Have any of you moved from NYC/SF/CHI to a lower-cost of living city?

IB in NYC. Was curious if any of you working in finance have moved out of NYC/SF/CHI to a lower COL city. Seems that even in a generally high-paying industry like finance, the extremely high price of rent and other living expenses make it difficult to save large amounts of money. Can anyone opine on this? Also curious to know how regional salaries compare to the major hubs.

 
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Not IB, but I made the move (was in NYC) and received the exact same salary when I moved (similar hours and benefits), so the comparison was relatively even regarding the job itself. Here is a list of the major Pros and Cons:

Pros: - Net Income: The state and city I moved to both have lower taxes resulting in my take-home pay increasing ~15%. - Residence: I was living in a 650 sf studio apartment with no amenities, a walk-up, and an hour away from my office to an 850 sf 1 BR with a pool/gym/sauna/etc 5 minutes from my office for 80% of the price - Leisure: If I want to have a drink after work it's $5 rather than $10, a nice dinner is $100 per person rather than $150+, if I am wasted at the bar and buy a round for 10 of my friends it doesn't suck as bad when I check my transactions the next morning

Cons: - Nightlife: It's a smaller city, so there are less options and less diversity of atmospheres. Definitely still enough to be satisfied - Food: Less options on every level (fine dining to drunk munchies), but again - enough to get you where you need to go - People: In NYC you interact with such a great variety of people from different backgrounds offering different perspectives. I didn't realize how much I would miss this until i didn't have it anymore

Overall - I am glad I made the move. There are plenty of other factors to consider (proximity to family and friends, job offer, life goals), but those are the few that are a bit more universal. One thing not listed, but an effect of the Pros is my overall happiness. I have almost an extra two hours of free-time every day to spend at the gym, cooking, reading, etc. I no longer have to suffer when I just miss the subway in the middle of summer, sweating my ass off, and have to wait 8 minutes for the next one. I don't stress about money as much since my savings went up 30-40% every month. I'm not sure what value to place on my increased happiness, but it would be pretty high. I loved NYC. When I visit I think I really miss it and wonder why I left... Then I get a few bar tabs, get frustrated with the subway, and have a stranger sneeze on me and realize that I made the right move.

 

This sums it up pretty well lifestyle wise.

The big question/trade off you are making will be your professional options. Network will be small to nonexistent, jobs will be similar - there's probably one or two similar firms (maybe less) and depending on your role there may not even be anything comparable. This is obviously contingent on where you end up, but you need to consider it. Just know you'll probably have to move if it doesn't work out.

Oh - depending on how much you travel, you'll have a much smaller airport. There's positives and negatives to this, but, you'll have less direct flights all over the place and a more limited selection. Good news is that often security is easier than large airports - problem is if you don't make it on the flight you are booked on... good luck!

 

Always did better in NYC. Cheaper cities would have cheaper rent and food but I had to spend other money to have a life. Need a car, need a better place for having company over bc people do that shit outside NYC. Need to travel more because a lot of smaller cities are boring and everyone needs to get away for every holiday. It adds up.

 

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