Why isn’t everyone moving to the Main Line?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There’s more history, taste and class on the Main Line (or, hell, the upper Main Line) than there is anywhere in the DMV.

Ah, yesterday’s glories. Now it’s mostly second-rate professionals who never managed to make the leap to a more dynamic area. But the old homes are nice so there’s a consolation prize.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There’s more history, taste and class on the Main Line (or, hell, the upper Main Line) than there is anywhere in the DMV.

Ah, yesterday’s glories. Now it’s mostly second-rate professionals who never managed to make the leap to a more dynamic area. But the old homes are nice so there’s a consolation prize.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There’s more history, taste and class on the Main Line (or, hell, the upper Main Line) than there is anywhere in the DMV.

It ain’t the Pennsylvania Railroad anymore.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There’s more history, taste and class on the Main Line (or, hell, the upper Main Line) than there is anywhere in the DMV.

Ah, yesterday’s glories. Now it’s mostly second-rate professionals who never managed to make the leap to a more dynamic area. But the old homes are nice so there’s a consolation prize.

It's different industries. Philadelphia is a lot of doctors, educators, financial services people. Working at Penn or having graduated from Wharton isn't usually synonymous with slacker in these fields.

[Anonymous]

Medicine is weird that way. The best jobs are often not in the major metros. Those are for law / fashion / media types.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There’s more history, taste and class on the Main Line (or, hell, the upper Main Line) than there is anywhere in the DMV.

Ah, yesterday’s glories. Now it’s mostly second-rate professionals who never managed to make the leap to a more dynamic area. But the old homes are nice so there’s a consolation prize.

It's different industries. Philadelphia is a lot of doctors, educators, financial services people. Working at Penn or having graduated from Wharton isn't usually synonymous with slacker in these fields.

The ML isn’t nearly as wealthy or prosperous as it used to be. It is definitely run-down in certain parts. It is what it is. Still a decent area.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There’s more history, taste and class on the Main Line (or, hell, the upper Main Line) than there is anywhere in the DMV.

Ah, yesterday’s glories. Now it’s mostly second-rate professionals who never managed to make the leap to a more dynamic area. But the old homes are nice so there’s a consolation prize.

It's different industries. Philadelphia is a lot of doctors, educators, financial services people. Working at Penn or having graduated from Wharton isn't usually synonymous with slacker in these fields.

Wharton grads (undergrad & grad) leave Philly area ASAP after graduation

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have the money to live on the main line, but I’d rather live in Bucks County, Media, Swarthmore, West Chester or live in the city & send kids to private. Lots of options.

A lot of Bucks County is very blue collar, MAGA territory. Is that what you meant?

Media has a nice center but otherwise is fairly ordinary.

West Chester is a bit far for easy commuting.

Swarthmore has ridiculous property taxes.

Private schools aplenty on the Main Line.

People live on the Main Line because it has one of the best commutes to Center City, reasonable proximity to King of Prussia and the burgeoning tech and pharma industries in Chester County while having excellent public and private schools and leafy settings and handsome housing and more reasonable taxes. It really is not that difficult to understand why people would chose the Main Line over most of the other suburbs. And affluent areas inside Philadelphia or in other suburbs are no more or less "real" than the Main Line.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:LOL at people from the DC area calling other people snobby. You all have no idea what the rest of the country thinks of you, do you?

I don’t care what hillbillies think, no.

You do know that people in places like Manhattan and Malibu think you’re dorky, petit bourgeois, government workers with no class or style, right? Hillbillies might hate you but people with real taste and real money think you’re pathetic and lame.

This is actually true.

+1. Different PP & 100%. Recently moved to DC a few years ago after living in both places mentioned as well as others. DC is like revenge of the nerds...but not the cool nerds that make money...just the dorky ones

[Anonymous]

Who the hell keeps posting these threads? The only people that move to the Main Line are people who grew up there. Philadelphia is the definition of a city full of townies. People don't move TO Philadelphia from other major metropolitan areas. You are born there and die there.

[Anonymous]

OP, one word: Pennsylvania.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, one word: Pennsylvania.

NP but curious why that would be such an issue? It has a Democratic governor & 2 Democratic senators so there’s no reason to be concerned about things someone might be concerned about if they were moving to, say, Texas or Florida.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There’s more history, taste and class on the Main Line (or, hell, the upper Main Line) than there is anywhere in the DMV.

Ah, yesterday’s glories. Now it’s mostly second-rate professionals who never managed to make the leap to a more dynamic area. But the old homes are nice so there’s a consolation prize.

It's different industries. Philadelphia is a lot of doctors, educators, financial services people. Working at Penn or having graduated from Wharton isn't usually synonymous with slacker in these fields.

The ML isn’t nearly as wealthy or prosperous as it used to be. It is definitely run-down in certain parts. It is what it is. Still a decent area.

The Main Line is a sequence of towns and all the towns had their own village around the train station that did include working class housing, and places like Narberth were always more middle than upper class. The Main Line does have modest housing. There's more affordable apartments and you have grad students living in converted houses scattered here and there. But the argument that it is run down or not as prosperous as it used to be is a bit weird. Gladwyne, Villanova, Bryn Mawr, Rosemont and Haverford all are the most expensive suburbs of Philadelphia. There's definitely other expensive areas but no other suburb is more expensive than the high end Main Line market. Agree that not everyone wants Main Line but I can't imagine this thread is still going on forever with people making the oddest claims about the Main Line.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There’s more history, taste and class on the Main Line (or, hell, the upper Main Line) than there is anywhere in the DMV.

Ah, yesterday’s glories. Now it’s mostly second-rate professionals who never managed to make the leap to a more dynamic area. But the old homes are nice so there’s a consolation prize.

It's different industries. Philadelphia is a lot of doctors, educators, financial services people. Working at Penn or having graduated from Wharton isn't usually synonymous with slacker in these fields.

The ML isn’t nearly as wealthy or prosperous as it used to be. It is definitely run-down in certain parts. It is what it is. Still a decent area.

The Main Line is a sequence of towns and all the towns had their own village around the train station that did include working class housing, and places like Narberth were always more middle than upper class. The Main Line does have modest housing. There's more affordable apartments and you have grad students living in converted houses scattered here and there. But the argument that it is run down or not as prosperous as it used to be is a bit weird. Gladwyne, Villanova, Bryn Mawr, Rosemont and Haverford all are the most expensive suburbs of Philadelphia. There's definitely other expensive areas but no other suburb is more expensive than the high end Main Line market. Agree that not everyone wants Main Line but I can't imagine this thread is still going on forever with people making the oddest claims about the Main Line.

Philadelphia isn’t what it once was so it stands to figure the Main Line isn’t what it once was, either.

Lots of DC residents are architecture fans so we appreciate the old houses but there’s a lot more to life than living in someone else’s once-tony suburb. OP’s premise seemed to be people should make a bee-line to live there and work remotely and people pointed out that, whatever the appeal of the homes, you’d still be in an insular area with high taxes, weird accents, Flyers fans, and proximity to Baltimore on steroids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Who the hell keeps posting these threads? The only people that move to the Main Line are people who grew up there. Philadelphia is the definition of a city full of townies. People don't move TO Philadelphia from other major metropolitan areas. You are born there and die there.

This is so true. It does not matter the education, social class, how much money they have or don’t—in Philly area the default setting for interpersonal interactions is “me vs. everybody” or “everybody vs. me.”

Philly people are so quick to fight strangers over nothing.