My story of living in NYC and why the taxes are too high (New York: sales, real estate)

[mikejj2004]

After several visits where I stayed in manhattan for a week or two I decided that I wanted to move there and at least try it out for a few months. I had a job that let me work from anywhere so that end was already taken care of and I boarded a plane to LaGaurdia and got on the M60 into manhattan. I stayed at my usual place near Columbia until I found a more permanent living situation with roomates. Manhattan is expensive but I have always laughed at how people on the internet in my opinion exaggerate it. In manhattan you can spend anywhere from $1500/month for rent/transport/food if you have roomates and keep the cost low to $100,000, it all depends. I lived on the Upper East Side by 1st Avenue and it wasn't that bad cost wise. I took the subway/bus everywhere and ate at a pizza place right around the block that only cost $2.25. Rite Aid is the cheapest place to buy groceries in Manhattan. As different as Manhattan was from Texas, after a few days you feel like you've always lived there. In the end however it was the high taxes that made me convinced I shoulden't live there permanently. 15.4% (employee+employer SS+Medicare) 35% federal highest bracket, 3.648% City, 6.85% state. If you cost your employer $100,000/year you will ultimately only get $46,082 in take home pay. I realized even though alot of people in NYC make alot of money, they arent wealthy. I think the best time to live in manhattan would be late 1800s early 1900s when the city was on the rise and there was get this - no fed income taxes and probably no state ones either. I think the final straw came when I tried to order some books on Buy.com and they charged me sales tax even though Buy.com is based in CA.

[Viralmd]

In that 'wonderful' era of the late 19th and early 20th century there were more people living in poverty (proportionally) in NYC than there are now. Look at Jacob Riis' photographs. MOST people struggled in NYC. It was a privileged few who could afford anything that approaches what we now consider 'middle class.'

Documenting "The Other Half": The Social Reform Photography of Jacob Riis and Lewis Hine
How the Other Half Lives

It was actually the lifestyle of the robber barons who lived so opulently and with such excess in New York in the golden age that you admire so who were the impetus for the government to impose the federal income tax.

[saturnfan]

We lived in Stuyvesant Town in the 70's - 80's and now live in Raleigh, NC where we rent a marvelous modern 1 BR for $685.

Rent stabilized 2 BR was $550 including utilities when we left in 1984.

It was great! Now, we couldn't dream of Manhattan since our 2BR at market rate rents for nearly $4K.

My roots are East New York, but Manhattan was a dream come true. Shame more folks of moderate means won't get our chance to experience the excitement.

Merry Christmas to all.

[dixiecupdrinking]

I think the best time to live in Manhattan was sometime around 1600, right before the Dutch ruined everything. You could rent a two-bedroom for an ox a year and there was hardly anyone on the subways.

[Woozle]

Originally Posted by Viralmd

In that 'wonderful' era of the late 19th and early 20th century there were more people living in poverty (proportionally) in NYC than there are now. Look at Jacob Riis' photographs.

These people were recent arrivals from Southern/Eastern Europe. Outside of immigrant cities, the working class had a far superior standard of living, and people who could speak English fluently lived in far better circumstances even in New York City. Remember, those cute little 2 and 3 story rowhouses in Brooklyn/Queens were for the local skilled working class. Four and five story rowhouses were middle/upper-middle class. So what you're seeing in those Riis photographs is just recently transplanted Southern/Eastern European rural poverty, not American poverty. Ditto for today's New York. It's rural Latin American/Caribbean poverty, inflicted upon the US by an idiotic immigration policy.

It was actually the lifestyle of the robber barons who lived so opulently and with such excess in New York in the golden age that you admire so who were the impetus for the government to impose the federal income tax.

The tax initially was only something like 6% max. It was not a tax to redistribute income, it was a tax to pay for the ever-increasing government expenses. The wholesale government thievery started with Frankie Roosevelt (who at least had the excuse of the Great Depression and then the war). But it was he, and the late 40's-50's socialists who created the bloated monstrosity of a government that will bankrupt us in 20 years, when the Ponzi scheme that the government runs, Social Security, comes home to roost. Pity, it was a great country.

[zdg]

Originally Posted by mikejj2004

15.4% (employee+employer SS+Medicare) 35% federal highest bracket, 3.648% City, 6.85% state.

Well, yes, but the only part of that equation that is NYC specific is the city and state tax. You'd be paying the rest no matter where you were (as a US tax payer).

The way we viewed the trade off (we're also coming from Texas) was that living in Manhattan means we can get rid of our cars. Once we netted out the tax situation and car payments, car insurance, gasoline, car maint., we were looking at difference of about +2.5% over what it costs here.

Frankly, I've yet to see where Manhattan is "so" expensive. We were up there in November to check out the UWS and thought every single meal and grocery visit was almost identical to what we pay for food here inside-the-loop in Houston. I think most of the "outrageous expense" of Manhattan is grossly overblown unless you're moving from the middle of nowhere. Maybe NYC used to be significantly more expensive than other cities, but we honestly never once got sticker shock from a single purchase while we were there last month. I was fully expecting 20% increases over what we were used to....never saw it.

[cjma79]

I think your take home is actually 60k for 100k single person.

Originally Posted by mikejj2004

After several visits where I stayed in manhattan for a week or two I decided that I wanted to move there and at least try it out for a few months. I had a job that let me work from anywhere so that end was already taken care of and I boarded a plane to LaGaurdia and got on the M60 into manhattan. I stayed at my usual place near Columbia until I found a more permanent living situation with roomates. Manhattan is expensive but I have always laughed at how people on the internet in my opinion exaggerate it. In manhattan you can spend anywhere from $1500/month for rent/transport/food if you have roomates and keep the cost low to $100,000, it all depends. I lived on the Upper East Side by 1st Avenue and it wasn't that bad cost wise. I took the subway/bus everywhere and ate at a pizza place right around the block that only cost $2.25. Rite Aid is the cheapest place to buy groceries in Manhattan. As different as Manhattan was from Texas, after a few days you feel like you've always lived there. In the end however it was the high taxes that made me convinced I shoulden't live there permanently. 15.4% (employee+employer SS+Medicare) 35% federal highest bracket, 3.648% City, 6.85% state. If you cost your employer $100,000/year you will ultimately only get $46,082 in take home pay. I realized even though alot of people in NYC make alot of money, they arent wealthy. I think the best time to live in manhattan would be late 1800s early 1900s when the city was on the rise and there was get this - no fed income taxes and probably no state ones either. I think the final straw came when I tried to order some books on Buy.com and they charged me sales tax even though Buy.com is based in CA.

[Moderate Guy]

Originally Posted by mikejj2004

I think the final straw came when I tried to order some books on Buy.com and they charged me sales tax even though Buy.com is based in CA.

The NYS Department of Finance requires that sales tax be charged to the consumer for goods/services delivered within the state of New York - even if ordered from an out-of-state vendor.

[mathjak107]

what? you mean you people dont report the sales tax you owe at the end of the year for all those internet purchases you made where they didnt collect tax? miles im shocked at them

[mathjak107]

one thing about taxes is states will get you one way or another. it really takes a very comprehensive look at lots of different things to compare.. we have states with no state income tax that are actually higher then some states that do when all aspects are looked at.

pa has much lower real estate taxes and a lower state tax then new york where our house is. but pa also has an inheritance tax to anyone but your spouse thats killer. thats on top of any estate taxes and regular state income tax on an estate....

alot of times its not what percentage the tax is as much as what deduction they dont allow or what deductions they do allow

as high as new york is retirees can still get as much as 60,000-65,000 in income state tax free if they have a pension and retirement income from social security

http://www.poconorecord.com/apps/pbc...02/-1/NEWS0923