Reply to How are you able to afford the DC area

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]OP, are you interested in living in the city itself or a suburb?

OP - I grew up in the midwest. I'm in my mid-30s recently married and no kids (yet).  I make a lot of money, I've travelled a ton over the past 15 years, have been able to eat at amazing restaurants, drink at cool bars, go to museums, talks, parks, and have a lot of really awesome vacation spots within driving distance.  On top of that, I've been able to meet really interesting people from a variety of places and in a variety of careers and have an amazingly cool and diverse group of friends.  In contrast, my friends who stayed in the midwest have all been married 10 years, are friends with the same people we went to high school with, haven't seen the world, all have the same type of job/are stay at home moms, have kids in elementary school, don't really do anything on the weekends, and are quite frankly boring (and many of them have told me that they are bored).  So despite the high cost of living here, I feel that I live a great life in DC that I could not get in the boring midwest.

As for salaries, most people in DC are NOT "wonks" as you say or lobbyists.  Yes, we have an overabundence of lawyers and consultants here, but we also have a lot of people who get crappy staffer, non-profit or Fed salaries, too.[/quote]

LMAO.  Since you're on DCUM, I'm assuming you want children one day pp.  When your first DC turns 1, don't forget to come back and tell us how exciting your life is then.[/quote]
My kid is 2. We're constantly doing exciting activities around the city, visiting museums, and having a great time. So yes, it's possible to have a kid and take advantage of the city and *gasp* even have an exciting life.[/quote]

I take my child to parks and museusms (didn't know that was exclusive to DC).  But comparing a DINK lifestyle to a parent's lifestyle is apples and oranges and has no business in a "which city is better conversation".   [/quote]

This is what the OP posted. Note there is no mention of children.

[i]I live in the Midwest. $330,000, ten year old house with 2,600 square feet and a nice back yard. The other day may spouse and I were looking at the DC area cost of living because a recruiter called me about a job opportunity. So I went on realtor.com to look at houses. OMG, in Maryland a house built in 1951 for over $700,000 that looks like it needs work!

Let's say I earn $125,000 and the DC area pays more so I will get $140,000 or slightly more. After taxes, there is no way that increase makes up anywhere near the cost of living difference. Are most of you lawyers, lobbyists, or ex-military that join defense contractors? How can you afford that kind of housing unless you have a job like that or an inheritance? We figured out that if we moved, there would be no money left to do anything for fun. In fact, we figured out that it would cost less to stay in the Midwest and fly to DC 4 or 5 times a year to do things than move there. Culture is great, but if you can't afford to do anything, what good does it do to be near it? [/i]

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