5 ms·

> the kind of educated talent they need probably live and want to live disproportionately in more expensive areas Really? My impression is that nobody wants to

> the kind of educated talent they need probably live and want to live disproportionately in more expensive areas Really? My impression is that nobody wants to live in expensive tech hubs where they can't even own a place to live, but they can't leave because there is much less work elsewhere.

ghaff 7y ago
It's a mix. There are certainly people who are convinced that they can only find meaningful work in a handful of tech hubs--first and foremost the Bay Area. I'd argue they're mostly wrong but you won't convince many of them. However, there are others who genuinely like the Bay Area in spite of all its downsides for reasons that I even somewhat understand when I visit. The culture, the lack of snow, etc. Others are like New Yorkers who consider every other city a provincial cowtown.
- non-entity 7y ago
  > There are certainly people who are convinced that they can only find meaningful work in a handful of tech hubs--first and foremost the Bay Area. I'd argue they're mostly wrong but you won't convince many of them. As someone who kind of feels this way, I guess it depends on how you define meaningful. I grew up and live in the Southeast. Its not like there arent jobs out here, but majority of jobs around here a corporate, "code monkey" jobs. Yeah, there are startups and some markets that are outliers, but its rare for me to see a job in this region and thing "wow this would be a really cool job". OTOH I've seen job listings for companies in say, the bay area or Austin that seemed really interesting (to me), from companies large and small and it just seems to come down to where the companies have offices.
mcv 7y ago
Everybody wants to live in expensive tech hubs. That's why it's so expensive: more demand than supply.
- bryanlarsen 7y ago
  More specifically, everybody wants to live where the jobs are and the opportunity for career progression is.
  - mcv 7y ago
    For jobs, but also for many other things. It's where lots of things come together, lots of things happen. More restaurants, museums, night life, music venues, theatres, etc. Cities often have a long history, historical landmarks, etc. I certainly wouldn't want to trade Amsterdam for the town I grew up in. Then again, my dad clearly disagrees. On the other hand, Amsterdam probably isn't quite as expensive as London, New York or San Francisco.
- ghaff 7y ago
  For certain values of "everybody." Lots of people have no desire to live in an expensive coastal city.
  - mcv 7y ago
    Of course, but the fact that they are so expensive is caused by the fact that so many people want to live there. It's the rising cost of living that provide a balance to that.
- JohnFen 7y ago
  Well, not everybody -- I don't!
esoterica 7y ago
You’ve never heard of the “dreaming of moving to the big city” trope? There are and have always been millions of people who want to move to HCOL cities even if they don’t have access to the jobs that would financially justify it. The reason why doctors get paid more in underserved areas is because very few highly educated people want to live in rural Alabama, even if the houses are cheap.
triceratops 7y ago
> My impression is that nobody wants to live in expensive tech hubs where they can't even own a place to live "Nobody goes there anymore, it's too crowded."

ghaff 7y ago

It's a mix. There are certainly people who are convinced that they can only find meaningful work in a handful of tech hubs--first and foremost the Bay Area. I'd argue they're mostly wrong but you won't convince many of them. However, there are others who genuinely like the Bay Area in spite of all its downsides for reasons that I even somewhat understand when I visit. The culture, the lack of snow, etc. Others are like New Yorkers who consider every other city a provincial cowtown.

non-entity 7y ago
> There are certainly people who are convinced that they can only find meaningful work in a handful of tech hubs--first and foremost the Bay Area. I'd argue they're mostly wrong but you won't convince many of them. As someone who kind of feels this way, I guess it depends on how you define meaningful. I grew up and live in the Southeast. Its not like there arent jobs out here, but majority of jobs around here a corporate, "code monkey" jobs. Yeah, there are startups and some markets that are outliers, but its rare for me to see a job in this region and thing "wow this would be a really cool job". OTOH I've seen job listings for companies in say, the bay area or Austin that seemed really interesting (to me), from companies large and small and it just seems to come down to where the companies have offices.

mcv 7y ago

Everybody wants to live in expensive tech hubs. That's why it's so expensive: more demand than supply.

bryanlarsen 7y ago
More specifically, everybody wants to live where the jobs are and the opportunity for career progression is.
- mcv 7y ago
  For jobs, but also for many other things. It's where lots of things come together, lots of things happen. More restaurants, museums, night life, music venues, theatres, etc. Cities often have a long history, historical landmarks, etc. I certainly wouldn't want to trade Amsterdam for the town I grew up in. Then again, my dad clearly disagrees. On the other hand, Amsterdam probably isn't quite as expensive as London, New York or San Francisco.
ghaff 7y ago
For certain values of "everybody." Lots of people have no desire to live in an expensive coastal city.
- mcv 7y ago
  Of course, but the fact that they are so expensive is caused by the fact that so many people want to live there. It's the rising cost of living that provide a balance to that.
JohnFen 7y ago
Well, not everybody -- I don't!

esoterica 7y ago

You’ve never heard of the “dreaming of moving to the big city” trope? There are and have always been millions of people who want to move to HCOL cities even if they don’t have access to the jobs that would financially justify it. The reason why doctors get paid more in underserved areas is because very few highly educated people want to live in rural Alabama, even if the houses are cheap.

triceratops 7y ago

> My impression is that nobody wants to live in expensive tech hubs where they can't even own a place to live "Nobody goes there anymore, it's too crowded."