Westchester County, Rockland County or Long Island? (Hudson, Nassau: renting, buying a house) - New York (NY) - City-Data Forum

mickey mouse is dead · 02-11-2008, 01:04 PM

Okay, so my wife and I are going to work in NYC, what region would be better to live between Rockland, Westchester and Long Island (Suffolk/Nassau)? We are thinking of buying a house, and our combined income is 160k. We are probably going to be hanging out in NYC every weekend, but still, I don't want to live in the middle of nowhere. Any help would be gladly appreciated. Thanks!

ghguy · 02-13-2008, 02:25 PM

Rockland is a very difficult commute to Manhattan during rush hour. Non-rush hour you can probably do it in 30-40 min.

You might want to start looking at homes online to figure out what you can afford. Generally, the closer you are to the city, the more expensive. My wife and I have been asking ourselves this question for awhile now. We'll probably end up in Rockland because we don't commute to Manhattan and we can get much more for our money there.

Have kids? Are schools important. Again, the better the school district, the more expensive. You're probably not going to get the house of your dreams on a 160K income and still have a good commute....

lad-59 · 02-14-2008, 03:01 PM

21 years ago I had the same question you are asking. I grew up in brooklyn and Staten Island. I have lived in orange county for 21 years and if you are thinking about rockland I hope you have saved some money. ghguy is right, traffic has gotten very bad during rush hour over the years. If you are going to be spending as much time in the city as you say, rockland really doesn't have an easy mass transit system. There are buses( and train service takes you thru new jersey.) Not easy. You will get more for your money in rockland than westchester and long island and the traffic is still better in rockland then the other two but is getting worse everyday. hope this helps

ghguy · 02-15-2008, 06:10 AM

lad-59

You a Blue Devil/Sedgewick Slasher?

lad-59 · 02-15-2008, 07:55 AM

You are correct ghguy. Are you still active or retired?

kletter1mann · 02-17-2012, 10:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mickey mouse is dead

Okay, so my wife and I are going to work in NYC, what region would be better to live between Rockland, Westchester and Long Island (Suffolk/Nassau)? We are thinking of buying a house, and our combined income is 160k. We are probably going to be hanging out in NYC every weekend, but still, I don't want to live in the middle of nowhere. Any help would be gladly appreciated. Thanks!

If you're both working in NYC and hanging out in NYC every weekend why not just live there?

mfenimore · 02-17-2012, 10:14 AM

Try Croton on Hudson in Westchester, can get a little more value for your $$, ony a 45 min express train ride, decent schools(if it matters)

ehmom · 02-17-2012, 01:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kletter1mann

If you're both working in NYC and hanging out in NYC every weekend why not just live there?

I have to ask the same question. You're going to be spending a lot of time commuting during the week no matter which area you choose - plus the added expense of the commute which can really add up. And then heading back in most weekends... so why bother buying a house in the burbs? Other than a roof over your head, is there a specific reason you want to buy a house outside of the city instead of just renting or buying in the city? Do you need a certain amount of living space, need outdoor space, a great public school, something else?

Mistertee · 02-18-2012, 02:43 PM

I was in the same dilemma and I ended up moving to Rockland. On 9/11, I was stuck on the bridge in the subway for hours. Getting back to my house in the Bronx took all day. So, from that day onwards I decided I wanted to be on the main land. Westchester is good depending on the town but the tax and housing stock was not as good unless you spend close to $700,000. I got the house of my dreams, 3 car garage, less than 6 yrs old, lots of sq. ft. and good neighborhood. Taxes are high but I don;t mind, it was less than Westchester. I think you should decide what is the most important deciding factor for you? Schools, taxes, demographics, commute to job, etc. If you are looking to go to Manhattan on the weekend like me, it won;t be an issue. Plus, a new bridge is being built with a plan to accomodate bus/rail. So, it will make the comute easier in the long run. Good luck

YanksRule · 02-18-2012, 07:31 PM

It really depends on what you are looking for. You don't want to live in the middle of nowhere, but do you want to live in a place with a ton of amenities around you, but traffic issues? Do you prefer to live a little farther out but have a larger plot of land with more privacy? How late are you going to be staying out in the city? 10pm or 3am? Do you want to have to worry about missing a train?

I would say this- Suffolk County is probably out because you say you don't want to live in the middle of nowhere, and Suffolk County's charm is in that it is very isolated- there is only one way off the Island and that is west... and they like it that way... any votes to build a bridge to Connecticut have been rejected.

If you are going to be staying out really late in the city, you probably want to live in one of the boroughs so you have 24 hour access to the subways... a lot of Queens and even parts of Brooklyn feels like the suburbs. Also note that LIRR has a better overnight schedule than Metro North, which stops running at 2am.