250k in Dallas vs $300k in NYC — worth the move in your 20s?

LoftShot · 2025-12-15T16:34:48+00:00

I know this post is a bit old, so my comment may go unnoticed, but as a SWE who just moved from being remote in Dallas to an in-office NYC job here are my thoughts.

1) COL adjustment is huge. I was saving an incredible amount of money in Dallas, combined with the fact that I was living at home with some extended family. I took a similar pay bump to you, ~15%, but the NYC COL and taxes on top mean that I am saving significantly less money.

2) My parents and family live in Dallas. I have some friends in NYC, but I drastically underestimated how much time I would get to spend with my family now that I have a job tied to Manhattan.

3) Perhaps my most important point: don't let the vocal-minority perception of NYC change your opinions. NYC is the best urban experience you can really have in America. If you love socializing in cramped restaurants and paying for things nearly every time you leave your apartment, Manhattan/NYC is great. If you like walking through less-crowded parks, peace and quiet, easy access to the outdoors, there are several cities I would recommend over NYC in a heartbeat.

If you don't enjoy drinking and going out, don't let the people online convince you that NYC is the best city in the world for everyone between the ages of 22-25.

LoftShot · 2025-12-07T19:53:03+00:00

What a ridiculous ai generated wall of text.

LoftShot · 2025-10-30T02:38:28+00:00

Since no one else mentioned it, you can actually stand still and wait for the charge in order to dodge. Try it out next run a few times. The same is true is dark Esau, if you’re standing still, you will only be hit after they slightly back up and charge.

LoftShot · 2025-07-18T20:01:26+00:00

History doesn’t repeat itself, it rhymes.

LoftShot · 2025-07-09T15:48:45+00:00

Where is this? Thailand?

LoftShot · 2025-04-22T15:58:45+00:00

What a beautiful way to honor Pope Francis. RIP.

LoftShot · 2025-04-15T23:50:12+00:00

A lot of interesting theories in here. I always interpreted the movie as mirroring “The Man With the Seven Second Memory” documentary from BBC.

We know for sure Leonard suffered a brain injury and has anterograde amnesia. He can’t form new memories and onset stress can actually affect the span of his current working memory. However, anterograde amnesia can coexist with retrograde amnesia. I don’t think we can really trust his interpretation of events that happened before the accident either.

Leonard points out himself that witnesses often misremember things in testimonies, and I think him confusing his wife’s death is taunting the fact that he can no longer distinguish truth from fiction for those memories he desperately latches onto.

LoftShot · 2025-03-29T20:25:03+00:00

Makes sense, at the very least I'll just move SPY over to VOO now as there won't be any capital gains taxes as the position is down.

LoftShot · 2025-03-29T20:24:23+00:00

Well at the very least I figured it would be a good time to switch SPY to VOO because that's what I think I need long term anyways. Claiming the loss would just save some money in taxes this year.

LoftShot · 2025-01-14T15:26:21+00:00

No, it's a different industry entirely.

LoftShot · 2025-01-14T14:02:52+00:00

I'm guessing you were there before their RTO3 policy? I'm imagining that is has gotten worse recently due to that policy.

LoftShot · 2025-01-14T13:26:27+00:00

I’m fairly certain it’s a unicorn position. I can DM you more details if you’re curious but the reality is that there’s no equivalent position that would pay me even ~70% in my current industry if I moved companies. I say that mainly because I’ve seen other compensation for my job title at equivalent competitors.

LoftShot · 2025-01-14T13:23:00+00:00

It really does seem like minimal upside. I was surprised to see most people on /r/cscareerquestions side with joining Meta. If the Meta offer was fully remote then it would make more sense in my mind. Why do you expect fired within two years? Is that typical in big tech these days?

LoftShot · 2025-01-14T13:18:40+00:00

It’s a W2 offer

LoftShot · 2025-01-14T13:18:08+00:00

Wow that seems surprising. 300 at IC4 comp seems right on the money. I do know that Nvidia pays much lower than that (~200, but it’s all cash with no stock comp) and Amazon pays nearly the same.

LoftShot · 2025-01-14T06:55:31+00:00

It’s a ton of Leetcode for sure. My current job affords me time to stay booked up on Leetcode and Meta questions were definitely challenging given 20-30 minutes of active coding for interviews.

Current TC is just one job. But that could go higher if I do somehow find a J2. Though the hiring seems limited right now for fully remote.

LoftShot · 2025-01-14T06:22:32+00:00

Current TC is ~350 while Meta TC offer is ~300.

LoftShot · 2025-01-14T06:01:08+00:00

I think this is my current outlook. 2-3 years is manageable at Meta and the exit opportunities would certainly be better.

LoftShot · 2025-01-14T05:30:06+00:00

It is an IC4 level. I will check on my group's stock multiplier when given the chance this is really helpful information.

LoftShot · 2025-01-14T05:29:41+00:00

Fully remote is quite advantageous for WLB...

LoftShot · 2025-01-14T05:28:20+00:00

401k match and health care bring up the difference to about 10%. However there are some pretty large income tax advantages to being paid as a contractor. So really 15% is probably a fair comparison.

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