[Zezima]

You've described Brooklyn and NYC at large... if you're anti-car then consider the city. Boston is a good second choice. I've lived in both.

NYC comes with the normal downsides of the biggest city in the US: expenses, limited space, crowding, and noise. But this is true of all large cities in the world: Paris, London, Tokyo, etc.

But it comes with the immense upsides of a functioning metropolitan transit system, which covers the majority of the living spaces, at an affordable price, and doesn't require Uber or car to go the "last mile".

Additionally there are countless flex offices, coworking spaces, etc. Everyone I've met in tech in the city has some sort of WFH/WFO at this point in the pandemic.

City life isn't for everyone but if you're looking for a good transit system in the US there are two or three (Chicago too)

Best of luck with your journey

[teawrecks]

What if I can't fit in a shoebox and can't afford anything larger? What if I have a dog and want them to have a yard that doesn't require me to leash them every time they want to go outside? I don't mind sharing a yard with neighbors, heck I would even share a kitchen space if I knew it would be maintained well and available when I need it. But none of that is even an option.

I don't buy the idea that only hyper-dense cities can be walkable. The fact that NYC, Boston, Chicago, etc. are the closest thing we have to anti-car living speaks directly to OP's point about the US not prioritizing building comfortable communities.

[_bohm]

DC does a pretty good job of being a middle ground. Very walkable in most parts, a high number of single-family homes, lots of park space where you can take your dog off leash. Houses have gotten pretty expensive over the last 10 or so years though

[throwawaysleep]

You can't have walkable if each person has a lot of space.

[closeparen]

Elevators are fast.

[JCharante]

Not everyone can have a yard if you build up

[etblg]

Live in Queens or Jersey? Take the train in from outside the city? Not all of the city is Manhattan.

[ozarker]

Awesome username :D

[_blz2]

Except in NYC/Brooklyn, the crime rate and filth are both high. Not to mention the rude behavior that takes over anyone who spent more than a year there. Something like Tokyo, Singapore in terms of lawfulness and politeness is whats desperately needed in the US. Any city in the US is far from that.

[jakevoytko]

As always, NYC is one of the safer US cities in the nation across basically any metric you can find, and sometimes one of the safest.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_cities_b...

We leave our trash in the streets, and I'm an asshole. So I can concede those points! But most city dwellers in the US live somewhere less safe than NYC.

[_blz2]

Per capita is useless metric when you spend most of the time in the most crime ridden areas (the busiest places in NYC). Crime/area is more relevant metric.

I have been beaten up bad by teenagers and cops did jack shit (across the river in jersey). A friend of mine got robbed at midnight on 5th avenue (it was busy), cops again did nothing. Gun shots in washington square park and a faculty member was robbed there. These are anecdotes from years ago, its much worse now. You've to be on guard every second when you're out (especially at night). This is not a healthy life, and no wonder people become rude, 0 trust society will do that. Traveling in subways are essentially playing Russian roulette with a few more empty chambers. You can't pay me enough to even visit that place again.

[dec0dedab0de]

But most city dwellers in the US live somewhere less safe than NYC.

The link you provided says NYC is the 67th most dangerous by crime rate. That is for the city as a whole, not for any particular borough or neighborhood. It also doesn't take into account other non-crime related danger. It also lists over 20 million people living in cities with a lower crime rate, even though it doesn't include hundreds of other cities because it is a list of the top 100 cities by crime rate.

[JCharante]

Haven’t 4 or 6 people literally died on the NYC subway in the last 6 weeks?

NYC needs more law & order

[_blz2]

It has the highest police budget and the subway budget in the nation and still can't handle crime due to politics. Law, order and thousand other things have to improve there.