The 10 most expensive cities for middle class Americans revealed (Mega Hurl)

UK Daily Mail ^ | October 22, 2012 | Michael Zennie

[C19fan]

New Yorkers love to complain about how expensive their city is, but a new study reveals that the Big Apple is more affordable for middle class families than places like Cincinnati, Ohio, Detroit, Michigan, or Portland, Oregon. New York is the tenth most affordable major city for middle-income homes -- thanks to high median incomes and the city's expansive transportation system, according to a report by the Center for Housing Policy and Center for Neighborhood Technology. New York wasn't the only surprise on the list. The most affordable city, according to the study, was Washington, DC, which is another notoriously expensive place to live.

[BlueStateRightist]

Total BS. I lived in NYC for 22 years, and left in 2011. Here’s what I can relate to anyone thinking that this article depicts any semblance of reality:

1. Highest state taxes (marginal rate).
2. High local NYC tax (approaches 4%, on top of the state tax).
3. High sales tax of 8.875%.
4. Very high property taxes if you own. I paid $18K per year on my 1600 sq ft apartment.
5. If you own, very high maintenance fees. I paid $20K per year.
6. Incredibly high rents (1500 sq ft apartment in Manhattan = $5K-7K per month)
7. Incredibly high food prices, I would estimate almost 2X the national average in price.
8. Average to poor public schools, and very neighborhood-dependent. If you want to live in a neighborhood with a good school you play commensurately more in rent/cost to buy your living space. The price of private schools is astronomically high: average kindergarten tuition in Manhattan is now $36,500.
9. An extensive transit system that takes you anywhere, but incredibly CROWDED and unpleasant, and most commutes are over 30 minutes and many over an hour, especially if you live in the outer boroughs.
10. Very small living spaces, as everyone already knows. A family of 4 is literally on top of each other and with little to no storage space.

NYC is for single people (of all ages), and wealthy retirees who need less space. NYC is not for a family that makes less than $500,000 (and some would increase that number to $1 million). Most of your income goes to a government entity for at least half the year. After that point, you’re just trying to keep your head above water paying bills (utilities, tuition, etc.), rent/mortgage, maintenance fees, and groceries.

[palmer]

unnecessary to drive anywhere

I guess that's true if you are a rat living under a bench and eating out of nearby trash barrels. It's not a life for human except maybe some 'rats.

[SC_Pete]

This is nonsense. Those high median incomes are coming to a screeching halt: layoffs, salary cuts, and bonus cuts at the major banks are accelerating. That will work its way through the entire financial industry. As another indicator, property values in the region are still coming down. NEW YORK CITY GOT THE BIG BAILOUT. Now the money is gone.

[representativerepublic]

Tampa has been dominated by dimocrat-controlled city government at least since the ‘80’s. Bob Martinez was the last Republican mayor while Reagan was in office. The entire city council are dimocrats.

[Dr. Sivana]

You never need to own a car in a big city. The excellent public transit system makes it unnecessary to drive anywhere.

No. But you do need friends with cars to move you and your stuff around. I lived in Chicago for three years. A wheeled grocery cart for the 3/4 miles walk to Mr. G's Finer Foods isn't so bad on a sunny day, but coming back with six bags of groceries is an issue. A mom with a husband and several little mouths to feed would have a harder time.

I remember buying a queen size mattress at an end of the academic quarter sale, and dragging it 1/2 a mile to my third floor walk up.

I remember carrying four suit cases in a heavy snow storm from train to bus and hanging out on a cold wet platform in the dead of night.

I remember a trip to the northwest side Pro-life Action League offices to close to three hours. Another trip to the Montgomery Wards in the southwest suburbs to get a Coleco Adam printer ribbon for a term paper was a day long excursion.

These days, I drive a $1.3K car, and my wife has driven an $1,800 station wagon for four and a half years. Our auto insurance is $450 for both. The only thing that kills us is gasoline, and that can be remedied by someone who doesn't have expensive energy as a national policy.

[Holly_P]

Yeah but the average ticket price for a Yankees home game is “only” $90.21 and a fairly good seat at the Metropolitan opera for “only” around $100.

You can probably tell, I do not like big cities.

[kidd]

I have several (formerly) liberal friends from college that used to live in NYC. They thought NYC was the center of the universe and couldn’t contemplate living elsewhere.

Then they got jobs. Then they got transferred. One to Rochester, NY, the other two to the north-central NJ suburbs.

Now, they tell me, “what was I thinking?” And now they’re concerned about government spending.

[Sooth2222]

When my daughter was offered her "dream job" in Manhattan, we offered to subsidize her rent for a couple of years. Not a chance. The place is too unlivable even for her -- and she's a Birkenstock-wearing reincarnated California hippie from the 1960s who graduated from a well-known ultra-liberal, liberal arts college. Even she commutes to Manhattan from a Republican suburb in New Jersey.

[hal ogen]

Most large cities are festering, feral places. Good luck “living” there.

[CMAC51]

You never need to own a car in a big city. The excellent public transit system makes it unnecessary to drive anywhere.

No, you just have to pay the meter anytime you are going more than a couple of blocks, and for each individual in the group. You have to pay delivery for anything larger than you can carry. You can only shop for two bags of goods at a time. No discount stores or supermarkets because you can only buy what you can carry. Oh, and let's not mention the taxes paid to support that infra structure.

When I saw Houston on the 10 least affordable, I immediately knew this thing was a joke with an agenda. Houston is the most affordable city I have ever lived in. There is no way I could support my current life style in New York with the job that I have, even considering they would pay me almost double what I currently make. 50% of the additional pay would go for taxes right off the top.

[Buckeye McFrog]

Sounds like a paid advertisement for rent controls and subsidy.

[bgill]

No way would I live in any of their most affordable. NYC, D.C., San Francisco? No way.

[Syntyr]

“Total BS. I lived in NYC for 22 years, and left in 2011.”

I love to visit. It’s always a hoot when I go because I always ask the cab driver I get what is so great about NYC, if they speak English...

The answer I get are typically:

1. NYC is da best
2. You can see/do anything here
3. You can see Broadway shows
4. You have all the fashion/shopping areas
5. The food is da best
6. The best sports teams

All of this from some schlub working his ass off in a taxi making maybe 40k a year to live in some hovel of an apartment usually with a few other people to share the expenses with. He has never been to a Broadway show or shopping or to the sports events in his life.

[nothingnew]

Most large cities are festering, feral places. Good luck “living” there.

I've lived in NYC, Boston, Miami and all points, well, everywhere.....I will never live in a "city" again.

I now live in Ignacio, Colorado. Google it.

FMCDH(BITS)

[P.O.E.]

Precisely - I personally wouldn’t want to be taking my chances that the next random lunatic is right around the corner.