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New York City - where to live? Need advice from locals!

zen

zen

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Jun 26, 2003
1,713
472
...or at least those familiar with the place.

I might, maybe, possibly, could be, considering moving to work at my company's NYC office. Maybe. Eventually. No current plans, but the possibility is there. All hypothetical.

But I like to have assimilated all available data well ahead of time.

It's at 330 Madison Avenue.

So... if you were an office worker with a slightly above-average salary, where would you live that's not a ridiculous commute? I've never lived in a big city and am not keen on city living (eg, high-rise apartment). I have a cat, and I'd like some outdoors - not necessarily a garden or anything, but at least a neighbourhood with trees and grass that my wife and I could safely walk around.

I've only been to NYC once, and only for a few hours, but I've been to the US before several times (and loved it each time).

I realise this is quite a broad question, but any advice, specific, general or otherwise, would be really useful.
 
since you will be working so close to grand central station you could easily commute from stamford ct. then you could have your outdoors etc.
 
Which one of these places do you work for?

Google Maps said:
Selected businesses at this address:
Ann Taylor‎ - 1 review
Bango Inc‎ Unverified listing
BDO Seidman‎
Bond Schoeneck King P‎
CCRP‎
Citibank‎
Detica‎
Dunnington Bartholow & Miller: Lingelbach Albert L‎ Place closed
Easy Screen Inc‎
Echo Research‎
Goulston & Storrs‎
Luskin Stern and Eisler LLP‎
Meeks Sheppard Leo & Pillsbury‎
Morgan Stanley & Co‎
RFA Associates‎
Richard Fleishman & Associates‎
Sentinel Capital Partners‎
US Frontline News‎
Ubs Asset Management New York‎
Wells Fargo Insurance Services‎
Click to expand...
 
chstr said:
since you will be working so close to grand central station you could easily commute from stamford ct. then you could have your outdoors etc.
Click to expand...

Hmm, plus cheaper as well, in terms of rent, etc?
 
Erm, alphabet city? When I stayed in Manhattan for a couple of months, I stayed there. Was quite nice as the buildings were low rise, and there were plenty of funky events around. Rents in NYC are horrendous, and having a bit of spare cash for going out, restaurants etc helps. (Alphabet city was a bit cheaper than the usual).

Also it's a big help being able to walk / cycle to work. You can take in the parks etc on your way to and from work. Being able to avoid long hours on public transport really improves the quality of life in a city.
 
RedTomato said:
Erm, alphabet city? When I stayed in Manhattan for a couple of months, I stayed there. Was quite nice as the buildings were low rise, and there were plenty of funky events around. Rents in NYC are horrendous, and having a bit of spare cash for going out, restaurants etc helps. (Alphabet city was a bit cheaper than the usual).

Also it's a big help being able to walk / cycle to work. You can take in the parks etc on your way to and from work. Being able to avoid long hours on public transport really improves the quality of life in a city.
Click to expand...

That might win the contest for most awesome neighbourhood name I've ever heard!

I guess what you pay extra in rent by being so close is partially countered by not having to fork out for public transport, plus a walkable commute is good exercise.
 
I would recommend Hoboken, NJ. It is just across the Hudson river.

I have a friend that in Hoboken, living in a lovely apartment overlooking Manhattan. I have stayed there a couple of times, and it is nice and quiet, has green space, feels safe but there are still lots of nice bars and restaurants around.

I realise it is not in NYC, but you can get the Path straight into NYC in minutes, or a bus direct to Port Authority which is also very quick. You can even jump on a commuter ferry!

For somebody not keen on 'big city living', I think it would be perfect.
 
Yeah, a friend of mine mentioned Hoboken as well.

I guess this is all academic - what I really need to do is try and snag a work trip over to the NYC office and do some snooping!
 
Dear god! Midtown? Yucko! That's tourist central. I say no to that.

If I were you, I'd try for something in Lower Manhattan- Greenwich or the East Village. Either that or Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Both are cool areas.
 
I stayed in NYC once for work, it was the only time I've been there so you'll have to bear with me here.

The part of town I was in was near the Brooklyn Bridge, on the manhattan side. In fact, my hotel was practically underneath the bridge and I was across the street from the Fulton Fish market. I spent an afternoon walking around the area, visited the Trade Centers site, Battery Park etc. I liked the area near battery park the best! Seemed like a pretty cool place to live!

But apart from that I know nothing about the rent rates etc!

SLC
 
i don't like big cities but i stayed in NYC for a while for business. the thing with Manhattan is that you need to be in Manhattan or you're disconnected from it entirely. So commuting from outside defies the point of working in Manhattan. Manhattan is too intense to just work there and ignore the rest. You won't be happy there and commuting makes you even more miserable.

I would suggest get a business trip and add a weekend and see how it feel to you. The when you move there move into Manhattan. The area around NYU is Nice, some nice parks, reasonably safe, well connected to everything and of course expensive. But in the first year you connect to people, learn about the city, enjoy the bars, opera, museums and all that. Even if you don't like big cities you will definitely enjoy the first year.

After that you either stay or decide to commute. But you will have friends and a better idea from where to commute.

Regarding the outdoors: In about 1.5 hrs you're in New Paltz north of NYC. A great area for outdoors, biking, hiking, climbing and getting fresh air. There will be a lot of people but you can find lonely spots. Great weekend escape for you and family. It's not that you are locked in a concrete desert in Manhattan. It's surprisingly easy to get out at weekends.
 
andiwm2003 said:
i don't like big cities but i stayed in NYC for a while for business. the thing with Manhattan is that you need to be in Manhattan or you're disconnected from it entirely. So commuting from outside defies the point of working in Manhattan. Manhattan is too intense to just work there and ignore the rest. You won't be happy there and commuting makes you even more miserable.
Click to expand...

Untrue- Brooklyn is a great place and the only place I'd ever live in NYC. Manhattan has become overrun and far too yuppie, with the exception of some parts of Lower Manhattan.
 
zen said:
Hmm, plus cheaper as well, in terms of rent, etc?
Click to expand...

cheaper than midtown manhattan, more expensive than harlem. it depends on what you're looking for and since you want outdoors...
 
zen said:
That might win the contest for most awesome neighbourhood name I've ever heard!

I guess what you pay extra in rent by being so close is partially countered by not having to fork out for public transport, plus a walkable commute is good exercise.
Click to expand...

alphabet city isnt really walkable for a commute to grand central
 
The Green Point area of Brooklyn is really nice and affordable. If you can afford it, so is the Lower East Side (but it tends to be expensive).
 
Studios in manhattan will run you $1500+...you can find cheaper stuff in the boroughs but then you have to commute (and the MTA just announced service cuts & rate hikes! :mad:). I've been partial to the financial district recently...a lot of the downtown feel without the 'tude you get in the village.

Personally given your situation I'd try to finagle a bigger apartment (maybe in a brownstone?!) in Brooklyn. There are some very nice neighborhoods there.

As for Stamford as mentioned above...Connecticut (my home state woo!) is very nice, though expensive, but Stamford is an hour-ish out of the city on the train and you will pay a couple thousand $/year on train tickets.

A lot of finding a place to live around the city is the give and take between commute length and availability of green space...that's ultimately a decision you'll have to make yourself.
 
zen said:
...or at least those familiar with the place.

I might, maybe, possibly, could be, considering moving to work at my company's NYC office. Maybe. Eventually. No current plans, but the possibility is there. All hypothetical.

But I like to have assimilated all available data well ahead of time.

It's at 330 Madison Avenue.

So... if you were an office worker with a slightly above-average salary, where would you live that's not a ridiculous commute? I've never lived in a big city and am not keen on city living (eg, high-rise apartment). I have a cat, and I'd like some outdoors - not necessarily a garden or anything, but at least a neighbourhood with trees and grass that my wife and I could safely walk around.

I've only been to NYC once, and only for a few hours, but I've been to the US before several times (and loved it each time).

I realise this is quite a broad question, but any advice, specific, general or otherwise, would be really useful.
Click to expand...

Can you hook me up with a job? ;)
 
Queens has several nice neighborhoods that are along the E/F train lines which makes them an easy commute into Manhattan. Check out Forest Hills/Kew Gardens/Rego Park.
 
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