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I mean, NYC is expensive, but some posters act like you have to be in a high powered job making at least 200K to live in the city.
I'm FROM the city, born and raised in Manhattan. I currently live in Borough Park, Brooklyn. Not the sexiest neighborhood, but it's safe. I could afford to pay more in rent, but I like having spending money.
I wait tables for a living. I've seen people tell people who work in the service industry that they will not be able to afford living in the five boroughs unless they can tolerate living in the ghetto. That just isn't true.
I'm a waitress and I get my nails done about twice a week, go the hair salon every two months (to get a full sew in, about 350 bucks), get my brows done, eat out, and pay my rent and am paying for cosmetic surgery. Life in the city isn't cheap, but I don't see why people need to scare others into thinking they have to have an extremely high powered job to move to the city or prepare to live on the streets.
I live in NJ, just across the George Washington Bridge- I love NYC, but I wouldn't want to live there unless I could fully afford it and be able to live in a nice neighborhood and have space in my home.
I'm talking about, Manhattan here. Unless you can find a 'rent controlled' building, which is almost impossible today, it's very pricey. There are other boroughs that are nice and more affordable than Manhattan- such as Queens, or Brooklyn. An apartment with somewhat decent rent is usually not too spacious ... if you want to pay at least $3,000 and up, you may be able to find a nice 1 bedroom, or studio in a nice area- Upper East Side, Chelsea, East/West Village. A lot of celebrities live in the Village - My friend, who works for Bloomberg lives in the Village and he got lucky. He was, "walking" around and saw a sign, "For rent by owner". It's a tiny studio, ground level, and he pays $1000. a month. That's cheap for Manhattan, although, it is a studio.
I think many people have roommates and/or spouses to split the rent, or have successful means of income ...
It definitely IS a lot more for housing here (in a comparable neighborhood) than almost anywhere else in the country. For what you play to rent a one bedroom in a drug-ridden slum in the Bronx, you could rent a whole house in a nice school district in North Carolina. And the million dollars you'd pay for a Lincoln Park Town house in Chicago will barely get you two bedrooms on the Upper East Side.
People moving here often consider the trendiest,most expensive neighborhoods first 'cause that's all they know about. They need to be warned that a "nice little place" in , say, the East Village can run $2000 a month. CD is valuable in that it can hip newcomers to other neighborhoods that aren't trendy and expensive, but still safe and affordable. But that can be hard becaue somebody dreaming of living in NYC probably wouldn't think of Borough Park for instance.
Native New Yorkers can often find a cheaper place to live through people they know end up paying less for housing than a newcomer. When you've lived here for a while you get apartments that way instead of brokers. And a lot of those places are cheaper than usual and never advertised.
I mean, NYC is expensive, but some posters act like you have to be in a high powered job making at least 200K to live in the city.
I'm FROM the city, born and raised in Manhattan. I currently live in Borough Park, Brooklyn. Not the sexiest neighborhood, but it's safe. I could afford to pay more in rent, but I like having spending money.
I wait tables for a living. I've seen people tell people who work in the service industry that they will not be able to afford living in the five boroughs unless they can tolerate living in the ghetto. That just isn't true.
I'm a waitress and I get my nails done about twice a week, go the hair salon every two months (to get a full sew in, about 350 bucks), get my brows done, eat out, and pay my rent and am paying for cosmetic surgery. Life in the city isn't cheap, but I don't see why people need to scare others into thinking they have to have an extremely high powered job to move to the city or prepare to live on the streets.
People do exagerrate a bit. I think they are trying to keep one less mofo out. lol. This city is hypercompetitive and overcrowded as is. But a good chunk of the exagerrating is true. This is an expensive city to live in no doubt. Plus you gotta take into account that your a native, know the ins and outs. Someone just coming in will pay a premium.
Some may tend to overdo it, but it can be a big shock to experience what your $$ will get you here.
During the 1990s I lived much of the decade in Minneapolis (I'm a native NY'er) and rented a perfectly respectable studio apartment in a cool neighborhood for under $300/month.
What kills me when people try to tell me how expensive MY city is. I think I would know, I've only been living here my entire life.
And a lot of people who are considering moving to the city are actually most often seeking outer borough accommodations. Then people will tell them that they have to live in the most ghetto areas of the Bronx, Brooklyn or Queens if they aren't rich. I just saw a post where someone suggested that maybe a poster can find a place in Astoria for 1200/mo. Of course you can. People exaggerate so viciously here.
Most people who post here about moving to NYC seem fairly cognizant of the fact they'll be downsizing appreciably, but when they're told they're going to be homeless my eyes can't stop rolling.
I would love to live in NYC, but I could never afford it. Giving up my car, I still couldn't afford it ...
You probably could but it might not be up to your standards. You probably feel your money gets you a much more comfortable living situation in Jersey. For most people it comes down to that. Some people feel its worth it, many don't.
I used to make great money, and then I was downsized, and was forced to reinvent my lifestyle and living standards. It hasn't been easy - I live check to check, and save nothing ...
I'm back in college and until I graduate, I pray I have no crisis that arises.
I mean, NYC is expensive, but some posters act like you have to be in a high powered job making at least 200K to live in the city.
I'm FROM the city, born and raised in Manhattan. I currently live in Borough Park, Brooklyn. Not the sexiest neighborhood, but it's safe. I could afford to pay more in rent, but I like having spending money.
I wait tables for a living. I've seen people tell people who work in the service industry that they will not be able to afford living in the five boroughs unless they can tolerate living in the ghetto. That just isn't true.
I'm a waitress and I get my nails done about twice a week, go the hair salon every two months (to get a full sew in, about 350 bucks), get my brows done, eat out, and pay my rent and am paying for cosmetic surgery. Life in the city isn't cheap, but I don't see why people need to scare others into thinking they have to have an extremely high powered job to move to the city or prepare to live on the streets.
In all fairness, your situation is more unique than the average waitress making minimum wage at a divey diner. The "chain" you work for most likely pays better hourly than most other places and I'm sure the tips are better there than if you worked at the corner coffee shop. Know what I mean? Also, you're sharing an apartment and not renting on your own so your portion of the rent might be lower than someone having to rent on their own. For a single person to rent their own apartment in a nice neighborhood might not be feasible because it's hard to find a 1 bedroom apartment or studio under $1000 in a good area in one of the boroughs. I would even exclude Manhattan. Wages in the food industry vary drastically. Waiters at The Four Seasons or Club 21 are probably making over $60k. I honestly don't think people intend to scare other posters but maybe trying to "keep it real". Sometimes people have this dilusional fantasy that if they can "make it here" they can make it anywhere but sometimes it's just not the case.
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