Living in Midtown (York, Milford: restaurants, authority, bars) - Page 2 - City-Data Forum

Moderate Guy · 12-10-2008, 08:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by neodorian

Still continuing my research...I was checking out some places in Midtown West on craigs today and I found a place around W51st and 9th for rent by owner. It's a 4th floor walkup so that accounts for some of the cheapness but it is a huge 900sf place and the landlord claims the photos are of the actual apartment. It looks nice and renovated and large. They are only asking $2100 for it which seems to be below average.

What are the ups and downs of living in Midtown? I looked it up on google maps and the area looks a little dirty but not insane. There seem to be groceries and chain places all over and a subway one long block away at the 50th street station.

I feel like I am doing this one area at a time

I find a place that looks interesting and then I come on here to ask for pros and cons of the neighborhood.

4th floor walkup. Hell's Kitchen. Yeah, that would be about $2100. Not your quintessential midtown address.

bmwguydc · 12-10-2008, 08:22 PM

I agree that seems about the right rent for that area. It's not going to be a luxurious residence, even with renovations, since the only luxury or semi-luxury buildings in the area are the newer high rises. The walk-ups are old style tenements, not brownstones or townhouses that were subdivided into apartments.

NJ Chutzpah · 12-10-2008, 09:30 PM

actually hell's kitchen is now a gentrified nabe that is very close to midtown business district, and the theaters, and it is a pricey nabe now

the corner the TS stated is where my old man's restaurant used to be, and my company has a building around there

It is one of the newly gentrified nabes

danameless · 12-11-2008, 09:49 AM

OP, I have a friend that actually lives on 49th St between 9th and 10th avenue and he pays about $1,400 for a 1-bedroom, 5th floor walkup so your price seems right.

I particularly, am not too fond of the neighborhood. I think anything west of 8th avenue is a little questionable imo, but my friend loves the area. The blocks are kinda dark and dingy, but 9th avenue is a busy and live area, especially on the weekends. There are some good local restaurants and bars so that is a good thing.

The buildings are there are pretty old and run down. In my friends building, the staircases are old and squeaky, doors are old, and all around not in the best of condition.

neodorian · 12-11-2008, 11:53 AM

Sounds about right. I'm not thinking of moving until May so these are all hypothetical so far. I just plan to be familiar with the market and the going rates by next April so I can go in armed with the knowledge needed to be a good apartment shopper. I do the same thing for cars or anything else. In this day of online forums, maps, and classifieds, the necessary tools are all in one place for probably the first time in history.

tpk-nyc · 12-11-2008, 01:09 PM

I lived on 47th and Ninth for two years and loved it. For me, the ultimate amenity in the city is proximity to the subway. Now I live on Avenue B and have to walk nearly a mile just to get to the 6 Train. I dearly miss all of the trains in Hell's Kitchen.

Hell's Kitchen was sketchy in the past, but it has long since gentrified. Fortunately many people don't know how nice it is, so the prices are a little lower than other parts of Manhattan. The restaurants on Ninth are very good and affordable. At first I was hesitant to live there, now I wish I could move back.

neodorian · 12-11-2008, 01:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tpk-nyc

I lived on 47th and Ninth for two years and loved it. For me, the ultimate amenity in the city is proximity to the subway. Now I live on Avenue B and have to walk nearly a mile just to get to the 6 Train. I dearly miss all of the trains in Hell's Kitchen.

Hell's Kitchen was sketchy in the past, but it has long since gentrified. Fortunately many people don't know how nice it is, so the prices are a little lower than other parts of Manhattan. The restaurants on Ninth are very good and affordable. At first I was hesitant to live there, now I wish I could move back.

The distance to trains is the one thing making me hesitate about far down the LES.

tpk-nyc · 12-11-2008, 02:16 PM

Hell's Kitchen is far more convenient than the LES as far as trains are concerned. It really depends on your lifestyle. I'm away from my apartment 12 to 16 hours a day, every day. That extra 6 long-block walk from the train at 11:30 at night gets to be a real drag after a while. If you only commute during rush-hour (when a lot of busses are running) it's easier. On the other hand, weekends in the East Village/LES are wonderful. Both neighborhoods are designed for brunch and lazy, Saturday afternoon shopping.

rlrl · 12-11-2008, 04:15 PM

curious, when you lived on 9th and 47th did you ever have a problem with street prostitution? I used to see a lot of that back in the 90's but hardly any now

I often go into that bike shop on the corner there to see what they have

great restaurants in that area

Moderate Guy · 12-11-2008, 05:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rlrl

curious, when you lived on 9th and 47th did you ever have a problem with street prostitution?

Don't know about tpk, but years ago when i used to visit someone in the area, even the prostitutes would refuse to solicit my business. Perhaps I looked bereft of funds with my worn out apparel or maybe it was the old, beat up briefcase I carried around. I'm just glad that I wasn't accosted as I do not pay for such services. And there was indeed a lot of that in certain parts of Hell's Kitchen, at least in the past.