Need info on moving to NYC (New York, York: highrise, real estate, insurance)

[Greeneyed Grad]

Under no circumstances should you move unless you either have a job lined up in NYC, a series of interviews for a job or know that your boyfriend can support you for 6 mos-1 year until you find a job, depending on what you do.

[tokyotonewyork]

Hello. I"m not sure if I am posting this in the right section...but I would like some advice. I am Japanese currently living in Japan and I accepted to do a non-paid internship for 3 months in new york and if I do well, then I will be hired. However, I will need to have a social security number in order to get paid in the future. I am a photographer and have works published so I am thinking of applying for an H-1B visa but according to a friend, I was told that it was nearly impossible that I would be given one because priority is placed on IT people. Another choice would be to get a F-1 visa (student) and go for the OPT-1yr which will allow me to work the following year...the thing is art school, the ones I have searched so far are way too expensive, and I don't think I want to brush up on my English grammar skills...
If I can find a relatively non-expensive art school or community college in an accessible area, then I would like to do that. If there are any suggestions, then I will really appreciate it!
Nothing is definite yet because it all depends on how well I do during the internship.

[tokyotonewyork]

Yes, but i need to get some kind of visa first. I have enough funds to last...say 6 months...

[tokyotonewyork]

I meant going to a language school to brush up on my English skills like most foreign students do when they apply for a student visa.

[prettysmartone]

Originally Posted by Keeper

Great.. keep them coming.. anyone have anything about rent in different areas? Safety in these areas could be another post although I know this is a hot topic and opinions vary.

I live in Astoria, Queens, now (I moved down from Manhattan when the rent for my "chic dump" went from $900 to $1200 in the twinkling of an eye 14 years ago. We moved to this building 7 years ago, and are currently paying @$1400 for a 2-bedroom which has a living room larger than the entire aforementioned "chic dump" in Manhattan. (no, I cannot walk to my Manhattan job anymore, but it only took me about 3 hours to walk home on September 11th on the day of the blackout, and it only took me 45 minutes to walk to Jackson Heights during the transit strike-- might as well mention those kinds of things to New Yorker wannabees, so they'll know).
$1400-$1600 for a one bedroom seems to be the going rate for new rentals in fairly decent buildings (not converted houses) in my area, although I am sure that lower prices can be found here and there, with diligent searching (one woman I met had found a $400 room in a clean rooming house only a few blocks from my apartment). My particular end of the neighborhood is relatively clean and relatively quiet, except when Brazil wins a soccer game. Although I do not come home late often, I still feel relatively safe walking home from the subway (I just don't walk on those other streets, even though it might be a shorter walk). There are convenience stores all around, and if you walk about 8 blocks you come to a mini shopping district with some national chains like Gap and Victoria's Secret, and lots of New York cheap stores which appeal to ethnic teens. Near me there are 3 different supermarkets and a 10 minute walk takes me to a reasonably decent health food store (a 20 minute subway ride takes me back to a really good organic market in Manhattan)
There must be schools close by - these neighbors of mine are running baby factories. I know they are building some kind of high school for the arts a couple of blocks up the road.
There are several Catholic churches nearby (you just have to check to see if the Mass will be in English at the time you want to do -- or, alternatively, in the language of your choice) There is also at least one Greek Orthodox Church within a 15 minute walk. I haven't seen any Baptist (or other denomination) churches around here (I go to a very wonderful Baptist Church on 57th St. in Manhattan -- it is about 15 minutes away on the R train, which runs by my street)
Lest you think my neighborhood is not cool enough, we have a yoga school (THE YOGA ROOM, which teaches hot yoga, and most other kinds of yoga, as well as pilates -- no they are not paying me, I just love the place!!!!), within 2 blocks of my house, and there a several "hip hop" kinds of clubs, and a number of ethnic clubs (read Mexican, generic Latin American, Greek, and "former Yugoslavian") within easy walking distance. (I don't know much about these places --- I have just seen mobs around them when I have had to come home late at night.)
Is my neighborhood nice? Yes. Could nice Americans from, say, Virginia (where I am from), or Idaho, or anywhere where America still happens, live here easily? If you can adapt to apartment life, then this is a nice neighborhood. If you are looking for an apartment not too much smaller than what you had back home, at a "reasonable price" this is a good place (you have to factor in transportation -- close to Manhattan)

[tonrob]

Originally Posted by tokyotonewyork

Hello. I"m not sure if I am posting this in the right section...but I would like some advice. I am Japanese currently living in Japan and I accepted to do a non-paid internship for 3 months in new york and if I do well, then I will be hired. However, I will need to have a social security number in order to get paid in the future. I am a photographer and have works published so I am thinking of applying for an H-1B visa but according to a friend, I was told that it was nearly impossible that I would be given one because priority is placed on IT people. Another choice would be to get a F-1 visa (student) and go for the OPT-1yr which will allow me to work the following year...the thing is art school, the ones I have searched so far are way too expensive, and I don't think I want to brush up on my English grammar skills...
If I can find a relatively non-expensive art school or community college in an accessible area, then I would like to do that. If there are any suggestions, then I will really appreciate it!
Nothing is definite yet because it all depends on how well I do during the internship.

You don't apply for an H1-B, your prospective employer would. There are made available on April 1st each year (to start work that October) and are so massively oversubscribed that they run out on that day each time. Your chances for one of those are slim so best pursue your other options.

[KJLH53]

Any thoughts for a extemely youthful single woman who wants to experience life living in the big city? I live in a nice FLAbeach town, but the social scene, is either too old, or too young here! Men my age are having mid life crisis, chasing younger women, or have nothing to offer, and tons of drama and baggage......I dont care for tatoos, motorcycles, and beach bums (sorry, no offense) I dont want to be a nurse, or a babysitter!

I would be fine with sharing acroom in Manhattan (but seems not many ladies my age would be into this) I have a room mate now, where I live.
I have a place to live at first outside the city, but are there groups of people my age, to have fun with, Network with, go out with. etc?

The sun tends to do something to peoples brains here, people come here and slow down. I still want to work and be productive. I am a Realtor, but we all know that is not good. I need to do something else.
I have tons of energy! I still have to come back to FLA, and I have my bases covered here. I have lived 1/2 my life in the snow country, so I am no stranger to cold.
Thanks for any thoughts you may have.

[KJLH53]

how much is rent, and transportation, would you guess from these numbers?

Originally Posted by Manhattan-ite

Upper West Side is OK. Western Brooklyn is OK.

How much money you need to survive in New York for three months? Depends on what you plan to do! Just survive? Enjoy? Live life to the fullest?

Survive: 3,000 dollars a month.

Enjoy: 5,000 dollars a month.

Life to the fullest: as much as you can plus credit cards.

[KJLH53]

Wow! I am like you, and now youre scaring me! What kind of bills do you have in that budget?

Originally Posted by initialsbb

I think this is going to prove to be too difficult. I'm spread thin as one person, no dependents at more than $70k/yr. And I have been in NYC for 10 years.

In addition to rent, you also have to consider tuition for private school for the children. Also child care, if you will both be working.

I would also try to have a job set up before you come over. Everything is very competitive here... no matter what your line of work is.

I just urge you to think realistically. I have seen the cost of living nearly double in 10 years.

It's a struggle! A wonderful city, but a struggle.

[KJLH53]

I wonder if there is a "support website" for new to the area, like a "Welcome wagon" kind of thing... Your advice was very insightful! If anyone knows a New New yorker BLog, let us know.
I really want to experience this change from Florida, and fall may be the best time to come there. Im over 50, (I cant believe it) and I have a real sense of adventure, did the scuba diving, boat ownership, cruises, island hopping, etc. Now I need the city experience for a couple years. How can I connect with some 40-50 year old fun people? I am a Realtor, and an experienced seamstress, pattern designer, I have sewn just about everything. BTW, no one mentions the cost per month for water, sewer, electricity, are these included, or extra?

Originally Posted by By~Tor

Well Tracy, as someone who moved to New York from Chicago about three and a half years ago, and who is preparing to move from NYC to Pittsburgh now, let me share what I can offer:

"How much harder, financially" is a great question, and relates directly to what your current expenses are, where you're at. Overall, count on rent/mortgage costs increasing by at least 50% over wherever you are now, as a small 1BR in NYC can range from about $1000 upwards to over $3000, depending on area.

Getting rid of the car is a great idea, as the trains and buses run 24/7 most areas, and the insurance burden on NY drivers is insane... my insurance on a 1996 Bronco went from about $115 a month in Chicago to over $600 a month here, due to the Zip Code...

The stress level of the working atmosphere is a bit more intense here than most other areas of the country, due simply to the amount of competition everyone has here. New York is where people come to make money . . . . period. You can expect the atmosphere to be centered around the bottom line, and little else. The Human Factor is merely an afterthought, most places. That's NOT TO SAY you can't find amenable surroundings, but it does take time and effort to do that, especially if you don't have money to burn while you wait for the perfect job slot.

Cool, fun and free is easy enough here, believe it or not... Manhattan (and to a lesser extent, the outer boroughs) have a plethora of activities, all cheap or free... Central Park, The Metropolitan Museum of Art and most of the museums have either "suggested donations" or discount days where you can immerse yourself in culture for next to nothing.

You can get 99 cent NYC Pizza slices on the west side, near Hell's Kitchen, and the hot dog or Falafel vendor is always cheap, and nearby.

Overall, food and clothing can be found very cheap, if you stay alert and discover the places the locals shop... plenty of "Dollar" stores (I recommend the ABC Store in Astoria, on 31st Street by Ditmars) and places like H&M or Filene's Basement can keep you lookin' sharp for a fraction of 5th Avenue prices.

If you move here, you will trade off some money for culture, to be sure, but it's worth it, just to have that New York experience for awhile in your lives... I think everyone should live here, for at least two years, just to say they've done it, and know what being a New Yorker is like.

Good luck, and Happy Trails!!!