moving to New York (Brighton, Ridge: best neighborhood, apartments, rent)

[buttabooti]

My best friend and I are looking for a change and decided New York is def that place to do it. You know the story... small town girls with big dreams!! But where is the best place to live?? We dont have much money to start off... So where is the best neighborhood to look that is not that expensive and that is safe. And also has an easy way to commute to Manhattan. Thank you

[woofenstein]

Hello,

It really depends on what your vision of NYC is and how much you want to spend. My suggestion to you is to consider Brooklyn because a) Manhattan is really, really expensive, overpriced, and crowded, b) Queens is huge and difficult to navigate through (Astoria & surrounding areas are cool though), and c) the Bronx sucks and its safer parts are kinda far from the rest of the city.

Plus Brooklyn has and still is experiencing a Renaissance of sorts (I've lived there all my short life, so I can tell you it has CHANGED, some bad, some good). These are the parts I seriously recommend:

Windsor Terrace/Prospect Park area
Kensington
Bay Ridge
Sunset Park
Bensonhurst
Cobble Hill
Borough Park
There's also Brighton, which is a little farther out but is next to the beach
...pretty much everything on the F line sounds about right to me.

All the above neighborhoods are safe, have lots to do, and are just a short train ride away from Manhattan.

I would say Park Slope and Williamsburg, but I harbor a personal vendetta against hipsters who suck the culture and residents out of working-class communities. Plus, they're both VERY pricey areas.

hope that helped

[Manhattan-ite]

Gosh, Mr. or Mrs. Brooklyn Public Relations is doing a fine job here!

It happens that when people live their entire lives in the same place, they tend to think that that place is the best place in the whole earth and part of the universe too.

Now, if we send two country girls in their first New York experience to tough-Italian Bensonhurst or way-far-from-everything Bay Ridge, what are they going to think? Freaking out is an option.

The natural destination for these country girls is Manhattan. Obviously!

Overcrowded? Most of us have no problem navigating the bustling streets- and that's why we chose not to live in a suburb like Brooklyn.

Overpriced? Not when you're right in the middle of the greatest city in the world.

They'll get a 2-bedroom for 2,500 and share it, like many young people in Manhattan.

Seriously, who wants to come to New York City from Wisconsin or wherever and live in Borough Park??

No offense, but gimme a break.

[ontheroad]

First, I'd like to suggest to switch to black--it is really difficult to read pink

I'm in the middle--I don't favour many of the Brooklyn suggestions, and don't totally agree with my friend, Mr. Manhattan.

If you can find a good, reasonable place in Manhattan--its great and the first place I'd run if I were 19 or even 25. So, if you can get those bucks together, this is the No. 1 choice.

If you can't many neighbourhoods in the boroughs can suit and you get in a cab, or take the subway like another 2m young people, and get the action in Manhattan.

Reasonable places are getting harder to find, but I agree that some are really too far out there; too difficult to navigate and not "young" friendly. For young friendly, I'd recommend Williamsburg, Carroll Gardens, Clinton, Astoria, LIC, Sunset Park.

Have a ball whatever or whichever way you go!

[woofenstein]

Hey, she said "not that expensive," remember? If you get anything in Manhattan that's "not that expensive" it'll be a rat hole, in an area where they might get catcalled on every block, or both.

Regardless of that, as long as you get an apartment near a non-obscure train, it shouldn't be bad. Remember, some trains run *express*
If you're gonna LIVE in a city, you should make an attempt to explore it and not just huddle in some out-of-towner enclave. I'm saying this because (ahem) I have NOT spent my whole life in Brooklyn; I've *lived* upstate, in Westchester, and in New Orleans, and I plan on moving to West Coast soon (so obviously I don't think BK is the greatest place on earth -- but that's another story).

Having said all that, I agree with ontheroad's suggestions.

[sugarbeet]

As mentioned by others, both Manhattan and Brooklyn will offer you some options. If you and your friend are really close, you could get a studio apartment (bunkbeds may be required!) and split rent of ~$1600 per month.

Also consider Jersey City or Hoboken. They are very accessible with good bus/train service. Apartments may be less expensive. Plus, you'll have slightly lower income taxes!