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.
That actually further proves my point. I live in Suffolk County. Your statistics show that while the majority of total wages and salaries earned in Nassau County are by earned NYC commuters, it also shows that the vast majority of wages and salaries earned in Suffolk county are earned by people who work on Long Island, not NYC. So that actually proves my point that, despite what posters on this forum may think, I am not so strange for choosing not to work in NYC, given that 79% of all wages and salaries earned in Suffolk County are not by NYC commuters.
That may be true, but those who do work in NYC are paying a steep penalty in quality of life. So it's a trade off.
I still argue that, at least in my field, if I were to commute to NYC, I would be making less money in real dollars, given the LIRR fares, the need for more formal clothing, the poorer health insurance and other benefits, and the need to pay others to do tasks that I can currently do myself. And yes, I do realize that is not necessarily the case in every field.
You are still paying a penalty for the 21% of the income coming from NYC wages. The money those people bring to the table raise prices for everyone. Suffolk is not as expensive as Nassau, but it is much more expensive than the national average, and local wages are only slightly above the national average.
That's what MITS is missing, but I agree MITS that you aren't strange for not choosing to work in NYC, but those NYC salaries are still going to effect you somewhat.
This is what I see basically see getting off LI alot...
-Groceries are same
-Electric is about double to almost triple here
-Healthcare is more here but so many places outside LI make you pay into it
-Cable, phone, internet is the same
-Taxes are about 30% higher based on same house, equivalent schools in other metro areas.
-Gas and oil about the same
-Propane is higher here
-Housing prices are not that far off believe it or not (look at Philadelphia/Boston/DC)
Location: Lawn Guyland born, Nueva Rochella for now
51 posts, read 62,507 times
Reputation: 43
Quote:
Originally Posted by GoodByeLI
Well, the title pretty much says it all. My question is, is there anything we can do to fix it? Is anyone else tired of it? I'm pretty fed up and frustrated with the situation. I often wonder why more people aren't discussing this issue.
I'm in a similar boat, except we don't have kids yet. We can't "fix" the island, we can only fix our personal situations. My guess is that everyone else brings in higher salaries, and perhaps didn't have student loan debt or inherited some money. And again, it's all about what you're willing to sacrifice. I'm not willing to take on a mortgage that will cost me over $2000/month for a foreclosed house just to be close to family and friends. I'm sure there's plenty of people who would do that in a heartbeat, but I wouldn't have the cash to make needed repairs. Unless I decide to buy a condo instead, I'll have to leave LI and may just do that.
You live way out in Suffolk and that's your choice. In return, your housing is cheaper and you don't necessarily need much more than $100k to be comfortable. It may not be any different than living off of LI, cost:earning ratio-wise. What are your taxes? Kids costs? It all factors into your personal situation, just yourself.
Again, I live in Suffolk County since that is what somebody in my field can afford, regardless of whether they are working on LI or in NYC. You keep talking about the financial field, but not everybody is in the financial field.
Quote:
People who live further west may have the same cost:earning ratio, perhaps even better because wages can get near $200k on their own before dual-income. And no, this is not always a result of being an exec and working weekends too. You know there are plenty of people on the 415pm train home from Penn right? The wages are not a result of time spent at work - it's a result of their profit-flow (remember financial capital of the world) and what these companies can afford to pay people to retain them.
Again, you are talking about the financial field. What you say works fine in that field, but not in every field. In my field, profit is based entirely on billable hours. The most valuable employee, unfortunately, is whoever is willing to work the longest hours for the least amount of money. Most civil engineers do not make $200k, and they certainly are not on the 4:15 train (unless they arrived at work at 5 AM).
Quote:
You've always reiterated "for me" and you should leave it at that rather than claim "NYC people have a steep penalty" for working out there in order to justify your decisions. Perhaps people aren't only talking about your situation way out there with your lower costs. Perhaps people mean you'd have a different outlook IF you chose to live westward (again, no you don't have to). My wife wakes at 615am and gets home at exactly 515pm daily. This is hardly a steep penalty nor much different than a lot of workers around the entire country. It's time to give up the notion that NYC = instant death. Of course you'd feel that way if you had to commute 4+ hours a day from east Suffolk, but that's not all of LI.
Do you agree that in my situation, working in NYC would be a serious drop in quality of life, since my field does not pay $200,000, and does not allow people to work from 9 to 4?
If you are in the financial field, where you can make $200k working 9 to 4 and afford to live in Nassau County, then certainly a NYC job makes a lot of sense.
Yes, I realize that I made a bad choice of college major. But I have to live with the decisions that I made.
You are still paying a penalty for the 21% of the income coming from NYC wages. The money those people bring to the table raise prices for everyone. Suffolk is not as expensive as Nassau, but it is much more expensive than the national average, and local wages are only slightly above the national average.
Although my job on LI pays significantly higher than the national average for my field and level of experience. Again, not everybody is in the financial field.
Status:
"Let this year be over..."
(set 25 days ago)
Location: Where my bills arrive
19,220 posts, read 17,105,490 times
Reputation: 15539
Quote:
Originally Posted by mitsguy2001
Yes, I realize that I made a bad choice of college major. But I have to live with the decisions that I made.
No you are in a good situation where you don't have kids, now would be the time to go back and take courses. Choose a field that would think would be a good choice for you and change careers, if that's what you want.
No you are in a good situation where you don't have kids, now would be the time to go back and take courses. Choose a field that would think would be a good choice for you and change careers, if that's what you want.
So, in other words, delay having kids even longer than we already have? Doesn't sound like a good idea, especially since my wife is even older than I am.
When did LI jump the shark? IMHO, it happened when Grumman closed, taking down so many high paying jobs and shuttered smaller local aeronautics businesses. Before this, LI felt like a prosperous and happier place to live. Who else remembers the pre-Grumman departure days?
The taxes here went from bad to horrible as the business base dried up, and public sector pensions, salaries and benefits exploded.
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.
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.
