Is Chicago as stressful as NYC? (Lincoln, Worth: for rent, condos, houses)

[oakparkdude]

Originally Posted by Ace Rothstein

I too would like to see a source. NYC rents seem to be about double the rent of Chicago but not double the pay of Chicago.

New Yorkers also pay higher state income tax and also city income tax (which Chicago does not levy.)

[simon22]

I don't see how NYC's rent can be that much more expensive. I paid $500-800 a month in Brooklyn, so I can expect to pay $250-400 a month in Chicago?

With that being said I don't mind having roommates and living in dumpy apartments, but I wouldn't want to live really close to housing projects.

[sheaosaurus]

D E

Originally Posted by simon22

I don't see how NYC's rent can be that much more expensive. I paid $500-800 a month in Brooklyn, so I can expect to pay $250-400 a month in Chicago?

With that being said I don't mind having roommates and living in dumpy apartments, but I wouldn't want to live really close to housing projects.

As a whole, New York's rents are not that high. I paid $1200 for a two bedroom in Bushwhick and $2650 for a three bedroom in Hamilton Heights. The other boroughs (save for parts of Brooklyn where people are actually moving to Manhattan due to high rents) is relatively cheap when compared to all the buildings crammed between Battery Park and 96th. It is this small section that the media focuses on. You can get a one bedroom near the Albert Einstein Medical Center for $1100, but who wants to live there?

A lot of people moving to NY are afraid to venture outside Manhattan (Astoria and "trendy" Brooklyn are exceptions). These are the areas where prices are outrageous.

As to the salary, here is one example. A friend of mine works at the Big 4 in Atalanta and makes roughly $50,000 a year. My other friend works for a different Big 4 and makes around $57,000-$60,000. Esther in Atlanta has her own apartment and a car. Brian has roommates in Murray Hill, and his bedroom barely fits a twin size bed and a dresser.

[Chicagoist123]

Originally Posted by simon22

I don't see how NYC's rent can be that much more expensive. I paid $500-800 a month in Brooklyn, so I can expect to pay $250-400 a month in Chicago?

With that being said I don't mind having roommates and living in dumpy apartments, but I wouldn't want to live really close to housing projects.

Yeah I know someone in a very nice area that pays $420 studiio utilities included. It's the size of a one bedroom. While that price range isn't common it's not super hard to find.

[ChiNaan]

Originally Posted by simon22

I don't see how NYC's rent can be that much more expensive. I paid $500-800 a month in Brooklyn, so I can expect to pay $250-400 a month in Chicago?

Wow...The only people I've known who managed to pay less than $1,000 in Brooklyn were either at the far end (an hour from Manhattan by train) or if they were closer (like Williamsburg or Green Point) were in tiny illegal "apartments" the size of a dorm room. And this was close to a decade ago. You must be talking about sharing places with roommates at those prices.

Originally Posted by simon22

With that being said I don't mind having roommates and living in dumpy apartments

In that case, yeah, you really could pay $400/mo. per person in Chicago without even being in the worst neighborhoods. $250 would be pushing it, though.

[simon22]

Originally Posted by ChiNaan

Wow...The only people I've known who managed to pay less than $1,000 in Brooklyn were either at the far end (an hour from Manhattan by train) or if they were closer (like Williamsburg or Green Point) were in tiny illegal "apartments" the size of a dorm room. And this was close to a decade ago. You must be talking about sharing places with roommates at those prices.

I had my own place in Sunset Park for $500. It was a 30-45 commute into midtown but I didn't mind since I like reading.

[ChiNaan]

Originally Posted by simon22

I had my own place in Sunset Park for $500. It was a 30-45 commute into midtown but I didn't mind since I like reading.

Wow. That sounds completely unbelievable to me, so if you were able to pull that off, maybe you will find a place for Chicago for $250.

[simon22]

Originally Posted by ChiNaan

Wow. That sounds completely unbelievable to me, so if you were able to pull that off, maybe you will find a place for Chicago for $250.

Yeah, the place really sucked, but like I said I don't mind dumpy apartments.

[marothisu]

NYC is a bigger area than Chicago overall. People need to live in NYC of all types, so I have no doubt that sure, there are areas in NYC that are cheap living. I think the difference comes in what is "desirable." My girlfriend here in Chicago lives in one of the most desirable neighborhoods in a nice condo, near public transit that can get her to the "downtown neighborhoods" within 15-20 minutes. A 3 minute walk out her door opens up tons of restaurants, shops, bars, and pretty much all around her as you keep walking onto other streets is the same deal. On the weekends and nights, the area is teeming with people eating and drinking the night away and partying. She pays $750/month. Translate that to NYC and what are some of the price ranges? Can you find such a place for $750? In no way was this a "great find." ON the contrary it's a normal price. In fact, I know people in the same area who pay under $600/month for it.

I live here in downtown Chicago. I have a lot of friends in NYC. First off, they're in shock of how much I pay for my apartment here and always say how i'd be paying 3X if it were in a lot of Manhattan. The friends whom I work with and live in NYC also were offered the same exact salary as me in Chicago for the same exact employer.

I have no doubts you can find cheap places in NYC. Of course you can. The difference is WHERE they are and how truly desirable those neighborhoods are.

[prelude91]

Originally Posted by marothisu

NYC is a bigger area than Chicago overall. People need to live in NYC of all types, so I have no doubt that sure, there are areas in NYC that are cheap living. I think the difference comes in what is "desirable." My girlfriend here in Chicago lives in one of the most desirable neighborhoods in a nice condo, near public transit that can get her to the "downtown neighborhoods" within 15-20 minutes. A 3 minute walk out her door opens up tons of restaurants, shops, bars, and pretty much all around her as you keep walking onto other streets is the same deal. On the weekends and nights, the area is teeming with people eating and drinking the night away and partying. She pays $750/month. Translate that to NYC and what are some of the price ranges? Can you find such a place for $750? In no way was this a "great find." ON the contrary it's a normal price. In fact, I know people in the same area who pay under $600/month for it.

I live here in downtown Chicago. I have a lot of friends in NYC. First off, they're in shock of how much I pay for my apartment here and always say how i'd be paying 3X if it were in a lot of Manhattan. The friends whom I work with and live in NYC also were offered the same exact salary as me in Chicago for the same exact employer.

I have no doubts you can find cheap places in NYC. Of course you can. The difference is WHERE they are and how truly desirable those neighborhoods are.

I would say comparable neighborhoods in NYC (based on desirability) would be roughly 2-2.5x more expensive than Chicago. I paid $1,700 for a bedroom that was once a dining room on 83rd and Columbus in UWS and $2,600 for my own 1 bedroom at Horatio and Hudson in West Village, so yeah, NYC is slightly more expensive