Staten Island...any thoughts?? (New York, York: fit in, real estate, to rent) - City-Data Forum

col · 10-10-2006, 07:35 AM

We currently live on staten island, it seems its the second costly borough to live in. The cost of living is getting a bit much. Sure the culture is great/schools/art/free stuff/parks/ocean views etc but you pay for it. if it weren't for the condo we have we couldn't be here at all.

What do you think about S.I, staying , moving...??

Thanks
COL

arel · 10-10-2006, 09:22 AM

I grew up in and currently live in Brookyn. For almost 4 years, over 10 years ago, I worked in Staten Island. I have friends in Staten Island and I visit every once in a while.

Unfortunately, if you live in Staten Island, you cannot leave the island without paying a toll, often a steep one. You can cross the Verrizzano Bridge for free, but you have to pay to get back to the island. Unless you work and play on the island, the tolls will increase your cost of living. When I worked on Staten Island, I paid way over $1000 dollars a year just to cross the bridge. If I didn't use the bridge, it would have taken about 3 hours to get to work. So if my car was being repaired, I had to rent a car.

There are parts of Staten Island that are very pretty and some which feel semi-rural, although the island is being built up. Also, I enjoy the ferry.

Staten Island is unique among the boroughs. It genuinely does not feel like New York City. It seems to have its own culture.

I did not like working there, partly because of the travel expense, but also because I found the people there provincial. Of course, I did not meet everybody and things may have changed, but basically I did not fit into the culture I encountered.

Unfortunately, New York City is an expensive place to live. Manhattan is the worst, in term of rents, I think.

I happen to be partial to Brooklyn, because it is home. You can live in the more classic, urban Brownstone Brooklyn, or, further south, you can live where it is more surbaban, with lots of houses built in the 1920's. The architecture is very diverse. Also, there is so much construction going on right now, especially condos and, I think, co-ops, and real estate prices are going down. You might want to consider a move to Brooklyn. But Brooklyn is getting so congested that it takes an eternity to drive from one neighborhood to another. It can take, for example, close to an hour to drive from Sheepshead Bay to Park Slope. And in Brooklyn, the car insurance rates are very high.

Queens is very different from Brooklyn, and also very diverse. Same for the Bronx. There is more to the Bronx than old high rises.

I hope this helps.

arel · 10-10-2006, 03:17 PM

Woops, I discovered a typo. "Surbaban" was a typo. What I meant was "suburban".

proroc · 10-22-2006, 02:53 PM

I have lived in Staten Island for my entire life and although it is better than the other boroughs it is getting way too crowded. The roads are terrible and so are the drivers. The quality of life has declined over the last 15 years. Also, the houses are very expensive.

mhogan10010 · 10-26-2006, 01:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by arel

Woops, I discovered a typo. "Surbaban" was a typo. What I meant was "suburban".

And I thought that was just your Brooklyn accent sneaking through.

PS-I moved to park slope from Manhattan 6 months ago and love it.

arel · 10-28-2006, 10:39 AM

I love Park Slope too. It is one of my very favorite Brooklyn neighborhoods. Unfortunately, it is trendy now, so home and rent costs are sky-high.

I lived in Manhattan for a while, twice. While, I think, I initially liked the idea of living in Manhattan, I eventually did not like living there and was glad to return to Brooklyn.

I imagine that wherever I go, Brooklyn will always be home.

Even so, the congesion is a mega-nuisance. I shudder at the thought of mass evacuation in the event of an approaching coastal storm, or, God forbid, a tsunami. (A tsunami is unlikely in our lifetime but not impossible - there could be landslides off the continental shelf, or even a volcanic island collapse in the Canary Islands.)

Re the accent: I used to think I did not have the accent, but people have seriously questioned that over the years.

Here's a funny story, and it is true. In college, which was in Pennsylvania, I encountered a student with an accent that sounded interesting. I asked her where she was from, and she said "Brooklyn". Turned out she was from a neighborhood adjacent to mine.

arel · 10-29-2006, 10:51 AM

Woops, another typo. "Congesion" was meant to be "congestion".

col · 01-18-2007, 08:31 AM

Thanks for the replies. Actually I lived in Brooklyn for 40 years and didn't like what was happening and moved to Staten Island. We love it really! But the costs are a killer, yes there is a commute over the bridge daily plus other things. We wanted to put our condo up and move into a house in tottenville but we are priced out. We could forgo eating,gas and electric but Ida know........