Moving from Brookline, MA to either Westchester or NYC...Thoughts? (New York: apartment, rentals)

[abergen28]

I am a 30 yr old single woman with 2 dogs moving to NY. I currently live in Brookline, MA right outside of Boston and am in love with NYC so prefer living there. I am not sure if i should move to nyc, brooklyn or Westchester county. I want a safe area that i can walk my dogs at night and not have to worry, easy access to public transit, and have my car....any thoughts? What is the best area to live in? I travel for work so commute is not a worry....

[MacheteJames]

If you are coming from Brookline you are probably used to hopping on the Green Line easily to get around. If you are expecting public transit on the level of the MBTA, I wouldn't recommend Westchester. NYC Transit stops at the Bronx border, and the Westchester Bee-Line bus service is next to useless because the buses don't run frequently enough. Metro North, our commuter railroad, can get you into the city pretty well from 5am until 1:50am - better than MBTA's subways - and it's world class. It's clean, always on time, and there are stops in the center of most Westchester municipalities. It's of no use for inter-county travel unless the place that you want to go to is directly north or south of you on that particular rail line. There's no way to transfer between train lines and there won't be for at least a decade, when the cross-county rail or bus rapid transit link is finally built across the Hudson from Suffern to Port Chester.

I did a similar move (from Bedford, MA) for a job in Westchester and while I don't regret moving here, I'm looking for a place in the city once my lease here is up. Westchester is gorgeous (and quite diverse, believe it or not) but it is not as dynamic and vibrant as NYC. Not even close. People here have the NYC no-nonsense attitude, but the "center of the world" feeling of the city is a result of the high population density and transit access, and Westchester is mostly low density and car-dependent. The culture here is built around the local school systems, and if you don't have a kid in school, you will be lost, socially. On a final note, the Tri-State is a completely different animal from Greater Boston, and if you haven't spent a lot of time here let me warn you that you may need some time to adjust to things here. I hope this helps, I was in your same position last year. PM me if you have any more specific questions.

[westchester]

you will never. never ever find a place in manhattan that will rent to you with 2 dogs sorry.....i would try lower westchester, woodlawn , riverdale in the bronx, both great safe places................good luck

[abergen28]

Thanks for the advice...My dogs are Chihuahua's weighing a total of about 15 lbs...dont usually have too many problems, but will keep in mind nyc is different....MaceteJames...I agree with you...I know Westchester does not have that NYC energy...What areas would you recommend in the city? Is there anyway to have a car there or would it be more sensible to garage it out of the city?

[fyrisle]

A lot of your decision will probably depend on your budget. One bedroom rentals in Manhattan may cost you over $3000/month. It would also cost about $400/month to park your car in a Manhattan garage (prices in my neighborhood vary from $330-500). The parts of Brooklyn that I'm familiar with (Bklyn Heights, Cobble Hill, Carroll Gardens, Park Slope) also have high rental and parking costs. There are safe neighborhoods in Manhattan and Brooklyn (normally more expensive neighborhoods) but there are also unsafe neighborhoods so you need to be selective in where you live. Do you know how much you would be willing to spend?

[Viralmd]

Originally Posted by westchester

you will never. never ever find a place in manhattan that will rent to you with 2 dogs sorry.....i would try lower westchester, woodlawn , riverdale in the bronx, both great safe places................good luck

This isn't true at all. There are FOUR rental buildings on my block that rent to people with dogs. And there's no size limit either. This is on the UES.

However, keeping your car isn't the wisest decision for Manhattan living. Garages START at $400 and go up from there. You have many options regarding living open to you. Where will you be working?

[crisp444]

ABergen, I currently live in Brooklyn Heights / Cobble Hill and have lived before in Brookline - one apartment in Coolidge Corner; the other literally on the Boston border on Beacon Street and Saint Mary's. Where do you live in Brookline? The neighborhoods that "feel" the most like Brookline to me here - in no particular order - are:

Brooklyn Heights
Cobble Hill (Brooklyn)
Carroll Gardens (Brooklyn)
Park Slope (Brooklyn)
Forest Hills (Queens)

It will be easier to maintain a car in these neighborhoods than in Manhattan, but you can have two small dogs anywhere. I always see a lot of people in Cobble Hill walking around with their dogs in the morning and in the evening, so many landlords/buildings must allow them. Please let me know if you have any more specific questions, and good luck with the move. Oh yeah, you might want to also post this in the New York City forum to get responses. I only once-in-a-while check the Westchester forum so I might have never came upon this!

PS - if you are going to be working in Westchester it may make more sense to live there as well, so you could consider these areas:

Pelham Bay (Bronx) - on the Westchester border, ok transportation to NYC
Morris Park (Bronx) - kind of suburban neighborhood in the East Bronx; only so-so transportation to NYC
Fleetwood (Mount Vernon) - nice looking area with a train station; quick service to NYC
Bronx River Road area (Bronxville PO? East Yonkers?) - lots of coops/condo buildings there in an upscale setting near to transportation

[doghead]

ABergen: Want to switch places? I love Brookline. I live in N. Yonkers with 2 dogs and 4 cats and hate it! Westchester is beautiful, as everyone says, but if you're single, there's not much going on and I find it pretty unfriendly. I agree with everyone, that if you do move, move to NYC, perhaps Riverdale.

[missingseattle]

We live in Beacon and are looking to move closer to the city - Boston that is. However, this little 15,000 town on the hudson is ready to explode. The DIA is located here, artists abound from Brooklyn due to the lower cost of living. You can walk you dogs off leash until further notice and I walk around no problem. We are in our mid40s with no kids and newly arrived 2.5 years ago from seattle. most of the peope we meet are in their 30s so you would fit right in. Beacon is on the metro north 1hr 10 from nyc.