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> Why struggle, working 16 hour days to move up in a career so you can afford the $700k 2000 sq ft home on a postage stamp sized property in a so-so part of tow

> Why struggle, working 16 hour days to move up in a career so you can afford the $700k 2000 sq ft home on a postage stamp sized property in a so-so part of town when you can move to Arkansas, work at a remote development shop and afford a $350k 4000 sq ft home in a gated community with and acre and a half of wooded property with an in-ground pool? That's a pretty big strawman. There are tons of other options for someone , and not all of us and our families need 4000 sq ft (or even 2000 sq ft) and 1.5 acres of property to be happy. I like living in densely populated areas rather than the equivalent of a personal ivory tower. I think that American dream of owning a big house with a huge amount of property has done more harm than good.

bane 13y ago
I'm just presenting a possible equation that describes the phenomenon in question. Lots of people ask themselves similar questions, but with different metrics. - Why live in an old 400 sq ft efficiency with exposed ductwork and pipes <80th st. Manhattan when I can live 15 minutes away in Williamsburg and have a modern 2 bedroom for the same price? - Why live in SF, making below market wages working for some startup, renting a bedroom in some guy's basement, when I could live in a deluxe 3rd floor walkup in Sunnyvale? - Why live in either place when I can take a dev job near Miami and enjoy round the year sun and beach, own a house and have a better cost of living anyway? I'm not saying I agree with these questions, or the motivations behind them. But then again, I live in a very walkable, high service suburb instead of the nearest big metro area also. But I'd just as happily live in a small 2 br in NY. I grew up pretty rural and remember asking myself questions like - Why do I have to spend 2+ hours a day driving to/from work every day? - Wouldn't it be nice if I could live in a place where I could walk 5-10 minutes to get any of my basic services taken care of? - Wouldn't it be great to live in a place where I simply didn't need a car? - I'd like to have more people nearby to associate with. - etc. So I get the desire both ways.

bane 13y ago

I'm just presenting a possible equation that describes the phenomenon in question. Lots of people ask themselves similar questions, but with different metrics. - Why live in an old 400 sq ft efficiency with exposed ductwork and pipes <80th st. Manhattan when I can live 15 minutes away in Williamsburg and have a modern 2 bedroom for the same price? - Why live in SF, making below market wages working for some startup, renting a bedroom in some guy's basement, when I could live in a deluxe 3rd floor walkup in Sunnyvale? - Why live in either place when I can take a dev job near Miami and enjoy round the year sun and beach, own a house and have a better cost of living anyway? I'm not saying I agree with these questions, or the motivations behind them. But then again, I live in a very walkable, high service suburb instead of the nearest big metro area also. But I'd just as happily live in a small 2 br in NY. I grew up pretty rural and remember asking myself questions like - Why do I have to spend 2+ hours a day driving to/from work every day? - Wouldn't it be nice if I could live in a place where I could walk 5-10 minutes to get any of my basic services taken care of? - Wouldn't it be great to live in a place where I simply didn't need a car? - I'd like to have more people nearby to associate with. - etc. So I get the desire both ways.