I get a lot of questions relating to my favorite and least favorite parts of living in NYC, especially from people who are considering moving here. Of course, everyone's personality and situation is different so these are my subjective opinions, but I hope this gives you all who are interested a raw and honest view of what it is like to live in NYC.
Pros
There is always something to do -
if you are someone who gets bored easily and/or feels like a waste of space doing nothing all day, this city is the perfect place for you. There are always festivals, concerts, pop-ups and events. In an environment that has so much happening and such a large variety of people, you'll end up falling into the most random and interesting experiences and come out of them with the best stories! It truly is the city where anything can happen. If you move here, it is unlikely that you will ever be on your deathbed regretting not living your life to the fullest (this is definitely something I've worried about in the past).
if you are someone who gets bored easily and/or feels like a waste of space doing nothing all day, this city is the perfect place for you. There are always festivals, concerts, pop-ups and events. In an environment that has so much happening and such a large variety of people, you'll end up falling into the most random and interesting experiences and come out of them with the best stories! It truly is the city where anything can happen. If you move here, it is unlikely that you will ever be on your deathbed regretting not living your life to the fullest (this is definitely something I've worried about in the past).
Amazing food -
I am the BIGGEST foodie and know that I am in the best city possible to be that way. I have a 2 page Word document of restaurants I want to go to and every time I cross one off the list, I feel like I add two more. It's not just avocado toast and other trendy, expensive food (yes, I do buy into the hype of this type of food), it is truly unique and inventive concoctions that you literally could not find anywhere else (until it gets copied or the restaurant expands to other cities). Are you addicted to those Facebook restaurant videos? I bet you that 80%+ of them are featuring NYC restaurants.
I am the BIGGEST foodie and know that I am in the best city possible to be that way. I have a 2 page Word document of restaurants I want to go to and every time I cross one off the list, I feel like I add two more. It's not just avocado toast and other trendy, expensive food (yes, I do buy into the hype of this type of food), it is truly unique and inventive concoctions that you literally could not find anywhere else (until it gets copied or the restaurant expands to other cities). Are you addicted to those Facebook restaurant videos? I bet you that 80%+ of them are featuring NYC restaurants.
Gorgeous scenery everywhere -
I am a sucker for a beautiful sunset and love being surrounded by pretty and interesting landscapes. I grew up not having any large bodies of water within 2 hours from my house so living walking distance to two huge rivers is an absolute dream for me! It's easy to take advantage of all the amazing views, too, with so many public rooftops! Chances are you will also live in a building/have a friend who lives in a building with an accessable rooftop. What's amazing to me is that every different neighborhood of Manhattan has a vastly different scenery and mood. The West Village is charming and quaint, the Upper East is elegant and proper, SoHo is swanky and trendy, etc. In other words, there are so many cool and different things to see within several blocks of each other.
I am a sucker for a beautiful sunset and love being surrounded by pretty and interesting landscapes. I grew up not having any large bodies of water within 2 hours from my house so living walking distance to two huge rivers is an absolute dream for me! It's easy to take advantage of all the amazing views, too, with so many public rooftops! Chances are you will also live in a building/have a friend who lives in a building with an accessable rooftop. What's amazing to me is that every different neighborhood of Manhattan has a vastly different scenery and mood. The West Village is charming and quaint, the Upper East is elegant and proper, SoHo is swanky and trendy, etc. In other words, there are so many cool and different things to see within several blocks of each other.
Motivating environment -
People move to NYC to pursue their dreams and work tirelessly to achieve them. Being surrounded by such motivated people inspires you to work hard and reach for your wildest dreams. If I went to college at a state school in a college town, I'm 95% sure I would have quit my blog and settled for a less competitive career field. There's absolutely nothing wrong with state schools, but I feel like the environment wouldn't be motivating enough to keep me, personally, focused on my goals.
People move to NYC to pursue their dreams and work tirelessly to achieve them. Being surrounded by such motivated people inspires you to work hard and reach for your wildest dreams. If I went to college at a state school in a college town, I'm 95% sure I would have quit my blog and settled for a less competitive career field. There's absolutely nothing wrong with state schools, but I feel like the environment wouldn't be motivating enough to keep me, personally, focused on my goals.
Cons
It's expensive -
Everything, I mean EVERYTHING is more expensive in NYC. Looking at price differences individually may not always seem like a huge deal, but it adds up quickly. It is true that you will pay $1,000+ per month to live in a shoebox sized room. You'll actually have to pay closer to $2,000+ to live in a somewhat reasonably sized room. That's a pretty skeptical view, but there are always exceptions to that statement. You can also sacrifice certain things (living in a building with amenities, living in a central part of town, living close to a subway stop, etc.) for more space and a lower cost. But at the end of the day, it's hard to have it all unless you are rich. Chances are, though, that if you live in NYC, you'll be so busy that you won't be spending much time in your apartment anyways!
Everything, I mean EVERYTHING is more expensive in NYC. Looking at price differences individually may not always seem like a huge deal, but it adds up quickly. It is true that you will pay $1,000+ per month to live in a shoebox sized room. You'll actually have to pay closer to $2,000+ to live in a somewhat reasonably sized room. That's a pretty skeptical view, but there are always exceptions to that statement. You can also sacrifice certain things (living in a building with amenities, living in a central part of town, living close to a subway stop, etc.) for more space and a lower cost. But at the end of the day, it's hard to have it all unless you are rich. Chances are, though, that if you live in NYC, you'll be so busy that you won't be spending much time in your apartment anyways!
Having to walk everywhere -
One of the things I miss most about home is being able to drive. Taking the subway/walking in the Spring and Fall is actually wonderful because the weather is mild and the scenery is beautiful. Taking the subway/walking in the Summer and Winter can be absolutely brutal, though. Headed to an event where you want to look nice? Forget it. In the summer, you'll show up a sweaty mess and in the winter you will show up with windswept hair, red cheeks from the cold and possibly soaked in melted snow. If you want to avoid this, you'll have to take a cab/Uber for $20+. The long and brutal winters also make it harder to dress for fashion rather than function. In the middle of the winter, when it's snowing and 5 degrees Fahrenheit, it's hard to motivate yourself to wear anything but a 5 inch thick parka and snow boots. I know everyone in the North/Midwest fall victim to harsh winters, but at least you guys have cars! When buying shoes now, they can't be anything less than extremely comfortable because I know I will be miserable walking around in them if they aren't. One positive thing about all the walking, though, is that you get lots of fresh air, enjoy your surroundings and it's easy to stay in shape!
One of the things I miss most about home is being able to drive. Taking the subway/walking in the Spring and Fall is actually wonderful because the weather is mild and the scenery is beautiful. Taking the subway/walking in the Summer and Winter can be absolutely brutal, though. Headed to an event where you want to look nice? Forget it. In the summer, you'll show up a sweaty mess and in the winter you will show up with windswept hair, red cheeks from the cold and possibly soaked in melted snow. If you want to avoid this, you'll have to take a cab/Uber for $20+. The long and brutal winters also make it harder to dress for fashion rather than function. In the middle of the winter, when it's snowing and 5 degrees Fahrenheit, it's hard to motivate yourself to wear anything but a 5 inch thick parka and snow boots. I know everyone in the North/Midwest fall victim to harsh winters, but at least you guys have cars! When buying shoes now, they can't be anything less than extremely comfortable because I know I will be miserable walking around in them if they aren't. One positive thing about all the walking, though, is that you get lots of fresh air, enjoy your surroundings and it's easy to stay in shape!
It's a rat race -
The stereotype is true - New York City is a rat race. The majority of NYC inhabitants move here to pursue big dreams and big dreams require a big drive. You will constantly be surrounded by people who hardly sleep a wink because they are so busy working and will go to extreme lengths to get what they want. While sometimes these people can really motivate you to be your best, they may also make you question your entire existence and make you feel like a total failure in comparison (they do that to me, at least).
The stereotype is true - New York City is a rat race. The majority of NYC inhabitants move here to pursue big dreams and big dreams require a big drive. You will constantly be surrounded by people who hardly sleep a wink because they are so busy working and will go to extreme lengths to get what they want. While sometimes these people can really motivate you to be your best, they may also make you question your entire existence and make you feel like a total failure in comparison (they do that to me, at least).
Dating sucks -
My mom sent me some statistic from an article she read that single women outnumber single men in NYC 1 to 5. That statistic alone makes your odds of finding a beau slim. However, what makes it worse is that hookup culture in NYC is rampant and very few men under the age of 30 want a serious relationship. There are a lot of theories on why this is the case. I personally believe it is because there are too many distractions here. Too many women, too much partying, too much of a mindset that "there's always something better out there." People are also hyper-focused on their career and can't be bothered to make a time commitment to love. Dating app culture doesn't help either.
My mom sent me some statistic from an article she read that single women outnumber single men in NYC 1 to 5. That statistic alone makes your odds of finding a beau slim. However, what makes it worse is that hookup culture in NYC is rampant and very few men under the age of 30 want a serious relationship. There are a lot of theories on why this is the case. I personally believe it is because there are too many distractions here. Too many women, too much partying, too much of a mindset that "there's always something better out there." People are also hyper-focused on their career and can't be bothered to make a time commitment to love. Dating app culture doesn't help either.
In conclusion, my number of cons is larger than my number of pros but the pros still outweigh the cons. I truly love living here, but I definitely do not plan on living in the city forever. In fact, I know very few people who plan on living in NYC long term. I've personally never heard someone say that they want to raise a family and grow old here. Truth is, most people get exhausted from living in the hustle and bustle of the city day in and day out and end up moving to the tri-state area (New Jersey, Long Island and Connecticut). This allows them to live a bit more leisurely but still commute into the city to work. Who knows what the future holds for me, but I could definitely see myself doing this down the road! I never want to live too far from NYC as it holds a huge piece of my heart.
Wow - I have heard from countless numbers of people how bad the dating is in NYC. When you mentioned that I was not surprised but that thought was almost confirmed! I think your mindset is right - they might be thinking the grass is greener on the other side or that they will never be satisfied. However, I still think you have hope, girl! Your beau is out there right at this moment, and he might be one of the minority!
ReplyDeleteXoxo, Ashley
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