buying in sunset or bay ridge

The two neighborhoods, while close in distance, are very different from one another. Have you thought about which 'hood you prefer?

I lived in Bay Ridge for a few years (owned a co-op), and I can tell you I'd have a hard time going back. It's very much like an extension of Staten Island, in terms of the locals (although this was 6 years ago, so it could have changed). Most people have a severe Staten Island accent, and the girls all have highlights and really long, painted nails. The commute on the R train was also a killer if you work anywhere north of downtown. They have since rerouted the N train to go express, bypassing downtown, which makes it more attractive, though.

Sunset Park is still rough in some areas, but has soe nice houses at good prices. I think you may be a tiny bit ambitious, though. Most of the houses I saw in both 'hoods were more in the range of $700s for a 1-family.

With that being said, I've used local realtors in Bay Ridge (Re-Max, Century 21, etc.) and have not had any issues out of the ordinary. The experience of home shopping in Bay Ridge is somewhat different from that of PS, CG, etc., i.e. less professional (that's pretty funny when I write it). In many cases, the previous home owners are much older and will be home when you are looking at the house. You will also see a lot of wood paneling, and giant murals of Jesus. :)

Good luck!

Posted by: guest at September 17, 2007 7:08 PM

I don't know anything about Bay Ridge, but in my experience looking to buy in SP requires a ton of old-fashioned legwork because many RE agents there are not marketing themselves online except through Craigslist. So go to SP and cruise around the neighborhood and you'll see "for sale" signs outside of houses-- the nice ones go very quickly, though. When I was looking, I went there almost every weekend and also got to know the local brokers, there's a century 21 office and a fillmore office on 8th avenue in the low forties. Re/max in South Slope also has listings in SP, as does ERA.
As the poster above said, there are a lot of nice houses in SP. I'll add that sometimes there can be a huge disparity between an ugly facade and a beautiful interior, so look at everything and use your imagination.
Good luck!

Posted by: guest at September 17, 2007 7:23 PM

bay ridge no brainer there. its been one of the few good areas in brooklyn before park slope became nice and safe.

it has nice housing stock, sound area just in case of a down turn. alot of professionals and immigrants who can afford their homes. unlike sunset park.

Posted by: guest at September 17, 2007 10:06 PM

in bay ridge there is alot of good restaurants. hell they even have a century 21(not the realtor lol).

Posted by: guest at September 17, 2007 10:08 PM

I totally disagree with guest 7:08; Bay Ridge is a very cool place to live.. Maybe it has changed a lot in the last 7 years. We bought a brownstone 2 years ago, the house is great with lots of details and the block is tree lined and pretty. Since the N train has been re-routed commuting into Manhattan every day is easy and probably faster than a lot of areas in Park Slope. Not sure about inventory of homes for 600 – 700k; the brownstones there are all getting very close to 1M, and they are selling quickly. Bay Ridge has lots of nice restaurants also as well as Parks and Shore Road. I don't know much about Sunset Park but it doesn’t appeal to me all that much. Definitely check out Bay Ridge, and good luck!

Posted by: guest at September 18, 2007 7:22 AM

While the larger brownstones between fourth avenue and fifth avenue are out of your price range in either neighborhood, "true" three floor brick houses (not those 2-floor-plus a half-sunk basement that realtors too often call a ground floor) can be a terrific deal in sunset or bay ridge. You can easily rent that true ground floor if you need to. You gotta walk the blocks however as many are being sold by small realtors, and be prepared to sink in enough reno funds to bring the electricity and plumbing into the 21st century. Yes, the N train makes either 'hood a reasonable commute to manhattan, but remember that the N only goes to 59th street, so "where's that damn R" is a common weekend refrain in Bay Ridge.

Posted by: guest at September 18, 2007 1:49 PM

Re guest regarding Bay Ridge as being an extension of Staten Island. How elitist!!! Thank goodness you don't live here!!

Posted by: guest at September 20, 2007 11:21 AM

Every time I go to Century 21 in Bay Ridge, I see more and more arty hipsters on that old slow R train, chuggin' on down to Bay Ridge. So things are changing. But I can't see Bay Ridge ever becoming Park Slope. No need to talk up how fast the N train is in Bay Ridge, because the N is scarce, and the true and best Bay Ridge blocks are not anywhere near 59th St. where the N train stops. Most people in Bay Ridge need to have cars, so it really is more like a suburb of NYC. Which is preferable for those who live there. It's a unique, safe, clean and nice neighborhood with great restaurants, a gorgeous bridge and park along the water. Enjoy it for what it is.

Posted by: guest at September 20, 2007 8:21 PM

The N is a big plus. It runs just fine during rush hour. It takes an hour to get to midtown from Bay Ridge.

One word of advice. Don't work with one realtor. Do your own legwork and talk to every realtor you can. The last realtor I called showed us a house new to the market that day, and we took it right away. This was after working with at least 5 other realtors.

And for better or worse, the slopers and other hipsters are moving in one by one.

Posted by: guest at September 21, 2007 3:51 PM