I'm trying to break into IB through a semi-target school and curious what are some good options besides New York for working in Investment Banking. LA and SF are doable, but also super expensive and mismanaged as shit.
I've head good things about Chicago (still don't like the idea of it), Charlotte, Dallas, and Boston.
Where would you rank cities for IB?
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New York is the best, nothing compares.
I get that, but is the compensation that much better because the city is crazy mismanaged and crazy expensive.
Its only expensive because you dont know where to look. People who aren't born in the city and want to move here have this perception that NYC is sooo expensive. That is false, only Manhattan and Brooklyn (has been gentrified because of people coming from OOS) has become extremely expensive. You can live comfortably in the other boroughs (Queens, Staten Island, The Bronx) with affordable rent.
Compensation wise… NYC pays extremely well because the cost of living is high (in Manhattan)
Houston is pretty solid if you are willing to work in energy
I like the idea of Houston and I'm specializing in Energy
If you are doing energy the best locations are Houston for Energy and NYC for Power. Houston is definitely a hub for IB energy, it is just as sweaty as NYC so if you want a non-NYC location because of the hours Houston energy will be just as bad.
Houston, SF, LA and Chicago are your options and those places will be industry centric
London
Charlotte is great if you're industry agnostic and fine with middle market
Chicago is great if you want 80% of NYC at 60% the cost
LA is not “mismanaged”
If you havent been, you need to actually visit chicago. Some people who have never been here think that michigan ave and o block are just as dangerous.
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