Where to live in the NY area?

[DITC]

Originally Posted by Canadiangirl_11

My husband is starting school in Manhattan (midtown) this fall so we are looking to move to the area this summer. We would like to stay within a 45 minute commute and are hoping to spend under 350K on a 2-3 bedroom house/condo in a decent area. We don't have any kids so we're not worried about schools but would prefer a reasonably safe environment and are wondering if anyone could tell us which cities or neighborhoods woud be our best options. We appreciate any advice you could give us. Thanks!

Cliffside Park, NJ and surrounding areas
Also:
Clifton/Nutley/Bloomfield in Northern NJ
Metuchen/Rahway/Colonia in Central NJ

Originally Posted by jeffcon0

Not true Morningside_Gal. 2 bedrooms are available in areas like Forest Hills and many other places in Queens. Forest Hills is especially nice with many high-end shops lining Austin St. You could also look in areas like Bay Ridge, Jackson Heights, and plenty of others in the outer boroughs. There are not a TON of places but they are out there and with roughly $350k it is doable. She is not talking about Manhattan. Don't be so quick to dismiss the possibility.

If this individual is going to school in Manhattan, then they will probably be taking the subway north of Houston St. which means an easy hour commute door to door on a subway.

Why does everybody recommend Bay Ridge to all newcomers to NY? Do people have some hidden agenda of yuppify or draw hipsters to this neighborhood? Western Queens is an easier commute, and so are the Hudson River towns in NJ. Most 20-30 somethings who move to NY move for the Manhattan work/play experience, and therefore need to be as close to Manhattan as possible. On the other hand you move to Bay Ridge to do things like eating lasagna with Vinny. Bay Ridge is 40 minutes subway to Canal St. not to mention waiting time and the walk to and from the subway. And then the late night R train is another story in itself.

[nuevaluz]

Originally Posted by UpsonDowns

NYC real estate is incredibly complicated. You should rent here before you buy.

I agree. The market is complicated and huge. Renting for 6 mos-1 yr in a more centrally located part of the 5 boros, like northern or central Bklyn, might give a good idea of what you're up against. While you're looking to buy, there might be some areas of Northern NJ and the North Shore of Staten Is. that might work as well.

Keep in mind that while cost will be a major factor for you, commuting time will be just as important. The Tri-State area is vast, and your commutes to work could be quite long, even from boro-to-boro.

[holden125]

Originally Posted by DITC

Why does everybody recommend Bay Ridge to all newcomers to NY? Do people have some hidden agenda of yuppify or draw hipsters to this neighborhood? Western Queens is an easier commute, and so are the Hudson River towns in NJ. Most 20-30 somethings who move to NY move for the Manhattan work/play experience, and therefore need to be as close to Manhattan as possible. On the other hand you move to Bay Ridge to do things like eating lasagna with Vinny. Bay Ridge is 40 minutes subway to Canal St. not to mention waiting time and the walk to and from the subway. And then the late night R train is another story in itself.

No hidden agendas here, but my family's been in Bay Ridge for about 80 years and I've got to take issue. I understand what you're talking about, but Bay Ridge is not quite 1985's version of Bensonhurst. They are always lumped together, but Bay Ridge today is attractive, affordable, and pretty diverse, and that's why people recommend it.

I left the area because of the late night R train issues, but it's not 40 mins to Canal St. in the daytime. You transfer to the N at 59th St. and it's 3 express stops to Canal. The Hudson River towns have some nice areas and they are close, but I'd take the R train over the PATH anytime personally.

We should refrain from proposing Bay Ridge lest my family's friends and neighbors get priced out, but I don't think it's a lousy place to live.

[DITC]

Originally Posted by holden125

No hidden agendas here, but my family's been in Bay Ridge for about 80 years and I've got to take issue. I understand what you're talking about, but Bay Ridge is not quite 1985's version of Bensonhurst. They are always lumped together, but Bay Ridge today is attractive, affordable, and pretty diverse, and that's why people recommend it.

I left the area because of the late night R train issues, but it's not 40 mins to Canal St. in the daytime. You transfer to the N at 59th St. and it's 3 express stops to Canal. The Hudson River towns have some nice areas and they are close, but I'd take the R train over the PATH anytime personally.

We should refrain from proposing Bay Ridge lest my family's friends and neighbors get priced out, but I don't think it's a lousy place to live.

It is a great place to live, if you want an anti-Manhattan feel. Obviously the good old days are over. Remember, great is relative to the individual. Williamsburg is mecca for hipsters but you couldn't pay me to live there. If you're a wide eyed outsider looking to soak in all Manhattan has to offer you have to be closer. Southern BK is more like Staten Island than Manhattan, and most (not all) people who come to NY do not want that environment whatsoever. Most outsiders want to walk by Jay-Z and Tom Brady on the street, not the Lordz and Paulie Walnuts. I remember there was someone on here who moved to Bensonhurst and said they did not like it and was trying to move out.

Holden, you said your family has been there for years and you lived there, and you got tired of the R. Imagine a rural kid who is told to lose the car...when he wants to go out every night, he will get sick of the late night R. NJ has many areas that are a 20 minute bus ride, there are ferries, path, lightrail, and the views remind you that Manhattan is right there.

At this rate it seems like whole area is going to become a bland transient outsider neighborhood that is used as a stepping stone neighborhood to eventually move to a northern Brooklyn brownstone or Manhattan. I have no problem with other immigrant groups, but another yuppie/hipster neighborhood is the last thing we need. I think the last European ethnic place in this country will be Irish Boston.

[jjocm927]

I'll sell you a flat in the South Bronx for that price, the rats are additional.

[holden125]

Originally Posted by DITC

Holden, you said your family has been there for years and you lived there, and you got tired of the R. Imagine a rural kid who is told to lose the car...when he wants to go out every night, he will get sick of the late night R. NJ has many areas that are a 20 minute bus ride, there are ferries, path, lightrail, and the views remind you that Manhattan is right there.

At this rate it seems like whole area is going to become a bland transient outsider neighborhood that is used as a stepping stone neighborhood to eventually move to a northern Brooklyn brownstone or Manhattan. I have no problem with other immigrant groups, but another yuppie/hipster neighborhood is the last thing we need. I think the last European ethnic place in this country will be Irish Boston.

Although I thought I didn't agree with you, I do agree with many of the points raised here. The R is a pain. I could see someone not liking Bensonhurst, and could also see someone not liking Bay Ridge though I find it much more likeable to the outsider than Bensonhurst. I don't think it's like Staten Island other than in that some residents bear resemblance to the typical Staten Island sterotype. But not all, and maybe not all that many. And the look and feel of the place is worlds apart. Brownstones and rowhouses, walkable commercial districts, no stucco strip malls. And there is the subway, even if the R is lousy at night.

I personally had not much interest in dealing with the PATH and all the NJ stuff, and found it a pain when I had to go to that side of the river. But I think in many ways, while clearly not the quintessential Manhattan or trying-to-replicate-Manhattan neighborhood, Bay Ridge is the quintessential Brooklyn neighborhood. I would not like to see the place become another hipster area, but it seems like it offers a good Brooklyn/NY experience to someone from away. In any event, if the Manhattan thing is what you're looking for, I don't see how Rahway provides anything close. And try getting back there after a night out in the city! I've got a couple of friends who grew up there, so I've done it and it's not easy or fun. Gotta get to Penn Station and hope you didn't miss the last train until 5 AM, and it takes no less time than going to Bay Ridge but costs a lot more. And it's a 20-minute bus ride late at night only after you first get yourself to Port Authority and resign yourself to the bus coming once an hour.

If a person with stars in their eyes is not going to like Bay Ridge and can't afford anyplace closer, the person should probably go find another city where you can get closer to the heart of it more easily. I know people who came from elsewhere, wound up in Bay Ridge, and they like being in NY even if they have to get back to Bay Ridge. They even like Bay Ridge. But someone who really wants Manhattan, or Fort Greene or Williamsburg, and won't be happy with anything else, there's not much point for that person to come to Bay Ridge. They should go to South St in Philly, or to Chicago or something.

Lordz came out like 15-20 years ago. I had forgotten all about them!

Shout out to Irish Boston, my other ancestral stomping ground.

[DITC]

Originally Posted by holden125

Although I thought I didn't agree with you, I do agree with many of the points raised here. The R is a pain. I could see someone not liking Bensonhurst, and could also see someone not liking Bay Ridge though I find it much more likeable to the outsider than Bensonhurst. I don't think it's like Staten Island other than in that some residents bear resemblance to the typical Staten Island sterotype. But not all, and maybe not all that many. And the look and feel of the place is worlds apart. Brownstones and rowhouses, walkable commercial districts, no stucco strip malls. And there is the subway, even if the R is lousy at night.

I personally had not much interest in dealing with the PATH and all the NJ stuff, and found it a pain when I had to go to that side of the river. But I think in many ways, while clearly not the quintessential Manhattan or trying-to-replicate-Manhattan neighborhood, Bay Ridge is the quintessential Brooklyn neighborhood. I would not like to see the place become another hipster area, but it seems like it offers a good Brooklyn/NY experience to someone from away. In any event, if the Manhattan thing is what you're looking for, I don't see how Rahway provides anything close. And try getting back there after a night out in the city! I've got a couple of friends who grew up there, so I've done it and it's not easy or fun. Gotta get to Penn Station and hope you didn't miss the last train until 5 AM, and it takes no less time than going to Bay Ridge but costs a lot more. And it's a 20-minute bus ride late at night only after you first get yourself to Port Authority and resign yourself to the bus coming once an hour.

If a person with stars in their eyes is not going to like Bay Ridge and can't afford anyplace closer, the person should probably go find another city where you can get closer to the heart of it more easily. I know people who came from elsewhere, wound up in Bay Ridge, and they like being in NY even if they have to get back to Bay Ridge. They even like Bay Ridge. But someone who really wants Manhattan, or Fort Greene or Williamsburg, and won't be happy with anything else, there's not much point for that person to come to Bay Ridge. They should go to South St in Philly, or to Chicago or something.

Lordz came out like 15-20 years ago. I had forgotten all about them!

Shout out to Irish Boston, my other ancestral stomping ground.

Yeah my point was essentially why have these people come out to Bay Ridge when they might end up being miserable and going home because they envisioned a different NY experience than the late night R. Just because its cheap does not mean they are going to love it. Its a hike compared to a place like Jackson Heights. Also many of the newer types that move in tend to have lives that revolve around Manhattan...as these people accumulate the area could have a more unfriendly Manhattan apartment type feel as opposed to the old neighborhood warmth.

"They should go to South St in Philly, or to Chicago or something." This is some of the best advice Ive seen on this forum. Not to be exclusive and boot people to other cities, but these spots are cheaper and maybe the ideal place for people to get off their feet, live reasonably, with more convenience to big city culture. Many of these kids jump from rural America to the king of all cities and a transition city in between could maybe make adjusting easier. Although not NY, these places provide a more Manhattan-like lifestyle where they can live within walking distance to coffee houses, shows, art galleries, etc.

Rahway is dirt cheap. 2 NJ Transit trains stop there, and youre 1/2 hr from the beach. You can get houses for 300k there that have a decent piece of land and would cost 600-800k in Bay Ridge. Cliffside Park and Clifton are both great deals. You can get a whole lotta house for well under 500k.

Red Sox fan? This season should be pretty good. I think the Yankees match up much better against the Sox in 08 but Beckett will probably dominate us again this year.