I live here now and have been to NY several times as well as having friends there. In Las Vegas, you will save easily 15k in living and training expenses and you will get 3x better accommodations here. Its not even close. My friend lives in a 600sq ft apartment with zero amenities in NY and pays $3200 a month on a sweetheart deal. She trains at MG and its $200 a month more than where I train in LV. Our dues are $100 a month unlimited. I live in a 3/2 in a nice updated house with big fenced front and back yard and pay $1100 a month, with utilities being almost nothing. I live in a shitty neighborhood but everyone looks out for each other. Homeless stay away and I havent seen a squad car here for months. You can get the same house in a nice neighborhood for $1600. You can get good apartments in good areas for $800 all day.
Depending on where you live in LV, you can completely avoid all elements of crime pretty much such as Summerlin. Or you can live in a cheaper area and have to take more precautions. That isnt the case in NYC. Anywhere you go, you are amongst millions of people. People who dont live here complain about the weather more than those who actually live here. I like the weather. No rain, no snow, its cold for 50 days or so a year. The heat isnt bad. Unless you are living in a tent and walking the town barefoot, its fine. I dont even own a car, only a motorcycle, and I am perfectly fine. I walk all the time in the summer and I dont melt. I have AC but only need to use it sparingly, as well as heat. My power bill is $49 a month all year.
The teams in NYC are better. They are also WAY more expensive. There are good teams in LV with adult black belt world champions. I would say Cobrinhas is far from the best in town. Hes never there, they dont have the best guys. Sergio is a great instructor, but he doesnt have a bunch of competitors. Venum has great guys, great facility, but not many members yet, and its the most expensive place in town. If you are high level and want to pay $200 a month, youre set. Drysdales is probably the best in town but also the same price as Venum. Very little nogi there. I work and train at Cobra Kai. We usually win most competitions here, have almost the most members, and we are the most affordable. We also have the most classes. We have less black belt competitors than Drysdales. Coaching is on par with them, although we offer judo and wrestling. We also dont do calesthenics for warm ups which IMO is our best attribute haha.
If you decide to come out here or just want to visit to check it out, let me know. I have accommodated several people who visit from Sherdog or Reddit; thats what I do. Grappling is a lifestyle for me. I try to make my grappling community better as well as my physical community. Bringing more people into that will only help my goals. Hope to see you soon.
