There’s an idea that lingers in the back of the minds of many New Yorkers—a feeling that our time in the city has an expiration date. That one day, we’ll have to suck it up and move to the suburbs.

For many, 2020 was the moment that turned this thought into their reality. They moved back home or upstate. They made good on their threats to move to Austin or LA.

Now, they have it all. A house. A yard. A dog. A 30-year mortgage. And a feeling that that’s a long, long time to be somewhere that doesn’t feel like home.

The truth? A lot of them want back in.

Anecdotally, my phone has been ringing more lately with the voice of an old friend asking, “So, what’s up in New York?”

But the numbers seem to agree. StreetEasy reports 92% of former New Yorkers miss something about the city. More than their friends and families—it’s the bodegas. It’s the walkability.

That’s not just nostalgia; it’s a gravitational pull. And it's what sparked StreetEasy’s “Never Become a Former New Yorker” campaign.

The Unvarnished, But Slightly Polished, Truth

As a brand exclusive to New York City, StreetEasy's campaigns have become part of the city's architecture. A clear example of how they've built affinity among a skeptical, borderline cynical audience is their distinctive voice that shares many of New York's values.

It’s blunt. It’s specific. It understands the paradoxes at the center of life here. Yes, your place may be small. But your life can feel big. 

The goal for this campaign was to focus on the tools StreetEasy has built specifically for New York buyers without losing the brand’s sense of authenticity, honesty and edge. Truth be told, buying a place in New York might seem like an irrational thing to do—until you consider the alternative, like all those New Yorkers who bought a place somewhere else.

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Capturing New Yorkers’ Worst Nightmare

In any online discussion about NYC, suburbanites will exclaim: “I could never live there!” That goes both ways.

Creating the campaign, we spoke with friends who left the city. We looked to identify the feelings they were having while adjusting to their new lives. Then we chipped away at what we heard to craft headlines that captured the sentiments they were feeling.

Visually, the process was similar. Originally, the visual concept was more convoluted. Under the advice of our excellent clients at StreetEasy, we stripped away elements until there was no exaggerated doom-and-gloom or hyperbolic suburban malaise.

It wasn’t necessary, because for a diehard New Yorker, all it takes is a white picket fence to start feeling… shivers.

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Call 1-833-I-MISS-NYC 

At Mother, we’ve been lucky to build a strong relationship with our friends at StreetEasy over the past two years. That partnership laid the groundwork for this campaign since we had a feeling this work would entice commenters and generate online debate.

That trust is fully on display in what’s been one of the most surprising elements of the campaign: 1-833-I-MISS-NYC—a public hotline where former New Yorkers can call in and tell us how they really feel. So far, that’s been one of the pleasant surprises. We’ve received nearly a thousand calls and some pretty interesting voicemail messages.

One caller confessed he missed the pizza and insisted he only moved to Jersey “for his wife.” Then his wife called. “He was all about the move,” she corrected—before fully backing him up on the pizza situation.

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Hidden Local Shoutouts

Since StreetEasy is only in New York City – and it’s the only real estate brand that’s only in New York City – it just makes sense to look for opportunities to highlight the in-jokes, personalities, and local businesses that make New York such an interesting place to live. 

It takes some extra effort and a lot of phone calls, but New Yorkers who study the photos closely will be able to spot over a dozen of these callouts.

Not to mention, it’s nice to discover these hidden details while dodging eye contact with a fellow subway rider. 

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New Yorkers Belong in NYC 

Connecting with ex-New Yorkers has helped us get a better understanding of the things we might be taking for granted every day here in the city.

Here’s an incomplete list of some things callers have reported they miss: pizza, bagels, the Chinese food, the pigeons, the people-watching, walking everywhere, their bodega, the parks, BECs, the garbage, their anonymity, the noise, the energy, and the chaos.

In the end, it’s pretty clear that you can move out of the city, but that doesn’t mean the city moves out of you. Because, for New Yorkers, that list of what they miss could just be called, “things that feel like home.”

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Credits:

Photographer: Ashley Armitage

Creative Agency: Mother New York

Media Agency: Canvas Worldwide

StreetEasy Senior Director Marketing: Julie Mead

StreetEasy Brand Creative Director: Jason Ferguson

StreetEasy Senior Designer: Bea Miller

StreetEasy Director of Integrated Marketing: Bridget Sullivan

StreetEasy Principal Brand Strategist: Andrea Mazandi

StreetEasy & Zillow Director, zMedia: James Monderine

StreetEasy Paid Marketing Team: Brett Wilds, Maddy Wasmer, Heidi Elsokary, Emma Held

StreetEasy Brand Creative: Sean Ryan

StreetEasy Integrated Marketing Team: Dylan Lyons, Elena Lathrop, Whitney Crawford