meat packing district??, chelsea???, or why not try Brooklyn??

I know the meatpacking district in particular is a dynamic place to be , but do not how salaries are so was looking for the initial location to be relatively inexpensive. Ultimately I want to live close to where I work, so it becomes a triad of home/work/school which is tight, eliminated commuting. What is the housing like down there? Could we still get raw space w/ a longer lease? Thanks.

Meatpacking district is like SoHo in the early 90s. It's the IT fashionable area these days, with a lot of trendy restaurants and bars popping up. As a result, rent is a lot higher than other places. Also, I don't know if it would be the best area, considering you have a 3 year old. Chelsea is more family friendly, but not sure about prices. Check out Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Rent there has been rising, but still a good deal compared to Manhattan. Sometimes you can find some good deals in the Upper East side, too - good schools.

gowanus or crown heights in brooklyn cant be beat.

You know what, you might even want to check out Jersey. It's right across the river and some places there are even a quicker commute than from Brooklyn or Queens. Just a thought.

yes I have considered it, is it possible to commute by ferry from hoboken? i just thought that would be cool. I have been seeing articles that Jersey City is coming up from what it was ten years ago, I had a friend who moved there and it was all hypo needles on his walk to the path station. Thanks for Gowanus and Crown Heights I hadn't considered them.

Yes, there's a ferry that runs from hoboken to pier 11 in Wall Street that only takes 10 minutes, but it's more expensive than commuting by rail. Monthly pass is roughly about $250, I think.

no... i was kidding. or, you knew that?

the most child/family friendly area in the city is probably park slope, brooklyn. park slope is known for its 'neighborhood feel'. its close to/bordering on prospect park, which is a large beautiful park with good playgrounds for children. the neighborhood is quite international and we met lots of interesting people from all over the world. the schools are good. there are lots of bars, restaurants, and shops, etc. from park slope it takes about 30 minutes into manhattan on the F train. i would not recommend the meat packing district or chelsea if you have a 3 yr. old child. these areas are quite noisy at all hours and have very few public parks or playgrounds. of course there are exceptions but these are expensive! park slope is not cheap either but you get more value/space than in manhattan, generally.

why not NOLITA?

thanks Innes, these are the qualities I am looking for exactly.
Dear Satan,
Just wanted to write that...I see your point. We are not that edgy. but there are areas which were uninhabitable 10 or 15 years ago when I knew a lot of people moving to NY ie the "east village" and alphabet city which I understand have become less dangerous. But less dangerous takes on a whole new dimension if you have to pick up a 35lb live load and run.

Forest Hills? not sure how the rent is out there or the public schools (unless you're going private/parochial) But it is 15 minutes into Times Square. More of a highrise area compared to lower density Park Slope.

Yeah, I'd say it is one of the better areas of Queens. My friend used to live out there, but I think he said it took him closer to 24 minutes to get to Union Square.

I meant to type in 25 minutes. 24 makes me sound anal

I lived in Forest Hills for 3 years. The ride was pretty short - express E or F train was 5 stops into the city and took about 35 mins to get where you need to go. It took a bit longer if you wanted to go on the east side b/c it took a while to change to the 6 train. And ofcourse, the weekends and night it took longer too.

Anyway, the rent was cheap for a good apartment - probably 50 to 60% of what you would pay for the same space in manhattan. There's also a little shopping street (austin street) that has a bunch of shops and local restaurants and some chains.

But it felt far away, and there are so many old people out there. It made meeting up with friends in the city difficult. b/c the last thing you want to do is spend 45 mins on the G.D. train after you just got home from work.

If I had to do it again, I would try to find a small place in the city or in Park slope brooklyn.

Oh, the other thing about apartments in NYC and all boroughs - the broker fee. You have to pay 15% of a YEAR'S rent upfront to the apartment finder people. Add that to the first and last month's rent deposit and you're talking 5 or more grand.

Ah, that answers my queries about these areas in Queens, that they are isolated somewhat as compared to areas in Brooklyn. Thanks for the heads up on the amount of the brokers fee. I lived in the Fenway in Boston for 2 years and paid one there but it was a while ago and I forgot how much I paid.

elise: If you look at Park Slope try to find a place around 2nd street. The public school there was ranked as the top public school in the country last year. However this ranking has also driven up real estate values in that neighborhood but it is still a bargain compared to anything in the city. You can probably find a nice two bedroom close to the park for around 2,000 to 2,300.

JG is right about the school and its impact on real estate values in park slope. many people want to live in this school district. 2000 to 2300 is probably pretty accurate as well, for renting. we paid about 1900 several years ago for a 2 BR.

I lived in Pk Slope, on 1st St. between 4th and 5th Ave. for two years. From age 20-22. I loved it there and I miss it. The great thing about the Slope is that, even though it's family-friendly, there is still plenty to do when you leave the kids at home. 5th avenue is bar/restaurant central with a lot of little unique shops and boutiques sprinkled in. 7th Ave is the main shopping drag, but that one is a lot more commercial with a starbucks and tutta pasta. Most natives to the Slope avoid those places, though. Oh, and there is a pretty good food coop on union street.

Also, you could move there with no furniture, and within a month furnish a 3 bedroom apt with cast offs and yard sale finds. That's how we did it, back in 1999. It's home renovation central, so, pristine items are always finding their way to the curb.

As for rent, my roommates and I lucked out with a 3 bedroom apt for 750 that we split three ways. However, our landlords were heinous beasts, and I guess that was the trade off. The rent out there is not cheap, in general.

Another area not far from the slope and similar in atmosphere, but with a cheaper cost of living is the Carroll Gardens/Cobble Hill/Boerhum Hill area. I have no idea where one ends and the other begins. But, all three areas are pretty cool and kid friendly. Smith St is a lot like a young 5th Ave and Court Street is a lot like 7th Ave. Definitely worth looking into. One of my ex-roomies lives there now, on Columbia Street and she likes it more than the Slope.

The cool thing (well, there are a lot of cool things) about both areas is that they are both design conscious communities. I promise you, at least half of your block will be graphic designers.

Forest Hills is nice, but your kids can't play in the street out there... plus Queens Blvd runs through it. It's known to the borough folks as the "Blvd of Death." There has been multiple deaths at nearly every crosswalk. I'm not exaggerating. They have signs that tally off the number of casualties. I really wouldn't feel safe pushing a stroller over there. But, a friend of mine does live there with her two kids. She likes it. As a single girl, I think it's an ok place to live, but I wouldn't want to raise kids there.

Sorry this got so long... I just wanted to give you an idea of what to expect, and I really can't say enough nice things about Park Slope.

thanks gg, this is why I want to move. There has been some kind of wierd baby boom happening, and, I am a part of it. I have had a subscription to the NYT for over 10 years and have seen all these articles regarding parents in the city now for some time now. I want to live where there is a concentration of educated, intelligent, creative people who are parents and want their children to grow up in a place that is culturally diverse and vibrant. I do not want the mall to be the cultural signifier for my childs upbringing. I could go on and on myself, but the end result is that I believe I will be a better mother if I am living in a culture that supports me as an individual.