Seriously, can someone tell me why NY is actually superior to CA? Went back this weekend for work, the place smells like Sh&t, homeless on every corner, dodgy af, people are NASTY.. the smell…😬 No beaches, shitty subways, trash everywhere
Anyone want to explain what i’m missing?
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Clearly it's not for u
no biggie
enjoy your CA lifestyle king
I have left NY for a variety of reasons - but for a young professional, in the right industry, at the right time, with the right education and mindset... there are more opportunities than elsewhere.
Lmao what a useless reply with a right all of those things there’s opportunities in Bangladesh too
LMFAO who would choose to live in mf bangladesh over NYC - can you please be real for one sec?
I am half-bangladeshi and you could not catch me dead within a 5-country-radius of that place
People have different preferences. I personally love nyc but many of my friends who spent time here hated it. It depends on so many factors including your comp, family situation, work flexibility, and just general preferences (do you need to be able to walk out your door and go hiking? That won’t happen in nyc…)
The way I viewed it:
1) I view NYC as my “home” but I have enough flexibility that I can spend a lot of time in another cities/countries. So to make a decision it was more around where do I want to spend the majority of time? And where are the job opportunities I want? For me that was nyc
2) food/art/things to do - I find nyc the best city I’ve been in for a combination of things to do (that I enjoy). Museums, broadway, amazing restaurants, classes for all sorts of stuff you want to do (took a cooking class last week, a photography class a month ago). People can debate this, but again, it’s because people have different preferences. I also like to be able to leave my apt at any time and find food I like.
3) travel - NYC has a few airports and tons of international flights. I also really enjoy Europe, traveling there from the west coast is much harder. It is very continent to many of the places I want to travel to
4) people - looks like you’ve had bad experiences. But I find it very easy to meet new people and have met many great friends in the city (in addition to having many college/high school friends live here)
5) already mentioned above but job opportunities
6) family - close to some of my family, the west coast would be much tougher
I think that covers most of it.
As someone who grew up in the UES, lived in LA (Santa Monica) for 3 years, and just moved back I do not think southern California and NYC can every truly be compared. They are two extremely different lifestyles and vibes meant for different people.
Most of the people on this forum never leave Manhattan outside of the gentrified parts of Brooklyn and so even their view of NYC is extremely skewed. As someone who went to one of the big privates (Dalton, Trinity, etc.) I was fortunate to have left the bubble early.
All hail Analyst 2 in AM - Equities. He's one with tha brothas at RPT in Harlem
Lol, when I say leaving the gentrified areas, I mean more like exploring the cultural enclaves outside of Manhattan (which to be very frank, does not have too many below 100th street anymore). E.g Flushing (Asian), Ozone Park (Carribean), Kew Gardens (Israeli), Maspeth (Eastern European) in Queens or like Brighton Beach (Russian/Eastern European) in Brooklyn.
How did you break out of the bubble of wealthy NYC by going to an expensive private school?
NYC does smell like shit, but so does your Associate's mouth in CA so that should square it up seeing you will spend 15+ hours in the office anyways.
I think you're absolutely right on the smell issue and the trash issue, definitely something NYC needs to work on. Really makes a difference when you're on a street that actually gets cleaned versus a street that is a dump.
Can't agree on dodgy, really doesn't feel that way to me. It doesn't give me the same vibes as some of the parts of Atlanta, Philadelphia, Cleveland, etc that I've been to.
I mean from an actual living point of view, yeah. I mostly agree with this. The one thing being you can do way more of whatever you like to do in NYC then basically anywhere else. Other than that, the actual living in nyc isn’t exactly… “net positive” until money no longer is of concern.
But from a working in finance perspective, it is the center of the universe. Being where the action is tends to make getting in on the action easier. Being in NYC makes being in finance much easier
It's a pretty diverse set of people, in the only real (perhaps besides, SF, DC, and Chi) high density city in the US. Tons of my european and asian friends love it for that reason. If you're only going to hang out with the typical finance crowd however, it isn't as appealing, and overall, I do find it a bit overrated unless you're extroverted, willing to try different things, and are fine with an iron jungle.
“Homeless on every corner” describes California more than anywhere else
Nyc better than SF any day.
Low bar Lmao. Anything is better than SF.
It just depends what you like tbh. Plenty of my friends hate nyc and they love they cali lifestyle. Personally, I love not having to drive, getting good food anywhere with a 10min walk and the free time activities nyc has to offer. I love that I’m never bored, even tho I’m an introvert but there’s plenty of shit to do. When I was in CA it just felt like I need an established friend group to enjoy my life. To each their own, I can see why you don’t like it but for some of us it’s magical place that has any opportunity at your fingertips.
I won't get too much into the fray on this one except to point out that, NYC does, technically, have beaches.
the fact you need to qualify it with "technically" says it all
Yeah I’ve cycled to the beach from the East Village and have even cycled to Fire Island and back.
Fire Island has nice beaches.
New York is just the highest concentration of finance people in the US. So you’re surrounded by the industry which is great. The city is also uniquely dense / urban. LA is very spread out and more conducive to chill semi suburban living. I have loved working in New York but I went to school in SoCal so I’m also planning to move back to California down the line. The lifestyle is really good on the west coast for different reasons. Honestly they’re just so different so it comes down to preference.
Sounds like you are describing LA and San Fran…
Very awkward when almost every negative you describe applies to SF as well. NYC is FAR from perfect but, please exercise some self-awareness.
I lived in NYC for over 5 years right after college, then moved to SF cuz I got a job I liked there.
I love SF for what I value most at this stage of life, but I had a blast living in NYC.
To respond more specifically to the points you raised:
You're right about the smell/trash, but it's not like it's everywhere all the time. Also true that LA has better beaches, so if you're optimizing for that, then yes, don't live in NYC, or any of the many other places in the US that lack good beaches.
Homeless are way worse in SF, which contributes to much greater dodginess as well. Back when I lived in NYC, I felt utterly safe walking anywhere in Manhattan any time of day or night. Def can't say that for SF. Maybe things changed during the pandemic?
NYC has the best subway system in the US. Not sure how anyplace in CA is winning that one.
I'm convinced people that talk about New York's "energy" are just coked out sycophants
This post smells like broke.
NYC is the best place in the world as long as you have money
completely disagree (in a civilized way) CA, specifically LA has anything you’d want within a two hour radius, nice weather, nicer people, better scenery and climate
2 hours?! And you have to drive?! In that LA traffic 🤢. Good chance of you getting rear ended or hating your life with those shitty drivers. Weather I’ll give you, although it’s been raining an awful lot recently. Nicer ppl yeahhh no, bunch of fake, cliquey ppl there that care about who you know, in NYC it’s about what you know.
people that like new york grew up in bumpfuck suburbia and glamorize the shithole
Perhaps a hot take, but as an expat that recently left, I think a big part of it is that most Americans can't see themselves leaving America. While it's undeniable that NYC is a cultural hub that is unrivalled within the US, there are plenty of other liveable cities in the world with thriving cultures and public transport (they just aren't in the United States...)
I think a lot of it boils down to the fact that while there are plenty of other great cities in the world, a majority of the people in NYC that were born in the US are unwilling to leave the country (and/or haven't really spent a meaningful amount of time working outside of the US). My colleagues were always stunned when I told them about policies where I come from that are pretty standard because a lot of them have never really travelled (several months of maternity leave, four weeks+ annual vacation, staff taking month-long vacations during summer etc.)
To run with a less hot take, I think another major justification for so many putting up with NYC (certainly those on this forum) is that if you're at the top of your field (at least in terms of banking, law, consulting etc.), the salaries are unparalleled at a global level. a Top 1%er in PE is going to make more in NYC (even after adjusting for the stupid cost of living) then virtually anywhere else in the word.
Also uh, homeless people everywhere and sh!t on every street corner? Have you not been to SF recently?
Homeless people shitting on the street corner is because of state policy, not because cities are like that. Tokyo, Seoul, and Singapore don't have homeless drug addicts attacking people or shitting or whatever they "do". Just remember that everytime you smell shit or see some junkie harassing someone, its because they WANT you to feel and see that. A demoralized populace is an easier controlled one. It doesn't have to be this way.
Not comparable, very different vibes, very different lifestyles.
I love NYC because its very happening. There's something for everyone and always something fun to do. Like someone else here mentioned, people forget there are 5 boroughs and Manhattan is just one of them. There's a whole different world to explore.
I’ve been to hundreds of cities across the world in 23 countries and NYC will always be my favorite. It’s the people, the energy, so many hot girls, the feeling of heading out to a bar or event one night and knowing anything could happen.
Correct me if I am wrong but I remember you have spent quite a lot of time in Asia. Isn't Shanghai/Singapore a lot of better than NY not to mention all the other cities like Hong Kong, Seoul, Tokyo etc.
Giuliani really was the GOAT mayor there. Bloomberg was ok. Diblasio sucks. Not sure about Eric Adams - I don't know much about him.
I walked through NYC for the first time in 2006 and HAD to move there. Just the energy in the city and the amount of interesting people you meet everywhere makes it great. I finally got there in 2007. Best years of my life. Met SO many people. Forged lifetime relationships.
Secret is out, it's not!
Is there no "Sh&t, homeless on every corner, dodgy af, people are NASTY.. the smell…😬" in CA? LA and SF are the same if not worse. If that's your criteria, you should be wondering why USA is appealing.
Let's be honest, blue cities have issues.
you're complaining about homeless people in NY. Isn't CA, specifically LA & SF, the equivalent of zombieland...just saying.
For a single young guy nyc is by far the best city to live in in the country - there really is no comparison save LA. For a taken young guy it's 50/50 but I strongly see the appeal of leaving. For older gentlemen it depends but it has even less appeal.
+1 on this
NYC is the best place in the universe for a single man.
For a single woman…it’s the inverse
Back when I was single:
When I lived in other parts of the country I had a respectable batting average
when I lived in NYC it was a home run derby
farewell!
I hate driving and prefer living in a city not overrun by "aspiring Hollywood stars" who have no real job.
Rats on streets
Trash on streets
Homeless on streets
How appealing is that !
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