What does "family friendly" really mean? (rent, house)

[twist07]

Originally Posted by cali4ever

Nope, it has nothing to do with minorities per se. Nobody really cares. What people are apprehensive is the crime rate. And if statistically certain part of population shows strong correlation with crime rates, it would be very silly to ignore it.

I wasn't speaking in reference to what you might consider family friendly, but some people do not want to live close to minorities even if it is a quiet, clean area like Cambria Heights, St. Albans, Fort Greene or Jackson Heights. They don't want to live next to minorities even if their socieoeconomic status is higher than theirs. Of course no one wants to raise their family in a crime ridden poor neighborhood, I'm speaking about people who don't think raising families next to hispanics or blacks for that matter regardless of the scenario, like what Andez was describing. I don't want to go off topic anymore, back to what 'family friendly' means.

[SeventhFloor]

Originally Posted by cali4ever

It means it satisfies a healthy family requirements. First of all, it relates to children safety, i.e. low crime, no graffiti, no registered sex offenders, no gangs, no drug dealers, no drunk crowds, no unsafe traffic, or other hazards, preferably gated living area. On the positive side, it means easy access to quality schools, medical facilities, sports facilities, libraries, parks, zoos, beaches, shopping malls, and other places where families can spend quality time together.

im not nitpicking your criteria but since you provided a list i will respond...

funny but probably the most "family friendly" neighborhood of them all, park slope brooklyn, has 23 registered sex offenders listed for zip code 11215....the low crime definitely i agree with, i dont think that park slope has any gangs unless they come from outside, drugs yeah park slope has drugs, park slope has a few high traffic areas like flatbush ave, 4th avenue, 9th street. so even what is considered probably the most "family friendly" neighborhood in nyc still has some flaws to it, so maybe am i missing something here? because i have started to take a strong dislike towards certain adjectives used to describe neighborhoods nowadays, like "family friendly", or "sketchy", or even "up-and-coming", etc....

http://criminaljustice.state.ny.us/S...&Submit=Search

[DAS]

Hamilton Heights section of Harlem, and its neighboring section Manhattanville section of Harlem are very family friendly. There are execellent libraries, a state park, and there are good elementary schools. Also a honors middle school, and specialized high school located on city college campus. There are also excellent family restaurents with all types of cuisine. There are many types of stores, and supermarkets, one with a huge organic section.

Drugs and crime are all over the city, so I don't know where you could go and not find those things.

[SeventhFloor]

yeah its just the term that is really striking a nerve with me....after all, what place do we really know thats not friendly towards families? like people are going around saying, "eww families, get out!"
a more accurate term to use would be family-oriented, if anything...

[TheTruth08]

Moderator cut: Image removed due to copyright issue.

That is as stereotypically family friendly as you can get.

[cali4ever]

Originally Posted by TheTruth08

That is as stereotypically family friendly as you can get.

Don't know if it's stereotypical, but it's a picture of very typical CA suburbs. It reminds me of my house. Kids happily riding bikes, dogs playing on backyard, sunny warm weather, the smell of BBQ, sitting after work by the pool and drinking cold beer ... good life, and I'm stuck in this horrible Manhattan concrete jungle

[ohiogirl22]

Originally Posted by SeventhFloor

yeah its just the term that is really striking a nerve with me....after all, what place do we really know thats not friendly towards families? like people are going around saying, "eww families, get out!"
a more accurate term to use would be family-oriented, if anything...

I think "child friendly" is another accurate term. Because a family with a 5 year old will mostly likely have different needs than a family with say a 18 year old.

A family moving here with a 5 year old would want good schools, park, all that but a family with and 18 year old will most likely want to live in a diffrent part of town as their kid will most likely be going off to college there for the parents will have more time for things they like.

[NooYowkur81]

I think family friendly also means being able to take a stroll with your young children without having to explain certain things, if you catch my drift,

Like mommy why are that man's eyes so red? Why is there broken glass everywhere? Why does that man always stand outside, even when it's cold out?

[queensgrl]

I think "family friendly" is no different from what single, people like me (older, not into the party scene) would want. I even include "good schools" as part of my quality of life criteria because I'd like to live around people for whom education is a priority. As an earlier poster mentioned, Jackson Heights is just as family friendly as Park Slope but it is never as highly regarded. I actually prefer JH over PS because of affordability, the transportation access via car, bus, train is second to none, and we're also just a bus ride from LaGuardia airport.

[lynn79os]

As a Mommy to a 2 year old who just completed a NYC apartment hunt, here is what we looked for regarding a "family friendly" neighborhood.

1) Low crime rate. Lets face it, this is NYC, there is crime. There are drug dealers, there are sex offenders. You can't fully escape them if you want to live in the City. But, you can choose a neighborhood it isn't quite as common and obvious.
2) Good schools.
3) Clean. Again, this is NYC - there are people, there is garbage. But, a neighborhood that has a decent look to it was important to me. I don't want to freak out about my child walking down the street everyday thinking he might step in broken glass.
4) Other kids around. This is a biggee. I want him to have friends, I want to be friends with other Moms.
5) Access to amenities. Because I am a stay-at-home Mom I didn't want to have to haul 2 year old + a giant cart of stuff very far when I grocery shop/do laundry, etc. I wanted a park nearby. I wanted a coffee shop near by. I wanted decent access to Manhattan nearby.

And for us, our budget played a factor. My husband hadn't been offered a NYC job yet, so we rented on our Minnesota budget (he can work from home).

We chose Astoria. The more I read about it, the more I liked it. I know a few people in the area that give it raving reviews for families. It's got decent schools, it's clean enough and there are oodles of children. And I like that there are kids of all cultures there, I think it's important for a child to grow up surrounded by those who aren't just like him. But I might be in the minority with that one...