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the rents are cheaper down south because the
wages are even cheaper, but gas is the same
price.
Absolutely. When you aren't getting paid as much as you would up North and you are paying the same amount in gas, because of a limited transportation infrastructure that keeps prices artificially high when 99% of the population drives to work, and your heating and cooling costs are the same you aren't necessarily any better than you would be in the North.
The only people getting over are land owners, military, and business owners. They can afford to keep prices high because of limited competition. They can keep up with the cost of inflation. Everyone else is at the mercy of these high prices, with limited mobility, even with a college degree. Land owners develop their properties and charge whatever the market will bear. Section 8 keeps rents higher in the slum, but then again, most in the slum can't afford to pay their full rent so they end up on Section 8, a vicious cycle. Truly affordable places are out in the exurbs where you have an hour and a half commute because of the horrendous traffic problems they have in the South, not to mention the enormous size of most cities, as the city and the county are often one and the same.
The South isn't that great it just looks better because of the slower pace of life but the absence of a truly urban infrastructure is maddening. Most cities are just now getting around to what they did in the North and the Midwest back in the forties and fifties. Even DC and Atlanta, as great as those cities are, did not have a subway until the seventies.
gas might be like 1 dollar cheaper or less in atlanta, but if you have
a finance job, you can live down south or anywhere with finance careers
and have a good life. a low wage earner can't get that job tho, so how
would they look moving there to make less than they can in nyc? people
make it seem like it is easy for someone with no money to just up and
move to another state, just because they are sick of seeing them.
be realistic.
And here in NY, you can pay anywhere between $1,100 - $1,200 for a 1 bedroom apartment smack in the middle of the "hood". Whichever way you look at it, The NY "hoods" are more expensive to live in than "hoods" down south. All the more reason to move down south or away from NY because whichever way you cut it, housing and the space you get down south is much better than NY's.
It is a question of what one considers to offer a better quality of life. Few "hoods" are on the level of what you have in New York, though, ironically, the crime statistics continue to suggest that New York is the safest city in America. Which only serves to remind me about the disparity between the rich and poor in New York, which is far worse than anything you'll see in the South, and the differences between neighborhoods, which can be night and day. OTOH, bigger living accommodations and cheaper rent sounds great, but the suburban nature that dominates Southern cities makes one wonder.
If someone actually likes the suburban environment, the South is preferable, and perhaps that is my hangup about the South because I do not care for that type of lifestyle. At least in New York you know you're in the city. You could be in a place that is suburban by their standards, because of detached single family housing, or mid-rise apartment buildings (as opposed to the high-rise buildings you have in Manhattan), but you have urban amenities you might not have in the most urban neighborhood in whatever city you choose to live in down South.
The architecture of the South ... well that is an entirely different issue
Oh awesome, I actually grew up in Virginia Beach and you basically hit the nail on the head why I no longer live there anymore. The thought of living in a "right to work" state that pays only Federal minimum wage and has almost no rights for workers makes me wonder why anyone would even want to live there. Biggest problem is that the only thing that would help there is if people there voted out the people that create these problems there, but instead they end up doing what I do, move away to a better state.
Rents are always going to be expensive in NYC, but you can also find something for $1200 and it be a decent one bedroom by NYC standards.
It is much easier to move away than to waste your life trying to fight the problems, which are too numerous to count and too institutionalized to fathom. At the end of the day I think that Virginia talks a good game, but in reality is no different than any other state in that change only comes about when its hand is forced and more people move out of the state, than are moving into the state. As long as people flee states like New York in search of a different lifestyle and lower taxes Virginia will continue to remain the interim ghetto between North and the South that it is. This place is like a purgatory, reminding us of what it could be, what it is, and what it is not. Nothing but mixed feelings about this place every time I wake up in the morning.
gas might be like 1 dollar cheaper or less in atlanta, but if you have
a finance job, you can live down south or anywhere with finance careers
and have a good life. a low wage earner can't get that job tho, so how
would they look moving there to make less than they can in nyc? people
make it seem like it is easy for someone with no money to just up and
move to another state, just because they are sick of seeing them.
be realistic.
That's all I'm asking. Who are people telling to move down South? It's easy to move down South if you have family there, which a lot of people in NY do, particularly people of color. But if you're a low wage earner with limited mobility what are you going to do in the South except go to college, which you could have done up North. Without a true plan all you do is get stuck in the mediocrity of suburban living in the South, complain about what the South is not when in reality the South has a lot of great things going on for it, just that you can't afford it because you're poor. The only people enjoying urban living down here are high wage earners.
Location: Formerly NYC by week; ATL by weekend...now Rio bi annually and ATL bi annually
1,522 posts, read 2,244,294 times
Reputation: 1041
Quote:
Originally Posted by 11KAP
gas might be like 1 dollar cheaper or less in atlanta, but if you have
a finance job, you can live down south or anywhere with finance careers
and have a good life. a low wage earner can't get that job tho, so how
would they look moving there to make less than they can in nyc? people
make it seem like it is easy for someone with no money to just up and
move to another state, just because they are sick of seeing them.
be realistic.
So when you filling up a car or truck that takes like 30 gallons to fill up you save real cash. Look at it in perspective: QOL is better because your dollar stretches more. I know people makin salaries that should be somewhat comfy here in Manhattan. But they damn near live check to check. Whereas that same salary somewhere else would make them comfy 4sho. But to argue that a minimum wage worker or let me say non professional cant leave NYC and do better is a fallacy. I personally know some peeps from the BX that moved to ATL and work regular everyday jobs and live better than they did here. But its all about the person and lots of personal circumstances. It would be hard for a minimum wage worker to move anywhere truth be told and do exceptionally well unless its a vertical move dollars wise.
Location: Formerly NYC by week; ATL by weekend...now Rio bi annually and ATL bi annually
1,522 posts, read 2,244,294 times
Reputation: 1041
Quote:
Originally Posted by goofy328
It is a question of what one considers to offer a better quality of life. Few "hoods" are on the level of what you have in New York, though, ironically, the crime statistics continue to suggest that New York is the safest city in America. Which only serves to remind me about the disparity between the rich and poor in New York, which is far worse than anything you'll see in the South, and the differences between neighborhoods, which can be night and day. OTOH, bigger living accommodations and cheaper rent sounds great, but the suburban nature that dominates Southern cities makes one wonder.
If someone actually likes the suburban environment, the South is preferable, and perhaps that is my hangup about the South because I do not care for that type of lifestyle. At least in New York you know you're in the city. You could be in a place that is suburban by their standards, because of detached single family housing, or mid-rise apartment buildings (as opposed to the high-rise buildings you have in Manhattan), but you have urban amenities you might not have in the most urban neighborhood in whatever city you choose to live in down South.
Have you been to multiple cities in the "SOUTH"?? What you describe is also akin to NYC. Yonkers, Mt. Vernon, Westchester, New Rochelle, ect are the burbs to NYC. To each his own. When your'e in other cities you know you are in the city also. I dont quite understand that statement you made....The cities I lived in have those so called urban amenities also. Im from New Orleans and in the city where I grew up there are corner stores and stuff everywhere...same as here in NYC. Though I live here I have actually lived in other cities and this place does have my nose wide open at all...I will explain later at end...
The architecture of the South ... well that is an entirely different issue
Thats what makes different cities with cultural history interesting. Other old cities such as NYC hold true to their old world style architectures. My hometown is an example; New Orleans. From the homes to the city buildings which are just like the buildings in Manhattan...shops below, offices/apartments above.
The true value of a city to me is abstract. I grew up in the inner city and I like to drive actually. Over my short years I have picked up other hobbies that this city does not offer. Im a part time motorcycle racer and Atlanta has 2 world class road courses within 30 minutes of the city. NYC cant touch that. LA has the same...and they have beaches. Its all about the personal preferences of the person. I have done large cities and right now its all about money to me. I may work here but I own properties in aother places. They all have museums, restaurants, shopping and chicks to occupy my time. And racetracks. But NYC is kool for the time being; overpriced, but kool.
Last edited by SLIMMACKEY; 06-05-2012 at 12:33 PM..
Location: Formerly NYC by week; ATL by weekend...now Rio bi annually and ATL bi annually
1,522 posts, read 2,244,294 times
Reputation: 1041
Quote:
Originally Posted by 11KAP
^ you're right. i get what you're saying.
it's just not easy for everybody to do it.
Oh I know. If somebody is movin from NYC to say Charlotte just to get away because they want a change I could understand it, but at the end of the day its at their own peril if its not a vertical move salary or wage wise.
So when you filling up a car or truck that takes like 30 gallons to fill up you save real cash. Look at it in perspective: QOL is better because your dollar stretches more. I know people makin salaries that should be somewhat comfy here in Manhattan. But they damn near live check to check. Whereas that same salary somewhere else would make them comfy 4sho. But to argue that a minimum wage worker or let me say non professional cant leave NYC and do better is a fallacy. I personally know some peeps from the BX that moved to ATL and work regular everyday jobs and live better than they did here. But its all about the person and lots of personal circumstances. It would be hard for a minimum wage worker to move anywhere truth be told and do exceptionally well unless its a vertical move dollars wise.
Not so much that they can't do better but they aren't just going to land into some cushy job because there is just that much prosperity in the South to go around, like their cup is overflowing or something. People need to realize that they are going to have to fight like they do anywhere else. If you are used to New York you already know how to position yourself because you know what the hustle is, but not everyone has that mindset.
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. But NYC is kool for the time being; overpriced, but kool.
