Commuting from manhattan to westchester county; husband working in manhattan (New York: middle-class, best neighborhoods)
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My husband and I are moving to New York, and he will be working in Chelsea and I will be working in Croton on Hudson. After much consideration we have decided to live in manhattan because neither of us has lived there before and we want the experience.
I know that to get to work, I'll need to take the metro north from grand central to cortlandt station, which is about an hour train ride. We are looking for a neighborhood in manhattan that will allow me to get to grand central quickly, as well as allow my husband to get to Chelsea in a reasonable amount of time. If possible, I'd love to be walking distance or just a single short subway ride away from the station. Oh and we are looking for a fun neighborhood, lots of restaurants/bars/shops with easy access to other fun parts of manhattan. Our budget is around $4000-4500.
I know that this is a tall order! Thanks for your help.
You can get a luxury 1 bedroom or a pretty nice 2 bedroom in Manhattan on that budget, so you have lots of options. Grand Central is in midtown on the East Side -- not really a "fun" neighborhood, so I wouldn't recommend living there. Since you're the one doing the long commute, I'd say focus on neighborhoods convenient to Grand Central, and your husband can deal with taking a couple of trains to get to Chelsea. It will make your life easiest if you live on the east side of Manhattan so you don't have to transfer. IMO, the best neighborhoods on the east side are the Upper East Side (I'd focus on 68th-86th St), Gramercy and the East Village. The Village is a young neighborhood with lots of bars and restaurants, live music, artsy scene. Gramercy is more of a family-centric neighborhood, adjacent to Union Sq, where there are great restaurants, huge farmer's market, etc. The UES is very big and depending what avenue you're near, the scene is different. Between Lexington and Central Park is very wealthy, "old NY" money, beautiful architecture, high end shopping, proximity to the park and museums, etc. From Lexington to York, the UES is much younger and filled with bars (mostly pubs) and restaurants.
You should explore the city and get a feel of the neighborhoods before deciding.
Jax, thanks for your reply. That is really helpful.
I saw on another thread that Murray Hill is recommended for proximity to grand central... can anyone tell me anything about this neighborhood? It looks like it is walking distance to grand central and about a 30 minute subway ride (with 2 transfers) to Chelsea.
I also saw a suggestion for Tudor City.... anybody know anything about this area? Thanks.
Jax, thanks for your reply. That is really helpful.
I saw on another thread that Murray Hill is recommended for proximity to grand central... can anyone tell me anything about this neighborhood? It looks like it is walking distance to grand central and about a 30 minute subway ride (with 2 transfers) to Chelsea.
I also saw a suggestion for Tudor City.... anybody know anything about this area? Thanks.
Murray Hill is indeed w/in walking distance of Grand Central and not far from Chelsea. The atmosphere varies:Madison, Park, Lexington Avenues and the cross streets below Grand Central are rather button-down, staid residential neighborhoods, with little night-life. Lexington on east toward the river is more middle-class with many more bars and restaurants, but something of a college-grad frat-boy vibe too. Whether you like that is a matter of taste. On your budget I could see youliving in one part of the neighborhood and going out in another.
Tudor City is very near Grand Central. But it is also very quiet with no real entertainment. And Tudor city apartments tend to be on the small side. IIRC they're also mainly co-ops, not rentals, though I'm sure something to rent there is usally on the market.
You might also consider something in the Union Sq area, where one could walk to Chelsea and have a one-stop subway ride to Grand Central. You'd be plenty close to all sorts of entertainment and the Square itself is vibrant and young with lots of retail opportunities and thenpark itself. It would defintely be the "New York" experience.
Jax, thanks for your reply. That is really helpful.
I saw on another thread that Murray Hill is recommended for proximity to grand central... can anyone tell me anything about this neighborhood? It looks like it is walking distance to grand central and about a 30 minute subway ride (with 2 transfers) to Chelsea.
I also saw a suggestion for Tudor City.... anybody know anything about this area? Thanks.
Tudor City is relatively cheap and although the apartments are on the small side the living space is actually very large it's the bathroom and kitchen which are tiny. Depending on what you mean by nightlife and busy it's quite bustling around Grand Central and for both Tudor City and Murray Hill the area is right on your doorstep. The best thing is you need only step inside and you have peace and quiet again.
If you want to live in a busy part of the city you could try Union Square/East Village which is one stop from Grand Central on the 4/5 and a short walk to Chelsea.
The Murray Hill Historic District would be worth a look, but much of the activity on 3rd tends to be the post-college set. Turtle Bay, Beekman, and Sutton Place might also be worth a look, but these areas are staid residential areas, without huge numbers of bars, though there are enough conveniences and restaurants. The UES, I agree, is worth a look, but if you are high on the UES, it can be easier to commute from 125th as opposed to making the trek to GCT, though at night, I'd err on the side of Grand Central, even today, as 125th can have some odd characters in proximity of the station.
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Well the first thing to understand is that you have a *good* budget which allows you options!
How young are you? This will fairly determine where you choose. I suspect you fall into one of two categories:
A) Very young looking for the extended post college experience, out every night, lots of drinking; or
B) In your late twenties early thirties, and given you are from Utah, used to a more slower life pace. When you say "fun" I presume you mean Utah Suburban/Exurban type fun, as opposed to Sex In The City type of "fun".
I suggest Lenox Hill, in and around the 63rd Street subway. There you can get the #6 subway to Grand Central and husband can take the "F" train to 23rd or 14th streets and walk or switch to another line to get closer to his job.
Finding a 1 or 2 bedrm in a luxo building, either brand new tower, classic pre war or latter post war s/b easy with a good broker. There are lots of shops, restaurants, and bars. The area is a good mix of old and new NYC, and a mix of young, old, and families. A real Manhattan neighborhood. If you go for one of the new towers, your neighbors will likely be younger. A mix of old and young, and families is likely in the older buildings.
Lenox Hill is a slightly upscale neighborhood with a vibrant diverse street life. More than most of Manhattan these days, it has a real mix of old line *real* Manhattanites and new NYers (like yourselves). Good neighborhood to start a family, but expensive. Lots of Yuppies and few, if any Hipster types. Executives as opposed to artists. Relatively conservative in NYC way.
Streets are kind of narrow and quite crowded, with many mom and pop stores, and specialty shops.
If you could swing $5K per month then you could find a really choice apartment.
Btw, realize that frankly as long as you are in Manhattan below 96th street, ALL of Manhattan is covenient. A short subway, bus or taxi ride away. So, you don't really need to be so limiting in terms of walking distance to anything!
I suggest you focus on finding a couple of good experienced brokers, and make them work for their fee! Unless you are pressed for time, be picky, but NOT too picky, NYC is ALL about compromise!!
Wow thank you all so much for the advice. I really appreciate it!
My husband and I are in our late 20s, and when I say fun I guess I mean something between Utah suburb and Sex and the City fun! We aren't clubbers but we enjoy going out for nice dinners and drinks on the weekends. So as long as there are a few nice bars nearby, we will be happy.
I'd live in the East Village - although it's younger, there's so much going on and you can get to Grand Central from Astor Place on the 6 and he can get to Chelsea via the F/M to W 4th St then A/C/E to 23rd St.
Union Square would be ideal. I particularly like Irving Place; it's a beautiful street and comparatively quiet. From Union Square you can get to Grand Central in one express stop on the 4/5. Your husband can take the L across town to Chelsea and walk (or transfer if necessary). Depending on where in Chelsea, the N might be another option. As far as subways are concerned, it's about as convenient as you can get in your situation. Fortunately you have the budget to pay for it. Good luck.
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