From Ritzy to Cheap but Classy Neighborhood

Goldman Sachs reported it was going to be cutting off 10% of it workforce. Barclays will be laying off at least 3,000 jobs from its U.S. operations and thousands more are expected to be removed from Merrill Lynch as Bank of America takes ownership of the brokerage.

As thousands of people all over the world who are employed in the financial-services industry and related fields see their jobs gone or their incomes cut, many of them will be forced to rethink their economic priorities.

Suddenly things that had seemed easy to buy last year now become very expensive. Does it really make sense to hang on to that expensive Park Avenue apartment when a less pricey alternative is out there? Sure, you may give up such luxury as its distance to Central Park and a status address, but, face it, it's way out of your budget these days.

So what to do? Relocate.

Plan Your Money to Go Further

BusinessWeek.com came up with some less expensive options to luxury neighborhoods within the same metropolitan region. For example, swap that Park Avenue classic six for a beautiful two-bedroom apartment in Park Slope, Brooklyn.

Every major city in the U.S. offers a wide-range of lower-cost but extremely pleasing, family-friendly neighborhoods where your money can go a longer way than in the area's expensive districts.

For example, a two-bedroom condo is selling in Boston's rich Back Bay for $2.19 million; but a two-bedroom condo in trendy Davis Square in Somerville, just northwest of Boston, is listed for $679,000. Now that's the kind of diference people can live with these days.

Even if your mortgage is manageable, living in places such as Park Avenue or Back Bay come with underlying costs. Not only are condo maintenance fees much higher, but so are parking fees, restaurants, grocery stores, housecleaners, nannies, tips for the doorman, and private school tuition for the children, said Ilyce Glink, publisher of ThinkGlink.com, a real estate and personal finance Web site. Large homes also cost more to heat, cool down, and clean, she said.

"There's an added tax for living in a fancy neighborhood," said Glink, who added that it makes sense for those used to stretching to pay for the good life to start living below their means.