RidinLow

Gonna temporarily be in Queens starting on Thursday, working on E 26th in Manhattan.

Now, as for permanent housing, I don't really like living in NYC (tried it for a few months), so that leaves LI, Westchester, and Jersey. I'm from LA and I prefer a more suburban life. The wife & I are 24, have 2 cars, 2 cats, and need a place with a garage, which means renting or buying a house. This is my first job after undergrad & grad school at Cornell, so we can't afford too posh of a place. Anybody have any constructive comments?

Thanks!
~G

Beltfed

I would say someplace in Jersey....Suffolk and Nassau County were just rated as one of the most expensive areas to live (not to say everything is expensive)- but anything half way descent is.

pgatour1

I would say try and live in the Suburbs north and east of NY City. There are great places to raise kids there and it is really nice. I still say don't move to Ny it is a pain in the ass but I'm just not the type of person to live there I guess. But if you are going to move look by Scarsdale, Rye, Rye Brook, Greenwich, CT. Armonk, Bedford, Harrison. Try for places around there and see what you can find. Anthony

pgatour1

I'm sorry I thought you said 2 kids hahah my fault. Umm the areas I listen require a very high salary each year to live in and the Avg home price is like 600K. So I guess that wouldn't be good. Umm since you don't have kids and are just out of college. Look in Stamfor, CT. Or there are still nice apartments in Rye that run 2,000 a month. Also try Harrison apartments and stuff like that. Let me know as you get there what areas you want to look in and I can help I lived there for 17 years and know a lot about the area. Also I can hook you up with real estate brokers out there and whatever else you need help with. Anthony

RidinLow

Thanks for the suggestions... I knew you guys would be a bigger help than the guys at the iClub. Most of the people I've met there live in their parents' basements and put all their money into their car. Not that there's anything wrong with pouring all your cash into a car, of course.

Keep em coming!

BlackShadow

Does LA mean Louisiana or Los Angeles? Either way, if you want like a suburban life, I suggest northern NJ. I live in northern NJ and it is a very nice place to live. You will have a nice front and back lawn. Plus you won't be that far from NYC. If you are interested, let me know because one of my fraternity brother is in real estate.
Good luck!

Southpaw

dont live in nyc, its not a place to raise a family trust me i live there, nassau is nice but expensive but u can find some deals on some houses suffolk is nice also but to far from the city, if i was you i look in nassau i can give a listings of good area's to buy houses.

langjae

Try riverdale. Its in the Bronx, but we call it Riverdale and stray away from the bronx stereotype. The houses are decent sized and the taxes are substantially lower than westchester. The area is safe and hardly any crime.

jeremy

cl-driver

It all depends on your priorities. How are you going to commute? I'm assuming public transportation. If you go to northern Jersey, most likely your commute will be about an hour with NJ Transit (either train or bus). If you go to LI, then you will take the LIRR and transfer to the regular subway, making your commute at least 50min+ (depending on how far in LI you plan to go. Another thing to consider about LI is property taxes. They are very high, ranging from a minimum of $3000 to tens of thousands. If you go up towards Westchester, you will take MetroNorth which is similar to the LIRR making your commute at least an hour. Are you going to raise your kids in this home? Then you have to consider school districts. All of these areas are very nice and a nice home can be found to suit your needs. But there are many things to consider. If you have any specific questions, let me know. I will try to help.

RidinLow

Yeah, I don't mind driving for a bit to the train station as long as the train drops me off directly at Penn Station.

I don't forsee us having kids anytime soon... on purpose anyway. But good school districts and good neighborhoods kind of go hand in hand anyway, so .

Thanks!

batra

From Connecticut/Westchester the Metro North will take you to Grand Central and you'll have to take the subway to Penn Station. From Jersey you can take the path trains directly into Penn Station I think. Not sure about LIRR. Westchester and Southern CT are awesome but expensive. Stamford is a good option - it has city life, it's clean, has some good neighborhoods and isn't too bad in terms of commuting to the city. Good Luck !

RidinLow

Well, I'm working on E 26th and one of the closest subway stops is 28th off the 6 train. That would kind of suck to take an hour long train ride that ends in Grand Central and then have to xfer a few more times... but I'll take a look at the routes to see what I can do.

bigman

you could also look into yonkers, on the scarsedale border. Scardale is one of the richest towns in the US, very safe and houses are beautiful. Everything is always close by yet you and you are only 15 minutes away from the city.

RayRay

I work (and have lived) in New Rochelle which is in Southern Westchester...You might want to look here, good schools, VERY low crime rate, and the only city in NYS where property taxes are "capped". Train to Grand Central is about 40 mins. If you need to get downtown NYC, the subway is a quick ride from G.C.
BTW, I own a house in Ithaca so I KNOW you want to make this move before winter!!


Good Luck!!!

[ 08-07-2001: Message edited by: RayRay ]

AkuraCLS

i would personally say kingspoint, or port washington. both are VERY NICE! kingspoint is nicer though..i got some family up there..ya know ?

BSK181

most antwhere in nassau county. rent a house or big appt in the beginning to get a feel. straight ride to penn, and on weekends beach is only minutes away.
i'm here 12 years raising kids and i love it

KCPreki11

What job has taken you there?

RobOnLI

You're going to pay through the nose anywhere you live in the Metro area.

Nassau/Suffolk (LI) is the most expensive place to live in the US. Follow that by Boston, MA as #2 and Stamford, CT as #3. You're better off living in Silicon Valley (if you want to save $).

LIRR & NJTransit will go directly to Penn. Metro North goes to Grand Central and the PATH trains (if you live in NJ near NYC) will take you to 34th & 6th Ave (one Ave east of Penn Station).

You said you can take the #6 train to 28th street - #6 goes through Grand Central. If you go into Penn Station, you're looking at a minimum of two subways to get to 28th. Of course, you can always walk. What avenue are you going to be near on 26th Street for work?

I'm not 100% sure, but if you live and work in NYC (any of the 5 boroughs) you will pay more taxes than if you just work in the city. I would look at Westchester first for an apartment. You can find something up there that suits your needs.

-Rob M.
Long Island, NY

batra

Hey, just curious - where did you get these numbers ? I didn't know Stamford was 3rd most expensive in the country. A ton of my friends live there and I almost moved there too and it doesnt seem so bad. Thanks

pgatour1

Yeah i'm going to have to go with him here. Your not even close buddy. The richest parts of the US are in Westchester County. Towns Such as Rye, Rye Brook, Armonk, Bedford, Scarsdale, Harrison and Greenwich, CT which borders Westchester. That is the most expensive place you can live. Let's put it this way. The house my parents have back home is 3200 Sq Ft. and the taxes on 3/4 acre with a pool are 18,000. The house is worth close to a million. Down here the same house (In Scottsdale) would be about 400K and cost 3500 a year for taxes. Also out on the Island Roslyn and Dix Hills are expensive places besides the hamptons which is to far out to live. I know in NJ there is a big expensive town called Colts Neck.

RidinLow

Ok, so it sounds like we'll be exploring Westchester for housing shortly. Any idea how much renting a house vs. an apt would be? I think we could deal with an apt if I could get a garage.

And yes, I forgot the 6 goes thru Grand Central.

Thanks for everybody's comments!