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I've put the numbers into a cost of living converter:
It says that living in Newark is almost 40% less than living in NYC. I would work in NYC, but 40% less also means that I may be able to afford a car as well. I could probably live with the 30-45 minute commute to work.
Sorry if this is completely newbie of me, but I'm sure you can live in NJ, but work in New York right? I'm sure lots of people are doing this, if not do correct me.
I've put the numbers into a cost of living converter:
It says that living in Newark is almost 40% less than living in NYC. I would work in NYC, but 40% less also means that I may be able to afford a car as well. I could probably live with the 30-45 minute commute to work.
Sorry if this is completely newbie of me, but I'm sure you can live in NJ, but work in New York right? I'm sure lots of people are doing this, if not do correct me.
Newark has a bad reputation, but there are some nicer neighborhoods (the most commonly cited are Forest Hills and The Ironbound).
The cost of living in Newark is probably slightly less than living in a comparable neighborhood in the outer boroughs, but I wouldn't say it's significantly less.
And just one thing: Even if you do have a car, I still wouldn't recommend it for commuting. Newark has a ton of buses and trains that go to NYC, and they're cheaper and often faster than driving.
Living in Newark would definitely save you money, but your quality of life would be severely impacted. Also, your commute would likely rely on NJ transit or Path to a subway. Newark is a very economically depressed city, and while it does have some nicer parts, it has a very high crime rate and lacks many basic amenities.
At 75k, you can live fairly comfortably in some of the nicer neighborhoods in Brooklyn (e.g. Park Slope, Caroll Gardens) but you won't be able to afford a high end rental (i.e. luxury building with amenities) or a big apartment in these areas. You would be looking at rent around $2,000 for a decent 1br -- this would be 1/3rd of your income at 75k, and its recommended that you don't exceed that.
If you were smart, you would explore less expensive neighborhoods in Brooklyn and rent well below your means. This way by the time you and your wife have the dual income, you'll have plenty saved to either get that nice apartment with the view, or buy a place of your own.
Buildings with a view in Brooklyn are pretty limited to Brooklyn Heights/DUMBO and Downtown Brooklyn/Ft. Greene with the cheapest area being the latter. Rents in buildings like the Avalon and the Brooklyner or Brooklyn Gold run well over 2k per month, and the units with a view are closer to 3k+ when available. You definitely can't afford that on 75k.
There are some new condo gone rental buildings in the outskirts of Wiliamsburg (really Bushwick), that have roof decks with decent views of downtown, but your still looking in the north of 2k range. You can rent in newer condo like places in Crown Heights for under 2k, but most don't have city exposures and the general safety of the area would be a concern for those who don't have "city smarts".
Having been in your shoes (engineer) I have to tell you that the jobs aren't as plentiful as you would think. My advice would be to concentrate on your degree (it's a tough one and you should be proud) but be flexible on where you end up working. It might be NYC, but it could very well be in CA (where the bulk of the engineering jobs are). in your last year, try to get an intern position, or work with a start up, anything to get real work experience that would set you apart from other job applicants.
I don't think you should get ahead of yourself and worry about all of that stuff if you haven't been offered a job yet. It's unlikely that any company is going to spend the time and money to sponsor you for an H1B or TN1 visa straight out of undegrad - especially considering the number of unemployed American software engineers and the current state of the economy. You'll need to be fairly specialized with a few years of experience and have a skill set that no other American has in order for the company's petition to be successful.
Your figures are accurate though, just from personal experience, even if you're an average software engineer at a medium sized company in NYC and you have a few years of experience under your belt, you'll be making in the range of 90-100K. Once you're in management, you'll be making at least 120K. These figures rise dramatically if you're lucky enough to work in the financial industry on more sophisticated trading apps and the like. 150k-200k all in comp isn't uncommon in that industry and that's just for a mid level software engineer.
Either way, as long as you live in Queens, Brooklyn or Jersey, 60k is the bare minimum for your to be comfortable and live in a modest 1 bedroom or studio alone. You won't have a Manhattan view unless you're willing to live with roommates. 80k is more comfortable. 100k will get you a comfortable lifestyle in Manhattan if you don't mind living in a tiny apartment and it will allow you to save if you choose to live in the outer boroughs. 200k combined will allow you to raise a family in the outer boroughs and live a comfortable lifestyle. 200k is comfortable middle class in NYC. I'd say 350-400K is close to upper middle class for a family. 250k for a single person would be the start of upper middle class.
Anyway, I'd try to get a very specialized skill set for the next few years before you try to come to get sponsored for a Visa in NYC. There's really no need for a company to go to the trouble of sponsoring a foreign worker straight out of undergrad when there's thousands of people from MIT, Carnegie Mellon, Stanford etc with experience in line for these jobs. Look to see what the hard to fill positions in the Marketing / Advertising / Media industry and Wall Street are and get those skills on your resume. These are probably the two biggest industries that need highly skilled developers.
By the time you graduate there will be no computer engineer jobs in the US. They will all be in Asia.There have never been many computer engineer jobs in NY and there never will be.Currently they are in Boston,Seattle ,San Francisco and Austin.
There will be no "out of school starting salaries of 60,000 to 80,000" for anything at all because the unemployment rate will be 25% and people will work for peanuts.
Life will likely intervene and change all of your other assumptions, suppositions, dreams,ifs ands and buts as well.
Are you a US citizen? I ask only because it is unlikely we will be allowing any foreigners to have any jobs here either.
umm... you want this board to give you advice on your hypothetical income with your hypothetical job upon your hypothetical graduation with your hypothetical wife and your hypothetical kids on a hypothetical future economy?
The world is ending in 2012, you know. So just live large now. None of this will happen anyway
Seriously, no one can predict the future and what would be the right choices in the future. So, focus on doing well in school. Get good internships and experience that will land you a good job. In your current state, your best bet is to do everything in your power to keep as many doors open as possible. If you do that, eventually, the door to NYC will swing wide open for you.
In the time you spent imagining this hypothetical future to this finite details, you could be studying to make this future happen. #JustSayin
By the time you graduate there will be no computer engineer jobs in the US. They will all be in Asia.There have never been many computer engineer jobs in NY and there never will be.Currently they are in Boston,Seattle ,San Francisco and Austin.
There will be no "out of school starting salaries of 60,000 to 80,000" for anything at all because the unemployment rate will be 25% and people will work for peanuts.
Life will likely intervene and change all of your other assumptions, suppositions, dreams,ifs ands and buts as well.
Are you a US citizen? I ask only because it is unlikely we will be allowing any foreigners to have any jobs here either.
Bluedog, you absolutely nailed it (the stuff quoted in bold letters). I'm not a professional on the rest (IT industry).
However, I think NYC will be deserted, all the finance jobs will be gone as well, industry of all kinds has been long gone.
Unemployment rate: It actually is almost 20 %, when you take the U6 number and not U3 which is used in the media.
Source:
They will have to rebuild the country from a low level, especially including productive industry. It will be a horrible time for recent grads as for everyone else, especially on a fixed income.
How bad you cannot get rid of student loans by personal bankruptcy.
Perhaps the second american revolution has begon (Occupy Wall Street).
By the time you graduate there will be no computer engineer jobs in the US. They will all be in Asia.There have never been many computer engineer jobs in NY and there never will be.Currently they are in Boston,Seattle ,San Francisco and Austin.
There will be no "out of school starting salaries of 60,000 to 80,000" for anything at all because the unemployment rate will be 25% and people will work for peanuts.
Life will likely intervene and change all of your other assumptions, suppositions, dreams,ifs ands and buts as well.
Are you a US citizen? I ask only because it is unlikely we will be allowing any foreigners to have any jobs here either.
I think OP is banking on this "silicon valley of the east" initiative. However from what I've read most of those jobs will be upstate not in the city.
It is sad to be the last person entering a field that has crested and is on the wane.
But it happens with predictable frequently.
You want to be the first in the NEW field, not the last in the OLD one.
Remember, the dot-com bust was in 2000.
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