Philadelphia- moving from DC?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Philadelphian here who actually lives in the city. People are rough on the outside yes, but they are actually nice and helpful under that rough exterior. I think people here are legit real people. I left for a while because I thought I hated this place. But I missed it and came back. We certainly have some bad aspects but there is so much that is great about the city.

The city has been on a upwards trajectory. There are a lot of young people here. The food scene is awesome. It is a very diverse city.

One thing that I love about this city is that many neighborhoods are socioeconomically diverse. You have wealth next to working class people. And for the most part we all get along.

My son, a college student in Philadelphia who grew up in Bethesda and went to school in DC, was offered a summer internship in DC with a national firm. He asked them if he could work in Philly instead. He’s having a great time living in Manayunk (he calls it Philadelphia’s Georgetown) and working in Rittenhouse Square.

[Anonymous]

-cheaper real estate in Philly area. However, it won’t appreciate like real estate in the DC area. If you move to a burb you will feel like a king compared to DC prices, but again, it might lose value. People aren’t flocking to move to Philly.

-more salt of the earth people.

-everything is cheaper than DC.

-closer proximity to NY

-violence and rougher schools. Family member moved from Fairfax County to South Jersey school and was in shock at the daily violent fights in her middle school. But she applied and got into a magnet public that she’s much happier in. She’s also getting straight As bc the education isn’t as challenging as the DC area public education.

-less of the highly educated and refined kind in Philly area.

-less diversity. Majority are Italian-American immigrants. While there are some great restaurants, in the burbs there is very little diverse dining like in the DC area.

-jobs. Not sure what your job situation is, but if you aren’t in the medical field or working a remote gig, this should be a consideration.

[Anonymous]

There is no way I'd make that move and I hate DC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
-cheaper real estate in Philly area. However, it won’t appreciate like real estate in the DC area. If you move to a burb you will feel like a king compared to DC prices, but again, it might lose value. People aren’t flocking to move to Philly.

-more salt of the earth people.

-everything is cheaper than DC.

-closer proximity to NY

-violence and rougher schools. Family member moved from Fairfax County to South Jersey school and was in shock at the daily violent fights in her middle school. But she applied and got into a magnet public that she’s much happier in. She’s also getting straight As bc the education isn’t as challenging as the DC area public education.

-less of the highly educated and refined kind in Philly area.

-less diversity. Majority are Italian-American immigrants. While there are some great restaurants, in the burbs there is very little diverse dining like in the DC area.

-jobs. Not sure what your job situation is, but if you aren’t in the medical field or working a remote gig, this should be a consideration.

The real estate price thing isn’t really true right now. Prices have gone way up in the last several years esp during Covid. The time to buy real estate here was ten years ago.

I live in the Philly suburbs and disagree with pretty much all of this post. It describes a subsection of the city but this is a big place.

[Anonymous]

To call the Philly area “majority Italian American immigrants” is bizarre. The city itself is bigger than DC but the metro area is smaller. The city has a larger Latino and Asian population and smaller white and Black populations, and a slightly higher immigrant population (not from Italy lol). It’s not as young, single or educated. The suburbs especially past a certain distance from Center City are less diverse but that’s in part because the metro area is smaller and more focused on the urban core.

[Anonymous]

Philly suburbs are still better value than CC/Bethesda but have appreciated a lot in past 3 years. Beautiful old stone colonials that would be $3-4M+ in DC in neighborhoods that look like Edgemoor or better were $1-1.5 until recently. Honestly main line is the last place left outside the Midwest to find a beautiful house in a top school district at a price 1-2 professionals can afford in close proximity to major cities.

Also, Philly has the best restaurant scene in the country, and also a good music & great classical music scene (Curtis Instiois better than Juilliard) and performances as good as or better than the Kennedy Center. Several great museums. And it’s close enough to NYC that you can go there for theater/opera/dance (although Philly has these too).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What do you like to do?

What is your profession?

What is your social circle like?

I work in healthcare so i can find a job there.

If you want a useful thread you should give more info and at least answer all questions.

Are you social? Philly people can be pretty insular and mainly hang with people they grew up with.

+1 I have several friends who live in the Philly suburbs and they say this. The social networks are very tied to your HS, especially Catholic HS's, and/or Penn State alumni.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Philadelphian here who actually lives in the city. People are rough on the outside yes, but they are actually nice and helpful under that rough exterior. I think people here are legit real people. I left for a while because I thought I hated this place. But I missed it and came back. We certainly have some bad aspects but there is so much that is great about the city.

The city has been on a upwards trajectory. There are a lot of young people here. The food scene is awesome. It is a very diverse city.

One thing that I love about this city is that many neighborhoods are socioeconomically diverse. You have wealth next to working class people. And for the most part we all get along.

My son, a college student in Philadelphia who grew up in Bethesda and went to school in DC, was offered a summer internship in DC with a national firm. He asked them if he could work in Philly instead. He’s having a great time living in Manayunk (he calls it Philadelphia’s Georgetown) and working in Rittenhouse Square.

You are the first person to compare Manayunk to Georgetown! Manayuk isn't a bad place, it's an odd mixture of old school somewhat rough working class and young college kids, many who go to St. Joseph. Does evoke hill towns in WV or western PA. The Philadelphia Georgetown is Society Hill.

Having lived in both cities, for a young ambitious person who's looking to move up the career ladder quickly, DC is definitely, unquestionably, the place to be compared to Philadelphia. The latter does have lovely advantages and a lower cost of living but there are so many more opportunities in DC. Downside is the higher cost of living. But in watching my peers ever since we graduated from college in 2002, those who moved to the high COLA places with tremendous opportunities like the Bay Area, DC, Boston, NY and LA have done extremely well. It's one thing to start out and mature in an expensive market and something else to start out somewhere cheap and try to transition into an expensive market later.

[Anonymous]

Whether or not it makes sense to start out in a HCOLA completely depends on your profession. For some, like law and finance, opportunities are better in HCOLA. For others, like medicine, opportunities are far worse.

[Anonymous]

Difference between Philadelphia and DC is Philadelphia has heart. People will talk to you. DC, they judge whether you can advance them in any way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Difference between Philadelphia and DC is Philadelphia has heart. People will talk to you. DC, they judge whether you can advance them in any way.

Lived in Philadelphia for a bit. Anywhere, even DC, can have "heart". I found Philadelphia brusque and most people had little interest beyond their circle of friends from high school. Didn't enjoy it as much as I hoped even though I lived in Center City within a few blocks of Rittenhouse and did enjoy the walkable urban lifestyle. Local politics is utterly dysfunctional.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:To call the Philly area “majority Italian American immigrants” is bizarre. The city itself is bigger than DC but the metro area is smaller. The city has a larger Latino and Asian population and smaller white and Black populations, and a slightly higher immigrant population (not from Italy lol). It’s not as young, single or educated. The suburbs especially past a certain distance from Center City are less diverse but that’s in part because the metro area is smaller and more focused on the urban core.

That PP has clearly never been to Philly. Lolol

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Philly suburbs are still better value than CC/Bethesda but have appreciated a lot in past 3 years. Beautiful old stone colonials that would be $3-4M+ in DC in neighborhoods that look like Edgemoor or better were $1-1.5 until recently. Honestly main line is the last place left outside the Midwest to find a beautiful house in a top school district at a price 1-2 professionals can afford in close proximity to major cities.

Also, Philly has the best restaurant scene in the country, and also a good music & great classical music scene (Curtis Instiois better than Juilliard) and performances as good as or better than the Kennedy Center. Several great museums. And it’s close enough to NYC that you can go there for theater/opera/dance (although Philly has these too).

Agree with this.

Philly is a big city with big city problems and big city amenities. There are rough areas and beautiful areas. I love Philly.

[Anonymous]

The Eagles can suck a dick

[Anonymous]

Everyone I know on Philly suburbs uses private schools. Everyone I know from pa who went public school seems a little bit middle to lower middle class.