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I'm moving to NY (along with my pregnant wife) for work. I'll be working in Manhattan and would like a sub 10mi commute preferably around 5mi. I'm thinking in terms of riding my bike when weather permits and taking the train otherwise.
Rooms:
1 bedroom
budget:
$1200
neighborhoods:
Astoria, LIC, Greenpoint, suggestions?
also wondering about the area surrounding prospect park
q's:
brokers:
How do you get hooked up with brokers? I see a lot of brokered apartments on craigslist, so I'm expecting that's the way. I've also heard some talk about insisting the landlords pay the fee or at least a percentage of.
going carless:
Is it feasible to go carless in Astoria, Greenpoint, etc. We're thinking of going carless but not sure how well that will work when the baby comes.
grocery shopping:
I get the sense that food shopping happens at neighborhood grocers, do any of you make monthly trips to walmart /costco/sam's club or any other
place like that?
Be VERY careful with Craigs List --- a lot of real estate scammers on there!
Carless will be great so long as you are close enough to grocery stores, etc. If you're going to do monthly trips to Costco or BJs, you can always rent a vehicle. However, make sure you have a place to park to unload all your stuff.
$1200 is almost right for a 1BR in Queens. Keep in mind, the shorter the commute to Manhattan, the more you'll be paying in rent.
If you find a neigborhood you think you like, be sure to make trips there at different times of the day and night (especially weekend nights) to see about noise, traffic, people, etc.
Where in Manhattan will you be working? If you're further downtown, you'll want to concentrate on Brooklyn and if you're in Midtown, you'll want to look at Queens. You'll want to be careful to live near a subway as well because while biking is great in spring and fall, it's not so fun in winter or summer, and your pregnant wife may want to go out occasionally as well.
With no idea of where in Manhattan you'll be working, I'd say check out Astoria over Greenpoint or LIC because that's where you'll be most likely to find a 1 bedroom in your budget with a reasonable commute to the city. LIC is closer, but more expensive and Greenpoint is a bit more expensive as well and it's really hard to get anywhere since you have to take the G train and transfer.
The nice areas around Prospect park are out of your price range, but you might be able to find something in the less nice parts of Prospect Heights. There are definitely cheaper parts of that neighborhood that are fine, but it tends to be a block to block thing and you'd need to look at the area carefully.
Yard access is rare and even if you land a place with a balcony or roof deck, you generally aren't allowed to have an open flame on them. I'd just accept that you're not going to have a bbq. Sorry.
Unless you already have a job here....NOT A SMART IDEA. I REPEAT...NOT A SMART IDEA. The jobs are NOT in NYC. Research again. Also, $1,200 will not get you something in a nice area. Sorry to say it.
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