Recently Graduated College...East Village or Upper East Side? (New York: apartments, low crime)
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I just graduated college, and have found two apartments in East Village and Upper East Side in my budget. Which should I choose? Do they have grocery stores nearby? Is it safe for a 22 year old woman living alone? Are there places to walk my dog? Which has a younger crowd? Do you have any other neighborhood suggestions for me? My price range is $1800-$2200, and I will be working in midtown.
It really depends on your lifestyle and what you want out of your time in NYC. East Village is great for socializing with hipsters, the UES is great for socializing with pretentious frat boys from upper-crust families. Personally, I'd take the EV but if you're the type who brags about going to Cornell and says "like" a lot, you might be better off getting a studio in Yorkville.
Oh, and 1800-2200 is a great budget for either area; you'll get a decent 1br in a walkup in either area for that.
Edit: Forgot to answer your questions specifically:
You can walk your dog in either area--Thompkins Square Park in the EV and Carl Schurz Park/Central Park in the UES are great. All of NYC is safe nowadays, and both areas are very low crime (UES is probably lower). EV has a much younger crowd in general.
Tell us a bit more about your personality and personal interests--that's pretty important when considering where to live.
It really depends on your lifestyle and what you want out of your time in NYC. East Village is great for socializing with hipsters, the UES is great for socializing with pretentious frat boys from upper-crust families. Personally, I'd take the EV but if you're the type who brags about going to Cornell and says "like" a lot, you might be better off getting a studio in Yorkville.
Oh, and 1800-2200 is a great budget for either area; you'll get a decent 1br in a walkup in either area for that.
I
Edit: Forgot to answer your questions specifically:
You can walk your dog in either area--Thompkins Square Park in the EV and Carl Schurz Park/Central Park in the UES are great. All of NYC is safe nowadays, and both areas are very low crime (UES is probably lower). EV has a much younger crowd in general.
Tell us a bit more about your personality and personal interests--that's pretty important when considering where to live.
Thanks for your input! I just graduated from Columbia University..I'm not very familiar with all of NYC besides the area around campus. I didn't leave campus very much....Anyways I'll be working in journalism. I'm very friendly and outgoing (I like to think so atleast haha). I would love to be in an area with people around my age, but safety is my first priority! Living alone in New York City, scares me especially since I'm a young woman.
I'm a journalist too--congrats on graduating and getting a job in NYC, which isn't too easy these days, as I'm sure you know!
I'd say definitely go to the East Village, then. The bars in the UES rather suck and the people are more interested in where you went to school and what's in your bank account. Journalists need interesting people to talk to, and the people in the EV definitely try to be interesting.
As for safety, don't worry about that--both areas are arguably safer than Morningside Heights.
EV is far more hip and interesting then the UES. Both have pretty affordable rates (well for your price range). UES is nicer in terms of the apartments itself only because it's an area with money. It's also a lot calmer. UES seems really boring to me especially after 8 or 9. If I go any place to hang out, it's the LES. Far more entertaining and doesn't have that pretentious feel to it.
Funny, I don't think of the Upper East as pretentious. It's actually far from the snobby atmosphere one would ordinarily picture of a neighborhood with that kind of money.
The area east of 3rd Ave is basically middle class, smells like a city neighborhood would, and its relative cheapness compared to rest of the city draws an unpretentious clientele.
The area west of 3rd Ave is basically quiet - no one around to be pretentious.
I'd say the pretentious is limited to the Ralph Lauren polo shirt-wearing crowd in the fake Irish pubs along 1st and 2nd avenue. I agree that it's pretty middle class and boring. The restaurants are pretty good, though, and never crowded when compared to the UWS or Midtown.
When you're done working you will want to come back to a calm, non-exciting, even slightly boring neighborhood to sleep at night. Believe me, you'll need it. After work you do not want to come home to streets full of antsy college kids out for a good time, hordes of tourists, and a neighborhood full of people up all night because so many of them have nothing to do the next morning. I'm a strong believer that your work life will be better if its not right next door to your social life. So go out on weekends or whenever you need to, to be iin the more "vibrant" parts of the city. Manhattan is easy to get around. But at night and for those times when you're not running the streets and want a little serenity--which you'll increasingly need as your career develops-- live someplace unremarkable.
Thanks for your input! I just graduated from Columbia University..I'm not very familiar with all of NYC besides the area around campus. I didn't leave campus very much....Anyways I'll be working in journalism. I'm very friendly and outgoing (I like to think so atleast haha). I would love to be in an area with people around my age, but safety is my first priority! Living alone in New York City, scares me especially since I'm a young woman.
Do you like peace and quiet? Or do you like a rowdy, loud, party atmosphere?
the UES and EV are polar opposites in terms of atmosphere.
I've lived in the EV since I was a kid, it's not a dangerous place anymore but you still need to watch your back if you're going to be close to avenue D and some of the parks late at night. Overall the EV is VERY safe for a single lady, but you still need to exercise some basic city smarts and don't fall into a false sense of security. The same applies to the UES, which has a better reputation for safety but there was a string of rapes that happened there. So no matter where you go there is a slim chance of random things happening even though both are safe.
The UES sucks for food shopping and nightlife, but it's peaceful, quiet and clean. The EV is much better in both regards for shopping/nightlife/dining but it's loud, crowded and pretty much where everyone comes to drink and party. Great for socializing and eating, but BAD for getting a good night's sleep. It's also a bit grimy, and sometimes it stinks. You will probably experience the smell of pot wafting over to your apartment in the EV, and might have some loud NYU students for neighbors (the plague, the plague!!!).
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