Obtaining and maintaining an "actual" profit margin

[ijmitchell 3]

I'm having a lot of trouble not going bankrupt. I've done a couple of runs already, and each time, I fall into the following cycle:

1. I burn a large amount of my initial resources, and build my initial city. (between 1,000 and 5,000)

2. My city costs more in expenditures than I make in revenues unless I get more people to move in.

3. A surge of people move in/open businesses

4. I begin to turn a small profit of about 50-100 dollars

4. My infrastructure becomes insufficient for the current population/sim activity levels

5. I have to spend more money on more power, water, bigger roads (replace streets with roads, roads with avenues) etc...

6. Go back to step 3 and repeat.

 

The net result is that I maybe make about 50-100 in profit over the course of 3 months, but I'm spending at least a couple of thousand in electrical and water upgrades over that same period, just to keep pace. 

 

I experience this both on Easy and on Medium difficulty. I have only the NAM mod - I'd like to keep it that way - and I use no cheats.

 

I've tried different strategies, including both outsourcing and producing my own power, water, and garbage disposal. No matter how I build my infrastructure, everything seems to fall apart.

I know not to listen to advisors, not to spoil sims with schooling, bla bla bla. I dont think it's really these things that are costing me. It seems to mainly be the one-time expenditures and infrastructure, that add up to me being broke.

 

Help?

 

 

 

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Start small and grow slowly.  Try this:

 

In a start up city with no neighbours lay down about 10 low density C lots along a street with a wind-power plant at the end.  As soon as any of these start to build, on the next street add about double that number of low-density R properties

 

Allow this to stabilize.  Now look at the demand graph.  Don't be tempted to zone for higher density, but using the route query, check to see if you have full employment.  Act accordingly, adding either low density commercial or low density residential.  To see the complete nut, add a small fire station, cops can come later.  Keep on with this until you get into the black, and have a healthy profit before committing to higher densities or the necessary expenses for industrial.

 

This may take a long time and can be very tedious.  For better lots add a water tower and pipes whenever you think you can afford it.

 

Stay in turtle speed and relax.  Take your time, and you will get there.

[mayorgreener 37]

1. Learn how the RCI graph works.

2. Learn the various tools like how much water/power is consumed and how much is needed.

3. Start all low density zones (Res. & Industrial)

[Cob92 360]

Build a Third World city to start off. Only a basic school, no police, no fire stations, no clinics, no running water, and no sanitation. Use coal power to keep your utility costs down. No public transit, no public spaces, no amenities whatsoever. Zone and grow your slum and allow the surpluses to pile up. Once you have money in the bank you can gradually start to add public water and services.

[cromabianca 158]

All great advices, I'll add my two cents.

1) Exhaust first com and ind demand and then THEN zone more residential. Commercials and industries, while paying taxes, don't need schools and hospitals (maybe not even police), residents do!

2) You may add all the schools and hospitals you want, just set the ambulances and school buses to 0 (yeah, 0) and funding to just as needed. This way, you'll have education (even if slowly) and health and will not go bankrupt.

It isn't recipe to success (I know it worked for me, though), but if you mix it and shake it along with the other posts in this thread, you'll succeed.

Ah, and one more thing: for peace's sake, shut those advisors up! The moment I did it, it was freedom for me!

[ijmitchell 3]

Wait is there really a button to shut up the advisers? I always just ignore them but I didn't know it was possible to actually silence them. 

[cogeo 960]

Never had a problem balancing the budget, actually I think the game is too easy, even at the "hard" economic level. So I made a mod that sets the initial cash to 0, so I can only start with a loan. I have also limited the loan to $1000 and it has to be paid in 3 years (made another mod for this). And no business deals, cheats, demand mods and the like, and even no industry (only commerce and civics). Still, playing with all these restrictions is possible, and the city can really grow large!

 

Below is a list of money-related posts I replied in the past (hope you won't get bored reading them):

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1) Exhaust first com and ind demand and then THEN zone more residential. Commercials and industries, while paying taxes, don't need schools and hospitals (maybe not even police), residents do!

Sorry, I don't agree here! Having an unbalanced development won't get you far. And yes, R may need shools and hospitals but they pay good taxes too, especially low-density ones. See the last link in the list above, also take a look In my cities, R pay the lion's share of taxes. CS$$$ pay an awful lot of taxes, so you should try to satisfy all (exhaust) CS$$$ demand (turn it to development).

[SimRico 968]

MERCY! I thought this topic was about obtaining and maintaining "something else"....oops!

[cromabianca 158]

Wait is there really a button to shut up the advisers? I always just ignore them but I didn't know it was possible to actually silence them.

 

Yep, it's in your game options! (like the automata speed and so on...)

 

1) Exhaust first com and ind demand and then THEN zone more residential. Commercials and industries, while paying taxes, don't need schools and hospitals (maybe not even police), residents do!

Sorry, I don't agree here! Having an unbalanced development won't get you far. And yes, R may need shools and hospitals but they pay good taxes too, especially low-density ones. See the last link in the list above, also take a look In my cities, R pay the lion's share of taxes. CS$$$ pay an awful lot of taxes, so you should try to satisfy all (exhaust) CS$$$ demand (turn it to development).

Yeah, you're right, I mean balance is the key to everything; I just meant that if I had to choose, I'd give job first.

[Turjan 1,048]

One important point: Don't listen to your advisers, except if they say you run out of power. Don't buy that big water pump that costs upkeep of $3000 per month, just because the adviser says you should. You probably cannot afford it at that point, and you definitely don't need it.

[andix 33]

Another approach:

I often start from the beginning with high density residential, commercial and industrial zones (in a new region). I immediately build schools, hospitals, police and fire stations. Electricity comes from a coal power plant in a neighbouring tile and garbage goes there. But like someone said, industry needs no schools and hospitals and so it is a very important taxpayer in the beginning. I make a dense network of busstops in all zones and because of the high density zones it is highly used and so i make profit with public transport early in the game which adds to the budget. Sure, the budget of schools and hospitals is adjusted to satisfy the demand, not more. No more water and electricity  than needed (for example you should calculate how many water towers you can build before a water pump becomes more efficient). And demand for RCI is satisfied equally. I never go into minus for more than a few month (when i build a new school or so). And when the city grows and the taxes from residents and commercials increase (and the revenue from public tansport) the taxes from the industry becomes less important and i kick them out of the city. But you should follow the "game rules" to achieve high demand, high desirability (industry away from residents ect.) and so on. Then it is very easy to make profit.

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

In addition to the game option to limit the advisors, start running in hard mode.  It isn't really that hard, you just get less funding.

[cogeo 960]

In addition to the game option to limit the advisors, start running in hard mode.  It isn't really that hard, you just get less funding.

 

The difficulty level affects not only the initial cash, but there is also a factor ("revenue multiplier" ?) in the Budget Tunning exemplar IIRC (duh, I don't have SC4 and tools installed as of now so I can't tell exactly), which is greater than 1.00 for the "Easy" level and 1.00 or less than 1.00 for the "Medium" and "Hard". But as you said, it's actually too easy, even at the "Hard" level. I find it very unchallenging, and as my cities grow it becomes boring (cash accumulates and accumulates). So I made a mod that sets the startup funds to zero (for the hard level only) and posed some gameplay restrictions on myself (eg take only a single $1,000 loan and pay it back in 3 years - made another mod for this), but all these make only the first few years of the city any harder to play, then I get surpluses on surpluses again.

 

I remember that some players reported that the game was made (much?) easier with the RH release. So I'm thinking of another modding possibilty (it's not for everyone, I have to admit): someone check the aforementioned budget exemplar in simcity_1.dat on the original SC4 (non-RH) CD and compare the multipliers to the current ones - maybe this is what made the game easier. If not, check the Building Value properties of ingame buildings. A new mod could be made (with lower multipliers maybe). Is there someone that would take the challenge? Would you be interested in such a mod?

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Masochism is not part of my make up.

[cromabianca 158]

Yeah, and another thing: keep in mind that the cost of mantaining ONE single big water pump is more than the cost of mantaining SEVEN small ones (same with windmills and power plants), so... think about it when you are in an upgrading mood!

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

If you can afford 10 grand for water, produces 200,000 cu. fit. a month at 100 per month.  Two of these is usually enough for a very populous large tile.

[Bdub01 201]

Also you don't need to fund your power plant and water to the fullest. Go to the utilities chart and cut back to slightly above what you need. And legalize gambling for a extra 100 bucks and I like to accept the army base and prison when they are offered. I just stick them in an unused corner of the city.

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

For low treasury rewards you can accept anything except the toxic waste dump or area 51.  Both are quite NIMBY.