If you want to read what this series of posts is all about, go here.

Disclaimer:

So I thought I’d do a pros and cons for each of the cities (NYC and LA) based on 15 categories of my choosing – i.e the kind of things that are important to me about a place that I chose to live. For example, since I don’t have any children, so you won’t see “education” on the list, but I do love to eat sandwiches, so “food” will definitely be on the list.

Keep in mind these are MY pros and cons…pros and cons that I have come to after living in LA for five years (2000 – 2005) and then living in New York for five years (2005 – 2010).  This is intended to be a fun (and funny) list, and is not to be taken seriously, but I hope some of you, especially those of you who have lived in both places (or experienced them) will enjoy it. You can read parts one through fifteen starting here.

15.  DIFFICULTY LEVEL

I think we all know the answer to this one.  New York is one of the hardest places to live…certainly in the United States…and it’s a fact that most New Yorkers are proud of.  You have to be at the top of your game to survive here, let alone thrive, from the competition for jobs to the cost of living and the sometimes inconvenience of urban living.  It’s an intense passionate city that really doesn’t sleep and while I’ve for the most part been successful in adjusting to the NYC lifestyle, even five+ years in I sometimes find the city frustrating and inconvenient.

Sometimes I just want to be able to get in my car and go to Target and not worry about carrying crap back on the subway or splurging $20 for a cab ride.  New York is a far more difficult city to live in across the board, and who wants things to be SO HARD all the time, especially as you get old (which I totally am). Advantage:  LA

And the winner IS…in a tight race…Los Angeles.  L.A. is the city for me, based on this highly scientific (not) breakdown after five years spent in each city. Adam…pack your bags…time to head back out west!

If you want to read what this series of posts is all about, go here.

Disclaimer:

So I thought I’d do a pros and cons for each of the cities (NYC and LA) based on 15 categories of my choosing – i.e the kind of things that are important to me about a place that I chose to live. For example, since I don’t have any children, so you won’t see “education” on the list, but I do love to eat sandwiches, so “food” will definitely be on the list.

Keep in mind these are MY pros and cons…pros and cons that I have come to after living in LA for five years (2000 – 2005) and then living in New York for five years (2005 – 2010).  This is intended to be a fun (and funny) list, and is not to be taken seriously, but I hope some of you, especially those of you who have lived in both places (or experienced them) will enjoy it. Come back tomorrow for Round 15…the FINAL ROUND.

14.  EXPENSE

Neither city is a real bargain, but I was pretty shocked by my expenses across the board in NYC.

My dad tells a great little story about why he didn’t take a job in Manhattan back in the early 1970’s after graduating from Berkeley and it goes something like this, “I came out for the interview and they took me to lunch, and I noticed that the sandwich on the menu cost $10! And I thought to myself there’s no way I can live in a city where a sandwich at lunch costs $10!”

And you know what?  He’s right.  Living here is incredibly expensive, then and now.  A dozen eggs can cost $3.00, $5.00 if I buy local.  A half-gallon of milk (the brand I prefer – which is organic) is about $4.00.  If I’m also able to buy local (not always an option), which I also prefer, it’s easily over $4.00.

My rent on a 2-bedroom apartment on the Upper East Side is $2100 a month – more than most people I know pay for their mortgage – and considered a steal by most New Yorkers, and that’s for the pleasure of walking up four narrow flights of stairs every day and having a real jerk of a mailman.

LA is not cheap by any means, and I struggled mightily financially while I was there – in part because I made a lot less than I do in NYC (which in fairness should be considered), but that’s also about experience and growth in my job…and the offset is just not enough to cause an upset.

Also…that mailman really screws NYC…I hate him.  Advantage: LA