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So this is my first post on this site but I'm very overwhelmed and figured I needed personal help lol. I've searched a lot about "best cities" to move to but there are so many cities that people seem to love that I figured it would help to get opinions based on everything I'm looking for as an individual.
I'm currently about to head into my senior year at a state school in PA and I absolutely hate it. The plan has always been to move from this state after graduation (though I wouldn't be entirely opposed to moving to Philly, just wouldn't prefer it). I also have split my time these few years living in Orlando doing the disney college program, so Florida in general is out because I really don't like living here. I'm hoping to one day own my own business, but until then the industry I'm hoping to go towards in life is split between advertising/PR or computer programming (front end), with a lean more towards programming.
That being said, here is what is important to me in terms of a city and I'm hoping ya'll can give me suggestions based on what I'm looking for Any city goes, I will quite literally go anywhere.
-Low cost of living, high wages (enough balance between the two)
-at least 3 seasons (I can do without freezing winters, but I can also live with it--I don't think I could live without fall)
-Thriving nightlife/singles scene. I will be moving as a 21 y/o woman knowing no one so it's important to have people around me the same age
-Sports scene. I love basketball and would prefer to be living in a place where there is basketball pride, preferably college. I would even settle for football
-Big local business scene (shops, restaurants, etc.)
-General cleanliness and beauty in regards to the city/skyline/etc.
-Pet friendly
-Thriving tech industry
-Liberal/progressive
-Booming downtown area with surrounding neighborhoods that are just as nice
-BBQ/Mexican food scene
-Entrepreneurial spirit/startup scene
-Creative nature/vibe
And I believe that's about it. I know that not every city is going to check mark everything I want but I hope to get as close to the mark as possible.
Last edited by taybphilly; 06-27-2017 at 11:20 AM..
Sounds like Austin, Dallas, or Houston may work for you. I'd also look at Raleigh, Denver, and Atlanta.
Dallas, Houston, and Raleigh don't have:
-Thriving nightlife/singles scene.
-Booming downtown area with surrounding neighborhoods that are just as nice
-Entrepreneurial spirit/startup scene
-Big local business scene
Based on what I'm reading from OP, it sounds like he might actually be better off in a booming college town like Austin or Madison, especially since he mentioned college sports.
-Thriving nightlife/singles scene.
-Booming downtown area with surrounding neighborhoods that are just as nice
-Entrepreneurial spirit/startup scene
-Big local business scene
Of course they do. For Houston and Dallas, other CBDs/urban districts may be more booming than downtown proper but it's pretty much the same thing.
Lepoisson never really lived in Dallas. Arlington to be exact (20+ miles away), so he doesn't really know what was there. He/she since moved to Chicago. I'd advise taking his posts with a grain of salt.
Dallas can compete with Houston, Austin, Raleigh, Atlanta, and Denver in these categories:
*Thriving nightlife/singles scene
*Booming Downtown area (mostly Uptown, Old East Dallas, Deep Ellum -- neighborhoods bordering DT).
*Entrepeneurial spirit/startup scene -- there is a lot of activity in the startup scene, but that often gets clouded over due to the sheer size and diversity of the job market here.
*Big local business scene
Raleigh is more of the anomaly of the cities Mutiny listed, but nevertheless Dallas can easily go pound for pound or excel over those cities. In some cases, the listed cities may excel more in the other categories.
A couple of sleepers may be Tucson AZ due to it military presence and companies like Raytheon, Texas Instruments, IBM and Intuit. It definitely fits the College Basketball and the Mexican food criteria due to University of Arizona Basketball and its demographics. Not sure of some of the other criteria though.
Omaha NE may be another one. Creighton Basketball is big there and they play in the Big East. South Omaha has a pretty large Mexican population and may be the place to go in terms of a portion of the food that you like. There seems to be a tech startup culture in the city/area as well: https://www.entrepreneur.com/slideshow/224504
-Low cost of living, high wages (enough balance between the two)
-at least 3 seasons (I can do without freezing winters, but I can also live with it--I don't think I could live without fall)
-Thriving nightlife/singles scene. I will be moving as a 21 y/o woman knowing no one so it's important to have people around me the same age
-Sports scene. I love basketball and would prefer to be living in a place where there is basketball pride, preferably college. I would even settle for football
-Big local business scene (shops, restaurants, etc.)
-General cleanliness and beauty in regards to the city/skyline/etc.
-Pet friendly
-Thriving tech industry
-Liberal/progressive
-Booming downtown area with surrounding neighborhoods that are just as nice
-BBQ/Mexican food scene
-Entrepreneurial spirit/startup scene
-Creative nature/vibe
The Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill area nails all of that with a reasonable cost of living, higher salaries, tons of tech jobs, a young vibrant professional population, college basketball nirvana (Duke, UNC and NC State), cool downtown areas in all three cities which are 30 minutes apart, a moderately liberal (Raleigh) to more liberal and progressive vibe in Durham-Chapel Hill, booming downtown areas in both Raleigh and Durham while Chapel Hill is well established and always thriving, plenty of start-up activity in terms of IT anchored by the massive Research Triangle Park, and a strong creative vibe in Durham and Chapel Hill (along with it's smaller neighboring "sister" town of Carrboro).
Lepoisson never really lived in Dallas. Arlington to be exact (20+ miles away), so he doesn't really know what was there. He/she since moved to Chicago. I'd advise taking his posts with a grain of salt.
Dallas can compete with Houston, Austin, Raleigh, Atlanta, and Denver in these categories:
*Thriving nightlife/singles scene
*Booming Downtown area (mostly Uptown, Old East Dallas, Deep Ellum -- neighborhoods bordering DT).
*Entrepeneurial spirit/startup scene -- there is a lot of activity in the startup scene, but that often gets clouded over due to the sheer size and diversity of the job market here.
*Big local business scene
Raleigh is more of the anomaly of the cities Mutiny listed, but nevertheless Dallas can easily go pound for pound or excel over those cities. In some cases, the listed cities may excel more in the other categories.
You're right, I didn't live in Dallas, but I spent a fair amount of time there (anything to get out of boring ol' Arlington lol).
The neighborhoods you mentioned have a neat vibe to them, but they still can't really compare to a college town with a downtown area where everyone is going to the bar/club and where there are tons of local restaurants and shops. Austin comes to mind here, as does Madison. And downtown Dallas is a complete dead zone after working hours (honestly, the Chicago Loop is too). Most everything closes up shop around 6-7pm.
Someone told me that Dallas or Houston is where you go when you get burnt out or outgrow partying in Austin. I think there's some truth to it.
As a whole, I don't think Dallas has a big local business scene. Sure, there are local businesses, but corporate America dominates the city.
I think Raleigh is actually a step above Dallas when only looking at the "booming downtown area" and "thriving nightlife/singles scene" because Raleigh has the NC State campus area. This area has grown a LOT over the years and expanded into downtown.
Columbus hits most of those except for Mexican/BBQ. Austin also makes sense save for the three seasons (and it's cost of living has been rising steadily). Portland is a good, but like Austin, has had a steady rise in cost of living.
Going with Philadelphia is also a really good fit for everything you've listed
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Any city goes, I will quite literally go anywhere.
