One New York City worker is willing to commute from a bit further away than typical in order to save a few bucks.
Hairstylist, Katlin Jay, 30, spends money on planes, trains and automobiles, to travel from her Charlotte, North Carolina, home to her job on the Upper West side. But, she insists that she is paying less money to travel in for two weeks a month than if she lived in New York City.
She estimates that she spends just under $1,000 a month on flights, ground transportation and paying some rent to a friend with whom she stays.
The average cost of rent in New York City is about $3,747. The average rent in Charlotte is less than half that- $1,400.
'I stay at my friend Jenni's house. I pay her a little bit for rent so it works out both ways that's one of the things that made it really affordable to do this back and forth. I don't have to get a hotel every time,' Jay told NBC New York.
Katlin Jay, 30, commutes nearly 650 miles from Charlotte, North Carolina, to New York City to work her job as a hairstylist on the Upper West Side
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The Upper-West-Side stylist documented her commute in a video she posted on her TikTok.
In the video, she showed how she wakes up at 5:30 am to prepare for her flight, quickly performing her skin-care routine and grabbing some breakfast. At the airport, she goes through TSA pre-check and takes a shuttle to her gate, where she arrives 13 minutes before boarding begins.
Then she boards the plane, sits in her seat and naps for the duration of the flight.
After landing in New York, she takes public transport to the Upper West Side and has time to stop at a favorite coffee shop for a quick cup of coffee.
Once Jay is at the salon, she normally has some time budgeted before her first client. In the video, the stylist said: 'If all goes to plan...I have about an hour and half to two hours before my first client.'
Before the salon closes at 9 pm, Jay sees nine clients and then goes to her friend's place, where she's staying while in the Big Apple.
Jay told The New York Post her commute, which she has been doing for a year, is more feasible than renting an apartment.
'It's cheaper than renting my own apartment on the Upper West Side,' she said.
Over the course of a month, Jay works six days in the city and four days at a salon in Charlotte, where she moved to be closer to her boyfriend and 'enjoy a slower pace of life'.
The commute affords the stylist time to rest and unwind.
'I nap on the plane traveling both ways, and I have a lot of personal time between trips'.
Jay shared a video on her Instagram that documented her commute. She took an Uber to the Charlotte Airport, where she arrived at her gate 13 minutes before boarding began
Before closing her window, Jay filmed an aerial view of Charlotte. The hairstylist naps for the duration of the hour and a half flight
Jay previously lived in New York City, but left in April of last year, saying she wanted to be closer to her boyfriend and to enjoy a slower lifestyle pace
'I'm coming out ahead,' Jay said.
Jay had only good things to say about the commute when she spoke with NBC4. The stylist said: 'The pros are not paying New York City rent. As we know, it is quite expensive'.
Jay is what's known as a 'super commuter,' someone who travels from far-flung places to get to work and save a few bucks.
According to the findings of a recent report conducted by the Center for Women's Welfare, half of all households in New York City fail to earn enough money to take care of their basic needs.
As a consequence of the dearth of affordable housing, 'super commuters' are on the rise. Jay is one of an estimated 64,000 'super commuters,' who travel from outside of the tri-state area to work in Manhattan.
Jay (pictured at the salon on the Upper West Side) said her commute is cheaper than renting an apartment in Manhattan
At the salon on the Upper West Side, Jay normally sees nine clients over the course of a day
In a month, Jay works six days at the salon in Manhattan and four days at a salon in Charlotte
Another super commuter, Chip Cutter, a Wall Street Journal reporter, relocated closer to his family in Columbus, Ohio, early in the pandemic and never left.
He chose to show up at the office for at least three days a week, maintaining elite status with both Hyatt and JetBlack American Airlines, instead of paying thousands of dollars for a shaky Manhattan studio.
On commuting days, Cutter woke up at 4.15am in Columbus to catch a 6am flight, arriving at the office in Midtown Manhattan after three hours.
He spent nights at an elegant and classy room in the Beekman, a luxury hotel known for its historic atrium in lower Manhattan and enjoyed free breakfasts as an elite member with Hyatt.
After three days of meeting sources and working at the office, he would return to Columbus, where the rent is half the price of Manhattan.
But Cutter learned that the super commuter lifestyle is a hard one to sustain.
'Shocking no one, that fantasy [of a super commuter] soon came crashing down. Burning points on fancy hotel rooms was the first problem,' Cutter wrote in a WSJ article.
He felt awkward answering questions about his living situation at parties.
'I came to dread the go-to question asked at parties and work events in New York: "So where do you live?"
Chip Cutter, a Wall Street Journal reporter, relocated closer to his family in Columbus, Ohio, early in the pandemic and has never left. He has become a fully-fledged super commuter
Cutter spent nights at an elegant and classy room in the Beekman, a luxury hotel known for its historic atrium in lower Manhattan and enjoyed free breakfasts as an elite member with Hyatt
Ultimately, the elaborate commute turned out not to be as prudent an endeavor as he had thought.
'In the end, the math didn't work. I blew my budget by 15% and drained my miles balance,' he acknowledged.
But Cutter remained satisfied with the experience, although he wasn't certain how long he could keep it up:
'I still enjoy having one foot in the Midwest and one on the East Coast, though I'm not sure how long I can keep it up'.
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