Cost of Living in New York

Don't move here guys! It's ludicrously expensive, and the police will throw you in jail for anything they feel like. Even $100k you will love badly, and in a poor neighborhood, with roommates!

Hi. I just recently won greencard and so, I want to move to the USA which I have never planned before. I have 6 years of work experience, started as an audit intern in BIG 4 and after a year shifted to an international oil and gas company as an accounting/ control/ reporting analyst. I dont know whether I can find a job in a reasonably paid company without CPA qualification (I have US GAAP experience in my current role though). I cannot decide on state selection, where I can find that job and live my life without budget stress etc. I’m also planning to have master after some time, but I dont know whether I have to consider it when deciding on location. I’m open to any advice, at least some guidance to start and consider. Thank you all for your help!

Salary $120K in New York means shit. After all the taxes, you net about $77K which is 6500 / month. A shitty 100 yrs old crumbling concrete apartment is at least $3000 a month then you live with bed bugs, cockroaches, etc. A livable condo for a normal human being costs $5,000+ a month. So even if you make $120K, you end up with only 1500 disposable income, which you can barely make a living with per month. So basically you save almost nothing with $120K income. You will never EVER be able to buy your own home in New York with that kind of income. Your salary is higher in New York, but so is everyone, so it doesn't mean shit. It will sharply drop if you move to TX

$120K in New York is similar to $70K in Toronto, $90K in Boston based on my experience.

I lived in NY for 14 months having been seconded from our London office. I work in finance specifically M&A. Wow is NY costly. Rent is so high and (good) food so expensive that I transferred back home.

I highly recommend the Riverdale section of the Bronx. It is very safe, feels more suburban, has tons of parks! I left DC because I found the people too conformist, and the cost of living had skyrocketed from when I moved there from Manhattan in 1995. I paid almost 2K for my Siver Spring, Maryland apartment which had a pool and a parking garage, bought a 1 bedroom in Riverdale for $158K in Sept 2012. I had enough of being a renter!! When I want some city I hop on the Express Bus and go to Manhattan or take the 1 train from the 231 st station. I'm 67 and don't want to be in the middle of the craziness anymore! Riverdale is not as affordable as it was in 2012, but it is still a huge bargain compared to Manhattan. Also I kept my car, and leave it safely parked on the street, for free!

@Makesh Free acommodation can be ok, but it can also be crap. But even with paying for accomodation, 10000 bucks a month should be more than enough for a comfortable living as a single person.

Erm.i wonder if could stay there,where can i find a job as a kitchen staff.plus i am asian and really wanted to stay in nyc for start a new life,hope you guys know what i mean it and help me.

I lived in NY my whole life but 3 years ago I loved bc it was soo fucking expensive. I'm trying to move back. It's the greatest place on earth and I got all my family there.

$10 an hour is enough, but you have to rent a room with shared bathroom in some of the further parts of bronx, brooklyn. you would have to also cook all your meals. no eating out. renting in the outer boros dont usually require credit checks, although they will take a copy of your passport. manhatan apts will run credit checks on you. well if you are indian, dont go to nyc, go to edison nj. it's a suburb of nyc and thats where all the indians go.

Hi
For those of you commenting you want to come to New York please visit but don't stay. It is definitely not what you think New York has beautiful points but living here the stress will give you a heart attack. I have been in New York 11 years and I am thinking of moving away since it's so expensive. The thing about New York is their are tricks to the trade of living here because living here is work in itself. It is not a game their is someone aways waiting to take your apartment if you don't want it, majority of the time it's like this. The landlords are always pressuring you to leave in sneaky ways unless you have a connection through someone else who knows them and can vouch that your a great person. Or you know the housing courts system. The man who wrote this article god bless him because many of you think this is article is bull shit and sadly its not this is seriously how we live unless you make above 90,000 a year you are not in comfort. You need to come here speaking many languages and get a coding experience and technology experience. I'm currently learning coding now due to the fact I need to truly compete to make a living every hour of my life here. Those of you who think your going to come here making less than 90,000.00. Please Please make your lives easier and go move to another state if you want to live in America do years of research because each state has its drawbacks. So far I've picked Kansas as a state I would love to move to. My income is currently less than 20,000.00 income would provide a lot more to me in Kansas than it would here in New York City. I'm stuck here because I cannot leave and I am so accustomed to my lifestyle and the proximity of everything that is really close to me. One true thing is the gentrification happens every 5-7 years so before you can even complete a ten year census you already have lost your apartment due to some of the sketchy business that goes on with the sneaky landlords. My close relative a sister of mine had a landlord that did not want to confront her about trying to evict her from her apartment. So he took an eviction notice and placed it in her apartment while she was away under her fridge on the floor hoping she wouldn't see it. My relative has a compulsive disorder and has a very cleanly home This was how we were raised as children. She found it less than a day later and went to the courts to over turn the unwarranted eviction. If you don't check your mail daily it can hurt you, keeping a clean place helps, because living in New York is like running a business you must do daily inspection everyday to make sure your business is safe from those who want to destroy it hourly. If not you are doomed. Then usually if you really did truly have to go into the shelter due to loss of a home or apartment, while in the shelter system you will get relocated to another part of the city for a year or more further than what your commonly used to. This year is going to be the toughest year of your life. The worst thing about New York is making money once you have some they place another bill on your shoulders, so the higher your wages you earn the higher your bills. If you have children make the trip New York cares for families but if your single stay away. I truly don't make that much and when I pay taxes and or get a paycheck 200-400 is removed automatically without a blink or a flinch yet I worked all those hours only to get 60 percent of what I earn. Not even 75 percent of what I make U earn please please reconsider coming here. Do not come here with drug habits because these are expensive and will ruin you in this city the same with an alcohol habit. If you are not at the top of your game and you have drama don't come here the city has enough drama and it will suffocate you. We are at the highest rate of homelessness and highest rate of children starving without food please do better for your families. These two reasons why are why I won't have a child here in the city. Bad enough the person I am with may not even be able to do for himself to survive but how can both of us take care of a child when we can't even truly relax to be apart of this child's life because we work so hard to make sure it eats.

Why is New York so damn expensive??? It's because of gentrification and the influx of financial money people who have made hundreds of millions and in many cases billions out of the banking and financial markets..

The super rich have distorted the real estate market and caused residential and commercial property prices and rents to sour.

If you are only making basic money then the best way to save and get ahead is to co-dwell in an apartment.. accept you'll have little privacy and just use your home for sleeping and showering.

Learn computer coding and study business or the share commodities markets and get your skills right up so that you may have a chance of pulling yourself up out of the financial underclass and into the comfort zone of money and independence.

Develop hit selling Apps for the iPhone/iPad

Write and produce hit songs on your MackBook Pro and give Max Martin a run for his money..

Become a skilled day trader ... just don't lose the shirt off your back...

(I haven't done it but I think that's a worthwhile approach to take..)

Wow. I kindly recommand you to come and live in Bucharest ( Romania, Europe ) :). New York seems to be an American Dream, but it's so expensive . In Bucharest you can live extremly well with just 10-12k/ year. The rent is 2-300$ for an apartment in the center of town and the costs of living are very small :D.
I was tempted to come in New York, but after the comments and the prices i've seen, maby it's wiser to stay here :))

I live in NYC and made $81K. I'm single with no kids, and I barely make ends meet. I live in South Brooklyn with $1350/month for rent (2 bd apt). Electric bill varies according to the time of year. In the summer it's around $200. In the winter it's around $70. My internet is $60/month. No cable. Gas is around $15/month. Landlord pays heat and hot water (most do). Unlimited metro card is $116/month. After all these expenses, plus health insurance and minimal 401K contributions, and groceries, I have maybe $200 disposable income. I don't know how people survive here with a $45K-$50K salary.

this told me a lot and will really help me when I finally get to move to ny and with my avid homework

i have a few things to say a lot of people here says its cheap correct? unfrontanuly there a lot a people that cant afford rent that high as well and there no affordable housing for the pepole that has been born here. people that do come into nyc take up all the resources we have as well.the only reason yall saying its cheap because yall could afford it and others cant. everyone situation is diffrent. i think new york is trying to make it were only rich pepole live here and its clearly unfair for other pepole that was born here and have to leave there families and friends as well. i lived here for 32 years nyc is horrible now back in my day it wasnt like this the pepole here are rude no manners think about themselves. everyone is messed up here you cant trust no one all dat stuff its horrible.the mayor sucks too as well bill or whatever his name is is not helping. im not only speaking for me im also speaking for the people who struggle with this stae with unrealistic prices.

Been here for years. The city is expensive but you don't have the cost to commute. Anyone looking to move to NYC would be better served by selecting a suburb or another part of the country. You'll need to make 3 times as much money to live a modest life here vs anywhere else.