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The "hot" cities for young people like Seattle and San Francisco have some of the bleakest job prospects for them in the nation yet 20-somethings keep flocking to them. Even Austin, which has fared much better than most of the country, is extremely competitive and its job market difficult to break into. However these are the preferred cities for young college grads and I am wondering what factors everybody makes a city attractive for young people. I have included a multiple choice poll with the most common reasons I've seen mentioned. Discuss!
I voted "job market" and "other." The other is housing. I hate high-rise living or frumpy in-town bungalow living. I like newer housing stock. This is why I once selected Atlanta, for example. I got a good job offer from afar and liked all the newer suburban apartment complexes with nice grounds, pool, and amenities.
I would imagine some people would vote either of the 2 political dimensions (ultra-liberal, no religious right). After all, this is gotta-love-everybody liberal CDF. Personally, I'll take "middle of the road" any day, which is not an option. Well, I think it could be the "other."
The "hot" cities for young people like Seattle and San Francisco have some of the bleakest job prospects for them in the nation yet 20-somethings keep flocking to them. Even Austin, which has fared much better than most of the country, is extremely competitive and its job market difficult to break into. However these are the preferred cities for young college grads and I am wondering what factors everybody makes a city attractive for young people. I have included a multiple choice poll with the most common reasons I've seen mentioned. Discuss!
I think young people just like a city with a lot of young people in it. That may sound redundant, but when a city attracts a good share of younger people, more keep coming to be with those other younger people so they can make friends and ultimately families.
It may start off with job prospects or entertainment venues but the momentum can keep it adding even when those things subside. Either a lot of entry-level jobs or a significant music scene or some sort of beach/mountain/recreational thing usually get the ball rolling.
I think young people just like a city with a lot of young people in it. That may sound redundant, but when a city attracts a good share of younger people, more keep coming to be with those other younger people so they can make friends and ultimately families.
It may start off with job prospects or entertainment venues but the momentum can keep it adding even when those things subside. Either a lot of entry-level jobs or a significant music scene or some sort of beach/mountain/recreational thing usually get the ball rolling.
This is somewhat true but every city of a decent size is going to have a sizable young population in it. What makes Portland and Seattle or even Austin so much more favorable to young people than Houston for instance? Young people from all over the country pack up to move to Seattle with only dreams but you don't see near the drive to move to Houston, though both are sure to offer plenty for the young. Houston however has far better job prospects.
This is somewhat true but every city of a decent size is going to have a sizable young population in it. What makes Portland and Seattle or even Austin so much more favorable to young people than Houston for instance? Young people from all over the country pack up to move to Seattle with only dreams but you don't see near the drive to move to Houston, though both are sure to offer plenty for the young. Houston however has far better job prospects.
The way these cities are marketed has a great deal to do with how they're perceived.
The media tells you that the Portlands, Seattles, and Austins of the world are where every young person wants to live, when the reality is that these cities mostly draw the attention of the White and Asian hipster/college student demographic, and not much else.
Right now, people both young and old are moving where the jobs are. Cities like Houston, Dallas, and Atlanta market themselves as business towns, but not as a hip, happy-go-lucky hot-spots for the young and free. It's not until after people actually move there that they discover they're actually much cooler than previously thought.
As for the actual thread topic, I'd say that nightlife, above all, would be most important to your average twenty-something, and most major cities offer more than enough, in that regard.
The way these cities are marketed has a great deal to do with how they're perceived.
The media tells you that the Portlands, Seattles, and Austins of the world are where every young person wants to live, when the reality is that these cities mostly draw the attention of the White and Asian hipster/college student demographic, and not much else.
Right now, people both young and old are moving where the jobs are. Cities like Houston, Dallas, and Atlanta market themselves as business towns, but not as a hip, happy-go-lucky hot-spots for the young and free. It's not until after people actually move there that they discover they're actually much cooler than previously thought.
As for the actual thread topic, I'd say that nightlife, above all, would be most important to your average twenty-something, and most major cities offer more than enough, in that regard.
I have a friend who took an oil and gas industry job in Houston after college. He first lived at a fairly new complex near Westheimer/Dairy Ashford where his unit was actually a 1-story with a partial upper story. He wound up liking Houston and moved inside the Loop, off Westheimer.
Portland, Seattle and Austin have been borderline ruined by all the people moving there only to be part of a counterculture movement. From the first two, many people wind up going home, wherever that is, because they'd wind up sharing a dingy house with the siding peeling with 3 other people in perpetuity.
a young person who goes to a city for skyscrapers should literally walk him/herself to a mental hospital ward.
What catches young people mind are education, vibrancy, nightlife, and diversity.
you only live life once what young geek goes to a city for doofy skyscrapers that stand in the same post all day. The only thing special about that is that a human cant do it.
This is somewhat true but every city of a decent size is going to have a sizable young population in it. What makes Portland and Seattle or even Austin so much more favorable to young people than Houston for instance? Young people from all over the country pack up to move to Seattle with only dreams but you don't see near the drive to move to Houston, though both are sure to offer plenty for the young. Houston however has far better job prospects.
Portland and Seattle?! Maybe that was true in the 90's but young people are not going in droves to Seattle anymore at least not more thanHouston. Austin held that crown in the 2000's but that is fading too.
Portland and Seattle?! Maybe that was true in the 90's but young people are not going in droves to Seattle anymore at least not more thanHouston. Austin held that crown in the 2000's but that is fading too.
So what's under the spotlight now? Austin, with the seat of the Texas government and 50,000 university students, in a relatively small metro area. No thanks. I went through it once and did not like it.
I am 24 years old and live in the Bay Area because here is where all the software development jobs are. Also, this area is just gorgeous and - being 24 years old - I have no family to take care of. 100% of my after-tax wages go toward me. Families necessarily have tighter budgets.
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