Why DC is over

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:https://www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/realestate/the-new-boomtowns-why-more-people-are-relocating-to-secondary-cities/2018/11/07/f55f96f4-d618-11e8-aeb7-ddcad4a0a54e_story.html

Just one in a long line of recent articles pointing to a mass exodus of young people from cities like DC. Despite the groupthink here, I think it’s safe to say that prices can only go so high when young families have more options than they once did (you can move anywhere with telework and good jobs can be had basically anywhere). Also, the whole “____ is too conservative/southern” argument is losing steam because secondary cities are all flipping to blue zones.

Except folks still move to DC cause it is cheap.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/realestate/the-new-boomtowns-why-more-people-are-relocating-to-secondary-cities/2018/11/07/f55f96f4-d618-11e8-aeb7-ddcad4a0a54e_story.html

Just one in a long line of recent articles pointing to a mass exodus of young people from cities like DC. Despite the groupthink here, I think it’s safe to say that prices can only go so high when young families have more options than they once did (you can move anywhere with telework and good jobs can be had basically anywhere). Also, the whole “____ is too conservative/southern” argument is losing steam because secondary cities are all flipping to blue zones.

Except folks still move to DC cause it is cheap.

And we welcome them. Especially 'folks' like Amazon who bring 25,000 high income employees and an influx of cash into our communities. Come on in Bezos-bots.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/realestate/the-new-boomtowns-why-more-people-are-relocating-to-secondary-cities/2018/11/07/f55f96f4-d618-11e8-aeb7-ddcad4a0a54e_story.html

Just one in a long line of recent articles pointing to a mass exodus of young people from cities like DC. Despite the groupthink here, I think it’s safe to say that prices can only go so high when young families have more options than they once did (you can move anywhere with telework and good jobs can be had basically anywhere). Also, the whole “____ is too conservative/southern” argument is losing steam because secondary cities are all flipping to blue zones.

Except folks still move to DC cause it is cheap.

And walkable. There just aren’t any cities where you can live without a car that’s not expensive. DC is cheaper than NYC and SF - other walkable cities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are a young decent/highish earning couple (HHI north of 200k) and never considered DC for reasons in this article. Mainly the price. DC is too expensive, not enough space, and doesnt offer a good commute at all. If our jobs werent central do the DC area we would not live here. I love visiting the city, but would never live there.

We're a young high earning couple and never considered VA or MD because we didn't want to be stuck in traffic for most of our lives. It's very expensive here, but we love our house/neighborhood and walkability/accessibility.

Honestly if you love visiting cities but wouldn't want to live in one it probably wasn't the cost pushing you to the burbs. Everything's not for everybody.

DP. Young (how are we defining young here? Under 30? Under 35?) family. We used to live in DC until our HHI increased to $400k and this line of thinking really bothers me. For the amount of money you pay in taxes in dc you should really get more than walkability and the chance at free pre-k (because depending on where you live it’s not guaranteed at your neighborhood school and most folks don’t want to have to travel far for pre k). And add to that that you don’t get representation at the national level. No thanks.

As people have said, it's not for everybody. I've lived in Charlotte and Atlanta. I LOVE DC. People are smart here. There is more to life than a big house. At $700K HHI, I'm happy to pay my taxes here. To each his own.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No one wants to pay 800k for a townhouse where your packages will get stolen

My packages aren’t stolen. BUT even if they were, I’d choose that over a one hour commute via car. So would most millennials.

Most “second” and “third” tier cities do not come with a one hour commute by car. People in Richmond walk to work. Those cities are less crowded so commute times are null.

I can’t (job here) and don’t want to move to Richmond. I also find it hard to believe that many people in Richmond walk to work.

I also call BS on that. My husband and I actually toured a bunch of second tier cities (Richmond, Pittsburgh, Durham) with the thinking that we may be able to "have it all" there -- ALL of those place were driving places. Our life now is walkable/bikable (in Shaw). I also found the energy level really different -- every time i go to a playground of cafe I end up meeting someone super interesting here with ideas and inspiration. The second tier cities felt a lot sleepier to me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No one wants to pay 800k for a townhouse where your packages will get stolen

My packages aren’t stolen. BUT even if they were, I’d choose that over a one hour commute via car. So would most millennials.

Most “second” and “third” tier cities do not come with a one hour commute by car. People in Richmond walk to work. Those cities are less crowded so commute times are null.

I can’t (job here) and don’t want to move to Richmond. I also find it hard to believe that many people in Richmond walk to work.

I also call BS on that. My husband and I actually toured a bunch of second tier cities (Richmond, Pittsburgh, Durham) with the thinking that we may be able to "have it all" there -- ALL of those place were driving places. Our life now is walkable/bikable (in Shaw). I also found the energy level really different -- every time i go to a playground of cafe I end up meeting someone super interesting here with ideas and inspiration. The second tier cities felt a lot sleepier to me.

The Fan is basically Shaw without all the crime.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No one wants to pay 800k for a townhouse where your packages will get stolen

My packages aren’t stolen. BUT even if they were, I’d choose that over a one hour commute via car. So would most millennials.

Most “second” and “third” tier cities do not come with a one hour commute by car. People in Richmond walk to work. Those cities are less crowded so commute times are null.

I can’t (job here) and don’t want to move to Richmond. I also find it hard to believe that many people in Richmond walk to work.

I also call BS on that. My husband and I actually toured a bunch of second tier cities (Richmond, Pittsburgh, Durham) with the thinking that we may be able to "have it all" there -- ALL of those place were driving places. Our life now is walkable/bikable (in Shaw). I also found the energy level really different -- every time i go to a playground of cafe I end up meeting someone super interesting here with ideas and inspiration. The second tier cities felt a lot sleepier to me.

And those second tier cities are way more segregated than DC. DC isn’t perfect but for segregation cities like Cleveland, Pittsburgh, etc are a whole other environment. Also, most people in those cities are born, live and die there. Many people in DC aren’t from DC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No one wants to pay 800k for a townhouse where your packages will get stolen

My packages aren’t stolen. BUT even if they were, I’d choose that over a one hour commute via car. So would most millennials.

Most “second” and “third” tier cities do not come with a one hour commute by car. People in Richmond walk to work. Those cities are less crowded so commute times are null.

I can’t (job here) and don’t want to move to Richmond. I also find it hard to believe that many people in Richmond walk to work.

I also call BS on that. My husband and I actually toured a bunch of second tier cities (Richmond, Pittsburgh, Durham) with the thinking that we may be able to "have it all" there -- ALL of those place were driving places. Our life now is walkable/bikable (in Shaw). I also found the energy level really different -- every time i go to a playground of cafe I end up meeting someone super interesting here with ideas and inspiration. The second tier cities felt a lot sleepier to me.

The Fan is basically Shaw without all the crime.

That's interesting to hear, maybe we will give it another chance in a few years.... I do think for people who don't mind driving a little bit, life in those cities can be great -- i have many friends who moved to Atlanta/Pittsburgh/Austin/Portland from bigger cities and they are all very happy. They drive everywhere, but have a great quality of life.

[Anonymous]

I should kindly point out that the vast majority of people in the DC region drive to work and live a car dependent lifestyle. Hello? Look at the suburbs! Look at the traffic on the roads!

You can have a walkable lifestyle in DC. And you can have a walkable lifestyle in other cities too. It’s about how you organize your life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I should kindly point out that the vast majority of people in the DC region drive to work and live a car dependent lifestyle. Hello? Look at the suburbs! Look at the traffic on the roads!

You can have a walkable lifestyle in DC. And you can have a walkable lifestyle in other cities too. It’s about how you organize your life.

Yeah, but people aren't as smart in those other cities. That alone keeps me in DC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I should kindly point out that the vast majority of people in the DC region drive to work and live a car dependent lifestyle. Hello? Look at the suburbs! Look at the traffic on the roads!

You can have a walkable lifestyle in DC. And you can have a walkable lifestyle in other cities too. It’s about how you organize your life.

The D.C. region is not D.C. Just like the NYC region - in other words Newark and Connecticut - are not NYC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I should kindly point out that the vast majority of people in the DC region drive to work and live a car dependent lifestyle. Hello? Look at the suburbs! Look at the traffic on the roads!

You can have a walkable lifestyle in DC. And you can have a walkable lifestyle in other cities too. It’s about how you organize your life.

It’s a lot harder to have a walkable lifestyle in other cities outside of NY, Boston, SF etc. Sure you can move to Charlotte, Raleigh, etc and live a carfree existence but you’ll be considered very unusual. Why? These cities mostly grew in population after cars were common. DC actually has a street grid and was developed like a real city.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I should kindly point out that the vast majority of people in the DC region drive to work and live a car dependent lifestyle. Hello? Look at the suburbs! Look at the traffic on the roads!

You can have a walkable lifestyle in DC. And you can have a walkable lifestyle in other cities too. It’s about how you organize your life.

The D.C. region is not D.C. Just like the NYC region - in other words Newark and Connecticut - are not NYC.

Thank you. No, just because people drive in from Manassas does not mean you can move to Atlanta and live easily without a car.

[Anonymous]

What attracts some of us to the DC area is the large proportion of educated black people, along with every other group. There are few other areas in the country that are diverse AND have educated black folks. When we moved back East, my husband and I also considered Atlanta, but we ultimately picked DC due to proximity to friends and family, because Atlanta is too spread out with too much of a driving culture, and because it's too culturally isolated in Georgia (although we have friends there in Decatur, etc. who like it). We bought in NW DC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I should kindly point out that the vast majority of people in the DC region drive to work and live a car dependent lifestyle. Hello? Look at the suburbs! Look at the traffic on the roads!

You can have a walkable lifestyle in DC. And you can have a walkable lifestyle in other cities too. It’s about how you organize your life.

Yeah, but people aren't as smart in those other cities. That alone keeps me in DC.

^^ This is exactly why I want to leave DC.