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Since I teach college economics, I tell my students that the so-called freedom of mobility in America is a myth. In other words, if you think you want to move to a high-priced area, do it when you are young so your standard of living will allow you to buy there. If you spend too much time in, let us say, Paducah, Kentucky, you will never have enough through savings or the selling of your lower-priced home to ever make a go of it in San Diego, et. al.
Retirees beware. Unless you have made a pile of money. There are many areas you will never be able to afford.
And guess what? Some of the nicest areas are still cheap. Northeast Oklahoma and East Texas come to mind as real bargains with plenty of recreational opportunities.
Just thought I would post this for what it is worth.
What if the pioneers thought this way ? The Pilgrams. The Spainish.
You can do whatever you want if you have the will to accompany your decision and the desire to suceed and the ability to compromise.
Sometimes I believe the problem we have as Americans is that we have never experienced change, or simply that we fear change for no reason other than change itself.
We accept complacency and find ways to rationalize conservative behavior. We say "it just can't be, here are the empirical reasons why".
In reality, if you live in an area like Kentucky and wish to live in a area like San Diego, you can do it....sure, it may take a little planning, some sacrifice, and alot of courage to embark upon this kind of change, but never let anyone tell you that you can't and that there is some form of predisposed socioeconomic structure in place that prevents you from doing so.
Hell, I grew up outside of DC the son of a telephone company repairman. I made 16k a year when I landed out here in the early 90s - fresh out of the Navy with unemployment in San Diego at something nuts like 7% (Recall General Dynamics massive layoffs). I worked fulltime and put myself through college while making $11 an hour and clipping coupons for every 'buy one get one free' deal known to man....
FF 15 years later....I'm doing ok and most importantly, I have options in life that I've created for myself. Seriously, you need to rethink you outlook.
If those places are unaffordable, then how come so many people live there?
"No one goes there anymore, it's too crowded."
-Yogi Berra
Kind of the old, "rather rule in hell than serve in heaven" idea.
I had a guy back in this small town in NC keep pushing me after 9-11 on why I didn't leave NYC and move back to NC. I finally got so fed up that I just told him that, "because, I would rather die up here than to live down there."
These are interesting and invigorating places to live. Not for everyone, but still works for many.
It would be very easy to get a 9 to 5 job, move to a cheap area of the country, and live life slow and relaxed.
I would find that boring. I want challenges. Life is short; I don't want to waste it sitting around doing the basics, and not achieving anything. I don't want to live; I want to thrive, and I want to do it in a place that is exciting.
Some people drive to the top of a mountain. I want to climb it by hand.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mhogan10010
Kind of the old, "rather rule in hell than serve in heaven" idea.
I had a guy back in this small town in NC keep pushing me after 9-11 on why I didn't leave NYC and move back to NC. I finally got so fed up that I just told him that, "because, I would rather die up here than to live down there."
These are interesting and invigorating places to live. Not for everyone, but still works for many.
Expensive usually equals desirability like one poster mentioned. There are some gems that haven't skyrocketed in home prices (mainly Austin, Houston, and Dallas) but other cities like San Fran and NYC are way out-of-whack in the cost of living sector.
For $250,000 in Phoenix you can get a small home in a nice area (Chandler or Gilbert).
For $250,000 in Dallas you can buy a large home in a great area.
For $250,000 in San Fran you could barely buy a TINY apartment in an undesirable location.
It's all about priorities. If living in a city like San Fran or NYC is #1 on your list, then you most likely won't be able to enjoy some of the little luxuries in life. But if you live in a city such as Dallas (which I consider a great city), you can buy what you want and still have money leftover for vacations, clubs etc etc.
My unscientific list of expensive places to live:
1) San Fran
2) NYC
3) San Diego
4) Seattle
5) Los Angeles
Of course there are places such as Atherton, The Hamptons, Palm Beach etc that are unaffordable to 95% of the general population.
I bought my place in Phoenix/ Scottsdale years ago and the prices have skyrocketed. I could NEVER afford my home in this day and age but I luckily bought before the boom.
This makes me wonder how young adults will be able to live. When I was growing up a $500,000 home was an absolute MANSION but now it's becoming the norm in many cities. It'll be interesting to see how everything pans out in the next 10-20 years..
What I wanna know is HOW COME NO ONE MENTIONED MIAMI???!!!
Aren't we on any of those lists? We're one of those ridiculously expensive, housing market went up 200%, real desirable but no one can afford places too!
(I guess I was feeling a little left out )
What I wanna know is HOW COME NO ONE MENTIONED MIAMI???!!!
Aren't we on any of those lists? We're one of those ridiculously expensive, housing market went up 200%, real desirable but no one can afford places too!
No offense because I've been to Miami and love it...but it isn't even close to being one of the most expensive cities in the U.S. Homes aren't ridiculously expensive unless you live on the water. It isn't on the cheap side of the real estate spectrum but doesn't come close to cities live San Fran and NYC.
When you compare Miami real estate to areas such as Palm Beach, Naples, St. Augustine, Boca Raton; it almost seems cheap.
Miami is still relatively affordable, true the real estate did skyrocket but it hasn't reach "unattainable" status yet. Now if you were talking about a select area such as Coral Cables or Miami Beach then you would be correct; but Miami as a whole is still affordable.
It would be very easy to get a 9 to 5 job, move to a cheap area of the country, and live life slow and relaxed.
I would find that boring. I want challenges. Life is short; I don't want to waste it sitting around doing the basics, and not achieving anything. I don't want to live; I want to thrive, and I want to do it in a place that is exciting.
Some people drive to the top of a mountain. I want to climb it by hand.
While I never really had a 9-5 job when I was living in small towns in the South (I was a minister which is 24 - 7 work), but I found it very dull. Just me, but I would rather be a small fish in a big pond with room to grow.
Ten most overpriced places for 2006 according to Forbes.
1. Essex County, MA
2. San Francisco, CA
3. San Jose, CA
4. Honolulu, HI
5. Cambridge, MA
6. New York, NY
7. Tucson, AZ
8. Oakland, CA
9. Boston, MA
10. Los Angeles, CA
The list changed a little from last year. Here is the 2005 list.
1. Seattle, WA
2. New York, NY
3. Portland, OR
4. Chicago, IL
5. San Jose, CA
6. Bergen-Passaic, NJ
7. San Francisco, CA
8. Middlesex, NJ
9. Denver, CO
10. Los Angeles, CA
Overpriced and expensive are two vastly different things. Overpriced means an area is selling for a percieved value instead of selling for their actual value; i.e. a home that is worth $x amount of money but is selling for $x amount more than what it's worth.
Expensive means that an area is just highly unaffordable.
Quote:
Ten most overpriced places for 2006 according to Forbes.
1. Essex County, MA
2. San Francisco, CA
3. San Jose, CA
4. Honolulu, HI
5. Cambridge, MA
6. New York, NY
7. Tucson, AZ
8. Oakland, CA
9. Boston, MA
10. Los Angeles, CA
I agree all these places are overpriced except for Honolulu. Honolulu is located on an island and therefore has no more landmass to expand. So Honolulu is going upward instead of outward. Condos are still affordable but actual homes located on a lot will be quite expensive.
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