Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > General U.S.
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 06-07-2015, 12:24 PM
 
Location: Placitas, New Mexico
2,303 posts, read 2,942,029 times
Reputation: 2187

Advertisements

I'm not sure how you would ever successfully compare in which of these states is it better to live. It might come down just to job opportunities, family ties, and climate. I mean, Philadelphia is a world away from the rest of PA, NYC has almost nothing in common with upstate NY, and Boston doesn't share much in common with the Cape or the Berkshires in MA.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 06-07-2015, 01:06 PM
 
Location: Pittsburgh
3,296 posts, read 3,854,570 times
Reputation: 3137
Quote:
Originally Posted by FireKitty View Post
I live in Pennsylvania, and the cost of living is low here...PA is one of the least expensive places to live in the country.
Ummmm....I'm guessing you aren't even close to a major city. Rent here (in Pittsburgh) for a 1br averages $1,100 a month and real estate is rising fast. If you are looking for a trendy or decent neighborhood, then get ready to pay for it.

"One of the least expensive places in the country" Heck no. Taxes and COL are a killer here.

Pennsyltucky is extremely outdated. The Democrats rule. We are a little sister to next door neighbor NY.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-07-2015, 01:16 PM
 
92,035 posts, read 122,173,887 times
Reputation: 18141
Quote:
Originally Posted by bluecarebear View Post
Ummmm....I'm guessing you aren't even close to a major city. Rent here (in Pittsburgh) for a 1br averages $1,100 a month and real estate is rising fast. If you are looking for a trendy or decent neighborhood, then get ready to pay for it.

"One of the least expensive places in the country" Heck no. Taxes and COL are a killer here.

Pennsyltucky is extremely outdated. The Democrats rule. We are a little sister to next door neighbor NY.
What are the rates for a 1br "regular" area in Pittsburgh?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-07-2015, 04:59 PM
 
Location: The canyon (with my pistols and knife)
14,169 posts, read 22,583,485 times
Reputation: 17328
Quote:
Originally Posted by FireKitty View Post
Yes, I always say Pennsylvania is like a Southern state in the North.
Your assertion is bogus, and I'm being polite.


Life expectancy in Pennsylvania
Life expectancy in the South

Significant difference.


Percent of population without health insurance in Pennsylvania
Percent of population without health insurance in the South

Significant difference.


Diabetes rate in Pennsylvania
Diabetes rate in the South

Moderate difference.


Percent of population with at least a high school diploma in Pennsylvania
Percent of population with at least a high school diploma in the South

Significant difference.


Percent of population with at least a bachelor's degree in Pennsylvania
Percent of population with at least a bachelor's degree in the South

Moderate difference.


Poverty rate in Pennsylvania
Poverty rate in the South

Significant difference.


Abortion support in Pennsylvania
Abortion support in the South

Significant difference.


Gay marriage support in Pennsylvania
Gay marriage support in the South

Significant difference.


Religious Freedom Act support in Pennsylvania
Religious Freedom Act support in the South

Moderate difference.


Marijuana legalization support in Pennsylvania
Marijuana legalization support in the South

Moderate difference.


Labor union support in Pennsylvania
Labor union support in the South

Moderate difference.


Pennsylvania is politically moderate, not politically conservative. It has a degree of political diversity that neither New England nor the South have.

Furthermore, Pennsylvania ranks in the upper-middle quintile of all states when measured by the Human Development Index. It outranks every Southern state except Virginia, and that's because Virginia is a high outlier in the South, not because Pennsylvania is a low outlier in the Northeast. In fact, Pennsylvania isn't even the lowest-ranked state in the Northeast. Meanwhile, no Southern state other than Virginia even ranks in the top half.

Your assertion of Pennsylvania as "a Southern state in the North" does not withstand closer scrutiny. In fact, it really didn't take much effort to refute it. Please rethink your assertion for the sake of credibility.


Quote:
Originally Posted by nep321 View Post
Heck, Rick Santorum is from PA.
Yeah, and the moment he started going on his social crusades after winning reelection to the Senate in 2000 (he largely avoided social issues during his first Senate term), he got his ass kicked in 2006. In fact, he lost by the largest margin for an incumbent Senator since 1980, and the largest margin for an incumbent Republican Senator in history.


Quote:
Originally Posted by FireKitty View Post
But I've live in Pennsylvania my entire life, and I can say that it IS backward. Not just due to political conservatives, but backwards in other ways, too. I love this state but that's the way it is.
And I've lived in both Pennsylvania and the South, so I'm uniquely qualified to say that your "Southern state in the North" assertion is stupid as hell. First of all, if it was anything like a Southern state, I would never have experienced the culture shock I did when I moved to the South, period. And once again, the maps above prove you wrong with actual data.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-08-2015, 09:24 AM
 
1,007 posts, read 1,501,499 times
Reputation: 922
None of them. All 3 are overcrowded and dirty.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-08-2015, 09:41 AM
 
92,035 posts, read 122,173,887 times
Reputation: 18141
Quote:
Originally Posted by Europeanflava View Post
None of them. All 3 are overcrowded and dirty.
Which is incorrect.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-09-2015, 08:37 PM
 
Location: The State Line
2,621 posts, read 4,017,787 times
Reputation: 3054
My initial suggestion would be to transfer to a school with a bridge program towards your BSN. It will make you more marketable, particularly in MA: Healthcare is a particularly strong field, but very competitive. Experienced LPNs are finding they're better off returning to school to become RNs, as hospitals lay off LPNs, and LPNs have difficulty finding work (unless they're working towards their BSN).

The area you're looking into in MA is part of Boston Metro and is still a high cost of living area with rents right at $1000, if not exceeding that. Housing in the $200,000 range puts you out of reasonable commuting distances from Framingham and Plymouth.

My overalls suggestion would be to consider PA or the Capitol region of NY over MA for reasonable cost of living..

Last edited by LexWest; 06-09-2015 at 09:16 PM..
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-09-2015, 08:51 PM
 
Location: near bears but at least no snakes
26,636 posts, read 28,433,148 times
Reputation: 50438
Quote:
Originally Posted by LexWest View Post
My initial suggestion would be to transfer to a school with a bridge program towards your BSN. It will make you more marketable, particularly in MA: Healthcare is a particularly strong field, but very competitive. Experienced LPNs are finding they're better off returning to school to become RNs, as hospitals lay off LPNs, and
LPNs have difficulty finding work (unless they're working towards their BSN).

The area you're looking into in MA is part of Boston Metro and is still a high cost of living area with rents right at $1000, if not exceeding that. Housing in the $200,000 range puts you out of reasonable commuting distances from Framingham and Plymouth.

My overalls suggestion would be to consider PA of the Capitol region of NY over MA for reasonable cost of living..
This rings true to me. MA is extremely expensive and the Boston area is one of the most expensive places in the entire country. The Boston area is very crowded and traffic is a nightmare. You probably couldn't find a place to live for less than $1000/month. Houses for $200,000 would be far far away from where the jobs are. Heating costs are very high and winters are long and dark. If you wanted to live outside of the area you say you want to live in, you might find something more within your price range. Not in the Boston area though.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-09-2015, 10:15 PM
 
Location: Pittsburgh
3,296 posts, read 3,854,570 times
Reputation: 3137
Quote:
Originally Posted by ckhthankgod View Post
What are the rates for a 1br "regular" area in Pittsburgh?
"regular" neighborhoods disappeared about 5 years ago when the gentrification started. Rental amounts also depend on what amenities you can do without because Pittsburgh has old housing stock.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 07-15-2015, 08:04 AM
 
Location: Germantown, Philadelphia
13,947 posts, read 8,803,230 times
Reputation: 10256
Default City, or country?

I'm not a Pennsylvania native, but I was born and raised in a state that shares some key characteristics with it, namely, Missouri, and I've lived here nearly 35 years.

One thing you need to ask before evaluating any of the three states being discussed here save Massachusetts is: Do you want to live in an urban area, or is small-town or rural life more your preference?

A lot of the talk about cultural conservatism in Pennsylvania, and to a lesser extent New York State, hinges on this distinction.

As in Missouri, Pennsylvania's two biggest cities - one on either end of the state - are liberal bastions. Their liberalism is offset by the (political but not social) conservatism of their suburbs (this has diminshed significantly in suburban Philadelphia) and that of the more rural interior of the state. (There you will run across some of the cultural conservatism that has led detractors to refer to the state's interior as "Pennsyltucky" and James Carville to issue that infamous quip: his original wording was, "From Paoli to Squirrel Hill it's all Alabama in between." Paoli is the historic last stop for commuter trains on the Main Line out of Philadelphia; Squirrel Hill is an upscale district on Pittsburgh's eastern edge.)

The smaller cities in both Missouri and Pennsylvania range across the political spectrum. In Missouri, Springfield, the buckle of the Bible Belt, leans right, while St. Joseph and Columbia hew more to the center; in Pennsylvania, State College is a liberal island in a largely conservative sea, Erie, Harrisburg, Reading and Scranton/Wilkes-Barre lean Democratic, but not consistently so, and Lancaster City's Democrats often get canceled out by Lancaster County's Republicans.

The result is that Pennsylvania as a whole is purplish. Neither rabid cultural conservatives nor Bernie Sanders-style liberalism gain much traction here, and even when one party or the other has a lock on the State House, the minority party has enough influence to blunt their worst excesses.

BTW, "Democrats rule" is an inaccurate statement and has been for years. The current Governor, Tom Wolf, broke a longstanding state tradition dating to 1966 when he defeated incumbent Tom Corbett last year. From the time Pennsylvania governors were allowed to succeed themselves in 1966 up until then, the incumbent governor had never lost a re-election bid, and at the end of that governor's second term, the governorship changed parties. The current Republican margins in both houses of the General Assembly are not that much larger than the ones the Democrats enjoyed under Ed Rendell (who had a split legislature for his second term).

I generally consider all this a point in Pennsylvania's favor.

And as big cities go, Philadelphia is just about the most affordable in the Northeast.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > General U.S.

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top