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We have option to move to either Boston or Seattle and need help deciding. Job is not a deciding factor here as pay and role is the same.
Both cities have cons that are of concern to us. Please weigh in and correct us if we are wrong regarding some of these cons as we got this information from the internet and some friends. Which city do you think sucks less for us.
Boston cons:
Winters suck
Summers are hot and humid
Real estate is expensive and homes are outdated ( many not renovated for decades and cost 700k plus)
Growing startup and tech scene but still does not come close to West Coast
People tell us Bostonians are rude snobs and unless you are an MIT or Boston U grad forget it
Storms and flooding
Tax heavy ( car tax means we need to ditch a car and forget about expensive cars)
Seattle cons:
Homelessness and drugs at an all time high
Encampments
Housing market bubble and bidding wars
Burglaries and break ins are the norm even in burbs as far as Edmonds
Earthquake risk and many areas are on fault or in liquefaction zone
Tech scene represented by “chains” like Amazon or Microsoft. Not a great startup scene.
Lack of diversity in tech (Few women, black and Latina)
Boston in my opinion is more manageable, more diverse and despite the rumor a good bit friendlier than Seattle...which isn't difficult to imagine given the sizable transitional population cycling in/out via the academic institutions alone.
Since the city is right on the coast summers really aren't that bad and at night, except like 2 weeks in July it gets comfortable, I never had AC when I lived in Massachusetts for 20 years.
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