Wow, thanks for all the responses so far guys; keep them coming! I'll try to address some of the posts:
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Dashaansafin 
And dont count on your finance degree unless its from a top 20 to absolutely secure a job. Why didnt you go through OCR at school?
No companies had immediate NYC opportunities that interviewed at my school. I got offered a position at Deutche Bank out of school and turned it down for a couple reasons, one being that it was in Jacksonville. I could easily be making $60k/yr right now if I chose to work in my college town. I care more about living where I want to live more than the money.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
imageWIS 
You have a finance degree, but haven't done the cost of living analysis regarding how much it will cost you to live here?


Call me crazy

Quote:
Originally Posted by
Artisan Fan 
I think this is only true in some worlds like banking, fashion, journalism, etc. It's not true in consulting and probably opposite in technology.
Consulting has always been my first choice, but it's hard to get your foot in the door without knowing people, and it's hard to network from the other side of the country. This is what I want to persue the most when I arrive there. Although, what's the point of living in NYC and paying the high rents if I'm traveling 5 days a week?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
mintyfresh 
What type of finance experience do you have? Internships? previous jobs?
I have a degree in Finance, a degree in Real Estate, and I Minored in Entrepreneurship. I have good experience working on financial proformas, and crunching numbers for commercial real estate deals. I'm great at research, negotiation, managing, client retention, etc... I missed the boat on the internships, but I've started 2 companies in the past which I've grown and sold, and I'm currently working on my 3rd.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
mack11211 
Times have changed. "The City" still means Manhattan exclusively, but living and/or working in any of the boros can have equivalent prestige.
I'm not looking for "prestige"; I like the idea of NY as a place to live while I'm in my 20's. Later I plan on moving to SoCal.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Connemara 
$40-$60K? Those are peon dollars.
I agree. Making that out of college is pretty common, and I would imagine the jobs pay more in NY because the cost of living is higher... there's just more competition.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
patrickBOOTH 
I would definitely move to nyc and start working at a retail job, or as a bartender, or something and apply for jobs. I would try to get a roommate as well. People saying that you can live on the upper west side for $600-$800 are overly optimistic. For that amount you need 2 roommates, or actually live in Harlem.
This would be perfect. A little gig managing a bar or something would be great to start out, and it would give me time to focus on what I really want to be doing(entrepreneurship), rather than working 80-90hr weeks as a slave at a financial institution. I'm not a "start at the bottom, work your way up over 30yrs" kind of guy. Hard work is necessary, but if it's not what I absolutely love, it's not going to last, regardless of the pay.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
haganah 
3K gets you a shitty 1 bedroom in the West Village. Seriously shitty. But it's enough for a nice studio there. Cross the 7th ave line, and rent drops quite a bit. It's funny.
Why does it drop after 7th ave?