I agree 100% with the poster that are advocating making aliya especially for those considering finally getting out of NY.
However for those unfortunate souls who have decided that it is not feasible to go home just yet, there are many reasons to consider moving “out of town” other than bag laws and taxes.
Housing prices is the biggest, but this has a snowball effect on many other major expenses.
Higher housing prices mean you need to pay teachers in yeshivas more to afford living there. This translates into higher tuitions.
Higher standard of living: How many houses in your “in town” neighborhoods have not been remodeled in the last 15 years? The gadgets, clothes your kids want etc.
The jewish stores in NY needs to keep up with a higher standard of living (and property rental) and hence charge higher prices. Did you ever compare the prices of clothing in Jewish stores vs. non-Jewish stores? Shoprite vs. Pomegranate?
The atmosphere “in town” is more tense and high pressured due to traffic, parking, income rat race etc. More judgemental. More stress (just to make a living).
Do a calculation in the minimum family income necessary to get by in NY vs. OOT and you will see that just like you can’t compare a dollar in 1920 to 2020 you also need to adjust a NY dollar vs. an OOT dollar. Higher salaries also require higher income tax, less eligibility to low-middle income programs etc.
The main thing holding back most people is the psychological barrier of thinking the world ends at the Verrazano bridge.