I want to move to New York City

[Mythodiir]

I want to move to New York City. Why? Because it's the capital of the world (in terms of population/development). "If I'd lived in Roman times, I'd have lived in Rome. Where else? Today America is the Roman Empire and New York is Rome itself." ~ John Lennon. Anyway so basically the media has tricked me into believing New York City is a city of glitz and glam (not really). I'm smarter than that, but I want to move to New York cause I just honestly want to be in a city with things "going on", and New York is a global epicenter of such things "going on". I live in Edmonton right now, and it's a nice city, good living expenses, good business, and so on (.ect) but I just want more. I do know New York City is expensive to live in, but as some one who will have a university education in Computer Sciences (I'm still in high school though), and is learning to work in C++ I would be able to live well (as in I could go out somewhere during the weekends if I'm not playing MineCraft[lol], and afford to buy stuff like computer parts) .

I'm planning on living in Brooklyn (or Manhattan if there's anything cheap enough there), and I want to be at most 45 minutes (hopefully 30-10 minutes) from Manhattan. I'll need to ask some questions though. How far is it in and out of Manhattan with public transport from Brooklyn; if there is no public transport between the two areas how long is it across the Brooklyn bridge, with, and without traffic? Also is buying an apartment in Manhattan as insane as I hear that it is? What are the prices between an apartment 45 minutes out of Manhattan, and an apartment right inside Manhattan? Also how big is each borough? Though I am obsessed with Manhattan, and Brooklyn I would like to know how large the other Borroughs are, and how long it takes to get from one end of (let's say Manhattan, The Bronx, Brooklyn, or Queens) to the other, and is there usually traffic in New York City?

You can also tell me as much random information as you want to discourage me, or encourage me from moving from my medium sized quaint city of Edmonton Canada, to New York City (home of the occupy wall-street protest, much civil un-rest, and one of the great mega-city monoliths of the world, one of the highest hubs of crime and poverty in the United States, as well as one of the most advanced cities in the world (it has it's pros, and cons). I'd like to get all the sides, why I should or shouldn't go to live in such an area. I hear a lot of Americans say Canada is the most amazing country in the world, and I get that, and some people may just suggest I move to Toronto, but seriously, almost every single performance goes through New York City (Concerts, Art Exhibitions, Promotions) before almost any other city. New York is a world class city(as well as probably the classiest of them all :P). New York City also has a Comic Con every year, and a large gaming scene in general (though a bit shrouded by everything else going on there) is pretty damn big in the gaming department.

[TL;DR] : New York City; it's the capital of Earth. I want to live there. Tell me why I should or should not live there.

[Fuzzzie]

Ok. I edited your post so its not a wall of text. Short answer for me. Visit for a few weeks. You might not like it. NY is a great city but I would personally not want to live there full time.

[missbrooklyn25]

I live in NY one of the 5 boroughs, and I love it. There is so much to do. I can't ever imagine my self living in a small town.

[lifeinblack]

if its something you want, then you should go for it. no reason not to. i personally am the opposite, i moved to toronto from a small town, i thought i would like the big city, but a year later i just wanna get the hell out.

[matherl]

I live in Manhattan, its not all glitz and glam, the city is usually people going to where they are needed and the tourists go to the fancy events

[logintime]

No, you do not. I should know, as I live there.

Want noise? We have lots of it from traffic.
Want rich people with an undue sense of entitlement? Oh, how we've got a lot of those.
Want homeless people hitting you up for money virtually every train ride? That's actually one of the more mundane things they do on the train.
Want to pay $800 a month for a tiny bedroom on the seventh floor of a walk-up apartment building that looks like it's on the verge of collapse? You'd be lucky to get that- the apartment hunting scene here is ruthless.
Want bedbugs? We're the epicenter of the bedbug infestations that are spreading across the US.


Look, don't get me wrong. There's a lot to like about NYC, but whenever I read someone describe it as the capital of the world and get that starry look in their eyes, I have to point out to them that this is a pitiless city that will burn out people who'd be massively successful in other parts of the country. NYC isn't the glamour that you see in Sex in the City or a million different "I went to New York and made it!" movies. NYC also isn't the crime-ridden nightmare of despair that Law & Order or a dozen other films depict it as. The truth, as always is somewhere in between.

[Mythodiir]

if its something you want, then you should go for it. no reason not to. i personally am the opposite, i moved to toronto from a small town, i thought i would like the big city, but a year later i just wanna get the hell out.

I want to do it, I just want facts, and information. I'm probably gonna do it once I've been working as a programmer in Edmonton for a few months, secure a job, and a place to live in New York City, and I save up enough cash to buy plane tickets, and an apartment where I'll be living in. Also I think I see very often people who live in small cities for long periods of time want to move to some place where you can't see endless miles upon miles of grass, where everything isn't so boring, and quite, while people who live in the big city for a large portion of their life are probably sick of towers, pavement, noise, and the relative scrutiny of the city.

[Azutael]

I dont think I could live in New York city myself, I am just from little Norway, grew up on a freaking island with around 300 people damnit!
Now I live in a "city", which has like 40k living in and around the city.

And when New York city has a population of 8mil +, compared to Norways TOTAL of barely 5mil. Then I just cannot immagine how it would be like, think the shock would be too much for me lol.

[Ozzy1346]

i live in NY, very expensive place to be hard to get by. absolutely worth it though, best city on earth

[KDSwain]

Try Chicago. Has most of the same things as NYC and is a lot less expensive. I DO love NYC though, there is nothing like sitting in Central Park in the Spring or Fall.

[Mythodiir]

i live in NY, very expensive place to be hard to get by. absolutely worth it though, best city on earth

See that's exactly what's going through my head. I've never been a fan of America (it's a sport here in Canada; to insult Americans :P) but I really think (just like John Lennon said) it's probably the most interesting place on the planet.

[Idrinkwhiterussians]

I saw the Chicago post and whole-heartedly agree. I have lived in quite large cities, and to be honest, I thought Chicago just felt right.

I also should point out that taking a trip there to see how it is is a great plan of action also. It can be quite overwhelming if you just move there, or anywhere for that matter.

[Archangel Tyrael]

I'm not American. I haven't visited any places in America outside NYC and New Jersey.

My view is from a tourist.

I didn't like it. Sure seeing some of the sights is cool at first, but all of those tall buildings are scary, and there are too many homeless people wandering around and i found the city quite dirty.

Being from Germany, and having lived my whole life in ''cozy'' cities in here, and one of the biggest cities in here *München, i couldn't picture myself in somewhere like NYC. Even the big cities in here are much cleaner and nicer than what i saw there.

People are more educated, you don't see homeless people, and the city is so clean and places are so easy to get by...

but anyway, this is my biased PoV of course. take it with a grain of salt

[Mythodiir]

I saw the Chicago post and whole-heartedly agree. I have lived in quite large cities, and to be honest, I thought Chicago just felt right.

I also should point out that taking a trip there to see how it is is a great plan of action also. It can be quite overwhelming if you just move there, or anywhere for that matter.

Yeah I'll check it out (of course). I will probably be there to see how the place is, but to be honest I have done some "research", and one of the last bits of "research" would be to actually go to the city for a few days, and check out some of the regions. Though I'm doing the same thing I did with when I first went to Somalia/Ethiopia, I am trying to think about it in the most realist view I can imagine, and once I get there I shall see how close I am to the truth. When I went to Addis Abeba, and Hargeysa though I was setting myself up for misery, it actually wasn't as bad as it could have been. There was a lot more complexity to the situation but it wasn't as bad as you would think (very little business, no internet, crime everywhere, stupid laws/dictators), it had no laws (or dictators), it had internet (which is why I am now convinced that the internet has made it everywhere [since it's in Somalia of all places]), in fact in Somalia, and Ethiopia they have internet cafes (though they use 90s computers), they use facebook, and they listen to BBC online. It was still a hell-hole I would never want to live in, but it wasn't down-right poverty. So from past adventures I can deduce that New York City won't be as good as people say it (not for the middle class at least), or as bad (at least if you don't live in a ghetto). From what I've seen so far it'll be a much more enjoyable life (for me) than living in Edmonton for another 30 years. I do know there are cities in between (not so big, not so small), but I feel like going some place that is just that massive; just that iconic; just that big of a step out of the usual.

Speaking of Chicago; Chicago is a nice city, though I am far more interested in New York City, and I feel like they're both on the same level, but New York is just more of an idealist place for me. I won't mind living in middle class, I just don't want to live in lower-middle class, or even worse: poverty.

[Deleted]

Nothing is hard, follow ur dream and don't listen to anyone. If u wanna do it u can do it...there is no such thing as its expensive or u wont like the noise or whatever.

Tho bear in mind that 1st u will need a working visa, but u are from canada it should be easier for u guys to get but not THAT easy, americans are weirdos when it comes to bureaucracy. Learn some python... C++ is not a language heavilly wanted by companies in general, so if u think that c++ can get u the jobs u want then u are wrong.

Also i wouldnt go for a programer job in NY, cause u WONT find any of them, most likely the computer oreinted jobs are outside of NY usually far far away. I'd go as a stockbroker, or smthing that has to do with banks in general.

NY is great as a city and perfectt to live into it. But after the first 1-3 years ull start getting bored of it like u'd do with every other City in the world. Yep its in human nature to get bored with things that he interacts for a long time (that includes job, housing etc.)

I myself live 5 months in NY , 4 months in London and 3 months of my summer in Cyprus-Greece. I feel blessed, but hurray to me being a scripting junkie i guess that invented a company and makes money without doing anything nowadays:P

[minteK917]

I say visit first for sure. Im the type of guy that love big city, i never lived in NYC, But i lived 5 years in Seoul which has a slightly larger population then NYC. I enjoyed it alot, sights where amazing, there was so much stuff to do and the jobs opportunity was what made me go in the first place. Visit and cover the job part first of all.

[sirkodo]

I just moved to New York from Detroit. Michigan economy was terrible, so I took the risk, and luckily 3 months after moving here I landed a job at global luxury brand and and I can afford to stay. The funny thing is, I'm making more money than ever in my life, yet I'm still floating even because of the cost of living here.

I live in Brooklyn, right by the Manhattan bridge. I pay $2,000 a month to live in a tiny studio with my wife. I work full time and she is a full time grad student so we really only sleep and eat here. Total monthly expenses varies, around $4,000 for us. There are trains going anywhere you want to go. From our place in Brooklyn to Manhattan, there 3 nearby subway stations and 6 train options, they all get us there in 30-45 mins.

The pros:
Never get bored, plenty to see and do, plenty to explore, never see the same person twice (unless you work or go to school with them)
Businesses everywhere, everything is open, easy access, easy transportation.
People want to work and get things done, it's a very productive environment.
Lots of work opportunities, potential to make a lot of money.

The cons:
All that money you make will cover the higher living expenses.
You'll live in a place three times smaller and pay three times more for it.
The crowds and noises can wear you down.
People are busy and oftentimes rude.
Too many people to really connect or care about anyone else.
Next to no natural environments if you enjoy seeing trees, beaches, etc (however they aren't too far away if you take a train)

I've been here for almost 4 months and I love it. Mostly because of my new job and I'm a newlywed, so life is good. But my wife and I are adventurous people and we like living in a big city. It already feels like home to us and I'd want to stay at least another year. But if I had to move, we would go somewhere warmer, like San Francisco or maybe Nice, France.

[Deleted]

I find that my key to surviving in a big city is to avoid the crowd when possible - i.e commutes, etc.
If you could find work close to where you live or possibly work from home you'd do yourself a huge favor. I've lived in several very large cities in my life and while I love the buzz of a city and the endless oppurtunities, I absolutely loathe having to deal with a gazillion other people all trying to get to/from work.

Out of the places I've been staying, the commute is definitely the worst here in Rome, Italy. Absolute murder..

Go for it. New York is nice. It's not like the movies though.... But a good piece of advice would be to visit for a period of time in advance. Go for a few weeks - and add the fact that you need to get up and go to work, shop for groceries, etc

When I was younger, the cities couldn't get big and chaotic enough - now, as I've matured (slightly..) I'm starting to see the appeal of a smaller, more cozy setting. One day I'll buy a farm and sit on the porch with my shotgun and a dog named Bobby-Ray.

[starlord]

just cause theres a lot of stuff "going on" doesnt mean you'll be a part of it... I live in LA, its nothing special. More crowded (which i personally like), but people dont get discovered by hollywood left & right.

[obdigore]

Expect lots of different races.

Different accents.

Many weird languages.

Be openminded.

It is pretty espensive, why not live close to NY?

NJ is pretty bad, but we are better than NY

New Jersey? The only state that makes you pay to leave its borders?

Nah. Come on down to Philly or Wilmington, DE. Much smaller area, but you end up being 2 hours from NYC and 2 hours from Washington DC, which is awesome.