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<p>Yes, Manhattan is very different from New York City. Manhattan is one of 5 New York City boroughs, along with the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island. About 80% of NYC’s population lives in one of the 4 “other” boroughs, i.e., not in Manhattan. Land is far more expensive in Manhattan, as is housing. Per capita income in Manhattan is far higher than in the other boroughs. Population density (residents per square mile) is roughly twice as high in Manhattan as in either the Bronx or Brooklyn, 3 times higher than Queens, and almost 10 times higher than Staten Island which largely consists of neighborhoods of middle-class, single- family homes. And even these figures understate the difference, because the Manhattan figures include neighborhoods in northern Manhattan–Harlem, Washington Heights, Inwood that in many ways more closely resemble the Bronx or Brooklyn (in terms of income, density, demographics) than Manhattan from, say 110th Street south to the southern tip of the island.</p>
<p>So I think you need to be really careful with comparisons of income and cost of living. If the figures are for New York City, that’s going to include the 80% of city residents who don’t live in Manhattan, and the 85-90% of New York City residents who don’t live in the parts of Manhattan that tourists regularly visit and ambitious college students aspire to. </p>
<p>Just to give you some idea: for the week ended Aug. 22, 2012, the average listing price to purchase a residence (in most cases an apartment) was $4.7 million in TriBeCa, $3.9 million in SoHo, $3.3 million in the West Village, $3.3 million in Midtown Center, $2.8 million on the Upper East Side, and $2.1 million on the Upper West Side. In East Harlem, which has become a “hot” neighborhood, it was $1.2 million. Farther north in Manhattan, it was $787K in central Harlem, $501K in Washington Heights, and $325K in Inwood. Those are all in Manhattan.</p>
<p>In Brooklyn, there are a few pricier neighborhoods like Boerum Hill $1.4 million, Brooklyn Heights $1.3 million, Park Slope $1.1 million, but most neighborhoods ranged from around $300K to $750K or so.</p>
<p>In Queens, one beachfront neighborhood, Neponsit, tops out at $1.1 million, but most neighborhoods range from $170K up to about $550K.</p>
<p>In the Bronx, there are a couple of pockets in the $700K-$1 million range, but in most neighborhoods average listing prices ranged from around $100K up to around $500K. </p>
<p>In Staten Island, average listings ranged from about $275K up to about $500K, with a few neighborhoods higher.</p>
<p>As you can see, it’s a night and day difference. Most New Yorkers can afford to live in New York City; most can’t afford to live in Manhattan, and certainly not in the neighborhoods where an average apartment costs $2 to $5 million–i.e., the parts of New York that starry-eyed college kids dream of.</p>
<p>San Francisco is more like Manhattan than like New York City as a whole. It’s compact, largely surrounded by water, and dense, with high land costs, high housing costs, and high per capita incomes. Not all of San Francisco is upscale, but then neither is all of Manhattan.</p>