New graduates hoping to move to New York City to jump-start their careers may be in for an unfortunate surprise.
a study published earlier this week by WalletHub named the Big Apple the worst city to live in for people looking for entry-level jobs and affordable housing.
The study compared the professional opportunities and quality of life offered in more than 180 U.S. cities, including the nation’s 150 most populous cities and at least two of the most populous cities in each of the 50 states.
The top two factors were then examined across 26 key metrics, ranging from the availability of entry-level jobs to the average monthly starting salary and housing affordability.
A study published earlier this week by WalletHub has named the Big Apple as the worst city to live in for people looking for entry-level jobs and quality of life
According to the study’s findings, New York City ranked 182nd after receiving the lowest score on all 26 metrics: just 33.14.
The ‘City of Dreams’ where stars like Frank Sinatra and Jay-Z made it big is now considered to have the lowest number of entry-level jobs per 100,000 professionals aged 16 and over in 2024.
New York is also cited as the worst place to find affordable housing in the country.
Although The Big Apple was able to redeem itself by a few spots after ranking 171st for quality of life.
The unemployment rate for New York City was 5.4 percent in December 2023, up 0.1 percent from November and up 0.3 percent from December 2022
The rankings come three months after a 26-year-old from Brooklyn went viral for telling her TikTok followers that despite having two degrees and speaking three languages, she still couldn’t find a minimum-wage job in the city.
Lohanny Santos uploaded a video of herself crying while holding a stack of resumes on TikTok.
“This is the most humiliating thing I’ve ever felt in my life,” she said, telling viewers that she tried to meet in person with potential employers asking for a job – but so far hasn’t been successful.
She added, “It’s honestly a little bit embarrassing because I literally apply for minimum wage jobs and some of them say ‘we’re not hiring.’ […] This is not what I expected.’
Santos, who graduated from Pace University with a degree in communications and one in acting, said she speaks three languages and seems devastated after being unable to find a minimum-wage job, which pays her $16 per week in New York. hours would result.
Lohanny Santos (pictured), 26, from Brooklyn, uploaded a video of herself crying while holding a stack of resumes on TikTok
“This sucks,” she added, wiping away the tears rolling down her cheeks. “I just wanna be a TikToker when I’m so real with you, but I can’t be delusional anymore… Like I literally have to make money so I just keep trying.”
Santos said she went into several coffee shops to hand them her resume, just as she did when she was 16 and looking for a job.
The only job Santos said she actually got, at a coffee shop, would require her to undergo 18 hours of unpaid training
Santos, who says he grew up between Brazil and New Jersey, is not the only one who can’t find a job in New York right now. Data from the New York State Department of Labor shows that unemployment is rising.
The unemployment rate for New York City was 5.4 percent in December 2023, up 0.1 percent from November and up 0.3 percent from December 2022. The unemployment rate in New York State in December was 2023 4.5 percent.
In May 2023, it was revealed that rents in New York rose to new record highs, with the average price of a Manhattan apartment rising to an eye-watering $4,241.
Average rents for new leases in Manhattan, Brooklyn and northwest Queens broke records in April as people flocked back to the city in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
A real estate report, from appraiser Miller Samuel and brokerage Douglas Elliman Real Estate, confirms what many New Yorkers have been complaining about on social media for weeks: that rents are “too damn high.”
According to the report, the typical Manhattan apartment was 8.1 percent more expensive in 2023 than in 2022.
The typical Manhattan apartment was 8.1 percent more expensive in 2023 than in 2022
Brooklyn’s median rent of $3,500 was up nearly 15 percent from last year, researchers said.
The median in the part of Queens that includes Astoria and Long Island City rose nearly 13 percent from a year earlier to $3,525.
WalletHub’s 2024 study rankings were determined using data collected from the US Census Bureau, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Indeed.com and Glassdoor.
The survey named Atlanta, Georgia as the number one city to live and work in, with a score of 65.84, followed closely by Orlando, Florida with a score of 65.02 and Salt Lake City, Utah with a score of 62.38.