urgh. yuck

[oroszlan]

this has been going around a lot. um. where do i begin. no, pumpkin, this is not how reality works. on the surface yes i agree, but (1) how much you earn will depend on how useful to other people your skills are. no one cares if your calling is feminist poetry or creating soap bubbles unless you can actually find people to pay for it. (2) you don't

Comments

[ny_quant]

Mostly agree with you but there are nuances. E.g. my kids earn above average salaries even by NY standards but still can't afford to live separately b/c NYC rents are sky high. Maybe they could afford studios in crappy neighborhoods but even that would be a bit of stretch. So there is a genuine affordability problem even for middle class. I'm sure it is similar in London.

What do young people say?

[oroszlan]

on human level i sympathise but it is not a "right" to live in NYC. or London. that's what market forces are for. cant afford it? lots of other cities around. or get a job that pays more. tough but true. no?

[ny_quant]

Yes, no, not quite.
Sure it's not a right to live in NYC. But you will typically make much less for the same work elsewhere and rent sharing opportunities are much less abundant. Perversely, NYC can be easier for bottom feeders. Some of my younger daughter classmates really struggle to make ends meet despite their fancy degrees, mostly b/c they live alone outside big metro areas.
My older has zero marketability outside NYC b/c she works in advertizing. Not that she wants to leave NY but she simply can't even if she wanted to.
It's not that simple (c) It's not a right but for some it's not a choice either.