afford decent(relative) single family homes in silicon valley these days.
Tons of dual income 100k + families that have to move to the exurbs, ghetto, or do condo/town house living in order to keep their head over the water. The only families that live in homes with less than that, bought in the 80's(before silicon valley was much of anything) or inhereted the house or have mommy and daddy helping with the monthly note.
All this talk of money you will make (why some one would assume you and your wife are each going to make 90k fresh out of school[when only one of you is looking in the start up sector] is beyond me, but trust me they are planting false hopes in your head) vactions, cars ,and yada yada is fine but it is not set in stone. No one is going to hire you, especially if you are fresh out of college, unless you know some one or are offering something dynamic to the table. One of my best buddies from Georgetown just got laid off from plantronics and this was like 3 months after them telling him he was set for a 10 percent raise. It was not just him, it was a good chunk of the company that was seemingly 'doing fine' less than 2 years ago. The employees and management really had/have "no clue" in terms of how things will turn out. Go out there and toss your resume around, but look to more stable parts of the country right now, californias economy is in the dumps with quite a few counties now pushing great depression levels of unemployment.
Last edited by LakeShoreSoxGo; 12-22-2009 at 03:43 PM..
Without question, Silicon Valley is the place you need to be.
This is the venture capital capital of the world, with more startup activity than your four other choices combined, with nearly half the of this country's venture capital investments in the most recent quarter. https://www.pwcmoneytree.com/MTPubli...rt%20Final.pdf
Why would you limit yourself? Swing for the fences.
Do yourself a favor and visit, send resumes, and interview with some of companies out here. If you have a great idea, VC companies are out here to listen. For instance, a friend of mine got $10 Million in funding for his idea. Do you think he's concerned with the "high" cost of living. LOL.
I don't see why that couldn't be you especially with your techinical background.
Last edited by Rhymes with Best Coast; 12-22-2009 at 03:46 PM..
Silicon Valley...weather can be hot in the summer.
Silicon Valley is more comfortable in the summer than any of the other three. Boston and Minneapolis are steam baths by comparison, Austin and Denver are ovens by comparison. There is no escaping the uncomfortable weather in those places during the summer months. Ever.
Bringing up weather is the most absurd thing you could have done to try and deter this person from choosing Silicon Valley.
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Never mind the fact that silicon valley is largely suburban and not really big on 5 star fine dining.
Actually Michelin has star rated restaurants in the Silicon Valley. Manresa alone, is worth the trip to the South Bay. The Bay Area, Vegas, LA and NY are the only other US places that have Michelin rated restaurants. Nice try.
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Real estate is astronomical, pretty much real estate investors, doctors, engineers, execs, and a few lawyers and successful local businessmen are the only people who can afford decent(relative) single family homes in silicon valley these days.
Actually now is the best time to buy in the Silicon Valley-and I always laugh when people talk about cost of housing when the biggest home buying segment in the Silicon Valley is Immigrants...who most of the time, came here penniless and worked their way to home ownership.
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All this talk of money you will make (why some one would assume you and your wife are each going to make 90k fresh out of school[when only one of you is looking in the start up sector] is beyond me, but trust me they are planting false hopes in your head) vacations, cars ,and yada yada is fine but it is not set in stone.
I'm sorry, but the American Dream might be dead and buried where you live, but I appreciate being raised in a place where people put a premium on hard work and the spoils that come along with that.
90K is nothing-but if they can both manage to get that, they will have a good life. Otherwise, who knows.
But that doesnt mean they shouldnt even try. Im not used to quiters.
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No one is going to hire you, especially if you are fresh out of college, unless you know some one or are offering something dynamic to the table.
Northern California has a penchant for attracting people who are offering dynamic to the table.
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