Suburb or City Life: Complete List Of Pros and Cons

You don’t have to just take my word.

As a native New Yorker, I believe New York City is the greatest city in the world.

New York City topped the list of Kearney’s 2021 Global Cities Report. It’s been in the top spot for 5 years running.

Therefore, it didn’t take much for my wife and me to decide to build our life in New York City after college.

Even after having 3 kids, we decided to remain in Manhattan.

My wife and I get along very well. We tend to be on the same page with many of life’s biggest decisions.

There are only a few great debates I’ve had with my wife.

First to come to mind: should we stay in New York City or move to the suburb?

That question wasn’t easy to answer for us.

We came up with a pros and cons list to figure out if the city life makes sense for us or if the suburban life is better.

But ultimately, we opted to stay in Manhattan. However, we continue to revisit this question frequently.

Below is the complete list of pros and cons of living in the city or the suburb with a family. My wife and I considered the items on this list in making our decision.

If you are also deciding between the city and the suburb, this post can provide you with more information in making the right decision for you and your family.

Benefits Of City Life

Pro #1: Shorter Commute To Work

The proximity to work is the number one reason why I chose to stay in the city. Time is the most valuable resource we have and I want to make sure I can maximize time with my family.

Imagine commuting 1 hour each way from home to work and then from work to home. That is 2 hours of the day wasted.

Typically, I have around 2 to 3 hours at night to spend with my kids before they head to bed. Imagine losing 1 hour of that to commute time. That works out to 33% to 50% less time with them.

Because of my short commute, I also get to hang out with my kids for a bit in the morning before I head to work.

Additionally, it is a lot easier to attend school activities, recitals, and parent-teacher conferences when I live closer to home.

Not to mention, there is significantly less stress in my daily commute not having to worry about a long trip to work. I’ve had long commutes before living in Manhattan and they were no fun.

I can walk to work and then from work back home. I get my exercise in and I do not have to deal with potential traffic or delays on the train.

Pro #2: There Are More Recreational Options And Activities To Do

Certainly, there are a lot of perks to living in Manhattan.

Not the least of which is all the activities we have available to us here.

There are countless world-class museums such as the Metropolitan Museum of Arts and the American Museum of Natural History.

How about the joy of attending a Broadway musical or spending the night listening to the New York Philharmonic at Lincoln Center?

There are world-famous shopping districts such as Fifth Avenue or Time Square.

You can pass by different neighborhoods and iconic buildings on your daily stroll such as the Empire State Building, Chrysler Building, and New York Stock Exchange.

Want to spend some time outdoors? Stop by Central Park or take a walk on the High Line.

Not to mention, it is amazing to be able to admire global landmarks such as the Statue of Liberty or the Grand Central Terminal daily.

On any given day, you can come across tons of different things to do just by living in New York City.

Pro #3: There Are More Job Opportunities In The City

There are a lot more job opportunities in living in the city versus living in the suburb.

This should not be a surprise given the high population density in the city which provides for a stronger labor market and clientele.

I work in the financial services industry. Manhattan is the hub for financial services jobs.

After all, we all know about Wall Street.

But New York City is home to a lot more industries in addition to finance.

International trade, health care, real estate, journalism and publishing, manufacturing, information technology, education services, and hospitality are some of the major industries found in New York City.

Needless to say, New York City offers its residents many options when it comes to working.

The jobs available in the suburbs will not be able to compete with the ones available in a major city.

Pro #4: There Is A Vibrant Energy In New York City

I took a walk recently on a fall November night at around 9:30 pm.

It happened to be a warm night for the fall season.

There were tons of people out.

People were walking the streets, chatting, and having a good time.

There were people packed in bars and restaurants.

Many were hanging outside enjoying the outdoor restaurant dining spaces.

I felt the energy and vibrancy of being in the city.

The suburb is peaceful, quiet, and calm at night.

New York City is the opposite.

Pro #5: There Are Cultural And Social Diversity

Because there are more job opportunities in the city versus the suburb and those job opportunities span a variety of industries, you have a more diverse population culturally and socially.

With close to 30,000 people per square mile, New York City is a dense city. In fact, it is the most densely populated major city in the United States.

8.8 million people live in New York City. Given such a large population, it is not hard to find people from all walks of life.

You can find people who work in different industries.

There is economic diversity in New York City as well.

New York City is the city with the most billionaires in the world.

Guess which city has the most millionaires? The answer is New York City as well.

However, the median household income of a New Yorker is $67,997.

There is a big range of economic standings among the residents.

America is called the melting pot and you will not find a better example of this than in New York City.

There are many ethnic micro-neighborhoods in the 5 boroughs of NYC such as Chinatown, Little Italy, Little Dominican Republic, Little Poland, and Koreatown.

Pro #6: The City Has Better Public Transportation

The number 1 expenditure for an American family is housing expenses. The number 2 expenditure is on transportation.

If you want to achieve financial freedom sooner, cutting down transportation costs is a good start. I suggest keeping transportation costs to a max of 10% of your take-home pay to achieve the ideal spending budget.

The best way to save on transportation costs is to take public transportation. This way, you don’t need to lease or buy a car, which is a depreciating asset and a big expense.

Public transportation is typically inexpensive and convenient.

New York City has numerous subway lines and bus lines to take you basically anywhere you want. For places not serviced by public transportation, Uber or Lyft can fill the gap.

Not only is public transportation convenient and cheap, but it is also greener if you are into reducing your carbon footprint.

Pro #7: New York City Has Higher-Rated Academic Schools

Certain suburbs have great schools.

But even a top-rated public suburban school can’t compete with the top schools in New York City.

There are elite New York City public schools such as Stuyvesant High School, The Bronx High School of Science, and Hunter College High School.

Those schools are highly selective and only the top academically strong students can get in.

New York City is also home to elite private schools such as Trinity School, Horace Mann, and Riverdale Country School.

Those schools often have 20% or more of their student body attend Ivy League colleges.

Pro #8: Better Restaurants

The population living in a city has greater economic and social diversity.

With more people of different stripes comes better restaurants and restaurant choices.

There are 5 three Michelin-starred restaurants located in the North East of the United States.

Can you guess how many three Michelin-starred restaurants are located in New York City? That’s right – there are 5 in New York City. That means you won’t be able to find a three Michelin-starred restaurant anywhere else in the North East outside of NYC.

New York City also has tons of two and one Michelin-starred restaurants.

You won’t find such great dining in any suburbs.

Additionally, with so many different ethnic micro-neighborhoods, you can enjoy dim sum at Chinatown with your friends before enjoying a family-style pasta dinner at Little Italy with your family.

Pro #9: Walkability Is Higher In The City

The city is made for walking.

Living in Manhattan, I try to walk to as many places as I can. That is how I can get my doctor-recommended 10,000 steps in for the day.

I walk to my workplace and then from work to home. It is not a problem for me to walk to pick up my kids from school or to pick up dinner.

There are many places in New York City made for walking from the numerous different promenades to Central Park to The High Line.

Being in a highly walkable place like New York City cuts down on transportation costs as well. Remember, saving on transportation costs can lead to achieving financial freedom sooner.

Pro #10: Living In An Apartment Building Can Provide Numerous Amenities

If you live in Manhattan, and unless you have $10,000,000 or more to spend, be prepared to live in an apartment building.

Like its people, apartment buildings come in all sizes and shapes. Different buildings have different amenities.

There are high-end luxury buildings with an army of doormen, porters, and concierges.

Certain buildings have amenities such as a movie theater, an indoor pool, a full gym, a billiards room, or a basketball court.

The building, 15 Central Park West, has its own residents-only restaurant.

You won’t find many houses in the suburb with such amenities and services.

Pro #11: Living In An Apartment Building Requires Less Maintenance

I lived in a house before moving to Manhattan.

Unsurprisingly, in Manhattan, I live in an apartment.

While there are benefits to living in a house, there are benefits to living in an apartment as well.

One such benefit is that there is less maintenance work to do in an apartment.

The building management company handles the maintenance of the common areas.

When I used to live in a house, I hated shoveling snow during the wintertime, cleaning out the gutter, and raking the leaves during Fall.

I don’t need to worry about such things while living in an apartment.

The outside sidewalk is cleaned by the employees of the management company. There are no gutters for me to worry about.

This means I can spend more time doing the things I enjoy doing such as family time and less time maintaining the property.

There is also a lower cost to utility and repairs for an apartment than a house given the smaller space.

Benefits Of Suburban Life

Now that you know all the benefits of living in the city, let’s go over the many benefits of suburban life as well.

Pro #1: There Is More Space In The Suburb

You get more space in the suburb than you do in the city.

This becomes more and more important as the kids get older and run around more.

A suburban house has outdoor space. Let’s send the kids outdoors and let them run around and tire themselves out.

The interior square footage is bigger as well.

There might be enough room for each kid to have their own room. It is not uncommon for a child living in Manhattan to have another sibling as a roommate.

Do you want your own gym for your morning workout? A house in the suburb can provide you with space for that.

Pro #2: More Affordable Housing

Another perk of living in the suburb is that you get more bang for your buck when it comes to housing.

For the same price you pay for an apartment in the city, you can get a bigger house in the suburb.

This is certainly true in New York City.

Great Neck Gardens is ranked by Niche as the 2022 best suburb to raise a family in New York.

The median listing home price per square foot in Great Neck Gardens is $623 according to Realtor.com.

Compare that to the median listing home price per square foot of $1,500 in Manhattan. For the same price, you can get over twice the house size.

Pro #3: Better School System

I find that there are many good suburbs with a strong public school district.

It is hard to get into elite public schools in New York City. Your kid has to beat out other kids on standardized tests in order to get into good schools.

Or you can go through a competitive application process to try to gain admission to the elite private schools in New York City. Even after acceptance, the privilege to attend can set you back close to $60,000 a year.

The other option is to move to a suburb with a very good public school district.

That way, your child can obtain a good education starting at elementary school all the way to high school. There is no need to test into a great school as long as your house falls within that school zone.

Pro #4: Lower Income Taxes

Having lower income taxes is another benefit of moving to the suburb of New York City.

New York City has a separate city income tax for those who live in NYC. If you work in New York City and don’t live here, you don’t have to pay the New York City income tax.

The income tax rates range from a low of 3.078% to a high of 3.876%. It doesn’t take much to hit the highest tax rate.

For a single filer, the income threshold is $50,000 to hit the 3.876% tax rate. For married filing jointly, the income threshold is $90,000.

Therefore, someone making $1,000,000 can get hit with an incremental $38,500 in income taxes for living in New York City.

Living in a suburb and commuting to New York City can help lower your income taxes and put more money in your pocket.

Pro # 5: A Good Suburban Neighborhood Is Safer

There is less crime in the suburb than in the city.

I tend to be on high alert whenever I walk around Manhattan. This is especially true when I have to take the subway.

But whenever I visit family or friends in the suburb, I feel less anxious. Even walking about the suburban main street, I feel more relaxed and less on guard.

The suburb feels safer to me.

And statistics back this up.

There is a 1 in 172 chance of becoming a victim of a violent crime in Manhattan. But in a great suburb such as Great Neck, there is a 1 in 1,013 chance of becoming a victim of a violent crime.

There is a 1 in 50 chance of becoming a victim of a property crime in Manhattan. In Great Neck, there is a 1 in 155 chance of becoming a victim of a property crime.

It is safer in the suburb.

Pro #6: Better Privacy

There is a lot less privacy living in a city given the population density.

You are basically living on top of one another.

Take apartment living for example. There are usually neighbors to the right and left of you, as well as, to the top and bottom.

I have to remind my kids constantly to not jump in the apartment or our downstairs neighbors might complain.

I also have to speak in a lower voice when discussing sensitive topics and don’t want our neighbor living in the next apartment to overhear the conversation.

There is more privacy living in a house in the suburb, especially if you have an acre or more of land.

Pro #7: Cleaner Air And Less Pollution

Want a healthier living? Then move to the suburb.

The air is fresher in the suburbs. There are fewer people and, hence, less waste from those people.

Population density leads to a dirtier place.

I’ve seen a huge cloud of exhaust smoke follow a truck driving down the streets of Manhattan.

There is constant construction going on with debris from demolition all over the place.

The need to constantly repair city streets and roads due to high usage also leads to noise and grim.

Not to mention, the city buses, taxis, and heavy traffic in Manhattan lead to a lot of carbon emissions that residents are breathing in.

The streets are also cleaner in the suburb with less pedestrian traffic.

Pro #8: Don’t Have To Deal With Condo/Coop Rules And Regulations

Different apartment buildings have different house rules. Those are all the things you have to keep in mind and navigate when living in an apartment building in New York City.

Condo and coop buildings have by-laws and house rules that govern what the residents can and cannot do.

Do you want to move in over the weekend? That is probably not allowed based on building rules.

How about renovating your apartment? You need to run it by the management company and seek their sign-off. They will most likely hire their own engineer to review your plans and make you pay for the cost of their engineer.

Do you want to add an extra bathroom in your apartment to create a master suite? Sorry, you can’t do that in an apartment building. You cannot have wet space over dry space.

There are a lot of rules and regulations you have to comply with unlike living in your own house in the suburb.

Pro #9: Suburban Houses Provide Amenities Such As Parking And Own Pool

I have a car in Manhattan because I find it to be convenient for a family.

This adds an extra layer of expenses to my budget. I spend extra to park the car in the garage when I am not using it.

I also find garage parking to be an inconvenience whenever I need to use the car.

The garage demands advanced notice. If I want to use the car on a weekday, I need to provide them with notice the night before.

If my plans change overnight, then I need to inform them in the morning that the car is no longer needed.

I can’t easily grab an item my kids left in the car once the car has been returned to the garage.

A suburban house can provide me with my own parking garage and all those problems go away.

There is just more freedom to have access to your car whenever you need it.

My kids also enjoy swimming. Having our own pool while living in a suburban house is a nice perk as well.

My Experience Living In Manhattan With A Family Of 5

I’ve enjoyed living in Manhattan with my family of 5. I’m sure my wife and kids will also tell you that they enjoy living here as well.

Manhattan is expensive but many benefits come with the higher cost of living.

The biggest consideration for why I chose to call Manhattan my home is the proximity to work and the extra time I win back by not having to spend 2 hours per day commuting.

Maximizing my time with my kids and family is the most important thing for me. I am willing to trade all the benefits of living in the suburb because of this.

However, we assess annually this choice to stay in New York City.

The biggest draw for the suburb to me as my children have gotten older is finding better schools for them without having to break the bank.

Getting into a top public school or private school in Manhattan is such a competitive process. It would be great to know they have access to a great school without worrying about the admissions process.

Additionally, Manhattan has been feeling less safe since the pandemic. Having greater peace of mind is another appealing aspect of moving to the suburb.

Conclusion

There are a lot of benefits to living in the city such as closer proximity to work, more activities to do, greater job opportunities, and better cultural and social diversity in people.

But it isn’t all sunshine living in the city. There are cons too.

Living in the suburbs provides a lot of benefits as well.

Bigger house sizes, lower cost of living, better public school districts, and a safer and cleaner environment are some of the appealing aspects of living in the suburb.

At the end of the day, you have to decide what is most important to you.

I don’t believe there is a right or wrong choice.

City or suburb – ultimately, it is your choice. And I hope this post provided you with the benefits of each to help with your decision-making.

To The Audience: Do you live in the city or the suburb? What factors are most important to you to help you reach your decision? Are there other benefits that I missed on my list above?