Continue making 400k+ in NYC or take remote job at 250k

Flagpole wrote:

My answer is not based on the salary at all, but at your comment that you need to get out of the house to stay sane.

You should work the job that allows you to stay sane.

On a side note, only move to Idaho if you are a racist a-hole. If not, I advise you don't move there.

Hey. Isn’t Sick Nymmonds from Idaho? What are you implying?

Making $150K plus 100K bonus you can live anywhere you choose in the country - literally 99.9% of the country you can live like a king. The fact that you started this thread means you've essentially 95% already made your mind up - one foot is out the door. Also, 3 kids in NYC will be challenging - as you know.

Do you have hobbies? Enjoy the outdoors? With this income and any savings you currently have you can live in Vail, CO, Hood River, OR, Bend, OR, Breckenridge, CO, Park City, UT, etc and also set up a killer WFH office space. What is the hesitation?

moanswers wrote:

Do you have family or close ties in other cities?

Utah Idaho and Montana.

I feel like everyone is moving there to remote work, but I've been visiting family there since I was young and do like the place. Unfortunately everyone is fleeing California to move there and jacking up prices. Not the deal it used to be.

dopedtothegills13 wrote:

moanswers wrote:

Do you have family or close ties in other cities?

Utah Idaho and Montana.

I feel like everyone is moving there to remote work, but I've been visiting family there since I was young and do like the place. Unfortunately everyone is fleeing California to move there and jacking up prices. Not the deal it used to be.

Interesting. I would say Bozeman, MT but winters are cold and dark and summer is no longer sunny - it is now Smoky 4 months out of the year.

SECNO wrote:

Making $150K plus 100K bonus you can live anywhere you choose in the country - literally 99.9% of the country you can live like a king. The fact that you started this thread means you've essentially 95% already made your mind up - one foot is out the door. Also, 3 kids in NYC will be challenging - as you know.

Do you have hobbies? Enjoy the outdoors? With this income and any savings you currently have you can live in Vail, CO, Hood River, OR, Bend, OR, Breckenridge, CO, Park City, UT, etc and also set up a killer WFH office space. What is the hesitation?

I feel like Bend are Bozeman are weird dystopian zoom towns full of exiled California techies that WFH and drive Teslas and priuses everywhere.....otherwise I would love it....what's a solid western states town that hasn't caught on with the tech crowd yet?

Was also thinking Wenatchee Wa as well. Love that place

boyzee eyedaho wrote:

Flagpole wrote:

My answer is not based on the salary at all, but at your comment that you need to get out of the house to stay sane.

You should work the job that allows you to stay sane.

On a side note, only move to Idaho if you are a racist a-hole. If not, I advise you don't move there.

Hey. Isn’t Sick Nymmonds from Idaho? What are you implying?

Does he live there any longer? Also, I didn't say EVERYONE there was a racist a-hole, but if you want to fit in with the vast majority, it's a good idea to be one if you move there.

Flagpole wrote:

boyzee eyedaho wrote:

Hey. Isn’t Sick Nymmonds from Idaho? What are you implying?

Does he live there any longer? Also, I didn't say EVERYONE there was a racist a-hole, but if you want to fit in with the vast majority, it's a good idea to be one if you move there.

Ive voted republican in every presidential election since I turned 18 so I'm racist by definition

dopedtothegills13 wrote:

Was also thinking Wenatchee Wa as well. Love that place

I know nothing about that town, but I have family living in Washington as well as several friends...odd really that so many people I know would end up living clear across the country from where I met them...and then not even CA, but WA. Anyway, I support living in Washington, and I really could end up there one day.

dopedtothegills13 wrote:

Flagpole wrote:

Does he live there any longer? Also, I didn't say EVERYONE there was a racist a-hole, but if you want to fit in with the vast majority, it's a good idea to be one if you move there.

Ive voted republican in every presidential election since I turned 18 so I'm racist by definition

I actually do NOT subscribe to that. Beginning with 2020, you COULD be a racist or JUST stupid. Some stupid people are just dumb and don't have a hateful bone in their bodies.

As far as Washington goes (you mentioned it earlier), you WOULD be throwing your Presidential vote away if you lived there.

Sounds like you should go back in time and get a trust fund to pay for the house you want.

Great question. And you just described Bend - and Hood River to an extent - to a T. Maybe Salida, CO? Whitefish, MT? Missoula, MT and Eugene, OR are also sneaky great places to live if you're into college towns.

If you want to move to a smaller city I'd still recommend either Portland or Denver. Boise (the next Portland/Denver) is also nice - great restaurants and shocking how clean it is, literally zero homeless population - but probably too small coming from NYC.

dopedtothegills13 wrote:

Ive voted republican in every presidential election since I turned 18 so I'm racist by definition

Not racist but just dumb lol. You don't even make enough yet to get hit by Biden's paltry tax increases, big shot.

Take a look at Mount Pleasant NY, Armonk NY, Chappaqua NY

1.2-1.5M can pretty much get you a great house and an acre + of land. Commute to city via train is 45 minutes which isn't bad at all. Take a 30 year loan to start on a house like this and then make extra payments. All very doable with your high income level.

You're making great money but your net worth is a bit low - keep banking your bonuses (don't spend any bonuses on bullsht expenses). Avoid areas like Bronxville, Scarsdale, Rye, and Larchmont. These areas are extremely pricey and you will never feel very comfortable in those areas as they are flooded with people with 10+M net worths.

I also personally think you are making a mistake by leaving NYC and going remote. From what it sounds like you are in the real deal finance (not the BS back office). You're earnings potential in next 10-20 years can be incredible. Going remote in a non major metro area can really hurt your career. Face time matters in high finance. Chances of a 7 figure income will most likely evaporate if you go remote. Just my opinion.

I pretty much agree with everything you've laid out here, but if he's in "real deal finance" the hours will increase along with the pay. He also talks of having 3+ kids - if he continues on the high-end finance path his kids will not know him at all. OP - if you choose this route I'd stay in the city and buy a large condo or townhome. By eliminating the commute you might make it home for one dinner a month, maybe.

I highly recommend Seattle. Live in the suburbs and commute a couple days a week. Western Washington is like the best place ever you get a big city plus tons of outdoor activities.

If you are unsure where to live, I would not consider buying a house right now. Rent is cheap enough and you can grow some savings. Also, renting allows the flexibility to leave if you make the wrong move; if you buy, not so much. Buying and selling is expensive and you'll be guaranteed to be under unless you can keep a house for a few years.

You have kids, where would you like them to grow up? NYC has great public schools, but can be stressful. My kids grew up there and I think they received a great education, their schools were excellent and they were exposed to a lot of diversity and developed strong critical and analytical skills that will serve them well later in life. On the other hand, sometimes the system is unnecessarily stressful.

You wife is staying home, what does she likes to do? Is she planning to get a job eventually? NYC offers a lot of job opportunities, a remove village in NH maybe not so much.

At the end of the day, you only have one life and money is supposed to make your life easier. 250K is plenty to live a comfortable life in most of the US if the stress level in NYC is too high.

how old are your kids again? should have put that in the original post

do you and your wife generally like living in NYC or no? Only you can answer that question.

(1) If yes, or yes, but not for forever, buy in NYC to build equity and in order to climb the salary ladder. When you get to a point where you've accumulated a higher net worth, sell property and use that money to buy property in a new, less populated location, and with net worth accumulation to pay for your children's college education etc.

(2) If no, move. Life is short. 250 salary to support wife and three children isn't a lot, but it's not nothing.

I had a similar decision several years ago and am happy to talk offline if helpful. As context, I went to a top-tier MBA program (HSW) and career switched into investment banking. I was originally in a sponsor coverage group in a white shoe bank in NYC, but moved to Los Angeles to take a generalist role with the same bank.

I had one child when I graduated and another one on the way so although we loved living in NYC the challenges with quality of life / raising kids in the city were a factor. Ultimately I left IB before making Vice President to work in tech. Your decision is obviously impacted by current compensation, but my experience is that switching away from Investment Banking has a much bigger impact on your long-term earnings potential. Very few other industries (private equity, hedge fund, etc.) have a path to the levels of compensation that are standard for IB where Managing Directors routinely make $1m+ with years that might be significantly higher. Not quite as much upside as sales & trading, but I have friends in IB that have had some big years (i.e. lots of M&A activity, IPOs, etc.).

I have been fortunate to have been a C-level executive in four tech companies (one public and three private-equity backed) that have had liquidity events so the gap between my earnings vs. what I would have earned as an investment banker is not as large as it would have been otherwise. Even if I had not had some good exits I would be happy with my decision because the quality of life (i.e. hours / stress) is worth more than any compensation.

Like many tech companies, we are fully remote and will continue to be post-pandemic. I would focus more on the career decision than location. Your dollars will obviously go a lot further outside of NYC and I think you would find living in less populated areas a more rich experience than you might think, but that is such a personal decision that no one on Let's Run is going to be helpful.