Best Cities in the USA
Have a question that I feel a lot of you could provide input on.
What city in the USA is the best aside from NYC?
I like the big downtown scene, the fast-paced NYC scene, the idea that I have a lot of opportunities to find a job in my city in the event I were to get canned mid career, but unfortunately I don’t see myself here long term. What cities are like NYC but a bit more practical in terms of life with a wife and kids? I like the idea of Chicago or Boston but I don’t know much about these areas. Any thoughts?
I spent a summer in San Diego for an internship and honestly, it was fantastic - seems to be LA without the crime, literally perfect weather, and no insane politics - you definitely have a decent number of bleeding hearts, but it's balanced out by all the servicemembers at camp Coronado/other bases.
Would give SD a 9/10 honestly.
Yeah def. I like North County SD, specifically Encinitas.
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San Diego is legit (have a lot of family in La Jolla, it’s ridiculously beautiful and so relaxed there) my only concern would be number of opportunities available and cost of living. Can anyone speak to either one of those points?
La Jolla is nice. The cost of living is generally lower than LA or SF.
It's a finance desert for the most part, though there has been a handful of new funds / offices moving here recently. I could see that trajectory continuing as the covid mobility helped further legitimize the professional scene here (more people with high end jobs here now than there would have been otherwise). It's one of the leaders in the life sciences space, has a healthy broader healthcare sector, and Apple just bought a massive campus to bring 5,000+ jobs.
Cost of living is higher than you'd expect - average rent is actually now higher than in SF. It's technically the least affordable city in the US based on the ratio of average home price to average income. People have historically moved here once they're already rich
Spent the best four years of my life in San Diego, unfortunately similar to what others have said, not a deep finance market. I left because I got a bigger/better job and it required me to move to Orange County.
San Diego is a fantastic city. Wish there were more financial firms there. I would throw my hat in the ring to do my job from SD.
I think Neos Partners is still hiring juniors. New fund started by two ex Oaktree guys - they just raised $800+ million. There's been a handful of these funds popping up here now - guys spinning off of large funds in bigger cities and setting up shop in San Diego. They've got a pretty nice recruiting pitch to attract experienced junior / mid level hires that are burned out by the NYC culture and want to be close to the beach. The finance / professional scene has "matured" a ton in the few years I've been here, largely due to covid making a place like San Diego a possibility for professionals who were otherwise tied to a specific city. I think it'll only continue to grow over the next couple of decades
Seems to be an unpopular opinion on this app, but I’d say Houston. Quality of living for the amount of money you make, even at 22-23 years old, is pretty sweet. ~$1,400/month all-in for a 3BR townhouse (with roommates) in a great area. Nightlife isn’t on the same tier as NYC obviously, but it checks the box. Not like you’re going out 3+ times a week in this industry.
Great parks and outdoor activities. Wide range of food options. Generally friendly people who mind their business.
I don’t know how long I’ll be here, but seems like there’s some nice areas to raise a family if you’re thinking long-term (the Woodlands). You just have to be able to tolerate energy.
Curious - what neighborhood is this in? Haven't lived in Houston since 2016. I know myself and others complain about the zoning a lot there but damn they can build a lot of stuff quickly. The amount of buildings that sprang up on San Felipe right inside the loop near the 610 freeway was wild.
Rice military by Memorial Park
Very livable city and a great spot to settle down. Food scene is unreal.
Tolerate energy and 110 degree summer heat
I personally like: LA, San Diego, Phoenix, Dallas, Austin and Miami.
Orange County is nice as well.
Dallas!
Lol no.
it's a favorite on this forum, at least it was with older posters.
Louisville is extremely underrated
Orange County, Newport & area
San Diego
Some parts of Los Angeles
Scottsdale if you like desert type environments
CA/NY are poop don't even count em. Nashville, Dallas, and Miami are all the tits.
Charlotte and DC
Ew
I wouldn't live in Charlotte but I went there for a work conference earlier this year and really liked it. DC is ok but it's getting progressively worse, I walked around eastern Capitol Hill with a friend who's actually from DC (very rare) and parts of it were sketchy to say the least, not like the western part. People jump over the metro turnstiles all the time (the DC equivalent of opening the door when leaving the NYC subway), and more frequent shootings and carjackings (someone tried to steal my car just before Christmas). Not as much fun anymore.
NYC is nowhere near the best, it's pretty mid tbh. Way too many people, too much of a heat island in the summer, too much traffic that traps you on the island.
Best cities in the USA IMO:
- San Diego, CA
- Seattle, WA
- Denver, CO
Why do you say Seattle?
IMO, one thing that strongly contributes to my positive perception of a city is the availability/accessibility of a variety of natural beauty. It's not the only criteria, but access to natural beauty is something that seattle has in spades. It's an extremely green city too (as in, lots of foliage/flora/fauna) because the people there understand that more greenery leads to a happier existence / more desire to keep your neighborhood looking nice.
Seattle also has an insanely good variety of restaurants thanks to its diversity of residents, and the weather benefits from being on the coast.
Unfortunately the homeless problem has gotten pretty bad in Denver. Apparently some of the shelters got bought up for real estate development. Most of what denver offers isn’t really in Denver but it is a good city
I was recently in Annapolis, MD and I was blown away with how nice it is. The real estate--19th century and first half of 20th century--is spectacular. And it's super clean (no trash, no weeds, buildings are all in wonderful repair) and right on the water--just terrific views. It's really vibrant. I was there on Saturday morning and then on Saturday night and it was very vibrant--tons of beautiful young women out having fun. I was genuinely surprised with how impressed I was with the town. I live about an hour away in another really nice small town (the name which I won't give out lest it gets overrun) and I found myself a bit jealous. Issue is, I can't afford the $2 million houses in downtown, and if I can't live downtown in an historic townhouse then there's basically no point.
I also recently discovered annapolis for the first time (stayed at the graduate) and found it extremely charming. When OP said best "cities" though i was imagining big cities not smaller towns, otherwise I'd have a ton of other ones to add haha.
I'm actually curious what your thoughts are on some of the better small towns.
Annapolis is very nice, yes, but the old part of it is pretty small and the rest of the town isn't all that great, regular suburbia. The only difference is that it has some nice real estate on the water.
Chicago is underrated
I would recommend Chicago - I lived there for ~4 years. The weather is managable, especially if you're in a high rise in the city and not dealing with a driveway to shovel out of. The summers are incredible. ~10MM people in the metro area, solid public transit and job opportunities at WB, Baird, Eastdil, etc. Definitely not the same number and scope of opportunities as NYC but much more affordable with a good nightlife, cultural and food scene.
Santa Barbara, Austin, Arlington / Nova, Seattle are great cities. I remember all the evergreen trees in the PNW from when I was a kid. Hiking in Olympic National park was great. Just an amazing region and the city has a lot of cool stuff.
Also just went to Boston for the first time last month and it’s way better than I expected. It’s like one small section of lower Manhattan with suburbs around it. Pretty clean and I loved the garden and esplanade.
In terms of living and affordability, Philadelphia has got to be up there...at least some of the financial districts outside (greater West Chester & Consohocken areas) of Philadelphia. You're about a 1.5-hour train ride from NYC and DC. Also, commuting and or reverse commuting to and from the city is easy whether you decide to live downtown or not.
I wouldn't consider it a LCOL city but you're getting the best bang for your buck in terms of being on the east coast, being in a major city, having a decent nightlife, and having great professional sports teams in which everyone vicariously lives through.
Obviously not going to find top shops there but there is a decent LMM PE presence (LLR Partners, Graham Partners, etc.) and other regional banks.
the historical suburbs of Philly are very nice, the city itself outside of a few pockets sucks ass.
La also like this
Living in Atlanta is pretty nice
NYC is its own beast - no comparison but not for everyone.
Chicago is a great alternative. Atlanta or Dallas if prefer more commute/suburb oriented big cities.
I'm partial to the SW so will always recommend Phoenix. Vegas is good if you work remote. Tampa is nice as well.
I'm not a big fan of many commonly recommended cities (e.g. Philly, Boston, DC, Charlotte, Miami).
If the above are too big, hot, or expensive for your tastes, I'd recommend as Cincinnati, Milwaukee, or Kansas City as underrated fly over cities.
Chitown all the way - baby NYC in a lot of ways.
My favorites are:
Century City is really just L.A. Its considered by L.A. by most everyone that lives there and is well within the Metro.
San Francisco, if you:
Imagine needing to meet all those criteria to enjoy San Francisco. Sign of a terrible city.
"Yeah bro you can enjoy Flint Michigan if you have all your friends and family there, bring a hot wife from NYC, buy a $2mm dollar house, never need to commute, live in the nicest neighborhoods with access to clean water, send your kids to the best school"
Sorry for the facetious comment this place has traumatized me.
Glad I wasn't the only person who noticed that. "This city is great so long as your life draws a royal flush."
I won’t say you need all, but it helps. Just giving you my observations how to improve your experience.
Like you said, living in Flint wouldn’t be all bad. But you provide nothing of value with your wise comment. I gave specifics, where to try to live after say a couple years renting in Nob Hill. If you have a significant other, you can ignore all the doom and gloom about the dating scene.
I think the under appreciated facts for this career message board are the job market is pretty deep in a lot of industries (banking, tech, real estate, health care, consulting) and the City has managed to reinvent itself in the past (Gold Rush town to other iterations).
Agree with Ladd. Been in SF for four years, and been trying to leave since basically day one. Not to say there aren't a lot of things to love (you mentioned many) - simply put, the cons outweigh the pros. But if you can move with a hot wife, deep network, and the cash to spend, more power to you!
I personally like only Seattle ,my dream
Chicago has to be in the running. Major city, on the water, things to do, and not terribly expensive.
Not terribly expensive, yet terrible.
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