Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I am considering a job in Great Neck, NY but hope to live in Brooklyn or Queens. Ideally, I think I'd like Brooklyn but am worried about the commute. I'd like to be able to take the bus/rail/train to work but am still trying to figure out how to make it feasible (wouldn't mind a 30-45 min ride). Also, trying to figure which neighborhoods would be best for me to live in. Considering keeping my motorcycle as a mode of transportation for the warm months but worried about the parking situation.
About me: 27 y.o. female, single currently living in Pittsburgh, PA. Would like easy access to Manhattan but to live an area that has it's own thing going on. Safety is important. Pet friendly apartment (I have a dog). Close access to a park. Okay with getting roommates but would prefer to live alone. Would like to spend $800 or less on rent (but can afford a little more, if necessary).
So, I guess my main questions are:
Where is the best place to live for a young single female to feel safe and have fun but still be in my budget?
Queens or Brooklyn?
Best mode(s) (route) of public transportation to get to Great Neck?
Best areas to own a motorcycle and park it on the street or have a "yard"/sidewalk to park? And feasibility of commuting to Great Neck from there on a bike?
If you are working on LI, I would recommend you live on LI. Great Neck is a really nice, upscale area, and its possible you can get an apartment for around that budget around that area but it will be tight. There are not that many apartment buildings on LI, a lot of people rent the upstairs or basement of someone's house here, although these apartments are not always legal, its a fact of life here. Apartment buildings around there are not going to be in your budget.
Commuting from Queens and Brooklyn on the LIE is doable, but your not getting an apartment for $800 a month there unless you have a roommate, but even then, thats a big maybe. If you see an apartment for under $800 in Brooklyn, its in a bad area.
I would advise against riding a motorcycle in the NYC metro area. Traffic is really bad and there are a lot of fatalities around here for bike riders, especially during rush hour. I would sell the bike and get a car. Car insurance in Brooklyn is VERY expensive, plan at least $2500 a year for that, I know people paying even more depending on where in Brooklyn and these peope have no accidents/tickets. If you are working near the Great Neck LIRR that might be possible to take the train and walk to work, but the monthly pass is going to be at least $200 a month + subway fare.
There is no such thing as a reverse commute anymore. Even though you would plan to live in Brooklyn or Queens and be going east vs west towards the city, the traffic is going to be heavy if you are traveling during normal times.
Please rethink this move if all you can afford in rent is $800. The cost of living here is double what it is in Pittsburg (I know I have a friend that just moved there from Brooklyn) and you may be making a move for the worst.
If you are working on LI, I would recommend you live on LI. Great Neck is a really nice, upscale area, and its possible you can get an apartment for around that budget around that area but it will be tight. There are not that many apartment buildings on LI, a lot of people rent the upstairs or basement of someone's house here, although these apartments are not always legal, its a fact of life here. Apartment buildings around there are not going to be in your budget.
Great Neck actually has a lot of apartment buildings right by the train station, but I doubt they'll be $800 per month. I mean, you do save money by being able to walk to work, rather than having to buy a monthly LIRR and/or subway pass.
Yeah, maybe the OP could rent out a basement apartment in the area.
If you're going to be working in Great Neck, (which is Long Island and not NYC) you'll want to live either in Great Neck or in eastern Queens, probably either Briarwood or Flushing. Both locations will have trains that will have access to Manhattan (7 train and F train respectively) and are relatively safe areas.
From Flushing or Briarwood you should be able to just take a bus to work. It might be a 30-40 min ride. Brooklyn will not be feasible, because the commute will be at least an hour and will involve 2 trains and a bus most likely. You might be able to find a basement studio in Briarwood or Flushing for $800, I have seen some 1BRs go for $900-950.
As far as the motorcycle, I wouldn't worry too much about it. Insurance for full coverage will run you about $500 for the year. If you want to trade it in for a car, you can, but this would depend on how far you live from work. It's been a pretty mild winter, and I know plenty of people who were riding even in January. (I work for a dealership, so I know a few things).
If you're going to be working in Great Neck, (which is Long Island and not NYC) you'll want to live either in Great Neck or in eastern Queens, probably either Briarwood or Flushing. Both locations will have trains that will have access to Manhattan (7 train and F train respectively) and are relatively safe areas.
From Flushing or Briarwood you should be able to just take a bus to work. It might be a 30-40 min ride. Brooklyn will not be feasible, because the commute will be at least an hour and will involve 2 trains and a bus most likely. You might be able to find a basement studio in Briarwood or Flushing for $800, I have seen some 1BRs go for $900-950.
As far as the motorcycle, I wouldn't worry too much about it. Insurance for full coverage will run you about $500 for the year. If you want to trade it in for a car, you can, but this would depend on how far you live from work. It's been a pretty mild winter, and I know plenty of people who were riding even in January. (I work for a dealership, so I know a few things).
Thanks, Miss J (and others). I had been thinking about Flushing. Is there a better part (streets?) of Flushing to live in? I like that it has parks! I'm leaning toward roommates just to get the cost down, but if it's feasible then I might go solo!
Can you tell me anything about Briarwood??
Any tips on motorcycle/riding/anti-theft devices? I currently have a car as well but think I will sell it when I move.
My advice would be to start out living in Great Neck(which is a very nice area) and taking the LIRR when you want to go into the city. That way you can keep your bike, rent should be comparable if not slightly cheaper than the nice parts of brooklyn/queens and you wont have any commute to speak of. If you decide you don't like the suburban feel of Great Neck, I'd look into areas in queens with LIRR access(woodside, kew gardens, flushing) and determining if its convenient to get to work without a car. With a car/bike, the reverse commute really isn't that bad getting to work in the morning, but tends to have a bit more traffic on the way home. Its still fairly doable, I meet a car pool in bayside and drive west from bayside to astoria on my way home and it takes with traffic roughly 20-25 minutes. Going east to the suburbs is much worse.
I lived in Great Neck when I was rich, but most people I met lived in Great Neck and made their money somewhere else (mostly multi0millionaire Iranians and Persian-Jews)
Nice place to live, good people, safe and clean
+1 for just living in Great Neck. Your day to day life would just be a lot easier. And something that hasn't been mentioned yet is that NYC has a city income tax. If you lived within the city limits (including Brooklyn or Queens), then you'd have to pay it (a few percent of your income). If you lived in Great Neck, you wouldn't.
steelapple, bear in mind, "Great Neck", i.e., places with a "Great Neck, NY 11020 through 11024" mailing address, takes in a large area (6,022 acres), much larger than the Village of Great Neck (866 acres):
Places that have a "Great Neck, NY 11020 through 11024" mailing address that are not in the Village of Great Neck are in the Village of Great Neck Estates, the Hamlet of Great Neck Gardens, the Village of Great Neck Plaza, the Hamlet of Harbor Hills, the Village of Kensington, the Village of Kings Point, the Village of Lake Success, the Village of Russell Gardens, the Village of Saddle Rock, the Hamlet of Saddle Rock Estates, the Village of Thomaston and the Hamlet of University Gardens.
The LIRR "Great Neck" station is in the Village of Great Neck Plaza and this could be a hike if you had to walk from there to some other part of the "Great Neck" area.
You can find out in which community (city, village or CDP) your job is actually located, which is oftentimes different from the community named in that location's mailing address, by using the Census Bureau's online address search function. (CDP, or Census Designated Place, is the Census Bureau equivalent for a hamlet in Nassau and Suffolk Counties.)
Thanks, Miss J (and others). I had been thinking about Flushing. Is there a better part (streets?) of Flushing to live in? I like that it has parks! I'm leaning toward roommates just to get the cost down, but if it's feasible then I might go solo!
Can you tell me anything about Briarwood??
Any tips on motorcycle/riding/anti-theft devices? I currently have a car as well but think I will sell it when I move.
I'm not an expert on Flushing, however it is a large Asian community. Shoot a PM to FlushingRepresenter, he's familiar with the area.
For Briarwood, as long as you're north of Jamaica Ave. you should be fine. The western side is preferable to the eastern.
Motorcycle riding, like anywhere else, as long as you're cautious you should be fine. Bear in mind there are jerks that will change lanes without signaling on the highways. As for anti-theft devices, motorcycles are not typically stolen (the ones that typically are tend to be Honda and Yamaha), if anything bicycles are stolen far more often. However a good chain lock (I use Kryptonite locks) should deter most people.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
but hope to live in Brooklyn or Queens. Ideally, I think I'd like Brooklyn but am worried about the commute. I'd like to be able to take the bus/rail/train to work but am still trying to figure out how to make it feasible (wouldn't mind a 30-45 min ride). Also, trying to figure which neighborhoods would be best for me to live in. Considering keeping my motorcycle as a mode of transportation for the warm months but worried about the parking situation.
