4 ms·

This. I'm living in Boston, which admittedly also has a pretty terrible cost of living, although not yet quite NYC or SF. Somerville is trying really hard to c

by tibbon 8y ago

This. I'm living in Boston, which admittedly also has a pretty terrible cost of living, although not yet quite NYC or SF. Somerville is trying really hard to catch up though. It's hard enough here to be able to have space for a partner and/or kids, and maybe 100 sq ft of grass in a yard - but it's at least imaginable, and possible to have a semi-decent commute. I don't know what Facebook or someone would have to pay me to move to SF and be able to imagine similar. $400-500k? Like, the concept of owning property in SF with any amount of space is mind boggling. Same with NYC. I don't want a 90-minute commute daily. Priorities for me right now are: - Space for at least a 1 car garage (in which to keep tools, projects, and a few motorcycles) - At least 100 sq ft of grass/yard - 3 bedrooms for myself, my partner, music and potentially family expansion - A decent commute (under an hour, preferably 30 minutes or less) - A decent kitchen and space to entertain a dozen or so friends for dinner - A down payment that isn't going to be $200k This isn't going to happen in SF or NYC. Maybe if I live in NJ or San Mateo? I'll stay with my already-higher than this article mentions salary, and have some prospect of space and such.

alexhutcheson 8y ago
> Maybe if I live in NJ or San Mateo? NJ commute into a Manhattan office from a suburban home like you describe would pretty much never be less than 50-55 minutes each way, and often longer.
coredog64 8y ago
New Jersey housing costs are completely crazy as well, at least for the places that have a reasonable commute to NYC. In addition to the high cost of the houses, you have to factor in the absolutely crazy property taxes. If you don't buy a house but instead rent, larger complexes have insane "maintenance fees".
matchbok 8y ago
Have a lot of friends moving to NJ - still relatively affordable and very close to Manhattan. Jersey City is quite nice and very kid friendly!
- sys_64738 8y ago
  But it's New Jersey. Do you know anybody who doesn't get embarrassed telling others they live in NJ?
  - astura 8y ago
    Only people who live in South Jersey. (and they are quick to follow it up with "South Jersey is different.")
- TruffleLabs 8y ago
  “Close” to Manhattan? Close as in I can see it across the river is not the same as I need to commute daily. Jersey City to midtown is minimum 45 minutes rush hour. You still have to add the time for the “last” mile part of commute to your office.
walrus01 8y ago
> maybe 100 sq ft of grass in a yard IMHO, the unfortunate economics of high urban density in big cities means that the american dream of a patch of green grassy lawn might be something people need to abandon. Kids grow up and become functional, well balanced adults while living in condos, townhouses and apartments in dense cities like Amsterdam, Berlin or in the center of downtown Vancouver BC, without having their own yard. If you go fully condo lifestyle you can pick a location near good schools and public parks. For some reason I'm reminded of a description written by William Gibson in one of his "Bridge Trilogy" novels about a person in the SF area, in his envisioned near future, maintaining a closely guarded tiny patch of pristine grass lawn...
jinushaun 8y ago
The problem is that you're trying to own a house in a city. That's not the goal of city living. Nor is car ownership. In cities like SF and NYC, you should expect to rent forever while raising a family if you refuse to move to a cheaper COL area. For reference, I live in NYC with a partner, kid and dog. The problem arises when you have more than one kid and need more than 2 bedrooms. That's when single income can't afford a bigger apartment, and dual income can't afford double daycare. The kids will always share a bedroom. (I grew up in a family of five sharing one bedroom. Parents slept in living room) The best you can hope for is to space them out so you never have to pay for double daycare: the new one is born when the old one starts free public school. But then you're at the whim of the quality of public schools.

by tibbon 8y ago

alexhutcheson 8y ago

> Maybe if I live in NJ or San Mateo? NJ commute into a Manhattan office from a suburban home like you describe would pretty much never be less than 50-55 minutes each way, and often longer.

coredog64 8y ago

New Jersey housing costs are completely crazy as well, at least for the places that have a reasonable commute to NYC. In addition to the high cost of the houses, you have to factor in the absolutely crazy property taxes. If you don't buy a house but instead rent, larger complexes have insane "maintenance fees".

matchbok 8y ago

Have a lot of friends moving to NJ - still relatively affordable and very close to Manhattan. Jersey City is quite nice and very kid friendly!

sys_64738 8y ago
But it's New Jersey. Do you know anybody who doesn't get embarrassed telling others they live in NJ?
- astura 8y ago
  Only people who live in South Jersey. (and they are quick to follow it up with "South Jersey is different.")
TruffleLabs 8y ago
“Close” to Manhattan? Close as in I can see it across the river is not the same as I need to commute daily. Jersey City to midtown is minimum 45 minutes rush hour. You still have to add the time for the “last” mile part of commute to your office.

walrus01 8y ago

> maybe 100 sq ft of grass in a yard IMHO, the unfortunate economics of high urban density in big cities means that the american dream of a patch of green grassy lawn might be something people need to abandon. Kids grow up and become functional, well balanced adults while living in condos, townhouses and apartments in dense cities like Amsterdam, Berlin or in the center of downtown Vancouver BC, without having their own yard. If you go fully condo lifestyle you can pick a location near good schools and public parks. For some reason I'm reminded of a description written by William Gibson in one of his "Bridge Trilogy" novels about a person in the SF area, in his envisioned near future, maintaining a closely guarded tiny patch of pristine grass lawn...

jinushaun 8y ago

The problem is that you're trying to own a house in a city. That's not the goal of city living. Nor is car ownership. In cities like SF and NYC, you should expect to rent forever while raising a family if you refuse to move to a cheaper COL area. For reference, I live in NYC with a partner, kid and dog. The problem arises when you have more than one kid and need more than 2 bedrooms. That's when single income can't afford a bigger apartment, and dual income can't afford double daycare. The kids will always share a bedroom. (I grew up in a family of five sharing one bedroom. Parents slept in living room) The best you can hope for is to space them out so you never have to pay for double daycare: the new one is born when the old one starts free public school. But then you're at the whim of the quality of public schools.