Have you already seen the new Top 215 Mercer ranking 2008: http://www.mercerhr.com/knowledgecenter/reportsummary.jhtml/dynamic/idContent/1128060

All applicants headed to the US who believe in rankings (and I know you do...) need to seriously reconsider their choices. Canadian places like Vancouver, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Calgary rank higher than the top US candidates (Honolulu, San Francisco).

For those who are not interested in quality of life and only care about big bucks, this ranking may be more relevant: http://www.finfacts.com/costofliving.htm

London is slightly ahead of New York City -- but if you really want to give your CV a vodka shot, Moscow is the place to go!

Seriously, if you know about the rents in New York City, it is hard to believe that there are cities like London, Hong Kong and Tokyo that are even more expensive... Happy fundraising to everybody!