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Comment by MikeCapone | Hacker News Reader

Thanks for taking the time to write all this.

Question: Is there anything keeping you from living closer to where you work?

Not always an option. In my case, moving closer would quadruple my taxes. Decent neighborhoods are 40 minutes away (average commute in my office is about 40 min).

There's also the question of working spouses and kids.

If it were for a boffo CEO position I'd consider moving but, to be just another seat warmer, not so much.

(disclaimer: I really like my job which is why I drive 2 hours each way. If I can work out moving closer that would be beneficial to all involved I would. I won't get within 30 minutes though - that I already know).

Quadruple?? If you're talking a state boundary, I think you're probably missing something. Some states have higher income tax, some have higher real estate tax (which you pay for indirectly via rent).

Quadruple your cost of living, I could believe.

EDIT: Additionally, somewhere around 80% of the taxes that you do pay go to the federal gov't -- so it'd be really, really hard for a change in state to quadruple your tax burden.

Hyberbole retracted after a little research. I was speaking of property taxes specifically. It's possible to quadruple my property taxes by moving to the same state in which I work. That would put me about an hour from my office and is the most expensive area in the state. Being within 30 min of my office would be 1.5 - 2 times more expensive property tax wise.

I moved August of last year, and got my current job in October (after my main client, a startup owner, just up and stopped paying me.) I don't want to move again for maybe another year. There are other personal factors involved.

Other reasons to stay put are that my current living place is of really high quality for the price. I live in a very beautiful area very close to beaches, which I means a lot to me. I also have a great landlord that I consider a friend.

The cul-de-sac I live on is pretty close-knit, which is pretty rare and which I appreciate a lot. A lot of the people who live on the street (or within visual range) are relatives. A month after my girlfriend and I moved in, we got invited to their family reunion by the... 'patriarch' of the family, and we had a good time with them. That level of friendliness and familiarity really does a lot for me.

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