6 ms·

High stress, high pollution, rat race of a lifestyle, you are regulated and taxed on more things you even thought possible, and one of the worst imaginable pla

by jimmy1 9y ago

High stress, high pollution, rat race of a lifestyle, you are regulated and taxed on more things you even thought possible, and one of the worst imaginable places to try and raise a family. It has it's pros and cons, but I think we both agree it is certainly better than Silicon Valley. It's great if you are a young professional figuring out the world, but eventually people want their space and be able to stretch out their legs.

bazooka_penguin 9y ago
You can always move to central Jersey and take a train
- zdky 9y ago
  How long is the train ride usually? I've never been to NY
  - lallysingh 9y ago
    Mine is 36 min to Penn station. Then add subway time + walk + train wait time to that for a good estimate. Walking to my train station in NJ, door to door for me is 1hr 10min. Less than an hour if I drive to the station.
  - bazooka_penguin 9y ago
    I'd say around 40 minutes + whatever traveling you do within the city. It's pretty common for people in areas like Piscataway.
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
austinshea 9y ago
Yeah, but when people want that they don’t need to leave NY. Westchester is a great place to raise kids, and the Metro North is fairly relaxing commute.
pbecotte 9y ago
Yeah, but the public transit options make it realistic to live in lots of different suburbs that are much cheaper and much better for family life, which seems to be something you can't say about most of the other contenders.
hullo 9y ago
I am a tech worker raising my family in Brooklyn and it's quite lovely. Expensive, yes, but lovely. Whether you find it a "rat race" of a lifestyle or not is much more dependent on your internal psychology than the city itself.
- isolli 9y ago
  Would you be willing to share the rough range of your household income? If you bought a house 10 years ago then it doesn't count, you can probably raise a family on almost any income in that case ;)
- perfmode 9y ago
  Last year, I left Menlo Park and moved to Brooklyn. No regrets.
- jimmy1 9y ago
  I have heard Brooklyn is gentrifying at a rapid pace, but back when I was there, Brooklyn just wasn't an option.
  - CydeWeys 9y ago
    "Is" gentrifying? How many decades ago was the last time you went to Brooklyn? And where exactly did you go?
  - nerfhammer 9y ago
    Do you have any idea how big Brooklyn is?
    - jimmy1 9y ago
      Since this comment is attempting to be pedantic, I'll give you a pedantic answer: Yes I have access to google maps just like the rest of the world. Serious answer: Yes, the landmass that constitutes Brooklyn is large. The landscape of the main neighborhoods that have gentrified over the years are not so big. If you actually live there you know which parts I am talking about.
lallysingh 9y ago
That place is New Jersey. Mortgages for a real house with land for less than an apartment rent in SF. I think California is also known for regulation and taxation. Solid public and private school options. Lovely little towns every couple of miles.
- meri_dian 9y ago
  Glad to see NJ get some positive mention here. Been living in NJ all my life and it's always sad to see people bash it based on a few trips they've had on the Turnpike up around NYC. The state really has it all. Expensive, but an excellent mix of suburbia, rural lands to the west and south, and (somewhat) easy access to one of the greatest cities in the world.
  - vinceguidry 9y ago
    Everything but the weather. Lots of NJ transplants in Atlanta and Florida. They make the trip back up to walk the boards and rub elbows with their old friends for a few weeks but spend most of the year where it's warm.
    - zintinio5 9y ago
      We're pretty comfy here 9/12 months a year. The Spring and Fall are fantastic, and Winter is getting milder each year.
  - madlynormal 9y ago
    This past year I moved from NYC (Queens) to Central NJ and it's been a positive experience. It's surprising how beautiful this state really is. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately), those who's experience with NJ solely consist of driving along the Turnpike, or landing in EWR, really have no idea.
- DannyBee 9y ago
  "That place is New Jersey."? It has the highest property taxes in the country, high insurance rates, etc. I grew up there, it definitely has it's downsides too. I'd choose it over California, for sure, but New Jersey is definitely not cheap.
chimeracoder 9y ago
> High stress, high pollution, rat race of a lifestyle, you are regulated and taxed on more things you even thought possible New York has incredibly low pollution compared to other cities of comparable size, especially in the US. As for "regulated and taxed on more things than you even thought possible"... are you sure you're not thinking of California?
- oblio 9y ago
  Is there some sort of pollution ranking of sorts? Something with hard data behind it.
  - vkou 9y ago
    There's air quality maps at https://www.airnow.gov/ https://www.airnow.gov/, and similar websites. Mind you, there's a lot of day-to-day variation.
- JustAnotherPat 9y ago
  Overall air quality is pretty good in NYC, but street level pollution is nasty. There isn't a day that I don't get huge whiffs of diesel exhaust or a weekend that i don't have to clean off black grime from my windows. Happens less so in cities where you're not surrounded by walls of buildings and heavy street traffic. I think the air quality in in the city is only good because it gets quickly blown out to sea.
- jimmy1 9y ago
  No I am thinking about my family and I and our experiences living there. When I say Pollution, I am not just saying air pollution. I physically felt dirty the minute I stepped out into the street after getting ready for work. I would wash my hair and it would streak of dirt. The subway is absolutely filthy. Bathrooms anywhere but expensive restaurants are filthy. Sidewalks were filthy. Streets are filthy. The water that pools up at the sides of crosswalks was everywhere -- and was filthy. It's the definition of a big dirty city. As far as taxes and regulation goes, yes California is getting crazy too, but no I am thinking about New York. The contrast was stark, especially when you move anywhere south of NY, which I did land in D.C. for a bit, and even that was better.
wbl 9y ago
Being able to have your children transport themselves where they need to go is a major win for raising a family.
dr_ 9y ago
I'm raising my family in NYC, I disagree that it's one of the worst imaginable places to try and raise a family. There are a lot of activities for children, from the parks, to indoor play areas, to the libraries, etc. You can just about anything you need by walking. The public schools have been improving - you can try for one of the elite gifted and talented schools but even if that doesn't work out, there are many more good school options than there have been in the past. It's certainly not a cheap place to live, but I actually can't imagine a better place to raise a family. I don't know if there's any more pollution than any other major city. There's no major manufacturing that happens in NYC, so the pollution would mostly be from cars. In general, the city is becoming less and less car friendly - they are seriously considering a congestion pricing program - so I would expect whatever pollution there may be to actually improve. Nevertheless, pollution has never been one of the major complaints of most NYC folk. Yes, taxes can run high. You can always live outside the city if this is an issue but despite this, people prefer to live in the city as long as they can. High stress is really more a virtue of your job, not the city. There are many people who live here and don't want to live anywhere else. As they say, your bedroom is where you sleep - your living room is the entire city.
- jimmy1 9y ago
  Until you try to raise your children somewhere elsewhere, I will take your comment with a huge grain of salt. Compared to where I am now, it just simply doesn't compare. I don't care about the city being my living room. My backyard is mountains, and trees, and fresh air, and creeks and streams, and endless opportunities for my children to go outside, get dirty, and explore.
  - austinshea 9y ago
    If you don’t care about being in the city, and do care about being close to nature, then that’s an obvious choice. That being said, I don’t want to raise my kids out there. I want my kids surrounded by many cultures, and to have access to the arts that NYC provides. It just is a no brainer for me.
    - 9y ago

by jimmy1 9y ago

bazooka_penguin 9y ago

You can always move to central Jersey and take a train

zdky 9y ago
How long is the train ride usually? I've never been to NY
- lallysingh 9y ago
  Mine is 36 min to Penn station. Then add subway time + walk + train wait time to that for a good estimate. Walking to my train station in NJ, door to door for me is 1hr 10min. Less than an hour if I drive to the station.
- bazooka_penguin 9y ago
  I'd say around 40 minutes + whatever traveling you do within the city. It's pretty common for people in areas like Piscataway.

deleted 9y ago

[deleted]

austinshea 9y ago

Yeah, but when people want that they don’t need to leave NY. Westchester is a great place to raise kids, and the Metro North is fairly relaxing commute.

pbecotte 9y ago

Yeah, but the public transit options make it realistic to live in lots of different suburbs that are much cheaper and much better for family life, which seems to be something you can't say about most of the other contenders.

hullo 9y ago

I am a tech worker raising my family in Brooklyn and it's quite lovely. Expensive, yes, but lovely. Whether you find it a "rat race" of a lifestyle or not is much more dependent on your internal psychology than the city itself.

isolli 9y ago
Would you be willing to share the rough range of your household income? If you bought a house 10 years ago then it doesn't count, you can probably raise a family on almost any income in that case ;)
perfmode 9y ago
Last year, I left Menlo Park and moved to Brooklyn. No regrets.
jimmy1 9y ago
I have heard Brooklyn is gentrifying at a rapid pace, but back when I was there, Brooklyn just wasn't an option.
- CydeWeys 9y ago
  "Is" gentrifying? How many decades ago was the last time you went to Brooklyn? And where exactly did you go?
- nerfhammer 9y ago
  Do you have any idea how big Brooklyn is?
  - jimmy1 9y ago
    Since this comment is attempting to be pedantic, I'll give you a pedantic answer: Yes I have access to google maps just like the rest of the world. Serious answer: Yes, the landmass that constitutes Brooklyn is large. The landscape of the main neighborhoods that have gentrified over the years are not so big. If you actually live there you know which parts I am talking about.

lallysingh 9y ago

That place is New Jersey. Mortgages for a real house with land for less than an apartment rent in SF. I think California is also known for regulation and taxation. Solid public and private school options. Lovely little towns every couple of miles.

meri_dian 9y ago
Glad to see NJ get some positive mention here. Been living in NJ all my life and it's always sad to see people bash it based on a few trips they've had on the Turnpike up around NYC. The state really has it all. Expensive, but an excellent mix of suburbia, rural lands to the west and south, and (somewhat) easy access to one of the greatest cities in the world.
- vinceguidry 9y ago
  Everything but the weather. Lots of NJ transplants in Atlanta and Florida. They make the trip back up to walk the boards and rub elbows with their old friends for a few weeks but spend most of the year where it's warm.
  - zintinio5 9y ago
    We're pretty comfy here 9/12 months a year. The Spring and Fall are fantastic, and Winter is getting milder each year.
- madlynormal 9y ago
  This past year I moved from NYC (Queens) to Central NJ and it's been a positive experience. It's surprising how beautiful this state really is. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately), those who's experience with NJ solely consist of driving along the Turnpike, or landing in EWR, really have no idea.
DannyBee 9y ago
"That place is New Jersey."? It has the highest property taxes in the country, high insurance rates, etc. I grew up there, it definitely has it's downsides too. I'd choose it over California, for sure, but New Jersey is definitely not cheap.

chimeracoder 9y ago

> High stress, high pollution, rat race of a lifestyle, you are regulated and taxed on more things you even thought possible New York has incredibly low pollution compared to other cities of comparable size, especially in the US. As for "regulated and taxed on more things than you even thought possible"... are you sure you're not thinking of California?

oblio 9y ago
Is there some sort of pollution ranking of sorts? Something with hard data behind it.
- vkou 9y ago
  There's air quality maps at https://www.airnow.gov/ https://www.airnow.gov/, and similar websites. Mind you, there's a lot of day-to-day variation.
JustAnotherPat 9y ago
Overall air quality is pretty good in NYC, but street level pollution is nasty. There isn't a day that I don't get huge whiffs of diesel exhaust or a weekend that i don't have to clean off black grime from my windows. Happens less so in cities where you're not surrounded by walls of buildings and heavy street traffic. I think the air quality in in the city is only good because it gets quickly blown out to sea.
jimmy1 9y ago
No I am thinking about my family and I and our experiences living there. When I say Pollution, I am not just saying air pollution. I physically felt dirty the minute I stepped out into the street after getting ready for work. I would wash my hair and it would streak of dirt. The subway is absolutely filthy. Bathrooms anywhere but expensive restaurants are filthy. Sidewalks were filthy. Streets are filthy. The water that pools up at the sides of crosswalks was everywhere -- and was filthy. It's the definition of a big dirty city. As far as taxes and regulation goes, yes California is getting crazy too, but no I am thinking about New York. The contrast was stark, especially when you move anywhere south of NY, which I did land in D.C. for a bit, and even that was better.

wbl 9y ago

Being able to have your children transport themselves where they need to go is a major win for raising a family.

dr_ 9y ago

I'm raising my family in NYC, I disagree that it's one of the worst imaginable places to try and raise a family. There are a lot of activities for children, from the parks, to indoor play areas, to the libraries, etc. You can just about anything you need by walking. The public schools have been improving - you can try for one of the elite gifted and talented schools but even if that doesn't work out, there are many more good school options than there have been in the past. It's certainly not a cheap place to live, but I actually can't imagine a better place to raise a family. I don't know if there's any more pollution than any other major city. There's no major manufacturing that happens in NYC, so the pollution would mostly be from cars. In general, the city is becoming less and less car friendly - they are seriously considering a congestion pricing program - so I would expect whatever pollution there may be to actually improve. Nevertheless, pollution has never been one of the major complaints of most NYC folk. Yes, taxes can run high. You can always live outside the city if this is an issue but despite this, people prefer to live in the city as long as they can. High stress is really more a virtue of your job, not the city. There are many people who live here and don't want to live anywhere else. As they say, your bedroom is where you sleep - your living room is the entire city.

jimmy1 9y ago
Until you try to raise your children somewhere elsewhere, I will take your comment with a huge grain of salt. Compared to where I am now, it just simply doesn't compare. I don't care about the city being my living room. My backyard is mountains, and trees, and fresh air, and creeks and streams, and endless opportunities for my children to go outside, get dirty, and explore.
- austinshea 9y ago
  If you don’t care about being in the city, and do care about being close to nature, then that’s an obvious choice. That being said, I don’t want to raise my kids out there. I want my kids surrounded by many cultures, and to have access to the arts that NYC provides. It just is a no brainer for me.
  - 9y ago