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I am 33 and have lived in Chicago for 30 years of my life. I love Chicago and everything it offers, but I just need a change and also don't want to deal with winters anymore. I am looking for a city with a different vibe. Right now Miami and LA are the two I am considering.
I am just curious for those of you who moved from much larger and dense cities, like Chicago, LA, NYC, or overall just dense cities like SF, Boston, DC, Philly, what were your experiences when you moved to Miami? What did you like and what did you not like?
Also, how do you see Miami shaping up in the future? Aside from rising sea levels, it seems like the city is getting more walkable, more dense, and really starting to create a very cool vibe.
I came here when I was a little kid and felt miserable and depressed. Suburbs were a totally new subject for me and was confused as to what constituted a city in America.
I still haven’t adapted to the American urbanscape, so I usually have to go to New York to feel at ease. It’s like medicine.
I came here when I was a little kid and felt miserable and depressed. Suburbs were a totally new subject for me and was confused as to what constituted a city in America.
I still haven’t adapted to the American urbanscape, so I usually have to go to New York to feel at ease. It’s like medicine.
Love Chicago!!! Best people ever!!!
Sounds like you came from another country. Where did you come from?
I can imagine going to any suburb right off the bat must be jarring.
Location: Miami (prev. NY, Atlanta, SF, OC and San Diego)
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Though originally from NY (and having lived many years ago in SF), I moved here from San Diego which I found too laid back and unsophisticated but I was not prepared to move up to the behemoth known as LA and moved to Miami--no regrets.
Miami is a nice cosmopolitan blend of urban and beach with great weather (I prefer the climate here to CA and, depending what area you live in, the summers can be tolerable bordering on outright enjoyable) and is what I hoped SD would have turned into but has not....definitely has its walkable areas (I live in Brickell where I walk 5 miles/ day and only drive 4K miles/year) and has other neighborhoods with cool vibes, as you describe--Coconut Grove, Coral Gables, SoBe, Wynwood, Design District, The River, etc. etc. Less expensive than CA (primarily due to no state income tax) and geographically situated to many places I visit and vacation that are a lot closer, being East Coast based.
I brought my job with me, worked from home (so I did not have to deal with commute traffic), and recently retired early....that is the key--is your job and field of employment secure or in jeopardy?...LA offers a more diversified and better opportunities for career growth and building wealth outside of the medical, international finance, and limited other Miami industries.
Miami will NOT be Chicago, NY, or SF in terms of urban amenities but it is a nice sized city that offers a lot that has grown and will continue to do so.
Last edited by elchevere; 02-28-2019 at 04:05 PM..
Though originally from NY (and having lived many years ago in SF), I moved here from San Diego which I found too laid back and unsophisticated but I was not prepared to move up to the behemoth known as LA and moved to Miami--no regrets.
Miami is a nice blend of urban and beach with great weather (I prefer the climate here to CA and, depending what area you live in, the summers can be tolerable bordering on outright enjoyable) and is what I hoped SD would have turned into but has not....definitely has its walkable areas (I live in Brickell where I walk 5 miles/ day and only drive 4K miles/year) and has other neighborhoods with cool vibes, as you describe--Coconut Grove, Coral Gables, SoBe, Wynwood, Design District, The River, etc. etc. Less expensive than CA (primarily due to no state income tax) and geographically situated to many places I visit and vacation that are a lot closer, being East Coast based.
I brought my job with me, worked from home (so I did not have to deal with commute traffic), and recently retired early....that is the key--is your job and field of employment secure or in jeopardy?...LA offers a more diversified and better opportunities for career growth and building wealth outside of the medical, international finance, and limited other Miami industries.
Miami will NOT be Chicago, NY, or SF in terms of urban amenities but it is a nice sized city that offers a lot that has grown and will continue to do so.
Thanks for this. We have chatted before in different threads that I started. You have given great advice.
As mentioned in another thread, I would be bringing my job with me and working remotely. I am fortunate that my career is in digital marketing, and while I know Miami isn't the most diversified economy, it's a career path where jobs aren't usually that much of an issue in most major cities.
I think some of my concerns are:
1. If I do change my job, what does that mean for my salary? I know salaries are lower in Miami. I make $90k now at a manager role.
2. I am latino and speak spanish and portuguese, but I am so used to such a wide variety of diversity. My friends are all either asian, white (european immigrants) or latino here in Chicago. While Miami is diverse, I know it's not as diverse as say Chicago, LA or NYC. But then again most cities are not. I feel like that might just have to be something I have to adapt to.
3. Is traffic as horrendous as people say? I hear so much about traffic when it comes to Miami, but I wonder if it's because people come from places that are much smaller than Miami. I can't imagine Miami traffic is worse than Chicago, NYC, LA, SF or DC traffic?
Your point about LA is exactly my concern too. I am going to LA for two weeks in May to see how I like it. But it's such a behemoth of a city. I actually want something more relaxed and less stressful than Chicago (not that Chicago is super stressful) and my concern about LA is just the traffic and how big it is. I was looking to potentially live in Koreatown and when I googled how long it takes to get to the beach at 8PM said 45 minutes! I was like what! And that's not during rush hour.
While I know Miami is also not that easy to live car free, at least when you drive within the city, it seems like things are a lot more compact. So getting to the beach from Wynwood, I would hope doesn't take 45 minutes OUTSIDE of rush hour times to get to the beach.
Some things that LA is winning for me is that it's more diverse and be it that it's such a big city there is more to do and diversity of things to do. But it seems like Miami keeps adding more and more all the time (ie Museums, shopping, galleries, etc). It actually seems like it's an exciting time to live in Miami.
I am just curious for those of you who moved from much larger and dense cities, like Chicago, LA, NYC, or overall just dense cities like SF, Boston, DC, Philly, what were your experiences when you moved to Miami? What did you like and what did you not like?
Also, how do you see Miami shaping up in the future? Aside from rising sea levels, it seems like the city is getting more walkable, more dense, and really starting to create a very cool vibe.
I have lived in larger denser cities like the ones you mention, as well as in Europe and South America.
I like about Miami that it's on US soil, warm temperatures all year round, no state income tax (a deal-maker for self-employed and independent investors), and indeed the fact that it is a major city (though series B) with, for example, some serious choices when it comes to condo and apartment buildings and somewhat walkable neighborhoods.
Personally I am past the stage when I need opportunities for young people, but Miami does provide that to those who choose useful paths, such as, say, logistics management (land, sea, and water), water management (swamp, ocean, canals, sewage, drinking water), insurance, investment management, construction and real estate management, health care, not to mention electricity and HVAC, and all the engineering, accounting and legal services that revolve around those.
What I don't like about Miami is that is far from the centers of my main cultural interests, but at my stage in life it doesn't matter, it's all in my mind anyway, plus there is internet, streaming, home-delivery of almost any good, and inter-library loans (e.g. I can receive obscure academic texts from private and public research university libraries, worth tens and hundreds of dollars) delivered to my local public library for the cost of handling (about three dollars).
I also don't like that, though certain neighborhoods are dense and becoming denser, the vast majority of people need a car, and there is no realistic expectation of significant expansion in the local train system to change that; instead, it will require a complex set of changes led by information and telecommunications technology applied to cross-town transportation, including a drastic reduction in the need for it.
As for the future of Miami, I agree: barring some local natural catastrophe or general sudden social disruption, the future looks bright economically and in terms of more neighborhoods growing denser and denser.
Quote:
Originally Posted by frimpter928
1. If I do change my job, what does that mean for my salary? I know salaries are lower in Miami. I make $90k now at a manager role. 1. If I do change my job, what does that mean for my salary? I know salaries are lower in Miami. I make $90k now at a manager role.
My main concern about you is income: as a single guy $70,000-$90,000 is okay, but if you were to ever have a family and intend to live comfortably, you would have to raise your minimum income requirement well into the $100,000s.
I have lived in larger denser cities like the ones you mention, as well as in Europe and South America.
I like about Miami that it's on US soil, warm temperatures all year round, no state income tax (a deal-maker for self-employed and independent investors), and indeed the fact that it is a major city (though series B) with, for example, some serious choices when it comes to condo and apartment buildings and somewhat walkable neighborhoods.
Personally I am past the stage when I need opportunities for young people, but Miami does provide that to those who choose useful paths, such as, say, logistics management (land, sea, and water), water management (swamp, ocean, canals, sewage, drinking water), insurance, investment management, construction and real estate management, health care, not to mention electricity and HVAC, and all the engineering, accounting and legal services that revolve around those.
What I don't like about Miami is that is far from the centers of my main cultural interests, but at my stage in life it doesn't matter, it's all in my mind anyway, plus there is internet, streaming, home-delivery of almost any good, and inter-library loans (e.g. I can receive obscure academic texts from private and public research university libraries, worth tens and hundreds of dollars) delivered to my local public library for the cost of handling (about three dollars).
I also don't like that, though certain neighborhoods are dense and becoming denser, the vast majority of people need a car, and there is no realistic expectation of significant expansion in the local train system to change that; instead, it will require a complex set of changes led by information and telecommunications technology applied to cross-town transportation, including a drastic reduction in the need for it.
As for the future of Miami, I agree: barring some local natural catastrophe or general sudden social disruption, the future looks bright economically and in terms of more neighborhoods growing denser and denser.
My main concern about you is income: as a single guy $70,000-$90,000 is okay, but if you were to ever have a family and intend to live comfortably, you would have to raise your minimum income requirement well into the $100,000s.
Good Luck!
This is great information. Thank you! I am gay so, I really don't see having a family in the horizon. But I am also 33 so I still have so much to move up in, in regards to career and income.
When you say far from your cultural interests, what do you mean by that.
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