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.
My gf and I are thinking of moving to the nyc area around september or so (if my house sells by then) because we think it would be beneficial for our careers and just a good idea to get out of the area. We both live about 60 miles north of manhatten and really don't like the idea of commuting. We're thinking of a budget of no more than 1500-1600 a month on rent and a lot of friends and family are telling us to check out Astoria queens or certain parts of brooklyn. I'd like to keep it closer to 1300 or so if we can but I'm not sure yet. She's graduating from college in june and is anticipating a job with one major news stations. I'll be graduating in december and hoping to find some sort of Human Resource position so I can only estimate what our combined salaries might be like. After the sale of my house I'll have almost zero debt and I'm not sure if i'll even need a car anymore. I'm basically looking for advice on what to do, what to expect, and how to get the ball rolling on the whole move.
Unless you plan on traveling outside the city a lot, ditch the car. Zip car can be used for those times you really need a car, but parking is a HUGE headache and garages are expensive, not to mention your insurance rates will be very high.
Astoria is a great neighborhood and there are lots of mid-range affordable apartments, but $1300 for a decent sized one bedroom is pushing it for any of the closer in neighborhoods. You could definitely get a nice sized one or 2 bedroom in Astoria for $1500-$1600 a month. You might be able to find a one bedroom in Carroll Gardens or Prospect Heights in that price range as well, although Prospect Heights can be tricky.
Whatever you do, don't move until one or both of you has a job. It will be hard to get approved for an apartment without a job. Since you're within a reasonable distance from the city, you have the luxury of looking for jobs from home before you move since you can get into town for interviews.
Once you have jobs, you'll have a more reasonable sense of a budget, plus you'll know where you want to get to. If you are working downtown, Brooklyn makes more sense. If you are in Midtown, Queens makes more sense.
Unless you plan on traveling outside the city a lot, ditch the car. Zip car can be used for those times you really need a car, but parking is a HUGE headache and garages are expensive, not to mention your insurance rates will be very high.
Astoria is a great neighborhood and there are lots of mid-range affordable apartments, but $1300 for a decent sized one bedroom is pushing it for any of the closer in neighborhoods. You could definitely get a nice sized one or 2 bedroom in Astoria for $1500-$1600 a month. You might be able to find a one bedroom in Carroll Gardens or Prospect Heights in that price range as well, although Prospect Heights can be tricky.
Whatever you do, don't move until one or both of you has a job. It will be hard to get approved for an apartment without a job. Since you're within a reasonable distance from the city, you have the luxury of looking for jobs from home before you move since you can get into town for interviews.
Once you have jobs, you'll have a more reasonable sense of a budget, plus you'll know where you want to get to. If you are working downtown, Brooklyn makes more sense. If you are in Midtown, Queens makes more sense.
That's true. We are very lucky because we're so close. Everything is really depending on when my house will sell.
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.
