New York City - cost of living advice (Ridge, Madison: wood floors, apartments)

[missbonfig]

Hello,

I'm thinking of relocating to NYC. This is my situation.

1) Salary: $50K approx.
2) Rent: would this allow me to pay about $1,500 rent monthly?
3) Pets: I have two cats.
4) New job would be in Manhattan; 285 Manhattan Ave.

Question
Can I afford to live by myself in a one-bedroom apartment?
If yes, in which areas?
How far would I have to commute? (I'm willing to commute up to 1 hour, one way max.)
I do need the area to be safe. Any recommendations?

PLEASE HELP/ADVICE greatly appreciated.

[cjma79]

Hi,
If your salary is 50k, usually they will only rent 1,250 dollars a months.
In NYC they have this 40x rule 1,250 x40 = 50000
Question:
Can I afford to live by myselft in a one-bedroom apartment?
Yes but not in Manhattan (unless you are renting A bedroom in a 2 or 3 bedroom apartment) if manhattan is what you want then Harlem and above.
If yes, in which areas?
Everywhere except Manhattan(if Manhattan that would be Harlem and above) but you will be working in Harlem. Maybe the Bronx is a good option or harlem
How far would I have to commute?
I dont think you have to commute that much..
I do need the area to be safe. Any recommendations?
Then you can rent in Harlem,

[UpsonDowns]

Definitely doable. My husband and I lived on less for a time while in grad school. You should get a short-term roommate situation when you first arrive (tough with the cats) to figure out where you want to live before committing to a one-year lease.

[Irish Eyes]

I've lived in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn with less and it's a great place. Where is Manhattan Ave? If that's way uptown you probably don't want this area.

[missbonfig]

Hey everyone,

First of all, thanks for your replies. As for area where office would be, it is Madison Ave (the other was a typo).

Great advice. I really don't plan on living in Manhattan. Due to the cats, I really need to be able to live by myself (1 bedroom apartment - ideally 500-600 sq ft.). With these specs, how far out would I have to live? Some of my friends have recommended the following:
a) certain neighborhoods in Brooklyn
b) Queens (eg. Astoria)
c) Harlem
d) Jersey (Hoboken, for example)

Which do you recommend? Attached some more questions and desirables.

1) Disposable income:
If negotiated correctly, I would probably end up with $3,450.00 approx. (after deductions) in my pocket. In your experience, would this allow me to pay about $1,500 rent or is $1,000 a more realistic figure? (Of course, I have to pay everything out of this total: medical, rent, utilities, food, transportation, clothing, entertainment, etc.)
Note: Thanks for the "x 40 rule" (just read about that yesterday so realistically we're talking about $1,250.00 in rent.

2) Renting
I'm totally willing to commute and do not really have to live in a hip area. I guess my priorities would be the following:
a) Pets: I would obviously have to find a place that allows two cats.
Note: I've done some searching online and this seems to be reasonable. However, I've been coming across the $500.00 p/pet non-refundable fee lately... Is this very common?

b) As I have two pets and have already done the roommate thing, I really want to live by myself. (I also really want a 1 bedroom of approx. 600 sq ft. I am more willing to sacrifice proximity and "coolness" than space and serenity.) I'm going to NY to work not to party so my priority is living more comfortable than in a happening area.

c) I am fully aware that living by myself limits me a lot more than sharing, but I really feel that's the right route to go. (I'm not a college kid anymore and don't want to go back to this part of my life. I'd rather commute to be able to afford it.)

d) Commute: I am willing to commute anywhere up to 1 hour one way. It goes without saying that I would rather not have to travel that long, but if that's what I have to do to be able to live by myself in a reasonably sized apartment, I'll do it.
Which areas spring to mind?

e) Safety: I'm willing to commute, but do not want to sacrifice safety. Also, I would love to be close to the train/subway. Having lived in London, I am fully aware that the closer you live to a station/bus stop, the higher the price gets. When I say close, I mean walking distance. I don't mind having to walk approx. 10-15 minutes to a station; 30 minutes would be out of the question.

f) Queens: I've been researching online and Queens seems to be coming up time and time again, for example Astoria. I have read that $1,000 gets you a 1 bedroom and $1,200 upwards could even get you a 2-bedroom. Is this information realistic/reliable? If yes, are we talking about miniature apartments?
How long would commuting to the city from such an area take?

g) What other areas come to mind with these specifications? A friend of mine also mentioned Hoboken, NJ. I really am open to commuting, I just want it to be safe arriving after hours. It appears Brooklyn is a little more expensive than say Queens. Is this true?

3) Utilities
I'm assuming I have to consider utilities such as water and electricity additionally? How much should I be calculating approx. (obviously it all depends on consumption and time of year, but what would realistic figures be in your experience)?

Is central heating more recommendable? Is it cheaper?
4) Transportation
I'll check out some prices on the subway's website, but how much should I figure on a monthly basis considering that I would probably use the train on a daily basis. Does $100.00 sound about right? I checked MTA's site and an unlimited pass appears to cost about $81.00 p/month. Obviously, the further out I live I might have to consider additional transportation such as regular train and possibly even the ferry. How much more?

5) Cost of living
I know the cost of living is a lot higher in NY. How much should I figure for food? About $400-500 a month? More? Less?

6) What are your thoughts on Staten Island? Is it crazy to consider living on the island? What can you tell me about life on the island?

Would really appreciate additional thoughts.

[Irish Eyes]

If I were you I would limit myself to just the train/bus for commuting. Any ferry (besides Staten Island) is VERY expensive. I don't know anything about Queens so I can't help you with that area. I would not move to Staten Island. You'll have a longer commute and, well I just wouldn't live there. Bay Ridge sounds like it could really be a good place for you. Very safe, decent commute and wonderful neighborhood. You can get a nice place right near the train for what you can spend on rent. Heat is, I believe, always included in the rent for apt. buildings. There are some posts here about the neighborhood and someone else just move here so there's some good info there.

[Biskit]

You can live very comfortably for a single person in Astoria on about $25,000 net a year for basic expenses.

My monthly breakdown for basic living costs are as follows:

1. Rent for a huge, sunny 700 square foot 1 bedroom with brand new wood floors and appliances on a pristine street in Astoria, which is safe even late at night: $1200
2. Con-ed bill covering gas and electricity: $50
3. Food and groceries - I pretty much buy anything I want within reason: $600
4. RCN high speed internet - I don't watch TV: $30
5. Monthly metro pass: $80
6. Blackberry pay as you go phone and internet: $25

That's about $2000 a month x 12 = $24,000 a year with a $1000 cushion.

Keep in mind this is just basic living expenses. After 401K, health insurance, and taxes I have about another $25K for disposable income and savings, which is just living comfortably in NY, not really anything special and i'm making just above six figures!

You probably will have 5 grand or so a year for entertainment, but you can of course cut down on food. $600 a month is quite a lot, but then again all those little things you buy everyday add up.

You can get smaller 400 sq foot studios in Astoria in the range of $1000-$1200 a month. I'd really recommend Astoria before any of the other places you mentioned. To me Astoria is better than most of the neighborhoods in Manhattan even. It's really picture perfect and very safe.

[Viralmd]

BTW, I don't know anywhere that heat is not included...I don't know where you're from but central heating is standard in NYC.

[missbonfig]

Hey,

Thanks so much people for your timely feedback! You're great! Can't say how much I appreciate your advice.

ASTORIA
Any particular areas that you can recommend? (Especially you, Biskit? You seem to live there and the financial breakdown you gave me, sounds reasonable. I can still do without major luxuries for a couple of years.)

HEATING
Great if it's normally included. I have lived in Europe and the Caribbean, and the situation is a little different. However, when we say heating is incl.
a) is it unlimited?
b) is it generally central heating? what would the other option be? a free-standing radiator?
c) We're ONLY talking about heating right? Not electricity per se.
So how much does that work out for 1 single person, who will mainly be at the office?
Is Biskit's number of $50.00 reasonable?

TV/Entertainment
Can definitely do without TV, would like the Internet.
I currently live in the Caribbean and reception is a big deal. Is it safe to say that I don't have to worry about reception in NY, regardless of where I live? (I'm referring to both, cell phone reception and wireless Internet.)

[KB4]

Heat is not included in many big post-war apartment buildings in Manhattan where apartments are heated by individual HVAC units.