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I would look at Westchester County and some areas on LI with good schools. With a $140k HHI, you would be able to find a decent town/village, and you would not have to pay city resident income taxes. My preference is Westchester over LI because getting on and off the island can be a hassle if you want to go skiing, etc. Top school districts in Westchester are not inexpensive in which to buy/rent; however, even those ranked toward the middle by Westchester standards outperform the majority of city schools.
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All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages.
~William Shakespeare (As You Like It Act II, Scene VII)
Given that I made a reverse move (lived in NYC and moved to Austin, TX), I think I'm understanding what your expectations are. That being said, while I am not discouraging you, I should tell you -- $2000/mo. isn't going to get you nearly the comparable space and creature comforts that you've become used to in Dallas. Also, NYC doesn't have ISDs so you can't really live in a "good school district" like you would in Texas. What you do in NYC is live in a good neighborhood that hopefully feeds into a decent elementary and middle. A NYC high schooler can go to whatever high school in the city he/she wants...they're not really "zoned". You'd be trading SFH living for apartment living in a borough (not Manhattan). Also, your $110K salary in a lower COL state translates to more money in your pocket. In NYC, while your $110K is good enough, it will be subjected to three forms of taxation instead of just Federal.
That being said, I agree with the person who said Queens.
PS - the summers in NYC can be humid and the winters can be very cold, too.
Meh. Winters in NYC aren't that bad, it's a mild spot. Usually you get spared most severe cold. It was 15°F here this morning...
"Aren't that bad", as you know, is entirely subjective. 15 or 25 is pretty cold to me. While NYC winters aren't North Dakota level "bad", they aren't particularly mild either. And they last pretty long too nowadays. (I'd been a NYC resident for 28 years)
That being said, I don't like cold weather anywhere.
I live in Houston (have lived shortly in Plano just south of Allen) and have lived in both Manhattan and on Staten Island.
*didn't realize a person who works strictly from home gets a fat raise for simply moving to a more expensive city.
*didn't realize there were $125k jobs available for people who work at home
*there is no center to Manhattan unless you mean around Central Park.
*what's so interesting about Grand Central, just another subway terminal
Obviously anyone who wants to leave the suburbs would try the city first (Allen is 25 miles out of Downtown Dallas). Not to mention if the OP can't afford to live in the Museum Tower in Downtown Dallas, it's not like he's going to be living it up in NYC. My brother lives on the Upper East Side and has a household income over $320k/year he's married w/o kids and is hardly balling out of control.
FYI, SI isn't a nice suburban area or interesting like the city would be a major downgrade from Allen Texas.
Hey, sorry if I've confused you somewhere. I'm a web developer, working from home in DFW, for a company based out of San Francisco. The average salary for a senior-level web developer in SF is between 130-165k. Since I'm in DFW and not SF, my salary was adjusted a little lower due to my much lower cost of living.
If you're a good developer, you can definitely find plenty of work-from-home jobs. I roll out of bed and work in my pajamas every day
Frisco isn't north of Allen. Mckinney is north of Allen. Frisco is west of Allen, and I would argue that it's just as boring and vanilla as Allen. I have no interest in living in downtown Dallas because it's a boring city. Downtown becomes a ghost-town during the weekends.
I mentioned Grand Central because from my few visits to NYC it appears to be close to everything. You step out of the terminal and everything is right there. Obviously GC isn't a must-have since ... they're subway lines you can just hop out of!
As for the pay raise for moving from DFW to a more expensive city, yes, it's expected. If current company doesn't offer a raise to match the average market then it's very easy for a developer to jump ship and find another company that will.
For the past 10 years, being a developer has been a very profitable career choice. If you're interested I can get you some information on getting started?
Staten Island will be a downgrade from Allen- you will have the worst of Allen (boring and far from the city) without any of the good things (space, newer homes, etc.). If you are insistent on moving to New York City try looking at neighborhoods like Bayside, Queens. You will definitely be getting less for your money than in Allen but the LIRR can get you into Manhattan in around 30 minutes or so and by car the LIE will take you straight into the Midtown Tunnel. Personally, I would give a neighborhood in the downtown area of Dallas a try. The Dallas Museum of Art, The Crow Collection, and The Nasher Sculpture Cener are all open on the weekends and The McKinney Ave Contemporary is open until 9pm on Saturday nights. If you're into films, I've seen some great stuff at the Texas Theatre and the Angelika Film Center. If you're into more high brow stuff, I had an enjoyable experience at the Winspear Opera House (saw an opera, haven't seen the Texas Ballet Theatre yet). For amazing food I know my personal faves, FT33 and Belly and Trumpet stay open until midnight on Saturdays. If you think Allen is boring, move to Dallas proper not Staten Island.
As for the pay raise for moving from DFW to a more expensive city, yes, it's expected. If current company doesn't offer a raise to match the average market then it's very easy for a developer to jump ship and find another company that will.
Even if you factor in a raise keep in mind both NY and NYC have income taxes. Con-Eds electricity rates are near double what you'll pay in Texas.
Realistically $150k/yr won't get you into upscale Dallas neighborhoods/cities like Preston Hollow, University Park or Highland Park so how far do expect it will go in NYC? Median incomes in Upper East Side, Upper West Side or even Greenwich Village are well past $150k/yr, I'd say 2-5 times that. Let me put it this way my brother pays $4k/month for a 1-br rental apartment on the Upper East Side which is tiny (~600 square feet) and appears to have been remolded back in the 80's, by NYC standards his income of $300k+/yr is nothing to get excited about, I doubt he's even close to the median for Upper East Side.
To be blunt $130k/yr is the median income for for upscale suburbs in Texas. I live in Cinco Ranch where median income was $133k/yr on the last census, with Cinco Ranch full of subprime built starter homes and ordinary apartments. Cinco Ranch CDP QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau
My point with at best an average income for a homeowner in an upscale suburb, youre not getting much in NYC or even in Houston's core and probably not Dallas' core either. Without a government subsidized apartment I doubt you can even live on the nicer parts of Manhattan.
Last edited by JaqueCosto; 11-22-2013 at 05:25 PM..
Staten Island will be a downgrade from Allen- you will have the worst of Allen (boring and far from the city) without any of the good things (space, newer homes, etc.). If you are insistent on moving to New York City try looking at neighborhoods like Bayside, Queens. You will definitely be getting less for your money than in Allen but the LIRR can get you into Manhattan in around 30 minutes or so and by car the LIE will take you straight into the Midtown Tunnel.
I've lived in Plano Texas (north Dallas suburb) and on SI. No question Plano is much nicer than SI even though it's much smaller 275,000 people. SI is not interesting like the city but has a large share of hoodlums like the city.
Quote:
Originally Posted by photostoresheila
Personally, I would give a neighborhood in the downtown area of Dallas a try. The Dallas Museum of Art, The Crow Collection, and The Nasher Sculpture Cener are all open on the weekends and The McKinney Ave Contemporary is open until 9pm on Saturday nights. If you're into films, I've seen some great stuff at the Texas Theatre and the Angelika Film Center. If you're into more high brow stuff, I had an enjoyable experience at the Winspear Opera House (saw an opera, haven't seen the Texas Ballet Theatre yet). For amazing food I know my personal faves, FT33 and Belly and Trumpet stay open until midnight on Saturdays. If you think Allen is boring, move to Dallas proper not Staten Island.
Have no idea what the OP means when saying that the core of the 4th largest US metro is lacking, DFW isn't a tourist town and fairly spread out, but if you can't find something to on weekends...
I've lived in Plano Texas (north Dallas suburb) and on SI. No question Plano is much nicer than SI even though it's much smaller 275,000 people. SI is not interesting like the city but has a large share of hoodlums like the city.
Have no idea what the OP means when saying that the core of the 4th largest US metro is lacking, DFW isn't a tourist town and fairly spread out, but if you can't find something to on weekends...
Give it up why do you keep talking about Texas, OP doesn't want to live there. Either help him where he wants to live or have a cup of shut the H8LL up!
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, other suburbs like Frisco (just north of Allen) are much nicer than Allen. 
