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Old 02-13-2014, 05:50 PM
 
Location: Upper West Side, Manhattan, NYC
15,331 posts, read 23,771,714 times
Reputation: 7419

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Quote:
Originally Posted by knitgirl View Post
Very interesting and exactly what I expected. It's completely true that it depends on the neighborhood you are in, but also the type of establishment. Obviously you can meet anybody anywhere, but the type of place almost dictates who may go to it. I have friends of mine from Europe and Asia who wouldn't be caught dead in a typical midwestern cultured dive spot. If that's the only type of place you go, that may be why you only meet people from certain areas. I always find it funny on here when people say they never meet anybody from outside of the country. I meet someone new from outside of the US almost weekly here, but I think it's because of the types of places I hang out at and the neighborhoods.
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Old 02-13-2014, 10:51 PM
 
Location: Nort Seid
5,288 posts, read 8,831,424 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by marothisu View Post
Very interesting and exactly what I expected. It's completely true that it depends on the neighborhood you are in, but also the type of establishment. Obviously you can meet anybody anywhere, but the type of place almost dictates who may go to it. I have friends of mine from Europe and Asia who wouldn't be caught dead in a typical midwestern cultured dive spot. If that's the only type of place you go, that may be why you only meet people from certain areas. I always find it funny on here when people say they never meet anybody from outside of the country. I meet someone new from outside of the US almost weekly here, but I think it's because of the types of places I hang out at and the neighborhoods.
21% of Chicago is foreign born... That's a LOT of people, 500K+.
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Old 02-13-2014, 11:42 PM
 
Location: Upper West Side, Manhattan, NYC
15,331 posts, read 23,771,714 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Chi-town Native View Post
21% of Chicago is foreign born... That's a LOT of people, 500K+.
Yep, then you have to count the people not born in Illinois. If 5% is not from the midwest of the remaining ~25%, that's still like close to 150K more people.
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Old 02-14-2014, 08:49 AM
 
Location: Los Angeles, CA
555 posts, read 799,538 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Stillers View Post
I would love to see qualitative data on WHY people decide to move to Chicago, especially from warm-weather states (SoCal, Florida, etc). I wonder if the majority come for school/work, or if they visited once and decided the city was their next move. I know this data doesn't exist, just saying.
Darn. I see I'm not the only Californian with Chicago in my sights.

It's curious you mention weather. Sure we like our mild weather, but weather is not the only important factor to greater quality of life. Housing here is *expensive*. Last year I went to a bunch of open houses, and quite often there was some dude walking through the house with a videocamera. He was taping the house for a potential out-of-area investor, who would buy the house sight unseen.

One of the more popular local real estate agents told us he rarely bothers with people like us (regular home buyers), since he gets so much more business from non-local buyers. Some are U.S.-based (Wall Street firms), others are from China and elsewhere where people have money they want to get out of the country and put into safer investments. Ah, no wonder why some real estate agents pretty much ignored us at open houses.

The firms are looking to hold and rent until it becomes more lucrative to sell. Same goes for wealthy people from China, unless they're looking for a place for themselves and family to stay (they come over for business, they have kids going to college stateside).

Even if you have a 20+% down and excellent credit, a lot of homes are simply out of reach because of this. You are competing with all-cash buyers who will outbid you. I wonder if Chicago has seen much of this activity.

Life is good in L.A. if you already have a house with an affordable mortgage (or you rent affordably) and your work is nearby (or if you're one of the lucky ones who live and work along one of the faster train lines).

But if you're looking to buy now, the choices are sobering. You can choose to live in a "safer" neighborhood with decent schools (I mean decent, not stellar, but good and safer), but if you want to afford that house, you'd better choose farther out. This means a longer commute (can be 2 hours long one way), which means that you will have that house and yard, safe neighborhood, and decent school for your kids, but you will never see your kids or enjoy that house with the yard.

Or, you could buy a house not so far out, but it will be more expensive and you will be working to the bone to afford it, and every time there is an economic downturn or your company starts talking layoffs or your department starts talking furloughs, you will be stressed as hell you're going to miss a house payment and lose it all: home, health insurance, access to your kids' schools. Which means you work even harder and will never see your kids or enjoy that house. What good is nice weather if you're out of the house before dawn to avoid the peak of morning rush hour, stuck in an office all day, and driving home well after dinner to avoid evening rush hour? What good is the sun if you never see it -- or your family?

San Francisco Bay area also has similar issues. I'd say it's even more expensive there.

It's a quality of life issue, IMO. Of course everyone is different.
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Old 02-14-2014, 09:29 AM
 
Location: Upper West Side, Manhattan, NYC
15,331 posts, read 23,771,714 times
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^ I looked up on Zillow the house my dad grew up in, in Pasadena. It's like 1500 sq ft and worth over $700,000. Not in an immediate walkable area either or any area with amenities right around. You have to walk or drive 3/4 of a mile for that. The only thing around it is a small park.

My Aunt and Uncle's place in LA is 1900 sq ft and about $1 million. It's place is near one of the best high schools in LA and they have a cool patio but other than that - nothing special. My Uncle grew up in NYC but has been in LA for probably 35 years. They visited Chicago for the first time 2.5-3 years ago and love it. They returned last summer and said they'd move here in a heartbeat if they didn't have to experience winters.
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Old 02-14-2014, 01:27 PM
 
Location: Los Angeles, CA
555 posts, read 799,538 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by marothisu View Post
^ I looked up on Zillow the house my dad grew up in, in Pasadena. It's like 1500 sq ft and worth over $700,000. Not in an immediate walkable area either or any area with amenities right around. You have to walk or drive 3/4 of a mile for that. The only thing around it is a small park.

My Aunt and Uncle's place in LA is 1900 sq ft and about $1 million. It's place is near one of the best high schools in LA and they have a cool patio but other than that - nothing special. My Uncle grew up in NYC but has been in LA for probably 35 years. They visited Chicago for the first time 2.5-3 years ago and love it. They returned last summer and said they'd move here in a heartbeat if they didn't have to experience winters.
And Pasadena, fair or not, is known locally for having some of the worst schools. I'm not comparing it to the upper crust of public schools in California (like your New Trier), but the solid, respectable, "good" public schools we have here. Private school tuition on top of $700k is a lot to ask for many people.

Yes, the winter. If the winter were more mild (and if the city's schools were considered better), it would be much easier for many people to make the move to Chicago. But I suspect not everyone in Chicago would want that, so maybe the winter is a good thing.
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Old 02-15-2014, 07:14 PM
 
Location: San Leandro
4,576 posts, read 9,128,906 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MassVt View Post
I wonder how many have left Illinois, in the meantime?

You would have to think, that, at some point, the ridculous housing costs of coastal America would draw more people to cities like Chicago, which are located on a huge lake. But there are those who cling to the notion that " it's not the same as the ocean"...
Chicago is corrupt, going broke, and filled with illegals. Same problems as California, minus the great weather and cool things to do. Might as well stay by the coast at that point.
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Old 02-15-2014, 10:25 PM
 
Location: Lincoln Park, Chicago
498 posts, read 719,122 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Stillers View Post
I would love to see qualitative data on WHY people decide to move to Chicago, especially from warm-weather states (SoCal, Florida, etc). I wonder if the majority come for school/work, or if they visited once and decided the city was their next move. I know this data doesn't exist, just saying.

*Note to die-hard Chicagoans, I'm not saying there's anything wrong with the city. Just curious as to why.
I can only speak for myself. I'm self employed and used to live in central Florida (didn't like it there). I visited Chicago on vacation and just decided to move there.
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Old 02-15-2014, 11:55 PM
 
1,478 posts, read 2,400,041 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sydlee View Post
And Pasadena, fair or not, is known locally for having some of the worst schools. I'm not comparing it to the upper crust of public schools in California (like your New Trier), but the solid, respectable, "good" public schools we have here. Private school tuition on top of $700k is a lot to ask for many people.
It's entirely fair. I wouldn't call them some of the worst, but I'd call Pasadena schools well below average. We briefly considered moving out there when my in-laws were in Pasadena. They lived close to the town center, which was really nice, but the schools were bad. My sister-in-law lived in the South Pasadena school district to get around this, although their neighborhood wasn't as nice. SoPa schools are actually quite good.

Quote:
Originally Posted by sydlee View Post
It's a quality of life issue, IMO. Of course everyone is different.
Bingo. For people who are completely mobile, ie, they didn't move because it was obviously the best job or for family proximity issues, it's a quality of life thing. If you're into one particular thing/industry, places like NYC, DC, Miami, Vegas, LA, the Bay Area, etc are the best at what they offer for that one or two things that are central to their pitch. Unless it's your dream to become a commodities trader, Chicago doesn't really have that. It offers probably the most urban experience in the country outside of NYC, 4 seasons, the Lake, a good degree of diversity, plenty of entertainment and work options at a very attractive cost of living, all things considered. Chicago doesn't grade out as a 10 on anything. It's solid 8s or 9s across the board...provided you want a big city environment, don't mind the weather, and have no hang ups about lack of mountains or not living on a coast with salt in the water.
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Old 02-16-2014, 04:33 AM
 
Location: Upper West Side, Manhattan, NYC
15,331 posts, read 23,771,714 times
Reputation: 7419
Quote:
Originally Posted by NorCal Dude View Post
Chicago is corrupt, going broke, and filled with illegals. Same problems as California, minus the great weather and cool things to do. Might as well stay by the coast at that point.
Oh you have got to be kidding me with that one. If you really think there's nothing cool to do in Chicago, then you're a complete n00b.
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