Aspie moving to New York

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NYC is one of the most expensive places to live and run a business in. It's also noisy, crowded, dirty and full of rude, self-centered, self-important, entitled people. The traffic is a nightmare, mass transit barely works and is overcrowded. Taxes are high. NY State govt is corrupt, dysfunctional and nearly bankrupt. Cops are a**holes indeed. It's like one of the worst places in USA to live in. I want to get out of here. I suffered here for almost 20 years and I've got enough. For anyone with sensory overload issues NYC is a living hell.

I'm afraid you imagine NYC as you see it in movies. In real life it's a giant s**thole. People are drawn here with dreams of making it big and get stuck here with mediocre jobs. The rich people who run Wall Street don't even live here, they live in Connecticut and Massachusetts

There are plenty of better places to start a business IMO. The US is an inexpensive country, but New York City is a big exception. Most of the businesses there are already well-established, and entry costs are high. I don't know what your business is, but New York is more services friendly. Anything involving goods is expensive, as New York's extreme density and ageing infrastructure make shipping into and out of the city a chore. That's why NYC is the only city where most people travel by rail, because having a car there is very difficult. Taxes in NYC are also the highest in the nation.

That said, you may be comfortable starting in NYC because it's a city full of immigrants. Immigrants live everywhere in this country, but no where has more nationalities than NYC. If you wish to maintain ties to Belgium, see if other Belgian expats (or even Flemish or Walloons) have a society. NYC is also a great city to practice English in, as a lot of people there are learning. Most of the nation does not tolerate anything less than perfect English, except Spanish speakers in some parts.

Personally, I am convinced that the next economic growth engines are cities in the "Rust Belt." I just read the other day that you can rent a small office in Pittsburgh for $15 (and it wasn't bad at all, either). Even Detroit is bound to pick up because everything there is so cheap now. I'm thinking of moving to those cities once the economy picks up a little.

I worked in the same area for over 15 years. I don't think there is a single business around here that lasted that long. Most restaurants, bars, shops and services struggle and last 5 years or so. Taxes, fees, rent and transportation costs are real killers here. Energy is obscenely expensive too and you need lots of heating in Winter and lots of cooling in Summer. Maintaining large commercial spaces is very expensive. Even large chains struggle to stay in business and many exist at loss just to keep market presence. Most businesses are subjects to passing fads and sudden financial fluctuations. You may have a killer restaurant or boutique for couple of years and then go out of business in matter of months. Companies come and go. Most small business owners make average living by working 70+ hours a week unless they found a niche and managed to keep their business alive since 80s or earlier. Most new businesses struggle. I know shop owners who bring home just a little more than I do and work a lot more hours than I do. The only people who make lots of money here are doctors and lawyers. Most markets are saturated and controlled by certain nationals like Chinese, Korean, Greek, Italian and they fiercely keep everybody else out. NY State is friendly to WallStreet and rich people, not to small and medium business. The entire upstate NY is in state of deep disintegration and despair, entire malls, office and industrial parks have been closed for years and are overtaken by wild vegetation. NY State economy is on life support. To make it big in fashion, advertising or finance industry you need to know lots of people, even having a killer product won't help you. If you plan on making tangible goods and selling them go somewhere else where taxes, rent and transportation costs are low and govt is friendly to small business. Otherwise, good luck, keep some money aside and have a safe escape plan.

Oh, I forgot to mention insurance New York City has the highest rates on insurance in the country: anything from property insurance, liability insurance, to medical insurance. Once you factor in taxes, energy, insurance, legal costs you will be surprised how little is left. People lost millions here in no time. But if you have it all planned out then this discussion is moot. I guess you know what you're getting into. People will gladly take your money here.

NYC is relatively safe compared to other major urban areas. You're more likely to be killed in a car accident here than shot, unless you look for trouble then it's very easy to find and East River is deep

Christopher,

Oh my, you have big dreams, I hope they come true for you!

First rule - Do not publicly tell people you have millions, there are too many here willing to help you spend it or willing to just take it from you. Flashing cash can get you killed here. It's a really bad idea. You could be a very smart young man and still lose all your money. There are good and bad people here, you have to find the good ones and that will not be easy.

I have lived just outside the city for 51 years. I am struggling with the right words to describe it so you will understand. It is simultaneously the greatest and worst place on earth. There is nothing that does not exist here (good and bad) and it is all happening all at once 24 hours a day every day. You can meet wonderful and awful people and everyone in between. They can be hard to tell apart. Magnificent works of art can exist right beside morbid dangers. You have to be really careful all of the time because it is all mixed together. All of this creates a place where dreams do sometimes come true, but more often they get crushed.

Since you have some funding behind you, why don't you give yourself a better chance to be the one that has their dream come true and plan a long trip here to explore the lay of the land and plan how you will achieve your dream? If you are on your trip and you find instant success you can always stay and proceed. There are plenty of short term lease apartments you could rent to get a real feel for the place as well as short term office space. This would give you the time and space to get a realistic view of what will be needed to start up your business while minimizing your initial risk until you are really ready to invest your war chest. You can also make appropriate contacts and begin to build your network, send up some trial balloons to determine if there is a market for your idea, find out who the competition is, locate a workforce with the skills required etc. starting a business is not as easy as it looks, and starting one in a fiercely competitive environment is even harder. In other words, don't kill your dream by going out and spending all your capital in a short time. Burning thru a few million is easy in a place like NYC, it's not even considered a lot of money here in many circles. People make and destroy millionaires here every day. If you can give yourself a chance to figure out things then start your business, you will have given yourself a fair chance at being that one in a million that rises to the top.

Good Luck!

Do you mind me asking what kind of business you are planning?

Unless it is a dangerous business (like trading diamonds) or located in a dangerous area, you probably won't need a bodyguard. Many places you can safely walk around in NYC at any hour as long as you're wearing the proper attitude and are aware of your surroundings. Still other places in NYC, you could get shot in broad daylight with people all around you and they would walk around your body. That's why it is important to learn about the place a little before jumping in.

Most people get around the city without a driver pretty easily, there's a lot of ways to get around and you may not even need to go out of your neighborhood for anything other than the occasional business meetings and entertainment.

There are lots of apartments with office suites built in for rent, or buildings that have apartments and conference rooms that the residents can use for business. You would also not be the first person to live in their office if you went that route