Which City/Market would you choose? Forum

[vale1rd]

LA or Silicon Valley

[rayiner]

I think Chicago has a nice balance of presTTTige and lack of foreigners.

[fortissimo]

I think Chicago has a nice balance of presTTTige and lack of foreigners.

I forgot about that criteria. hehe

[doopwooper]

DC all the way. Clean, pretty city, nice people, sweet 'burbs to camp out in, nature and beaches nearby, philly and nyc just a train ride away.

Too bad it has the COL of NYC without half of the culture. The biggest draw to DC is prestige, right behind New York there. For QOL though it falls pretty far down the list.

Eh, I disagree on both counts. I lived in both nyc and dc for extended periods of time, and COL is astronomically higher in new york. If you want city life without living in the city itself, for nyc you've got...new jersey...and for DC you have really cute places in virginia and maryland. Sure, new york might be more exciting for a night out, but I've gone to more lectures, galleries, concerts, and shows in DC than I ever did in new york. You just have to know where to look! Plus in DC you don't feel all scummy at the end of the night

excuse you? First off, there are a lot of really great places to live in NJ that have easy access to NYC (20-45minutes). Also? Brooklyn? Queens? There are plenty of great places to live outside of Manhattan, but still in NYC that are way more affordable.
Also... there is no way that there are more galleries and concerts in DC than NY. NY is the cultural center of this country by far. The art, fashion, and music scene is here.

[agentzer0]

One Comment: NY State Income Tax on a $200k salary ~ 8% = $16k per year
CA State Income Tax on a $200k salary ~ 10% = $ 20k per year
DC ~ 8% = $ 16k per year

Over 10 years thats $160 k in NYC and DC and a whopping $200k in LA or San Fran.

Florida? 0.

[Amelie]

.

[portena]

Also... there is no way that there are more galleries and concerts in DC than NY.

RC fail

[Tangerine Gleam]

One Comment: NY State Income Tax on a $200k salary ~ 8% = $16k per year
CA State Income Tax on a $200k salary ~ 10% = $ 20k per year
DC ~ 8% = $ 16k per year

Over 10 years thats $160 k in NYC and DC and a whopping $200k in LA or San Fran.

Florida? 0.

But then you'd be living in Florida.

Paying 10% income tax to live in SF is like paying a cover charge for some classy event where you can enjoy lovely cocktails on a plush couch while looking out the window at all of the people living in Florida.

[missvik218]

NC (Charlotte) > ATL/DC >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Anywhere else.

Edit: Voted South but more Mid ---> South Atlantic

[nyyankees]

yeah im ny native, but i didnt apply to anything in ny/ schools with ny as their primary market. (except cornell, im not really sure why) For me, its prob SF >> Chi>>>DC>LA>>>>>>>>NYC

Just out of curiosity, why so much NYC hate?

grew up here, worked here, lived here, just ready for something different. Dont get me wrong, I love this city and I could def see myself coming back after a few years outside of here, but i just think it would be good for me to push out a little bit and experience something a little different. I went to school in baltimore, and as ghetto/shady as it was at times, there were things to enjoy about the culture of the people there that I had never seen before. I figure the further away I get, the more likely it is that I experience these things. (I know, logic fail).

[insidethetwenty]

I surprised not to see the Pacific Northwest on this poll. It always feels like a good 10% of the people on this site are all about Seattle/Portland.

[reasonabledoubt]

DC all the way. Clean, pretty city, nice people, sweet 'burbs to camp out in, nature and beaches nearby, philly and nyc just a train ride away.

Too bad it has the COL of NYC without half of the culture. The biggest draw to DC is prestige, right behind New York there. For QOL though it falls pretty far down the list.

Eh, I disagree on both counts. I lived in both nyc and dc for extended periods of time, and COL is astronomically higher in new york. If you want city life without living in the city itself, for nyc you've got...new jersey...and for DC you have really cute places in virginia and maryland. Sure, new york might be more exciting for a night out, but I've gone to more lectures, galleries, concerts, and shows in DC than I ever did in new york. You just have to know where to look! Plus in DC you don't feel all scummy at the end of the night

What do you mean by "scummy" at the end of the night? Are you going to those underground smoke-easy's?

[agentzer0]

One Comment: NY State Income Tax on a $200k salary ~ 8% = $16k per year
CA State Income Tax on a $200k salary ~ 10% = $ 20k per year
DC ~ 8% = $ 16k per year

Over 10 years thats $160 k in NYC and DC and a whopping $200k in LA or San Fran.

Florida? 0.

But then you'd be living in Florida.

Paying 10% income tax to live in SF is like paying a cover charge for some classy event where you can enjoy lovely cocktails on a plush couch while looking out the window at all of the people living in Florida.

have you ever been to miami?

[underachiever]

DC or Ohio

[rayiner]

NC (Charlotte) > ATL/DC >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Anywhere else.

Edit: Voted South but more Mid ---> South Atlantic

I like you.

[Tangerine Gleam]

One Comment: NY State Income Tax on a $200k salary ~ 8% = $16k per year
CA State Income Tax on a $200k salary ~ 10% = $ 20k per year
DC ~ 8% = $ 16k per year

Over 10 years thats $160 k in NYC and DC and a whopping $200k in LA or San Fran.

Florida? 0.

But then you'd be living in Florida.

Paying 10% income tax to live in SF is like paying a cover charge for some classy event where you can enjoy lovely cocktails on a plush couch while looking out the window at all of the people living in Florida.

have you ever been to miami?

My post was half in jest, but yes, I have. Lived in many cities in Florida for many years and I hope to never return. That is nice about the income tax, though.

[jcl2]

You forgot to include Seattle/Northwest as a poll option. Also Denver/Mountain west.

[gatorlion]

Chicago is unbelievably clean and the people are incredibly nice, although it is by far the coldest of the big cities I have been to.

Boston is a lot of fun, clean, access to quaint suburbs, great food, but very cold.

NYC is fast-paced, prestigious, has great public transportation, filthy, the people are uncommonly mean, and it is absurdly expensive (yes, a $1300/month studio in Brooklyn is expensive).

San Fran has the beautiful bay, nice people, and Boudin's, but is also expensive and dirty.

Miami is lively, diverse (sorry Chicago), and has beaches that destroy any beach on the West Coast (i.e. you can swim without donning a spacesuit) but not much of an intellectual atmosphere.

D.C. has a great wonkish environment, great access to suburbs via clean public transportation, but a little dirty and not everyone likes motivated policy types (i.e. not for Californians).

L.A. has great weather, nice (but often superficial) people, horrible public transportation, and barely qualifies as a major city due to its sprawling development.

I'd love to hear about Seattle and Portland...

[ravens20]

Is the Miami legal market viable for someone in the T14 to break into without any connections to Florida? As in are there enough biglaw jobs there to go around?

[keg411]

ATL (the south) > TX > NY/NJ >>>>> everywhere else >>>>>>>>>>>> DC.

I loathe DC. Too politics-centric.

[Blindmelon]

DC all the way. Clean, pretty city, nice people, sweet 'burbs to camp out in, nature and beaches nearby, philly and nyc just a train ride away.

Too bad it has the COL of NYC without half of the culture. The biggest draw to DC is prestige, right behind New York there. For QOL though it falls pretty far down the list.

Eh, I disagree on both counts. I lived in both nyc and dc for extended periods of time, and COL is astronomically higher in new york. If you want city life without living in the city itself, for nyc you've got...new jersey...and for DC you have really cute places in virginia and maryland. Sure, new york might be more exciting for a night out, but I've gone to more lectures, galleries, concerts, and shows in DC than I ever did in new york. You just have to know where to look! Plus in DC you don't feel all scummy at the end of the night

Average COL is actually about equal for DC/NY, and the NYTimes ran an article that predicted DC would overtake NYC shortly. I've lived in both cities, and DC is definitely more expensive.

Boston it is for me, much cheaper COL than DC/NY.

[rayiner]

ATL (the south) > TX > NY/NJ >>>>> everywhere else >>>>>>>>>>>> DC.

I loathe DC. Too politics-centric.

[fortissimo]

Chicago is unbelievably clean and the people are incredibly nice, although it is by far the coldest of the big cities I have been to.

Boston is a lot of fun, clean, access to quaint suburbs, great food, but very cold.

NYC is fast-paced, prestigious, has great public transportation, filthy, the people are uncommonly mean, and it is absurdly expensive (yes, a $1300/month studio in Brooklyn is expensive).

San Fran has the beautiful bay, nice people, and Boudin's, but is also expensive and dirty.

Miami is lively, diverse (sorry Chicago), and has beaches that destroy any beach on the West Coast (i.e. you can swim without donning a spacesuit) but not much of an intellectual atmosphere.

D.C. has a great wonkish environment, great access to suburbs via clean public transportation, but a little dirty and not everyone likes motivated policy types (i.e. not for Californians).

L.A. has great weather, nice (but often superficial) people, horrible public transportation, and barely qualifies as a major city due to its sprawling development.

I'd love to hear about Seattle and Portland...

This is a great, and really accurate post.

Seattle is probably overall the best city I've been to (probably better than London and Paris as a place to live and better than all the other American cities I have been to). I did not bring it up earlier because it was not one of the options. It is really clean, like Chicago is, and has the SF kind of cultural vibe, but without all the homeless and literal dirtiness that tarnishes SF. It is also much more affordable and gets a lot greener than pretty much anywhere else in the summer and spring seasons.

I have not been to Portland, but I have heard that it is very similar to Seattle.

[jcl2]

Chicago is unbelievably clean and the people are incredibly nice, although it is by far the coldest of the big cities I have been to.

Boston is a lot of fun, clean, access to quaint suburbs, great food, but very cold.

NYC is fast-paced, prestigious, has great public transportation, filthy, the people are uncommonly mean, and it is absurdly expensive (yes, a $1300/month studio in Brooklyn is expensive).

San Fran has the beautiful bay, nice people, and Boudin's, but is also expensive and dirty.

Miami is lively, diverse (sorry Chicago), and has beaches that destroy any beach on the West Coast (i.e. you can swim without donning a spacesuit) but not much of an intellectual atmosphere.

D.C. has a great wonkish environment, great access to suburbs via clean public transportation, but a little dirty and not everyone likes motivated policy types (i.e. not for Californians).

L.A. has great weather, nice (but often superficial) people, horrible public transportation, and barely qualifies as a major city due to its sprawling development.

I'd love to hear about Seattle and Portland...

Seattle is a beautiful city and the weather is really not as bad as the stereotype, absolutely gorgeous summers. The character of the city is similar to San Francisco IMO, though Seattle is a little smaller and a lot cleaner. COL is a little high, though not nearly as high as the major cities in CA. Also, there are great residential neighborhoods in the city, it is entirely possible to have a house with a yard within the city and only a short commute from downtown.

I personally am not a huge fan of Portland. In a lot of ways it is just a smaller, less attractive, less exciting version of Seattle, with slightly crappier weather (rainier, cloudier, and occasionally too hot in the summer). Portland gets a lot of praise for being very progressive and "green," with great public transportation, urban planning, and a nice green belt. I guess the city of Portland itself fits that billing, but the green belt is so restrictive that most people end up living outside of it in sprawling and really poorly planned suburbs like Beaverton.

Sorry if that was more than you wanted to hear

[missvik218]

NC (Charlotte) > ATL/DC >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Anywhere else.

Edit: Voted South but more Mid ---> South Atlantic

I like you.

Haha, thanks! I like you too.