Can you recommend inexpensive but still good places to live for someone who would be working in Times Square? This person currently lives out of state, is married, and needs to live near/in the city (I guess a commute of up to 45 min. could be considered) while her husband tries to find work in NY (or NJ for that matter) so he could relocate with her?
TIA!
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"Fashion can be bought. Style one must possess." ~ Edna Woolman Chase
Honestly, I really like NJ. I think something like Hoboken, Jersey City, or places in Bergen County (Maywood, Ridgewood, Rutherford, Hackensack, etc) are affordable and extremely close to NYC. I don't know if you are looking to buy a house or rent something, but I can definitely help you out with some resources (my best friend is a realtor). Also, the commute from Bergen County is about a 1/2 hr, and the living is much cheaper. Hoboken and Jersey City are getting up there, real estate wise, but the commute to NYC is 10-15 mins.
Bergen County is very nice, and residential. It's also one of the richest counties in the US. I like it, because you can live comfortably with your family here, but also have very close access to the city. From my house, I am 10 minutes away from NYC. I don't know anything about living in CT or Brooklyn, but I always felt CT was really far.
What separates Bergen County from the rest of New Jersey?
Bergen County is not only a good place to live, it is also a good place to work and to shop. The area surrounding the Routes 4 and 17 interchange is the second largest density of shopping in the country, second only to the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota.
I am a Brooklynite, so obviously I think Brooklyn is the place to live. There are a lot of young couples in my neighborhood and the surrounding areas carroll gardens/cobble hill/boerum hill and it is a pretty easy commute to the west side. Personally I love Brooklyn because I like leaving the city at the end of the day, but still having all sorts of shopping, restaurants etc around. There are tons of other good neighborhoods in Brooklyn too, I just don't know what sort of vibe she is looking for in a neighborhood.
Well, I assume that your "friend" would want a mix of places to eat, shop, etc while being around other young couples. I like my area, I also am a big fan of fort greene and clinton hill. Williamsburg is another popular neighborhood in Brooklyn, it has a strong "hipster" vibe and some great loft apartments. Park Slope and Brooklyn Heights are more "old school" neighborhoods in Brooklyn. I am not personally a huge fan of those two areas, but I have friends that live there and love it. The park, of course, is always a draw. If you need any info on the area, I would be happy to give you my thoughts. Here are a couple of links to real estate places in brooklyn that will have some rentals...
I used to live on the Upper West Side and I loved it. It's very residential and not "trendy". Times Square is an easy subway ride of about 5 minutes. IMO the Upper West Side has all the benefits of the city (restaurants, shopping, etc.) but it's also residential enough that it's pleasant to be there and you truly feel like you're living in a neighborhood. It's definitely somewhere I could have lived forever. Unfortunately, that wasn't in the cards for me but maybe for your "friend". PM me if you want more info. I can also get you names for some real estate brokers in the city if you're interested.
How inexpensive? I don't know that most people outside NY would consider rents in Manhattan and many parts of Brooklyn to be anywhere close to inexpensive but you probably have a sense of what prices are like here. Would you be willing to live somewhere kind of boring since this would possibly be a temporary location? Would you be looking to sublet or could you sign a year-long lease? I think sublets are fairly easy to find in some areas and almost impossible in others.
Ok so I'll give your "friend" my perspective of living in CT. The commute from CT into grand central is about 50 minutes.When I go I just throw my IPOD have a couple of mags and I'm good to go.From grand central to times square is about a 4 minute ride on the subway. SOOOOO many people travel into the city by car and train for work.Many live in Fairfield county which is composed of cities and towns such as Greenwich (the cost of living there is the EXACT same as living in in NYC.........if not more in some cases).Westport is nice (Martha Stewart's home town) but also ridiculously exp too.I lived in Bridgeport for 2 years.It was nice - there can be some really bad areas and more reasonably priced than other areas.
However I just moved to New Haven which I love! I pay for a two bedroom the same as what I paid in BPT. for a one bedroom. It's really cute there, nice shopping and of course all of the Yaleians.
I love upper manhattan as well, especially upper west.
it's all so expensive and overwhelming! also to avoid throwing away too much money while waiting to buy, a cheap (but safe) studio would be the best idea in the interim.
also, is Harlem getting fixed up? or did I mishear that?
cc - where are you living?
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"Fashion can be bought. Style one must possess." ~ Edna Woolman Chase
cool, Deborah! this helps - I was trying to remember what butts up to what. I have been to artist's studio/lofts in lower manhattan - what do you guys think of that area? I would love to have a living space/studio...