Your thoughts? Vocative's The 35 Best US Cities For People 35 and Under

[herpsky]

Let's take a break from bashing Visvim and UC enthusiasts, goth ninjas, and tumblr/dressed-by-the-internet.

 

One of my friends, who used to post here years ago, just sent me a very interesting article this morning.

 

It's Vocative's Top 35 US cities for people under 35.

 

We've seen a plenty of top city lists. One renowned list that comes to mind is CNN Money's Best City to Live. 

I thought it was pretty lame b/c it sort of catered to the demographic that I rarely associate myself with - Caucasian population in their 30's to 40's with financial stability and kids to raise. A list like that never took account of things that we, the millennials (?), couldn't care less about.

 

 

If you’re 24, buried in college loans and looking for a job in a city that’s affordable but not completely depressing, you’re probably wondering where to start (while spoon-feeding yourself ice cream in your high-school bedroom). On the other hand, if you’re in your early 30s and New York or Los Angeles is grinding you down into a quivering husk of financial and emotional instability, it might be time to get out. Either way, with new data showing that 36 percent of adults between the ages of 18 and 31 are currently living at home with mom and dad (the highest number in 40 years, according to Pew Research Center), we thought it was high time to crunch the numbers and figure out where the hell you can actually live these days and still retain some self-respect.

 

 

The list used the following quantifiable factors (and more) to determine the livability index:

 

1. Average salary
2. Employment rates
3. The cost of rent and utilities measured against everyday factors like bike lanes for commuting
4. low-cost broadband
5. the availability of good, cheap takeout
6. price of a pint of beer
7. an ounce of high-quality weed
8. the level of access to live music and coffee shops

 

I think the list is surprisingly accurate.

 

Here's the top 5:

 

1. PORTLAND

2. AUSTIN

3. SAN FRANCISCO

4. SEATTLE

5. MINNEAPOLIS

 

Atlanta, which ranked #7, was undoubtedly the best US city I've lived in. 

 

What do you guys think? Do you think this list is pretty accurate? 

Edited November 8, 2013 by herpsky

[Fuuma]

Why would san francisco be high? It's an overpriced commie village for people working in tech.

[PRC.]

Kind of surprised Las Vegas is in the top 10 (#6).

[refresh]

I'm not surprised by San Francisco, most techs are under 35 and folks at twitter loves to hire interns (kids) from places like Toronto Canada and pay them 18kUSD for about three months of intern work while they're on break from Uni.

There are neighborhoods with restaurants like Red Door cafe that sets you back $18 for a mediocre French toast but let's face it it's more for the fab AD experience more then anything.

But there's also places where you can get cheap gut filling good for $5 grub. They're not known to tourists though

[Appleseed]

Seeing how my HS friends have spread out over the years, the top 10 I mostly get. The other 15 seem pretty muddled / questionable if you ask me.

[Fuuma]

I'm not surprised by San Francisco, most techs are under 35 and folks at twitter loves to hire interns (kids) from places like Toronto Canada and pay them 18kUSD for about three months of intern work while they're on break from Uni.

There are neighborhoods with restaurants like Red Door cafe that sets you back $18 for a mediocre French toast but let's face it it's more for the fab AD experience more then anything.

But there's also places where you can get cheap gut filling good for $5 grub. They're not known to tourists though

Well they stated what their metrics were, do you see an overpriced city being on the list without some fudging? The whole point is to steer away people from LA/NYC/DC/SF as they're $$$$ for what you get.

 

I'll easily grant you that large cities are much maligned for the price of renting while the availability of quality public transportation and cheap food basically masks the fact that, unless you want to buy, you're often not so bad or even better off in a big city, all things considered. Sure you pay $700 more in rent but if it means not having a car, not eating at Starbucks for $$ etc, it pretty much balances itself out and you are not in a shithole.

Edited November 8, 2013 by Fuuma

[herpsky]

Well they stated what their metrics were, do you see an overpriced city being on the list without some fudging? The whole point is to steer away people from LA/NYC/DC/SF as they're $$$$ for what you get.

Agreed. The dude who sent me the link lived in NYC, worked in a large finance / consulting firm, but decided to leave the city after 4 or so years of working. He is trying to steer people away from those areas for whatever reason.

 

I had some gwopping opp. in NYC but decided not to go. My salary won't be high enough to maintain the level / quality of living that I have right now. I just thought I'd be miserable. Not really regretting it except for the missed meeting opps with KAGs aka xiaoties.

Edited November 8, 2013 by herpsky

[griffin119]

 

Atlanta, which ranked #7, was undoubtedly the best US city I've lived in. 

 

 

I currently live in Atlanta, and I'm just wondering, what made it better (for you) than the other cities in the US you have lived in?

 

Maybe it's because I've lived in the suburbs for most of my time in Georgia, but I haven't really seen what gives the city an edge over most of the cities on the list.

Edited November 8, 2013 by griffin119

[bfan]

lol @ the cost of oz metric

 

tbh it seems like they just crunched the numbers to generate the list, the thing with the actually living somewhere I think entails a lot more intangible or qualitative things like weather, access to the outdoors, quality/strength of culture and art appreciation, etc. for example, fresno even being on the list is laughable, the idea that young people would actually want to move there is absurd.

 

that being said I think it's a decent list and a good starting place if you're looking to move somwhere

[DaBestSpoona]

Agreed. The dude who sent me the link lived in NYC, worked in a large finance / consulting firm, but decided to leave the city after 4 or so years of working. He is trying to steer people away from those areas for whatever reason.

 

I had some gwopping opp. in NYC but decided not to go. My salary won't be high enough to maintain the level / quality of living that I have right now. I just thought I'd be miserable. Not really regretting it except for the missed meeting opps with KAGs aka xiaoties.

 

The KAG in NYC are subpar compared to LA and most major asian cities, have a huge sense of entitlement because they're treated like 7,8s,9s by tech nerds, hedge fund dweebs, when in fact they would probably be selling senbei on side streets or pushing dim sum carts, sell vegs on the side of the road back in HK, Seoul or Tokyo.  Yeah you get paid way more in NYC and theres tons of job ops but for what I pay for my apartment I could live in a full service 2ldk in Tokyo,

[herpsky]

The KAG in NYC are subpar compared to LA and most major asian cities, have a huge sense of entitlement because they're treated like 7,8s,9s by tech nerds, hedge fund dweebs, when in fact they would probably be selling senbei on side streets or pushing dim sum carts, sell vegs on the side of the road back in HK, Seoul or Tokyo.  Yeah you get paid way more in NYC and theres tons of job ops but for what I pay for my apartment I could live in a full service 2ldk in Tokyo,

The obvious answer is moving back to Tokyo but I'm willing to wait another few years. 

 

 

I currently live in Atlanta, and I'm just wondering, what made it better (for you) than the other cities in the US you have lived in?

 

Maybe it's because I've lived in the suburbs for most of my time in Georgia, but I haven't really seen what gives the city an edge over most of the cities on the list.

I should rephrase. I think Atlanta is one of the best "smaller" cities in the US. The Boss agrees with me. 

It's a very nice mix of urban and suburban, I think.

 

What I liked:

-Really amazing restaurants, take-out joints, and bars. Spots like Brickstore and Leon's I really haven't seen in other cities.

-Lots of new developments that are very affordable. Moving out of Atlanta was a pretty big adjustment. Used to take living in an apartment with a W/D, garage, gated-access, clubhouse, and etc for granted. The quality of life literally has gone to shit when I moved to the northeast.

-I enjoyed the convenience of living in (or the presence of) communities where you can bike/walk but take a car out if necessary. In most big cities, it's hard to both.

-Lots of outdoorsy activities within 15-20 minutes of the city. Had a season pass to Stone Mountain. 

-Easy access to the airport. A lot of people hate on Marta but it's not bad.

-Decent stores. I guess the old Wish and Barneys COOP being gone, Atlanta is practically devoid of jawnz but you can still cop decent things

-Good Korean and Japanese food. Also, there's are two Japanese grocery stores. 

-Lots of low-riders and spinners (j/k)

-Decent art scene. Nice museums. Saw the Kaws exhibit at High. Was dope.

-People are generally nice

Edited November 8, 2013 by herpsky

[Vampyrvargfesten]

i think you also forgot rich homie quan

[Aeroplane]

i've lived in austin over 10 years and seen it grow pretty fast. most common observation from new comers "everyone here drinks a lot".

 

and the "green commuter" badge is a joke. traffic traffic and more traffic.

[Fuuma]

Honestly very large cities are interesting for the sense of constant movement/change not because there is a lot to do; you're just one person and can only take advantage of 5% of what Austin or whatever offers, to say nothing of NYC.

 

And we all know you spend most evenings multi-tasking between youporn and online shopping for sick jawnz.

Edited November 8, 2013 by Fuuma

[herpsky]

xhamster and studhomme.com bru

[Fuuma]

xhamster and studhomme.com bru

whatever. Honestly asian cities have this constant movement thing on lock, much more than any American or European city.

[herpsky]

how did you like kuala lumpur? i think kasper said you've been going there a lot?

[Thatboyo]

nyc>

[CASSAVA PIECE]

I should rephrase. I think Atlanta is one of the best "smaller" cities in the US. The Boss agrees with me. 

It's a very nice mix of urban and suburban, I think.

 

What I liked:

-Really amazing restaurants, take-out joints, and bars. Spots like Brickstore and Leon's I really haven't seen in other cities.

-Lots of new developments that are very affordable. Moving out of Atlanta was a pretty big adjustment. Used to take living in an apartment with a W/D, garage, gated-access, clubhouse, and etc for granted. The quality of life literally has gone to shit when I moved to the northeast.

-I enjoyed the convenience of living in (or the presence of) communities where you can bike/walk but take a car out if necessary. In most big cities, it's hard to both.

-Lots of outdoorsy activities within 15-20 minutes of the city. Had a season pass to Stone Mountain. 

-Easy access to the airport. A lot of people hate on Marta but it's not bad.

-Decent stores. I guess the old Wish and Barneys COOP being gone, Atlanta is practically devoid of jawnz but you can still cop decent things

-Good Korean and Japanese food. Also, there's are two Japanese grocery stores. 

-Lots of low-riders and spinners (j/k)

-Decent art scene. Nice museums. Saw the Kaws exhibit at High. Was dope.

-People are generally nice

this is basically detroit, except for the jp/kr restaurants (never tried looking). detroit is dope.

[Fycus]

Why would san francisco be high? It's an overpriced commie village for people working in tech.

 

Average salary is stupid high for recent college grads, people are often starting at 115k at my company as recent grad software engineers. Employment is also probably pretty high, I don't know people who are out of work for months at a time if they are at all competent. Rent is straight ridiculous, but you are paid more to cover rent and if you still want to save you can always live in a less "hip" neighborhood that is a little off the beaten path. There is takeout literally everywhere, and bars aplenty (almost too many). Weed grows like weed out here, and although prices have gone up its still cheaper than most of US. Live music is all over the place at tons of different venues, coffee shops from small local shops to large ones theyre everywhere. I get the disdain for the city, but with the tech boom and everything going on here right now its hard to deny its not becoming one of the best, if not the best places to live in the US right now. The only downside is there are a large number of guys working here in comparison to girls. I know stats suggest that its only slightly higher, but I feel like there hasnt been a polling in a while or the results are skewed due to older people living in the city

 

Edit: I also lived in Seattle for 4 years and have family and friends in portland. I think san francisco is better than the two hands down. I would like to go to austin though, girls were crazy hot when i was in houston.

Edited November 9, 2013 by Fycus

[herpsky]

 

 

Edit: I also lived in Seattle for 4 years and have family and friends in portland. I think san francisco is better than the two hands down. I would like to go to austin though, girls were crazy hot when i was in houston.

TELL ME MORE

[Mr.Sander]

I wish you had the same article for a worldwide ranking. 

 

But still interesting good to know how is the life out there !

Edited November 9, 2013 by Mr.Sander

[Fycus]

TELL ME MORE

When I worked in apparel I was with a small MMA technical clothing company. They went to the MMA expo that happens yearly in houston. Everybody was fat upon entering the city and there were bail bondsmen at every corner. Once we got to the expo, girls everywhere who were freakin amazing. Granted most of them were probably booth models but there were a lot of normal girls. Met one that was working for affliction and kicked it with her at the bars at night. Way less bitchy than SF girls from the vibe I got, very friendly and less prissy than the girls out here. 

[Fuuma]

Average salary is stupid high for recent college grads, people are often starting at 115k at my company as recent grad software engineers. Employment is also probably pretty high, I don't know people who are out of work for months at a time if they are at all competent. Rent is straight ridiculous, but you are paid more to cover rent and if you still want to save you can always live in a less "hip" neighborhood that is a little off the beaten path. There is takeout literally everywhere, and bars aplenty (almost too many). Weed grows like weed out here, and although prices have gone up its still cheaper than most of US. Live music is all over the place at tons of different venues, coffee shops from small local shops to large ones theyre everywhere. I get the disdain for the city, but with the tech boom and everything going on here right now its hard to deny its not becoming one of the best, if not the best places to live in the US right now. The only downside is there are a large number of guys working here in comparison to girls. I know stats suggest that its only slightly higher, but I feel like there hasnt been a polling in a while or the results are skewed due to older people living in the city

 

Edit: I also lived in Seattle for 4 years and have family and friends in portland. I think san francisco is better than the two hands down. I would like to go to austin though, girls were crazy hot when i was in houston.

It is more expensive and according to their criteria would probably not perform as well as where it landed. I mean, sure, if you're an engineer working tech it's a mecca. For a lot of people it's a mid-size city with overpriced, big city dwellings. I'm not dissing, I obviously wouldn't live there but I see its charms. As for the specific topic covered here, I'd say it is one of those cities to exclude, like NYC and LA.

Edited November 9, 2013 by Fuuma

[Fuuma]

how did you like kuala lumpur? i think kasper said you've been going there a lot?

Reminds me of the big chinese cities, very modern with some old shacks on the side. I like that the mixed communities means good indian, malay and chinese food. Since they're Muslims there are a lot of Saudis walking around, spending that oil money, which gives the place its distinctive flavour.

[captainkim]

Yo impressive list, I'm really surprised to see Nashville on the list. Not because it was some shitty city to live in. Downtown Nashville is really impressive and has an awesome nightlife, music scene, and terrific restaurants. However, If you go outside of the small downtown area there wasn't much else, so most of the time you're locked in mostly dead areas except the occasional BBQ place or southern country-esque diner or restaurant, which was kinda ehhh.

 

I'll vouch on Atlanta being another amazing city to live in, but in the end of the day you're still living in the South which for many people isn't quite the best region of the America to be living in.

[herpsky]

i was in chicago yesterday. i liked it. i don't know if i can stand the cold, dreary weather

[tac0tron]

Not sure why sd is on this list. Cost of living is pretty high here!

[wEstSidE]

The obvious answer is moving back to Tokyo but I'm willing to wait another few years. 

 

 

I should rephrase. I think Atlanta is one of the best "smaller" cities in the US. The Boss agrees with me. 

It's a very nice mix of urban and suburban, I think.

 

What I liked:

-Really amazing restaurants, take-out joints, and bars. Spots like Brickstore and Leon's I really haven't seen in other cities.

-Lots of new developments that are very affordable. Moving out of Atlanta was a pretty big adjustment. Used to take living in an apartment with a W/D, garage, gated-access, clubhouse, and etc for granted. The quality of life literally has gone to shit when I moved to the northeast.

-I enjoyed the convenience of living in (or the presence of) communities where you can bike/walk but take a car out if necessary. In most big cities, it's hard to both.

-Lots of outdoorsy activities within 15-20 minutes of the city. Had a season pass to Stone Mountain. 

-Easy access to the airport. A lot of people hate on Marta but it's not bad.

-Decent stores. I guess the old Wish and Barneys COOP being gone, Atlanta is practically devoid of jawnz but you can still cop decent things

-Good Korean and Japanese food. Also, there's are two Japanese grocery stores. 

-Lots of low-riders and spinners (j/k)

-Decent art scene. Nice museums. Saw the Kaws exhibit at High. Was dope.

-People are generally nice

Boss here. all true.

 

Wish is still around tho on Moreland - maybe they changed locations or something? got RL, Saks, Neimans with pretty good jawns but yeah you gotta take Delta to get really fly.

 

i dont get why there are so many gated communities in ATL / the south. really unnecessary.

[DaBestSpoona]

 

i dont get why there are so many gated communities in ATL / the south. really unnecessary.

 

segregation son