3 ms·

I think the opposite is true. It's easier to find a job in a city other than your own with the internet, and big cities pay the most

by aprilthird2021 2y ago

bobthepanda 2y ago
That ignores that plenty of people are in cities because of the amenities that concentration allows. If you want niche/specialty restaurants, grocery options, entertainment, medical care etc. you will have to be in a large metropolitan area
- ghaff 2y ago
  You can be in a broader metropolitan area without actually living in a city.
- s1artibartfast 2y ago
  That means you have to be in driving distance of a metro with several hundred thousand. That is very different than a Tier 1 city.
  - bluGill 2y ago
    The opportunities you get in a city of 3million is different from 600k is different from 250k. I've lived in all of the above over my life. You can find niches in each. However the larger the city the more options. The smallest city had great Thai food - some family from Thailand moved there and opened a restaurant, but there was no Vietnamese, the next largest city has both, and the 3 million city more options than I was ever able to check out. (there are cities > 10 million around with even more options).
- _DeadFred_ 2y ago
  Yeah big cities provide a one stop mall like experience for 'experiences and culture' for people who need that curated for them. To me it's the most boring, non-organic, empty experience, but I've always preferred non-mainstream scenes or to hunt out my own entertainment/style/beauty. I can see the draw for people that doesn't work for though. It's funny that cities various 'interesting districts' are normally just suburbs that the city absorbed. But yeah, suburbs are just awful places without their own culture or interest (unless absorbed, then they are a distinct interesting district).
9rx 2y ago
> big cities pay the most Big cities pay top performers the most, by far, but median incomes tend to be quite a bit lower than small town/rural areas. If you are a professional sports star or F500 CEO, the city is unquestionably the place to be†, but for the normal person who will end up in a drab job the money often isn't there. Many will accept the low pay due to being temporarily embarrassed CEOs, of course. † Although knowing some of these people, they tend to live rurally as well, having the means to be able to live in both settings. The rich rarely live in just one place.
- bluGill 2y ago
  Pay is lower in small/rural towns for the cheap jobs - but your cost of living is also lower. The trick is finding the best compromise for your situation - dense enough to have the higher pay of a city while not so dense that your cost of living is too high. Where I live in the Suburbs of Des Moines, McDonalds starts at $16/hour. There are rural towns not far away where they start at $14, and I know rural towns farther out where you start at $10 (McDonalds isn't in these towns so it isn't a full comparison but that is the closest I can give). Where I live apartments can be had for under $1000/month so it is feasible for someone working at McDonalds to live on that wage. In the more rural areas apartments might be $500/month but you are making less plus the local grocery stores are more expesnive than the Aldi you could walk to from the apartment (thus meaning you don't need a car though crossing the highways isn't exactly safe). Of course the real issue is people pick where to live based on factors other than cost of living. They care where their families live.
  - 9rx 2y ago
    > Pay is lower in small/rural towns for the cheap jobs I expect the median income is often higher in rural areas because, while there is little on the high end, there is more mid-tier opportunity. In the big city if you don't make it into the big leagues, only the dregs are left. Cities amplify the extremes. In rural areas, the $30 per hour jobs are willing to hire any warm body that shows up. Of course, rural is a difficult categorization as it is a catchall for everything that is left. A rural area with a strong agricultural sector, for example, is nothing like a rural area that is not much more than barren wilderness. In the former, there is a lot of money to be made, comparatively, while in the latter the McDonalds at the highway rest stop may be the only business there is for hundreds of miles. We are definitely talking about a certain kind of rural here.

I think the opposite is true. It's easier to find a job in a city other than your own with the internet, and big cities pay the most

bobthepanda 2y ago

That ignores that plenty of people are in cities because of the amenities that concentration allows. If you want niche/specialty restaurants, grocery options, entertainment, medical care etc. you will have to be in a large metropolitan area

ghaff 2y ago
You can be in a broader metropolitan area without actually living in a city.
s1artibartfast 2y ago
That means you have to be in driving distance of a metro with several hundred thousand. That is very different than a Tier 1 city.
- bluGill 2y ago
  The opportunities you get in a city of 3million is different from 600k is different from 250k. I've lived in all of the above over my life. You can find niches in each. However the larger the city the more options. The smallest city had great Thai food - some family from Thailand moved there and opened a restaurant, but there was no Vietnamese, the next largest city has both, and the 3 million city more options than I was ever able to check out. (there are cities > 10 million around with even more options).
_DeadFred_ 2y ago
Yeah big cities provide a one stop mall like experience for 'experiences and culture' for people who need that curated for them. To me it's the most boring, non-organic, empty experience, but I've always preferred non-mainstream scenes or to hunt out my own entertainment/style/beauty. I can see the draw for people that doesn't work for though. It's funny that cities various 'interesting districts' are normally just suburbs that the city absorbed. But yeah, suburbs are just awful places without their own culture or interest (unless absorbed, then they are a distinct interesting district).

9rx 2y ago

> big cities pay the most Big cities pay top performers the most, by far, but median incomes tend to be quite a bit lower than small town/rural areas. If you are a professional sports star or F500 CEO, the city is unquestionably the place to be†, but for the normal person who will end up in a drab job the money often isn't there. Many will accept the low pay due to being temporarily embarrassed CEOs, of course. † Although knowing some of these people, they tend to live rurally as well, having the means to be able to live in both settings. The rich rarely live in just one place.

bluGill 2y ago
Pay is lower in small/rural towns for the cheap jobs - but your cost of living is also lower. The trick is finding the best compromise for your situation - dense enough to have the higher pay of a city while not so dense that your cost of living is too high. Where I live in the Suburbs of Des Moines, McDonalds starts at $16/hour. There are rural towns not far away where they start at $14, and I know rural towns farther out where you start at $10 (McDonalds isn't in these towns so it isn't a full comparison but that is the closest I can give). Where I live apartments can be had for under $1000/month so it is feasible for someone working at McDonalds to live on that wage. In the more rural areas apartments might be $500/month but you are making less plus the local grocery stores are more expesnive than the Aldi you could walk to from the apartment (thus meaning you don't need a car though crossing the highways isn't exactly safe). Of course the real issue is people pick where to live based on factors other than cost of living. They care where their families live.
- 9rx 2y ago
  > Pay is lower in small/rural towns for the cheap jobs I expect the median income is often higher in rural areas because, while there is little on the high end, there is more mid-tier opportunity. In the big city if you don't make it into the big leagues, only the dregs are left. Cities amplify the extremes. In rural areas, the $30 per hour jobs are willing to hire any warm body that shows up. Of course, rural is a difficult categorization as it is a catchall for everything that is left. A rural area with a strong agricultural sector, for example, is nothing like a rural area that is not much more than barren wilderness. In the former, there is a lot of money to be made, comparatively, while in the latter the McDonalds at the highway rest stop may be the only business there is for hundreds of miles. We are definitely talking about a certain kind of rural here.