Reply to Washingtonian Magazine calling for your stories on "What is Costs to Live in the DC Area Now"

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[quote=Anonymous]Bought the magazine and read the article.  I thought overall the article was pretty well done, but the 5k rent lady was just as bad as I thought it was going to be reading about it here.  Do not understand why on earth you would put that kind of money into RENTING OF ALL THINGS when it's a struggle that requires you to put rent on credit card.  Makes 0 sense.

Anyway, they talked to people of all income levels, which was nice, though I think they could have gone into more details with the lower income end of the spectrum.  It seemed like the article was focusing on the difficulties college educated Washingtonians with what are typically decent paying jobs are having in the city.  I think it made a good point that DC used to be the kind of place where you could have two fed salaries, own a home, and get by very comfortably and that's increasingly not the case.  It's becoming a struggle, even if you aren't trying to keep up with the Joneses - or to rent $5,000 apartments.  Childcare costs can be the equivalent of some people's salaries, median housing prices are insane and average salaries have not kept apace.

That said, the accompanying article by Laura Moser, "Yeah, DC is pricey - get over it already!" was a little silly at times.   She writes as if the only alternatives to living in DC are New York, San Francisco, or the exurbs of Dallas or outskirts of Tulsa.  There are plenty of cities in the U.S. outside of DC, New York, and San Fran that have good restaurants (DC is not that amazing food wise with a few exceptions) and free cultural events where the salaries aren't shockingly low as they would be in Paris, Texas.

After living in DC for a decade, I went to jazz in the garden maybe 4 times, Smithsonian a couple times, and the free concerts at the Kennedy Center a handful of times.  Otherwise, it was the same thing you can do in almost any city: brunch, happy hour, the occasional concert, coffee, dinner, and movies.  I mean, really, is it worth $700,000 for a 1,300 square foot row home or $450k for an 800 sq ft condo to go to the Smithsonian once every other year or to the occasional round table discussion?  And I certainly didn't browse the Bill of Rights on my lunch break - ever.

That said, if you're making mega money, then DC is great.  And public transportation in DC is exceptional compared to most other cities in the US and it makes sense that that, the walkable lifestyle, and proximity to power commands a premium.  Plus the job market is excellent and largely stable.  But I think as more cities where driving is the norm continue to experience huge growth in jobs and population like Houston and Dallas as mentioned in the main article, you'll gradually see more vibrant development in the city centers leading to more walkable lifestyles.  And those cities are big enough that housing prices are not absurd.

DC is becoming out of reach for low and middle income individuals who don't have the family ties to help with childcare or to live with.  [/quote]

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