Help! relo to NYC -- need to find a family friendly area in either bklyn, queens or manhattan (best neighborhoods)

[aristotlenova]

First off, I have read a ton of stuff on this board and it is massively helpful. You guys are awesome. I'm hoping that you'll be able to help me narrow down my options and help me find the best neighborhoods to look for a new place. I am going to be relocating to NYC for work from the DC area.

Our needs:

Family friendly area -- we have two young kids -- one is 2 and the other is 6 months. Would ideally like something with lots of greenery nearby (esp parks!) and in a very safe, very clean and very family friendly area. Lots of young families nearby would be really good. Ideally none of the 20-something party crowd.

Commute friendly -- I'll be working near 15th and 9th (Chelsea) and would like to find something that can get me there in 30-45 min at most.

Space/Budget -- We would like a 3BR, but a 2BR w/ den could work. We need about 1500 sq ft minimum, though more is better. We also want somewhere that either has parking or parking is easily available (not street parking). We're looking to spend up to $3500/mo for rent & parking.

I'm open to ANYTHING. I've even looked at the Jersey 'burbs and Westchester (i.e. Maplewood, Montclair, etc...), but the commute from there seems to be 75 min+ door-to-door, which is not appealing.

So what are my options? Any help you guys can provide will be sincerely appreciated. I'm open to Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan (though I realize my budget will be tight there, maybe impossible), or anywhere else. What neighborhoods work? The only one I know at all is Brooklyn Heights, and I LOVE that area, but am looking for lots more options that we can check out. Overall quality of life is our biggest factor, so please keep that in mind.

Thanks!

[Viralmd]

1500 square feet is quite large, but your budget gives you some choice. I will tell you that because of the downtown/west location of work, your commute will most likely NOT be 45 minutes door-to-door from Brooklyn or Queens.

And why are you bringing a car?????

[aristotlenova]

Good question and I've seen it asked a lot on this board. We would really like to have a car because both my parents and my wife's parents live in Central Jersey (edison/woodbridge) and we have a lot of family there. So we would really like to be able to go there pretty regularly and from having done the NJT thing, it doesn't seem like a great option when you are living in bklyn/queens.

As for the 45 min thing, I was thinking something in bklyn heights or cobble hill might do it or maybe something near the L, though I hear horror stories about how crowded the L is and williamsburg is almost exactly what we don't want given how young and non-family friendly the area seems to be.

[bluedog2]

It will not be that easy to find something that meets ALL of your criteria.

I think the easiest one thing to give up in order to get everything else is the 45 min door to door commute. Or did you not mean door to door anyway but 45 mins on a train or bus ?If you would extend the 45 mins to 60 mins it would open up a lot of other possibilities where you could probably meet all of your other needs.


I noticed that you did not list The Bronx as a possibility but I think you should investigate at least 3 neighborhoods... Riverdale,Woodlawn and Country Club. All 3 are very safe,very clean family oriented communities that are directly adjacent to major parks,have very good schools and are 45 mins to an hour to your work destination. Country Club is practically in the largest park in the city and has it's own beaches as well.Thanks to the broad brush that the whole Bronx has been painted( tainted?) with you should be able to easily find a 3 or 4 Br house with a driveway and or garage for your car as well as a back yard.The 3 neighborhoods are very different from one another in character but all have a lot going for them.Riverdale is probably the most urban with a lot of apartment buildings,etc. Woodlawn(and even it's main street,Katonah Ave, is more like a Westchester town( hilly ,1920's houses with a few apartment buildings ) and Country Club (on the water) looks more like parts of Queens or Long Island.
Riverdale and Woodlawn are both on the West side of the Bronx with very easy access to the GW bridge for your trips to family in NJ. Country Club is the far east Bronx so is not as convenient that way.

Any of these neighborhoods will give you the amenities that you are looking for yet still be in the city with access to subway lines,etc and less than an hour from midtown at an affordable rent.

[clevedark]

You might want to reconsider Maplewood and Montclair. And add South Orange to the list.