Advice on Oyster Bay (New York, Syosset: apartments, rent, daycare)

[Lacrobat]

Hello all - first time poster looking for advice!

I am moving to the New York area this summer to start with a new job. My wife and I have a young family and are looking to buy our first home. We did some scouting earlier in the year and really liked the look of Oyster Bay - a lovely town with scenery and history.

I have some questions I'm hoping posters with local knowledge might be able to help us with!

How long is the LIRR commute time to Flatbush Ave. in Brooklyn? How crowded do the trains tend to get during peak hours?

What is the housing market like in Oyster Bay? Would it be better to look to buy now or rent for a year and then make a decision?

What daycare options could you recommend? What other fun events or locations are available for children within walking distance?

How would you rate the schools in the area?

Any advice greatly appreciated!

[Walter Greenspan]

Originally Posted by Lacrobat

We did some scouting earlier in the year and really liked the look of Oyster Bay ...

For those who may not be familiar with Oyster Bay:

Oyster Bay is a hamlet (an unincorporated area) in the north most part of the Town of Oyster Bay, in the northeast part of Nassau County.

Beginning on the north and moving in a clockwise direction, the Hamlet of Oyster Bay in the Town of Oyster Bay is bordered on the north by Oyster Bay Harbor; on the east by the Village of Oyster Bay Cove; on the south by the Hamlet of East Norwich; and, on the west by the Village of Upper Brookville and the Village of Mill Neck.





Oyster Bay is one of those many villages and hamlets on Long Island where most of the places that have the community name as part of their mailing address are not in the hamlet: places that have an "Oyster Bay, NY 1771" mailing address that are not in the Hamlet of Oyster Bay are in the Village of Centre Island, the Village of Cove Neck, the Village of Oyster Bay Cove, the Village of Laurel Hollow, the Hamlet of East Norwich, the Village of Muttontown, the Village of Upper Brookville and the Village of Mill Neck.


For a good set of town-by-town maps showing all the villages and hamlets in each of LI's 13 towns (3 in Nassau County and 10 in Suffolk County):

http://www.city-data.com/forum/long-...-resource.html

[sean sean sean sean]

Originally Posted by Lacrobat

Hello all - first time poster looking for advice!

I am moving to the New York area this summer to start with a new job. My wife and I have a young family and are looking to buy our first home. We did some scouting earlier in the year and really liked the look of Oyster Bay - a lovely town with scenery and history.

I have some questions I'm hoping posters with local knowledge might be able to help us with!

How long is the LIRR commute time to Flatbush Ave. in Brooklyn? How crowded do the trains tend to get during peak hours?

What is the housing market like in Oyster Bay? Would it be better to look to buy now or rent for a year and then make a decision?

What daycare options could you recommend? What other fun events or locations are available for children within walking distance?

How would you rate the schools in the area?

Any advice greatly appreciated!

I'm from the south shore, but I've got family near Oyster Bay and have spent plenty of time there. I agree, it's a gorgeous place with history on every corner....almost looks New England-ish and has a great downtown. If I've got nothing to do on a Sunday I'll sometimes drive up there just to relax and have a look around.

Oyster Bay is where trains originate on that LIRR branch so you should definitely have no problem getting a seat. To get to Flatbush Ave should take at least 1:20 and requires a transfer at Jamaica. Over the years, the LIRR scaled back their service to Brooklyn considerably but that may change now that BK is booming again and a lot of people are working in the area, the "Atlantic Avenue Terminal" is currently undergoing a huge renovation.

The school district is Oyster Bay-East Norwich and has very high test scores as well as having extremely positive reviews on greatschools.net. I've read on these very forums several times that the Oyster Bay schools are hurt by a large Hispanic population but I personally do not feel this is the case at all. In addition to that idea being racist and the numbers backing my opinion up, there simply isn't as much of an Hispanic population as most people believe in Oyster Bay.....the high school is 78% white!

The housing market is everything from multi-million dollar estates, to small colonials built 300 years ago to apartments over the downtown row stores. If you wanted to feel out the area there are plenty of apartments available in multiple configurations. I don't feel that prices have come down in Oyster Bay as much as they have on the south shore of LI, so this may not be a bad idea to wait and see if they do dip in the next year.

Good luck, hope this helped a little bit!

[Kbinspections]

I lived there for a while, we lived it. The train service is limited and I think you would have to change at Jamaica.

Its nice and tucked away so there is alittle extra driving.

There is a small area that is not so nice and some Section8 housing but we never had any issues.

Teddy roosevelt park is great for kids.

[Lacrobat]

Hello all! Thanks for taking the time to offer your perspectives. We'll be making a final decision about renting or buying later this year so if we have more questions I may ask your help again!

[Tracey Hull]

Have you looked in Oyster Bay Estates? Great location with Syosset schools.