Cost of living in NYC :merchant: Can YOU afford it?

[phcitywarrior]

NYC is expensive but not that much more expensive than DC except for housing. As per food, bills and other costs of life NYC is only a tad bit more expensive to be very honest. Everytime I'm there I compare the prices to DC and it's about neck and neck safe rent. If anything you get more entertainment value in NYC.

Lagos, Nigeria is probably more expensive in terms of "like for like" quality of life expenses, but that's another discussion.

I think NYC is a dope city for a young person. I could do 3-4 years and then dip. Was there like twice this past summer. Good vibes all around.

Lot of great things to do. Massive city with GOAT transport. I also like the city is really "gritty". Gives the city some character.

It's a great city to enjoy for a few years. But if you have any type of "mission" outside of Finance, Music, Ent, Art, Fashion or "having fun" then the city aint for you.

NYC is easily on of my favourite cities along with London and Lagos.

 

[CookisaCac]

Take Houston off that list. For a city it's size it doesn't offer much in forms entertainment.
Especially if you're black.
nikkas won't admit it but your options are limited.

And you got to drive everywhere

 

[Rockstar Mom]

South BX is dirty still. And on top of that if you black. Ask @skeetsinternal. How he feels about the south BX.

I don't care how anyone else feels about the Bronx And I have family in the Bronx. I never said south Bronx wasn't dirty. It's dusty as fukk. I said people take the shyt they see on tv and apply it to the entire Bronx. Anytime you see a show based on a BX hood they always film it in shyttt ass south BX. There are some very nice places in the Bronx.

 

[Frangala]

NYC is expensive but not that much more expensive than DC except for housing. As per food, bills and other costs of life NYC is only a tad bit more expensive to be very honest. Everytime I'm there I compare the prices to DC and it's about neck and neck safe rent. If anything you get more entertainment value in NYC.

Lagos, Nigeria is probably more expensive in terms of "like for like" quality of life expenses, but that's another discussion.

I think NYC is a dope city for a young person. I could do 3-4 years and then dip. Was there like twice this past summer. Good vibes all around.

Lot of great things to do. Massive city with GOAT transport. I also like the city is really "gritty". Gives the city some character.

It's a great city to enjoy for a few years. But if you have any type of "mission" outside of Finance, Music, Ent, Art, Fashion or "having fun" then the city aint for you.

NYC is easily on of my favourite cities along with London and Lagos.

Lagos is wack and over priced. It's basically to to recreate Western ideas of nightlife. The best place I went to in Lagos was the Fela Kuti shrine. The places in the island are just trying to recreate the same stuff we see in any major city in America. The clubs are the same girls with bottle sparkles etc... Those "exclusive" places in Lagos are often frequented by prostitutes. The best nightlife in the continent is Johannesburg. I have had so much fun in SA and it offers a variety of fun nights outside the conventional nightclub.

 

[TNOT]

Please breh, nikkas come here to work, its not on par with other major cities as far as it being a place people visit .

 

[TNOT]

NYC dont have upscale entertainment if you black as well. Half those places, don't even want your black ass in there

And nothing wrong with driving as long as is not rush hour. Get you wealth and life skills up.

People at this point want a higher STANDARD of living.

Come breh.

 

[Wild self]

Come breh.

Its true. The standard and quality of living in NYC if you ain't rich is poor for a first word country, if you calculate the cost of living.

 

[CookisaCac]

Please breh, nikkas come here to work, its not on par with other major cities as far as it being a place people visit .

Isn't that what we're talking about? Places to live(something NY isnt)

 

[dora_da_destroyer]

It's not the same though. Depending on what you want, NYC has shyt to offer that nowhere else does.

But I would rather have a backyard and decent quality of life than "culture, museums, fine dining". Nobody does that shyt every day; I get my NYC fix with my annual trip

and that's why it's a transient place. but people in this thread want to front like NYC is not worth the premium for those who seek those amenities, when it is. the "hot areas" (pretty much all of manhattan and parts of bk and queens) aren't long term destinations for many outside the $200K+ crowd, but you can live a normal life further out in some of the boroughs and burbs.

if i'm looking for the best urban experience in the US, i wouldn't mind dropping the extra dough to live in NYC, it easily outclasses the other big cities in the US IMO - this is coming from someone who's lived in or spent significant time in a lot of them.

people also conveniently forget that the amount you're paying for a car note, gas, and insurance is gone in NY, that's on average $400-600 more that you have freed up to go toward higher housing costs.

 

[dora_da_destroyer]

The ironic thing that we don't talk about in these NYC threads is the fact that many Native NYers want to get out the city.

I lived there for 10 years and can't count how many people moved them and they families down to Delaware, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia , Georgia, or Florida

this isn't some special happenstance of NY, it's everywhere that's super expensive and you don't have the means to secure a job in the industries that pay. it happened in LA, it's going on here in the bay with tech and transplants, shyt, people are leaving chicago and it aint even an expensive city. everyone's situation is different and you make the tradeoffs accordingly

 

[dora_da_destroyer]

The amenities argument that always gets brought up never can justify the cost of living

Just the fact that the MTA incessantly rapes them with price increases every few years is joke enough

it cost $121/a month for an unlimited ride card - insurance and gas on a car will run you the same or more, we wont even take into account people with car notes...then repairs, maintenance, oil changes. the subway pass argument is weak as hell

 

[phcitywarrior]

Lagos is wack and over priced. It's basically to to recreate Western ideas of nightlife. The best place I went to in Lagos was the Fela Kuti shrine. The places in the island are just trying to recreate the same stuff we see in any major city in America. The clubs are the same girls with bottle sparkles etc... Those "exclusive" places in Lagos are often frequented by prostitutes. The best nightlife in the continent is Johannesburg. I have had so much fun in SA and it offers a variety of fun nights outside the conventional nightclub.

Man, any major club in subsaharan Africa is gonna have prostitutes. From Accra to Cape Town. Cubs are where boys be hunting.

As per nightlife theres a lot more than just clubs. There are comedy shows, live music, fashion shows, book events, so much more. You have to be in the know to know.

I won't lie SA is far more accessible for a tourist. If you aint got people to take you around Lagos you're gonna be forced to hit the main clubs. A lot of things are also sectioned off by which circles your in.

Also, almost every "club club" in the world has that same formula. Overpriced bottles and the girls trying to get into VIP. From DC, to London, to Bangkok, to Kuala Lumpur, to Lagos, to Accra; I've seen them all. I'm sure Johannesburg is like that as well.

As per overpriced, most definitely, a lot of things are imported. Many African countries are the same. Lagos imho has a different draw for a native Nigerian or for one that knows how to properly navigate the city than it does for someone just visiting. You really have to appreciate Africa for both the good and bad to really like Lagos. There really is a certain "Lagos state of mind" that I feel you have to be in to really enjoy the city

But I'm glad you're speaking from experience rather than just mouthing off what you've heard from others.

But prostitutes you said...lemme guess..you went to "The Place" for some late night pick up. . Those Unilag girls are heavy

 

[dora_da_destroyer]

Worcester is a shyt hole. and I don’t even like Boston, also over priced.

Springfield is a shyt hole? I live in one of the nicest parts of Springfield. clearly you don’t know shyt about Springfield

what amenities do black people or NYers want/have access to that i don’t in Spfld Mass?

either way you dodged the point and question

i want a professional (educated) black crowd - not just black people

i want to go to stores that carry black hair products

i want black arts events - festivals, dance troupes, theater, concerts - not jay-z level people who tour everywhere, but smaller acts like ledisi or eric roberson to come to my city because there is enough demand for them, etc

i want to put my kids in good schools that also have other black kids

i want to go to clubs and bars that have majority black crowds

i want to eat at places that have cooking from across the black diaspora

i want to go to plays on and off broadway - not wait until some shyt is touring and the b-suqad hits the nearest big city to me

i gotta go to a meeting, but i could keep going

 

[dora_da_destroyer]

not even that i follow mad people on NY from twitter who always are bytching about so and so train being shut down or delayed making them late for work lol yikes

fukk that

if you aint sitting on a train, you're sitting in traffic - that's for every major urban area. again, a moot point - every major city sucks in rush hour no matter the common form of transit. or you could be the bay area where public trans sucks and traffic sucks

 

[Frangala]

Man, any major club in subsaharan Africa is gonna have prostitutes. From Accra to Cape Town.

As per nightlife theres a lot more than just clubs. There are comedy shows, live music, fashion shows, book events, so much more. You have to be in the know to know.

I won't lie SA is far more accessible for a tourist. If you aint got people to take you around Lagos you're gonna be forced to hit the main clubs. A lot of things are also sectioned off by which circles your in.

Also, almost every "club club" in the world has that same formula. Overprice bottles and the girls trying to get into VIP. From DC, to London, to Bangkok, to Kuala Lumpur, to Lagos, to Accra. I'm sure Johannesburg is like that as well.

Asper overpriced, most definitely, a lot of things are imported. Lagos imho has a different draw for a native Nigerian or one that knows how to properly navigate the city that it does for someone just visiting. You really have to appreciate Africa for both the good and bad to really like Lagos. there really is a certain Lagos state of mind that I feel you have to be in to really enjoy the city

But I'm glad you're speaking from experience rather than just mouthing off what you've heard from others.

But prostitutes you said...lemme guess..you went to "The Place" for some late night pick up.

Nope not for anything late. I actually went there for food in the afternoon one time but I almost most of the time just chilled in Lekki that's where I was staying so I wasn't trying to stray too far especially with that Lagos traffic. One of my coworkers at the time was trying to get me to go to Quillox in VI but just wasn't up for it. But in Accra they are a lot more strict when it comes to that "working girl" problem. I remember the first time I went out in Accra at this spot. The security guard did NOT allow women who were not accompanied by men inside the club. I was puzzled I'm reasoning like why wouldn't let women in since men usually go there to try to get at women but my Ghanaian friend broke it down to me why they had such a policy in order to keep the place respectable and prevent "working girls".

Back on topic though, I am just over the nightclub life so it does not factor into an attractive city for me but I will go out and do the "club thing" when I land in a new country just to see how the scene is. But DC and NYC summer day parties is where it's at. Nothing beats U street pre gentrifiation (they got rid of a lot of black establishments) during the day in DC during the summer and likewise for Brooklyn during the day and summer. So I'm guessing if that's a factor then those two cities bring value when it comes to that but the nightlife throughout the world from my travels is basically the same and everybody is trying to copy America especially establishments that cater to younger people and millennials.