Moving back to Long Island from NC (Babylon, Huntington: crime, home sales)

[workingclasshero]

Hey everyone, former nassau county here, moved to nc 2 years ago. My wife hates it, misses her family and friends.

We loved Long island, all the amenities etc, but hated the fact that is was becoming more like brooklyn, the traffic(a 15 minute ride would take over an hour during rush hour), the taxes, etc.

We rented when we were there, so we didnt make any big profit when we left, but in nc I bought a 4000sqft house on a full acre, with a inground pool and if was less that 180k, and the taxes are less than 2400.

The schools on long island are the best, the south is different.

To move back to long island for me would be impossible, the standard home(i have researched it) is a small 1800sf house on a small 60x100 lot and goes for 400k(the cheapest in some of the bad areas) to 700k(still just for a basic house), with taxes running 9-14k, that means the mortgage would be about $3300 per month, if housing is only SUPPOSED to be 30% or less of you income you would have to make 11000per month, certainly not what my government salary of 50K is.

then on top of that is electric(lipa s very high), gas, even if you used mass transit a monthly ticket on LIRR is over $275(last checked in 1995 so i'm sure its higher now), and many things are just now there anymore(levitown roller rink, any movie theater in east meadow, minigolf, nunleys,,,all gone) and just try to go to jones(or any) beach on july4(sardeen ville) and you have to pay $10 just to park.

my point is if you are already there(bought a house before the sharp increase) and you can afford it go ahead and stay, but to try to buy something now and actually live(not just survive) dont stay.

[Adream]

Originally Posted by GCGuy

Life is to short, that's why I don't want to chase the next hot area that's only hot b/c it's cheap.

There's a lot of truth to that comment, and well worth considering.

[jj_nycguy]

Originally Posted by workingclasshero

...the standard home(i have researched it) is a small 1800sf house on a small 60x100 lot and goes for 400k(the cheapest in some of the bad areas) to 700k(still just for a basic house), with taxes running 9-14k, that means the mortgage would be about $3300 per month, if housing is only SUPPOSED to be 30% or less of you income you would have to make 11000per month, certainly not what my government salary of 50K is.

Very well put! The only thing I would add is that I wish LI was more like Queens and Brooklyn. At least those places have the infrastructure needed to support the large number of people living there. Most of LI doesn't have mass transit, except for the LIRR. The roads are jammed all of the time and are in constant need of repair. A five minute ride takes 30 minutes, or longer. Unfortunately, real estate in Brooklyn or Queens is well in excess of $1.5M, for a small place in a nice area.

BTW, based on your example, the $700k home, is a starter home in Levittown, will require a number of updates. Anything less that $700k will buy you a place in a less desirable area of Levittown or East Meadow.

The $700k home, minus a 20% down payment ($140k... ouch!), leaves a $560k mortgage plus closing costs (about another $20k, which includes the attorney fees required in NY). $560k over 30 years at 7% is $3725/mo. Taxes run (at the low end) about $1k/mo. Home insurance is about $200/mo. So... a $700k starter home in Levittown will run about $5k/mo. This doesn't include the home equity loan required for making the updates.

[JCC18]

I really don't know how anyone can move back to Long Island from NC unless you have a boatload of money. I saw somewhere in this string where it was said that 50-60k is doable on Long Island!! That's insane! You CAN live on 60k down here in NC, but not up in LI where it will cost you $1200/month to just rent a crappy basement apt. I thought I would miss the city, the pro sports, the beaches - but fact is once you have kids it's rare to go out in NYC, I can watch teh Yankees and Giants on cable, and getting to Jones Beach on a weekend is the same as driving to the Carolina coast - but the drive down here is nicer! Bottom line is Long Island is getting worse and you don't know how good you have it down here until you research moving back. Give it some time.

[Sean_Harrington]

Originally Posted by JCC18

I really don't know how anyone can move back to Long Island from NC unless you have a boatload of money. I saw somewhere in this string where it was said that 50-60k is doable on Long Island!! That's insane! You CAN live on 60k down here in NC, but not up in LI where it will cost you $1200/month to just rent a crappy basement apt. I thought I would miss the city, the pro sports, the beaches - but fact is once you have kids it's rare to go out in NYC, I can watch teh Yankees and Giants on cable, and getting to Jones Beach on a weekend is the same as driving to the Carolina coast - but the drive down here is nicer! Bottom line is Long Island is getting worse and you don't know how good you have it down here until you research moving back. Give it some time.

I say everybody should have just stayed in Brooklyn and Queens, and left "Long Island" to the 'taters and cows.

[GCGuy]

Originally Posted by jj_nycguy

BTW, based on your example, the $700k home, is a starter home in Levittown, will require a number of updates. Anything less that $700k will buy you a place in a less desirable area of Levittown or East Meadow.

.

Untrue. My friend's brother just bought a place on an 80x100 lot in Levittown...dormer and extension in back, totally renovated 2 years ago. Move in. $417K. He saw a house needed a little work on a 60x225 for $525K. Very nice area.

[threesons]

Not to be a snob, but Levittown, East Meadow are not the most desireable areas in Long Island.

[jj_nycguy]

Originally Posted by GCGuy

Untrue. My friend's brother just bought a place on an 80x100 lot in Levittown...dormer and extension in back, totally renovated 2 years ago. Move in. $417K. He saw a house needed a little work on a 60x225 for $525K. Very nice area.

I'm glad that your friend's brother was able to find a place that he likes in an area that he is comfortable to live in. Remember, nice is a relative term.

Again, there are affordable homes on LI... just not places I'd want to raise my family (ie: Levittown, Valley Stream, Freeport, North Babylon, Gordon Heights, etc...). For me, the very best schools and a safe environment is what I was looking for. In my town, a $500k down payment still leaves you with a $450k mortgage.

[ClarkStreetKid]

What's wrong with North Babylon?

[momix5]

Really what is wrong with North Babylon?