Leaving DC for a lower COL area

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Philly is really insular and kind of mediocre, though the suburbs have some nicer older homes. There’s obviously a reason why it’s more affordable than other areas. It’s better than Baltimore, but beyond that...

Philly has wayyyyyyyyyyy better dining, better arts, better sports, better architecture and is better in almost every way than DC. Mainline PA is stunningly gorgeous and has beautiful homes. Plus PA has lots of small charming little town all.over the place on the mainline with lots of hidden gems. Would easily move to PA for lower COL and better QOL if I weren't tired to the area w the job.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Philly is really insular and kind of mediocre, though the suburbs have some nicer older homes. There’s obviously a reason why it’s more affordable than other areas. It’s better than Baltimore, but beyond that...

Philadelphia has a fabulous, wonderful Center City, much better dining scene than DC, home to a world class university and health complex that employs tens of thousands, sizable corporate presence, excellent arts and culture, big sports scene, is just two hours from New York and a hour or so from the beaches. What am I missing? Sure, the city has problems but it's also rapidly gentrifying without the insane prices and genericism of DC.

Not so sure about the rapid gentrification part. Population is about the same as 30 years ago but w/white flight since then.

Are you one of those people who never goes to a city but somehow knows everything about it from looking strictly at census data?

Philly is rapidly gentrifying. Population numbers are only a small part of the story. The gentrification tide is sweeping across South Philadelphia and pushing further north each year and the demarcation line in West Philly has moved from 40th street all the way to 52nd and is still pushing further west each year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Philly is really insular and kind of mediocre, though the suburbs have some nicer older homes. There’s obviously a reason why it’s more affordable than other areas. It’s better than Baltimore, but beyond that...

Philly has wayyyyyyyyyyy better dining, better arts, better sports, better architecture and is better in almost every way than DC. Mainline PA is stunningly gorgeous and has beautiful homes. Plus PA has lots of small charming little town all.over the place on the mainline with lots of hidden gems. Would easily move to PA for lower COL and better QOL if I weren't tired to the area w the job.

Agreed. Philly feels much more like an actual city than DC. DC feels like a town.

[Anonymous]

PA is apparently very hospitable to retirees.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The top two hospitals in the United States are in Cleveland and Rochester, MN. #3 is in Baltimore, #5 is in Michigan, #11 is in St. Louis, #12 is in Phoenix, #14 is in Philadelphia, #15 is in Pittsburgh, #17 is in Nashville, and #19 is in Durham.

Whoever said lower COL areas have crappy hospitals has no idea what they are talking about.

Nice homes and good schools are hardly cheap in Phoenix, Philly, or Durham.

These are still real cities. Not that much cheaper, especially if you want decent neighborhoods

We live in Philadelphia. I can buy a house in an excellent school district and still be close to Center City for 500k or less. I'm not sure why people are pretending it's somehow no different from DC. There are expensive areas and if you want a large beautiful house in a top neighborhood with top public or private schools you will pay for it, sure, but it'll be cheaper than the equivalent in DC. And even the Mainline has affordable housing for 500k and under. They won't be large and will usually be attached semi-detached housing, but you get great schools, a pleasant neighborhood and a short commute via regional rail to Center City.

Most of our neighbors are highly educated people who went to the best colleges and universities in this country. I don't think they're any less intelligent than people in DC or Boston. They all have great jobs. I find the self-absorbed, self-important perspective of so many DC people chilling rather than informative.

Thinking about a move to the Philly area and wondering where you ended up, PP.

We still live in Center City but are eyeing a move to the suburbs next year for schools. We really like Wyndmoor, which is just north of Chestnut Hill and has great schools and a lovely housing stock. It's more varied than most Main Line towns and a bit more laid back and we like the Chestnut Hill shopping area along Germantown Avenue. Main Line towns are slightly closer and we will still look into the towns. The housing stock varies greatly. People think it's all mansions but it's not. It's a mixture of mansions and family housing and even affordable duplexes and rows. It entirely depends on where you go in each town. Schools are excellent. Of the towns we like Wynnewood and Merion Station, both closest to the Center City. We also like Wayne but it's a bit further out. Narberth is the most affordable of the Main Line towns, along with Ardmore, but most of these towns feed into the same schools (Lower Merion), with Wayne feeding into Radnor schools (also excellent).

Other towns that get rave reviews are Swarthmore/Media and on the NJ side, Haddonfield.

We are also talking to knowledgeable people about navigating the Philadelphia schools. Some of the neighborhood elementary schools are excellent. The city-wide examination entry high school, Masterman, is one of the best in the nation. It's middle schools that are the problem. We're still exploring the pros and cons of buying in places like Mount Airy or Chestnut Hill itself.

Thanks so much for this thoughtful response. I grew up in the western 'burbs but lived on the Main Line post-college. Seriously considering a move there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I Boise Idaho is quite hopping town with incredible nature and outdoor activities.

Boise is a backwater cow town with a horrendous crime problem. Avoid at all costs.

Really? The people I know who live there love it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I Boise Idaho is quite hopping town with incredible nature and outdoor activities.

Boise is a backwater cow town with a horrendous crime problem. Avoid at all costs.

Really? The people I know who live there love it.

Eh. You see this on other forums all the time. There's a breed of internet warriors armed with superficial social, economic, political and demographic data on every American city despite never having been to most of them. They're the people who will tell you to avoid DC at all cost because of Anacostia, or the time great-aunt got approached by a panhandler in 1991. The terminology is consistent. "Avoid at all cost" is one of them.

[Anonymous]

I live in Providence, RI and have a bunch of friends who moved here from NYC or the Bay area because you can afford to buy a house here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I live in Providence, RI and have a bunch of friends who moved here from NYC or the Bay area because you can afford to buy a house here.

Sounds lovely. What type of careers do you and most of your friends have? What kind of industry?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I Boise Idaho is quite hopping town with incredible nature and outdoor activities.

Boise is a backwater cow town with a horrendous crime problem. Avoid at all costs.

Really? The people I know who live there love it.

Eh. You see this on other forums all the time. There's a breed of internet warriors armed with superficial social, economic, political and demographic data on every American city despite never having been to most of them. They're the people who will tell you to avoid DC at all cost because of Anacostia, or the time great-aunt got approached by a panhandler in 1991. The terminology is consistent. "Avoid at all cost" is one of them.

Or maybe someone from Boise loves their city as-is and doesn't want it infiltrated by DC people....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Philly is really insular and kind of mediocre, though the suburbs have some nicer older homes. There’s obviously a reason why it’s more affordable than other areas. It’s better than Baltimore, but beyond that...

Philly has wayyyyyyyyyyy better dining, better arts, better sports, better architecture and is better in almost every way than DC. Mainline PA is stunningly gorgeous and has beautiful homes. Plus PA has lots of small charming little town all.over the place on the mainline with lots of hidden gems. Would easily move to PA for lower COL and better QOL if I weren't tired to the area w the job.

Then why isn’t Philly a more expensive place to live if it’s so desirable? Why aren’t companies and recent college grads moving there?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Philly is really insular and kind of mediocre, though the suburbs have some nicer older homes. There’s obviously a reason why it’s more affordable than other areas. It’s better than Baltimore, but beyond that...

Philly has wayyyyyyyyyyy better dining, better arts, better sports, better architecture and is better in almost every way than DC. Mainline PA is stunningly gorgeous and has beautiful homes. Plus PA has lots of small charming little town all.over the place on the mainline with lots of hidden gems. Would easily move to PA for lower COL and better QOL if I weren't tired to the area w the job.

Then why isn’t Philly a more expensive place to live if it’s so desirable? Why aren’t companies and recent college grads moving there?

Because Philly has way more land area. DC proper is actually smaller than even Baltimore. The burbs of Philly extend far into PA and it has way more area for development and building homes. Every thing around DC is super concentrated and you have a big geography headache with the Potomac River. There are tons of college grads and young people living in Philly, which is why they have a great arts scene. The only thing DC has is the govt. If the US govt spread out across the country DC would collapse, because it has nothing very unique. There are many companies in Phiy, along the mainline, in NJ and in Delaware. Don't delude yourself into thinking DC is special. And there are extreme elite areas around Philly too like Radnor, Villanova, St. David's, etc. that are exactly like Potomac, McClean, Bethesda etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Philly is really insular and kind of mediocre, though the suburbs have some nicer older homes. There’s obviously a reason why it’s more affordable than other areas. It’s better than Baltimore, but beyond that...

Philly has wayyyyyyyyyyy better dining, better arts, better sports, better architecture and is better in almost every way than DC. Mainline PA is stunningly gorgeous and has beautiful homes. Plus PA has lots of small charming little town all.over the place on the mainline with lots of hidden gems. Would easily move to PA for lower COL and better QOL if I weren't tired to the area w the job.

Then why isn’t Philly a more expensive place to live if it’s so desirable? Why aren’t companies and recent college grads moving there?

You really should stop talking because the more you open your mouth the more ignorance tumbles out of it.

Philly has more college students than Boston, and Center City is filled with recent college grads. The place is heaving with them. There are lots of jobs. It's a solid region and growing. They built Comcast Tower. It's not a boom town but it's not a depressed hicksville either. Harping on why such a place isn't as expensive as another is meaningless. What exactly does that prove? Or mean? Are you patting yourself for making a six figure income in DC when that's an artificially inflated wage that leaves you no better off than someone making half that amount in another city and who likely has a better quality of life?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Philly is really insular and kind of mediocre, though the suburbs have some nicer older homes. There’s obviously a reason why it’s more affordable than other areas. It’s better than Baltimore, but beyond that...

Philly has wayyyyyyyyyyy better dining, better arts, better sports, better architecture and is better in almost every way than DC. Mainline PA is stunningly gorgeous and has beautiful homes. Plus PA has lots of small charming little town all.over the place on the mainline with lots of hidden gems. Would easily move to PA for lower COL and better QOL if I weren't tired to the area w the job.

Then why isn’t Philly a more expensive place to live if it’s so desirable? Why aren’t companies and recent college grads moving there?

You really should stop talking because the more you open your mouth the more ignorance tumbles out of it.

Philly has more college students than Boston, and Center City is filled with recent college grads. The place is heaving with them. There are lots of jobs. It's a solid region and growing. They built Comcast Tower. It's not a boom town but it's not a depressed hicksville either. Harping on why such a place isn't as expensive as another is meaningless. What exactly does that prove? Or mean? Are you patting yourself for making a six figure income in DC when that's an artificially inflated wage that leaves you no better off than someone making half that amount in another city and who likely has a better quality of life?

Real estate prices reveal A LOT. If more people wanted to live in Philly and it was desirable as you believe, then it wouldn’t be so inexpensive to live there. You live there so you probably can’t understand this, but Philly isn’t a growth city. It’s a second tier city barely hanging on. It has some interesting history and pretty homes, but Philly isn’t a city of the future. NY, Washington and Boston have substantially outpaced phillys private sector job growth within the past 10 years. Just google it. Even Jacksonville and Phoenix had stronger job growth than Philly.

The rest of your post is full of assumptions.

You also seem very defensive about Philly. Just because I doubt that philly is desirable as you believe doesn’t mean that it I’m no better off than someone making half my salary outside of DC and that I have a lower quality of life.

[Anonymous]

I'm one of the Philly posters. It definitely has its drawbacks compared to DC. The job market isn't as good for some professions. The subway is disgustingly dirty. I've felt less safe downtown. But, Philly definitely has cheaper housing and there is plenty to do. For me overall it's good. If I ever want to switch jobs, though, I have much, much less choice than I did in DC.