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Interesting thoughts from various folks. There are of course pros and cons to every place, and things such as people, culture, amenities, transport etc can each be discussed in quite some detail and deserve their own threads. Sure I like these various aspects of the DMV area; however, the scope of my post was narrower for this thread, and that was the cost of housing, which the quoted post above addresses (btw the answer to Chariega's question is yes). As much as you like and enjoy these things, the most significant debt for regular folks is the mortgage.
Given an option (perhaps hypothetical), and logically speaking, would you choose to go into a larger amount of debt to have a house and live in the area or would you rather choose to move outside of DMV and own lower debt?
My other question is what's the average price of a SF home in the Md and Va suburbs and what is a reasonable level of income required to afford that price tag? I know it varies based on factors such as travel etc, but I was looking for a ball park based on reasonable assumptions such as a good neighborhood, close to public transit etc. An example is that a home in the suburbs costs about 500k and a 200k income would be required to afford that. Does that sound about right?
If you have opportunities elsewhere, the cost of living here isn't worth it. Some people move to cities for purely for the culture, arts, buzz, etc. of a particular place. But for me I'd rather save my money in a more affordable place, with good schools, decent entertainment options, and outdoor things I'm more interested in. For my particular career, however, job options are limited mostly to DC. But believe me, if I were in another field I'd move elsewhere to save more money and just visit the east coast for vacation.
300k here is getting a condo and 500k is getting a townhouse in a decent school district in Fairfax and not necessarily near transit (except maybe Kingstowne/Springfield would work). 500k will go farther in Prince William (but keep in mind that's a very suburban area and isn't everyone's cup of tea). I don't know Maryland well, but for schools, Montgomery County and Howard County would be the best places to look, and Howard County doesn't have much transit to DC. Both counties are pricey.
Your mileage may vary, but there are better places in the country to live with higher quality of life and lower costs for housing IMO.
My other question is what's the average price of a SF home in the Md and Va suburbs and what is a reasonable level of income required to afford that price tag?
I go by this:
Monthly mortgage payment (including taxes and escrow) <= 31% of Gross monthly household income
So, you should try to lock in a fixed rate while the going is good.
The founders of our country agreed to put the nation's capital, "In the South" to persuade wealthy and heavily populated Colonial Virginia to join our fledgling nation; almost every third grader in America could tell you that. Geographically Washington, D.C. is a southern city. Maryland also is defined as being in the upper (northern) reaches of "The South". This is true regardless of which modern day megalopolis they are part of. That being said, the District of Columbia, Maryland, and northern Virginia are really in a transitional zone: where northeastern culture meets southern culture and, since it is our nation's capital, where both meet international culture. I think this is one thing that makes the region special; not fodder for northern elitist. Also, anyone who has ever spent a summer in the D.C. area can really tell you about the "southern heat and humidity" LOL
Thats actually not the reason DC was put where it is, good try though
Public Relations. Not Journalism. The job market for news reporters is abysmal in DC and just about every other major metropolitan market. The Washington Post and Washington Times are hacking and slashing reporter jobs--and offering buyouts to senior editorial staff. Online news publications want writers who can craft academic papers with at least 5,000 words per article. Real investigative reporting side of journalism is on its death bed.
But DC is awash with public relations firms from Capitol Hill to Georgetown. Corporations are more profitable than ever and they are spending hefty millions on public relations and lobbying in DC. American businesses can never get enough tax breaks, regulatory relief, and federal government subsidies. If your sister can stomach being a shill for rich people and mega-corporations then she has a future in DC.
Quote:
Originally Posted by takealready
My sister is thinking about moving to D.C. in 2016. She has her Degree in Communication/Journalsim, what is the employment outlook for that category?
Public Relations. Not Journalism. The job market for news reporters is abysmal in DC and just about every other major metropolitan market. The Washington Post and Washington Times are hacking and slashing reporter jobs--and offering buyouts to senior editorial staff. Online news publications want writers who can craft academic papers with at least 5,000 words per article. Real investigative reporting side of journalism is on its death bed.
But DC is awash with public relations firms from Capitol Hill to Georgetown. Corporations are more profitable than ever and they are spending hefty millions on public relations and lobbying in DC. American businesses can never get enough tax breaks, regulatory relief, and federal government subsidies. If your sister can stomach being a shill for rich people and mega-corporations then she has a future in DC.
If you read carefully her background is in corporate communication, which is basically PR, not journalism. Again, it's a good fit for DC, better than most other places. I would not recommend journalism to anybody right now.
You are right about online news sites, you have to be able to write well researched long form writing, and most journalists are not very good at that.
Thanks for all of that Everyone. I am not surprised. The answers kind of bummed me out. I'm sick so that's easy to do right now but to help narrow some questions, I picked DC because of the Communications profession. I am at Newhouse School of Communications in Syracuse University. To practice here is a penny drop of hope so I use teaching to supplement my income as I finish a Masters program and freelance PR work.
A. I have a BA in Mass Comm/Corporate Comm and am finishing up an MA in Journalism & Media Management by end of the year. (Yes I know Journalism is on life support but its Newhouse #1 or #2 so half of us go into PR or Entrepreneurial or corporate media anyway)
B. I am looking to work in the PR sector of a media company, high level nonprofit or governmental company.*
C. I teach to supplement my income because outside of NYC, PR jobs are hard to come by...like here.
D. I'm an urban relic. I need stimulation, arts, culture, places to sing and perform poetry on the weekend. I slam and perform everywhere on the off times.
E. I do not intend on leaving my field. I use my teaching certification as a safety net. I intend on continuing my volunteer work with youth (particularly urban youth) or substitute teaching until I land a permanent PR job. Teaching here puts you in upper middle class income. It doesn't in NYC. So I was curious as to how it is in DC. NYC area is the alternative and its UBER expensive with MASSIVE SATURATED competition.
F. I'm looking to plant myself there with a good career and build.
Hope that helps you "get" me. Thank you for all the great feedback.
Thanks for all of that Everyone. I am not surprised. The answers kind of bummed me out. I'm sick so that's easy to do right now but to help narrow some questions, I picked DC because of the Communications profession. I am at Newhouse School of Communications in Syracuse University. To practice here is a penny drop of hope so I use teaching to supplement my income as I finish a Masters program and freelance PR work.
A. I have a BA in Mass Comm/Corporate Comm and am finishing up an MA in Journalism & Media Management by end of the year. (Yes I know Journalism is on life support but its Newhouse #1 or #2 so half of us go into PR or Entrepreneurial or corporate media anyway)
B. I am looking to work in the PR sector of a media company, high level nonprofit or governmental company.*
C. I teach to supplement my income because outside of NYC, PR jobs are hard to come by...like here.
D. I'm an urban relic. I need stimulation, arts, culture, places to sing and perform poetry on the weekend. I slam and perform everywhere on the off times.
E. I do not intend on leaving my field. I use my teaching certification as a safety net. I intend on continuing my volunteer work with youth (particularly urban youth) or substitute teaching until I land a permanent PR job. Teaching here puts you in upper middle class income. It doesn't in NYC. So I was curious as to how it is in DC. NYC area is the alternative and its UBER expensive with MASSIVE SATURATED competition.
F. I'm looking to plant myself there with a good career and build.
Hope that helps you "get" me. Thank you for all the great feedback.
DC is very good for PR, but crap for journalism. Remember every nonprofit, government agency, professional organization, trade organization, and lobbying/law firm hires PR people. Don't expect to get a job at a media company out here. PR is the way to go.
With that being said, don't expect to start at a high level nonprofit out of school, even graduate school, even Newhouse. You may need to get your start at a smaller one and work from there.
Also it's government agency, not government company. The distinction matters, precision of language matters.
DC is very good for PR, but crap for journalism. Remember every nonprofit, government agency, professional organization, trade organization, and lobbying/law firm hires PR people. Don't expect to get a job at a media company out here. PR is the way to go.
With that being said, don't expect to start at a high level nonprofit out of school, even graduate school, even Newhouse. You may need to get your start at a smaller one and work from there.
Also it's government agency, not government company. The distinction matters, precision of language matters.
Not entirely true. DC is arguably one of the biggest cities for journalists in the US. Being the heart of American politics there are tons of newspapers & news agencies based in the area.
Not entirely true. DC is arguably one of the biggest cities for journalists in the US. Being the heart of American politics there are tons of newspapers & news agencies based in the area.
True, but most are laying off people. Many are leaving the profession.
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