Manhattan or suburbs — the real comparison, not just the purchase price.

Income tax model: 2026 brackets, married filing jointly, applied to the gross household income above. Manhattan stacks the NYC resident tax (3.078–3.876%) on top of NY State tax — that’s the line that disappears in the suburbs. Federal income tax is constant across scenarios and isn’t included here. CT high-income recapture is approximated. AGI adjustments (retirement contributions, deductions) aren’t modeled.

Net housing position = sale proceeds (less transaction costs and remaining mortgage) minus down payment, renovation budget, and total carrying costs over the hold. Negative is the typical result for high-cost markets over a 10-year hold — it’s the net financial cost of the housing decision, not a comment on whether the decision is right. The smaller (less negative) figure represents the scenario that retains more wealth.

Under these assumptions the Scarsdale scenario carries a lower year-one lifestyle cost ($501K vs. $706K in Manhattan), a difference of about $205K per year. On the income side, leaving NYC removes the NYC resident tax (ny state only only in Scarsdale), which saves roughly $58K per year on a $1.50M household income — about $579K over the 10-year hold. Over a 10-year hold both scenarios converge on a similar net housing position once appreciation, principal paydown, and exit costs are accounted for. With a hybrid attendance pattern the commute differential lands around 160 additional hours per year in the suburb scenario — typically tolerable, but worth pricing into the lifestyle decision. Both scenarios register a moderate financial pressure score — neither dominates the other on sustainability under this income and liquidity profile.