Open House Picks: Six Months Later
Comment: Three for four. Open House Picks 8/1/2014 [Brownstoner]
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A lot of people who live in Bay Ridge utilize their car for travel.
True. But not everyone who is looking for housing and works in Manhattan, etc. will want to drive there from wherever they live for obvious reasons. Thus, commute time via public transportation matters and is a significant reason, among other reasons, why people are moving to neighborhoods like Crown Heights and Bed Stuy and are willing to pay a premium to live there.
Do you feel like their judgment is clouded in the what the paramount ideal of Brooklyn living is? Don’t you feel they have even better options out there as far as a neighborhood with retail corridors that has housing stock suitable for families? Furthermore, wouldn’t you think that a family buying a townhouse for millions of dollars would have a car? People who can afford such luxuries scoff at even riding the train. I feel that emphasis on subway access needs to be toned down. Putting it blatantly, renters are concerned with train access while most owners are not.
Could a family that can afford to buy a house worth millions of dollars afford to have a car? Sure, though that’s no guarantee that they will own one. Regardless, though, even millionaires (or people who can afford multi-million dollar homes) take the subway to and from work (no, they don’t all have drivers); its insane for most people to try to drive to work in Manhattan. Hell, even Bloomberg, before becoming mayor, took the subway to and from work every day. How do you think, for example, the bulk of Park Slope gets to work? Take a look at the subway in that area during the rush hour; just because you have money doesn’t mean that you want to be stuck in traffic or fighting to find parking daily. Putting it bluntly, most working renters and owners are concerned with subway access.
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As for judgment being clouded: no, I don’t think it is. I think people choose to live where they are comfortable and where they fit in best. Not everyone will desire to live in Bay Ridge.
Unless they are very close to a train, I will go ahead and throw out a thought that most people living in the Columbia Street Waterfront District who own do not use the subway.
I actually wouldn’t be shocked if most of the people who live in that area use the subway to get to and from work, even if that means an extra walk (or driving daily to a spot closer to the subway) or bus ride to the subway. I’d wager that people in that area take the subway to and from work for the same reason why most people who work in Manhattan, etc. take the subway to and from work.
That’s fair enough. And Bay Ridge will be appealing to many for that reason. Still, and this isn’t addressing your point but others’ points, it isn’t hard to see why people choose to avoid Bay Ridge and pay premium prices to live in areas like Crown Heights and Bed Stuy.
True, and something to consider. Of course, depending on where one lives in Bay Ridge (and without even discussing the increased fares associated with riding the Express Bus . . . 7 day pass is $55 I think, and one way during peak hours is $6, $3 during off peak hours: http://web.mta.info/nyct/fare/FaresatAGlance.htm) and depending on where one has to travel in Manhattan, you’re still looking at a 45-50 minute ride to get to where you have to go: http://web.mta.info/nyct/bus/schedule/xpress/x027cur.pdf And that’s when traffic is at the norm! In the grand scheme of things, that extra 20-30 minute commute may not seem like a lot to some, but it matters a lot to others.
Right. That’s what the pro-Bay Ridge crowd doesn’t seem to understand. I like Bay Ridge. I really do. Safe, nice neighborhood with great views of the bridge and solid schools (not to mention its close to my favorite Chinese supermarkets and other Asian markets/restaurants on 8th Avenue). But it’s not a shock that this home couldn’t sell for that amount while some homes in Bed Stuy or Criwn Heights do (granted, I acknowledge that Bay Ridge does see some high price sales, but I don’t read about them as much as I do in other neighborhoods). All of the above doesn’t make up for how out of the way the neighborhood is for many people, as well as the fact that it’s serviced by only one subway line. Yes, having the R is better than having no subway access, but apart from commute times when the R is on time, I find the R (and add the N, D trains to that mix) to be unreliable far too frequently. I love Brooklyn, all of it, but realize that many still want to live as close to Manhattan (whether for work or other purposes) as they can. They will pay a premium to do so, which is why we see the activity we do in parts of Bed Stuy/Crown Heights/etc.; of course, it doesn’t hurt that those areas also have beautiful homes.