Cost of living is ridiculously high in New York City

It really hasn't affected me so much, we don't drive. I am sure the increased rentals are hurting though, buying is not an option in this city so I think there's not alot you can, maybe move to Brooklyn.

@adriancheekycho You live in NYC like you would in any other city of the world. Luckily the city has a great public transport system which is still affordable so you dont have to drive/ cabs everywhere. You also have to be sensible about spending and not get carried away by the plethora of eating, drinking, partying and shopping options that are available be to you in NYC. NYC still is far less expensive than cities like London which is prohibitive.

@Adriancheekycho: yes, NYC is getting worst when it comes to living. I often hear people complaining about it, say they want to leave it. Even my girlfriend, who was basically raised in this area, wants to leave. I heard from a politician that NYC will cater to the rich and super rich only by the year 2015. I wonder how true that is.

@Uptowngirl: I never went to London so I can not comment on the cost of living there. But if you look up the stats, you will find that NYC is rated as the most expensive city in the USA.

@hhusted - what do you mean "will cater to" In what way? Cost of living? Tax cuts? Etc? Tbh I'd actually say from experience that compared to Paris, Rome, etc, NYC is actually quite cheap - with the exception of housing. I think it's much, MUCH easier to find cheap food, tickets, etc, in NYC than in London, Paris, or even Oxford; it's just the rent that edges thigns up.

I agree with you, ajadedidealist. The rent is out of control but that's about the only thing. You lose a lot of convenience by not spending money on things in NYC. But, you don't have a car payment, insurance, gas, etc and if you add that to the rent of a place like LA, it's actually more expensive. There are so many free things to do here and so many great, cheap restaurants. No other city offers so much for so little.

@Ajadedidealist: The only thing I know is the politician pointed the real estate and buying goods in stores. He stated the real estate would be so high that only the rich would be able to afford it. And he stated that the cost of living, when it comes to buying groceries would also be so high that only the rich could pay such prices.

I do know that when I go into stores now, there are many items that are sky high in price. It is a shame that greed has to take over in this city. My girlfriend, who moved here in 1991, told me the price of goods were so cheap that she could get about 6 bags full of groceries for about $50. Now, she told me the same amount of groceries cost about $125 or close to that. Talking about inflation.

I don't think cost of living is all that high in the city compared to other places. Yeah, most prices are inflated in Manhattan compared to Brooklyn, but so what. The only thing that is unmanageable for most people is rent prices, but as we've all noticed, the real estate market has been coming down lately and it might continue to stay low for a while yet. You can now find places in Manhattan that are cheaper than some of the ritzy Brooklyn neighborhoods like Brooklyn Heights.

@hhusted You ain't seen nothing yet..cities in Asia are far more expensive than NYC nowadays .. the apartment we are renting here is nearly $10,000 a month and our first electricity bill nearly gave us a heart attack.. $400 .. In NYC our bill used to be around $100!