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Hello all.
I am a 26 year old nurse anesthesia student at the University of Maryland in Baltimore, MD and I am graduating with my master's degree this may. I intend on accepting a nurse anesthesia position at Mt. Sinai Hospital upon graduation, where I will be making $150,000/year + benefits. I have always dreamed of moving to Manhattan (HUGE sex and the city fan, I'm not sure if this is a valid basis for judgment though), however, I have questions that I would like to have answered by some authentic New Yorkers (not wannabees like myself). ANY information you can provide will be helpful, don't be shy. Give me your honest opinion, including any biases you may have. I could get more formal information from a different source, but I figure a message board format will be more honest?
1. How accurate is Sex and the City as my basis for New York life?
2. I want to BUY a condo/co-op, hopefully one bedroom, but I would be willing to settle on a studio if the neighborhood was right. I am willing to pay ~$3,000 a month in mortgage payments. I would like to live in a relatively hip/trendy neighborhood that is more nightlife- and single- rather than child-oriented. I also want to live in a neighborhood that is occupied with people in a similar income range (upwardly mobile professionals, no slums). Also, I need to be near metro as I do not plan on having a car. Which neighborhood in your opinion best suites my interests? Be specific please.
3. What is the social scene like? Do I have to be a trust fund baby/Wall Street banker making $500,000 year in order to thoroughly enjoy the city? I want to eat out most nights of the week/buy expensive shoes as I would be able to do in Baltimore, but is that feasible at my income in Manhattan? Essentially, what kind of social circle will my 150,000K put me in in New York? In Baltimore that's considered good money, but I pretty sure it's different in Manhattan.
4. How easy is it to meet other 20/30 somethings with $150,000+ incomes? Where are they?
Shallow questions, maybe. Unanswered, definitely. Anybody with any opinion at all answer. Thanks!!!
I've lived in the same place for 38 years, so I'll leave the real estate business to others.
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Originally Posted by harborgirl
1. How accurate is Sex and the City as my basis for New York life?
Fiction. Completely and absolutely. As I posted on a different thread a short while ago, the only one of those gals who was not living significantly beyond her means was Miranda. Samantha probably earned about as much, but she lived more lavishly.
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3. What is the social scene like? Do I have to be a trust fund baby/Wall Street banker making $500,000 year in order to thoroughly enjoy the city?
No. There's plenty of cheap/free entertainment. New York City Ballet for $20. Met Opera for $15. Free Shakespeare in the Park. There's also pretty good discount shopping, so you can find your to-die-for designer shoes, if you're lucky, at 60% off, especially if your feet are size 6-8, which mine, alas, are not.
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4. How easy is it to meet other 20/30 somethings with $150,000+ incomes? Where are they?
If you go around asking people what they make, probably not so easy. It is not difficult to meet people. There are many suggestions on another thread, ranging from joining classes (especially if they involve interactions with others). Too much of a commitment? Most bookstores have reading groups organized around a special area of interest -- mysteries, new fiction, history, etc. You can volunteer for community projects -- I'm sure there's a pretty comprehensive list somewhere on the web. New York Cares is one umbrella organization that matches people's interests to non-profits that need bodies. There are always -- well from spring through November, three years out of four -- political campaigns where you're sure to find people who share your general value system. Soup Kitchens, synagogue/church groups, perhaps even Mt. Sinai, although I doubt you're interested in spending your free time "at work."
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Shallow questions, maybe. Unanswered, definitely. Anybody with any opinion at all answer. Thanks!!!
Nothing wrong with shallow, but I don't think most of your questions were.
I agree, 'Sex and the City' is complete and utter fiction. I've lived in Manhattan my entire life (except for college) and I've never seen or met anyone who has that kind of lifestyle.
For a co-op apartment youi're going to have to supply complete financials, and unless you have some money in the bank and some capital backing you up, it's going to be an uphill battle. Be careful what you get into, because taxes in that income bracket are PAINFUL. And, since you're single you might well be caught up in the alternative minimum tax. Not pretty. Talk with some real estate agents, but I think you'd have better luck with a condominium. Hip neighborhood? I have no idea. I don't live in a 'hip' or 'trendy' neighborhood, but I can walk to work, it has the amenities I need and it's quiet. To me, the trendy neighborhoods do look like slums, but that's just me. I don't like the Lower East Side or Chelsea. But you're going to have to look for yourself.
There are plenty of opportunities to meet people, but as mentioned above, going around asking people their incomes is sure to leave you alone on Saturday nights. Why not just meet people and enjoy them for who they are and not for what their bank statements say? You might be surprised. It's a big city and there are lots of people here who are wonderfully interesting, fun and don't make your minimum-required income.
yes i would like to know where r some 20-30 somethings women who makes at least $150,000 hangout too? so once i married them i quit my job and they can take care of me.
[quote=harborgirl;3195864]I have always dreamed of moving to Manhattan (HUGE sex and the city fan, I'm not sure if this is a valid basis for judgment though), however, I have questions that I would like to have answered by some authentic New Yorkers (not wannabees like myself).
1. How accurate is Sex and the City as my basis for New York life?
I'm not sure if I'd trust you as my nurse anesthetist. How accurate do you think a TELEVISION show written by gay MEN is? This is how NY'ers feel about yet another SATC wannabe:
Chris Noth, who’s still best known for playing Mr. Big on Sex and the City, is ready to repent for all the harm that series did to New York. At the opening-night party for Talk Radio, he lamented, “What makes me really sick is how New York now looks like a bad imitation of Sex and the City. Meatpacking is a good example of just how ****ed up it is. You can’t have a city that’s interesting where the only people living in it are rich. When I came here as a kid, as a young adult, you could get lost—many different worlds collided. You cannot say that today.â€
2. I want to BUY a condo/co-op, hopefully one bedroom, but I would be willing to settle on a studio if the neighborhood was right. I am willing to pay ~$3,000 a month in mortgage payments.
Don't forget to add monthly maintenance charges of $1000-1500, in addition to mortgage payments.
I would like to live in a relatively hip/trendy neighborhood that is more nightlife- and single- rather than child-oriented. I also want to live in a neighborhood that is occupied with people in a similar income range (upwardly mobile professionals, no slums). Also, I need to be near metro as I do not plan on having a car. Which neighborhood in your opinion best suites my interests? Be specific please.
Anywhere below 14th Street, but above Downtown.
3. What is the social scene like? Do I have to be a trust fund baby/Wall Street banker making $500,000 year in order to thoroughly enjoy the city?
Yes, since you want to eat out every night and buy designer clothes.
I want to eat out most nights of the week/buy expensive shoes as I would be able to do in Baltimore, but is that feasible at my income in Manhattan?
No.
Essentially, what kind of social circle will my 150,000K put me in in New York? In Baltimore that's considered good money, but I pretty sure it's different in Manhattan.
Middle class.
4. How easy is it to meet other 20/30 somethings with $150,000+ incomes? Where are they?
Stand on a Manhattan corner, close your eyes, throw a rock, and you'll hit one of them.
yes i would like to know where r some 20-30 somethings women who makes at least $150,000 hangout too? so once i married them i quit my job and they can take care of me.
Ace Rock, I really like the inclusion of Chris Noth's quote about SaTC. I grew up in NYC, and boy did the show do wonders for presenting a City that doesn't exist but so did Seinfeld.
regarding finding a place to buy, just remember that the mortgage is not the only expense. There will be a monthly maintenance fee plus real estate taxes (if its a condo) and if a coop, just maintenance as taxes are included in coops maintenance.
Coops are tough to get approved in, especially in Manhattan. someone with a brand new job and possibly not much savings might have trouble.
You won't have this trouble with a condo, but on the other hand, condos are extremely expensive, much more so than coops.
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It is not difficult to meet people. There are many suggestions on another thread, ranging from joining classes (especially if they involve interactions with others). Too much of a commitment? Most bookstores have reading groups organized around a special area of interest -- mysteries, new fiction, history, etc. You can volunteer for community projects -- I'm sure there's a pretty comprehensive list somewhere on the web. New York Cares is one umbrella organization that matches people's interests to non-profits that need bodies. There are always -- well from spring through November, three years out of four -- political campaigns where you're sure to find people who share your general value system. Soup Kitchens, synagogue/church groups, perhaps even Mt. Sinai, although I doubt you're interested in spending your free time "at work."
