Starter Houses on Long Island? (New York, Brentwood: real estate, rent, jobs)

[KellyFG]

Originally Posted by John9l0

Those neighborhoods aren't the death traps everyone makes them out to be. They definitely aren't "downright dangerous", nowhere on Long Island is.

I didn't mention the towns on his list by name that I believe are dangerous, I asked him if he'd feel good about moving young families into the worst school systems on LI.
My DH lived in Freeport when I met him & our good friends live down there on the water still, and we are friendly with a Freeport Cop & I can assure you they DO NOT go up to Atlantic Ave at night. Several of the homes in their area have been robbed, cars have been stolen, kids have been mugged & beaten up outside the schools, there are stabbings & shootings in Freeport on a regular basis. Freeport cops are firing their guns at people in self defense....name other towns on LI where these things are a normal occurance that happen so frequently most don't even make news12 anymore? I dread driving down into Freeport, mostly for fear that I'll be killed or mamed by one of the unlicensed, unisured immigrants driving their 20 year old corolla with the extra large spoiler 85 miles an hour on Sunrise.
I'm sorry but any town that has people loitering outside on the streets past midnight(including babies in strollers & small children) IS NOT A GOOD FAMILY-ORIENTED AREA!!!! It has nothing to do with income or race, at night people should be in their homes SLEEPING so everyone can get up & go to work or school the next day.

[sean sean sean sean]

Originally Posted by KellyFG

I didn't mention the towns on his list by name that I believe are dangerous, I asked him if he'd feel good about moving young families into the worst school systems on LI.
My DH lived in Freeport when I met him & our good friends live down there on the water still, and we are friendly with a Freeport Cop & I can assure you they DO NOT go up to Atlantic Ave at night. Several of the homes in their area have been robbed, cars have been stolen, kids have been mugged & beaten up outside the schools, there are stabbings & shootings in Freeport on a regular basis. Freeport cops are firing their guns at people in self defense....name other towns on LI where these things are a normal occurance that happen so frequently most don't even make news12 anymore? I dread driving down into Freeport, mostly for fear that I'll be killed or mamed by one of the unlicensed, unisured immigrants driving their 20 year old corolla with the extra large spoiler 85 miles an hour on Sunrise.
I'm sorry but any town that has people loitering outside on the streets past midnight(including babies in strollers & small children) IS NOT A GOOD FAMILY-ORIENTED AREA!!!! It has nothing to do with income or race, at night people should be in their homes SLEEPING so everyone can get up & go to work or school the next day.

Atlantic Avenue is generally the nice part of Freeport. The only places you really don't want to be around are the Main Street area and the housing projects near the train station. Otherwise, it's pretty nice and generally safe. Check out the neighborhood north of Sunrise (if you're not scared!) sometime - some gorgeous homes back there. There are lots of illegal immigrants and, what really kills Freeport, is that the schools aren't any good at all. Like Johnl90 said though, if you get passed the stigma and maybe a little grime here and there, most places on Long Island aren't anything rough at all...just a lower income bracket than what 99% of LIers are used to.

[John9l0]

As for starter houses, try Medford, Holtsville, Patchogue, Ronkonkoma, Selden, or Centereach.

[xbure9x]

Originally Posted by Steve Ramirez

Long Island is beautiful. You can find some great starter homes in Freeport, Baldwin Hempstead, Uniondale, Roosevelt, East Meadow, Levitown, Amityville, Brentwood, Bayshore, Central Islip, Wyandach, Lindenhurst, Huntington, Babyon, and many more towns. It all depends on your budget, your preferences, and what you are looking for in a home. Best of luck to you in searching your home. I recommend finding a good realtor to assist you in the process. I am a realtor and I can tell you that working with a good realtor which represents your best interest can make your search easier, and more enjoyable.

Great starter homes who???

[clamboy]

Originally Posted by John9l0

As for starter houses, try Medford, Holtsville, Patchogue, Ronkonkoma, Selden, or Centereach.

Wading River Shoreham Ridge Rocky Point Sound Beach Miller Place

IMHO much nicer than above.

If you cant afford to be south of Montauk...Id stay off the S.Shore altogether.

The Middle can be a crapshoot: See Farmingville

Ronkonkoma may not be too bad if you got to commute to NYC but still its got its issues.

C

[Jrprofess]

Originally Posted by sean sean sean sean

Atlantic Avenue is generally the nice part of Freeport. The only places you really don't want to be around are the Main Street area and the housing projects near the train station. Otherwise, it's pretty nice and generally safe. Check out the neighborhood north of Sunrise (if you're not scared!) sometime - some gorgeous homes back there. There are lots of illegal immigrants and, what really kills Freeport, is that the schools aren't any good at all. Like Johnl90 said though, if you get passed the stigma and maybe a little grime here and there, most places on Long Island aren't anything rough at all...just a lower income bracket than what 99% of LIers are used to.

Sean x4 you seem like a rationale guy most of the time, but every now and again you make my relatively liberal democratic bent seem downright conservative in defense of some of our lesser long island neighborhoods. I am certain you would never actually buy a home in Freeport if given a choice and even though KellyFG's response is a little knee jerk typical of long-time long islanders it is still true that Freeport is dangerous, has significant school issues, and has a very active police blotter. Let's all hope it improves, as it is on the water and could be a nice jewel along the south shore....and then you could move from Bellmore into one of Freeport's fine areas, once you look past the little bit of "grime here and there"....

[sean sean sean sean]

Originally Posted by Jrprofess

Sean x4 you seem like a rationale guy most of the time, but every now and again you make my relatively liberal democratic bent seem downright conservative in defense of some of our lesser long island neighborhoods. I am certain you would never actually buy a home in Freeport if given a choice and even though KellyFG's response is a little knee jerk typical of long-time long islanders it is still true that Freeport is dangerous, has significant school issues, and has a very active police blotter. Let's all hope it improves, as it is on the water and could be a nice jewel along the south shore....and then you could move from Bellmore into one of Freeport's fine areas, once you look past the little bit of "grime here and there"....

First of all I'd be moving from North Wantagh

....and it's got nothing to do with that liberal/conservative foolishness! I acknowledged Freeport has it's rough sides and that the schools are awful, but only on Long Island would it be considered "dangerous". South of Atlantic Avenue you've got nothing to worry about and the Nautical Mile is just as booming as ever. You'll find people of all types and incomes getting wasted down there, most of the bars are actually a little more upscale than what I'm used to nowadays, used to be some real gin mills. North of Sunrise you generally wanna stay West, and away from the Roosevelt border but in the nicer parts you'll find some of the more striking architecture in the area. Between Sunrise and Atlantic it's really hit or miss, varies from block to block but nothing awful.

The crappy parts of Freeport would be anything on or near Main Street. This is Hispanic gang and homeless territory. When I used to hit up that 24 hour check cashing place you'd get a lot of baseheads begging for money out front, and lots of MS-13 tags up and down. The homeless aren't the stabbing kind, they're generally the more friendly type that give a song and dance and may try to sell you broken VCRs that they found in the trash. It gets worse as you go north. The housing projects are no joke. That spot and the border with Roosevelt are the hood for real, I'm not gonna lie. The Freeport/Roosevelt border areas tend to be worse than even the rest of Roosevelt.

I'd move there in a heartbeat as long as it was the right area, it's a fantastic value if you don't have kids. I live barely a few miles away and worked there for years, never felt unsafe/nervous/whatever. I got robbed by a hooker one time in Baldwin and got a lead pipe swung at me by kids in Roosevelt once but no problems in Freeport.

[Jrprofess]

Originally Posted by sean sean sean sean

First of all I'd be moving from North Wantagh

I got robbed by a hooker one time in Baldwin .

I see you as a genuinely nice guy, so I will not ask further questions regarding your run-in with the hooker...

[nbres]

As I said before there are quite a few starter homes here in North Babylon for between $300,000 and $4000,000. The older generation is selling now. I see lots of home improvements going on because of all younger families moving in - you get more for your dollar here and property taxes are low. This area is prime for gentrification: many newer residents have above average incomes for the area.

I think too many buyers overlook this area because of wrongly perceived negatives. Most people who put this area down have never lived here and base all there opinions on hear-say. Most of the misconception is about the schools.

I have three kids in the school district and all are doing excellent. Everyone I talk to is also happy with the schools - so I think the misconception is based on how others view the statistical profile of the schools here in NB. The schools may not be as good on paper as some other places, but we are all working hard to change that.

We have lots of undeveloped potential here in North Babylon. Compared to other middle class/working class areas NB is in my view a great place to live. I think there is no better place to find a starter home for any buyer than North Babylon.

[KellyFG]

Originally Posted by sean sean sean sean

First of all I'd be moving from North Wantagh

....and it's got nothing to do with that liberal/conservative foolishness! I acknowledged Freeport has it's rough sides and that the schools are awful, but only on Long Island would it be considered "dangerous". South of Atlantic Avenue you've got nothing to worry about and the Nautical Mile is just as booming as ever. You'll find people of all types and incomes getting wasted down there, most of the bars are actually a little more upscale than what I'm used to nowadays, used to be some real gin mills. North of Sunrise you generally wanna stay West, and away from the Roosevelt border but in the nicer parts you'll find some of the more striking architecture in the area. Between Sunrise and Atlantic it's really hit or miss, varies from block to block but nothing awful.

The crappy parts of Freeport would be anything on or near Main Street. This is Hispanic gang and homeless territory. When I used to hit up that 24 hour check cashing place you'd get a lot of baseheads begging for money out front, and lots of MS-13 tags up and down. The homeless aren't the stabbing kind, they're generally the more friendly type that give a song and dance and may try to sell you broken VCRs that they found in the trash. It gets worse as you go north. The housing projects are no joke. That spot and the border with Roosevelt are the hood for real, I'm not gonna lie. The Freeport/Roosevelt border areas tend to be worse than even the rest of Roosevelt.

I'd move there in a heartbeat as long as it was the right area, it's a fantastic value if you don't have kids. I live barely a few miles away and worked there for years, never felt unsafe/nervous/whatever. I got robbed by a hooker one time in Baldwin and got a lead pipe swung at me by kids in Roosevelt once but no problems in Freeport.

I disagree, we know people that live on the water in the Nautical mile area & their neighbors have been robbed, cars broken into regularly, stuff stolen out of garages & sheds. There is a Compare foods right in the area, which is a dead give-away about the demographic. Our friends never shop in Freeport, they go to RVC or Merrick. IMO its not worth living in a place you can't be 100% comfortable in.
Sorry to hear about your run-in with the hooker.