From Boston to Brooklyn by 11/1
hello – i will be relocating from boston to brooklyn within the next 2 months. i’m familiar with various reputations near prospect park. i am on a tight budget so am looking for a studio under $1100. don’t laugh! i know this will require being in not the most preferable areas. can anyone tell me…
hello – i will be relocating from boston to brooklyn within the next 2 months.
i’m familiar with various reputations near prospect park. i am on a tight budget so am looking for a studio under $1100. don’t laugh!
i know this will require being in not the most preferable areas.
can anyone tell me what areas in bed-stuy are relatively safe? and anywhere else for someone on a low budget. i’ve heard that once ‘bad’ neighborhoods are not so treacherous–everywhere is becoming gentrified. i know finding a place on my budget will be tough, but am optimistic that i’ll find something i can live with, as a starter apt. i’m just trying to avoid a roommate situation. i’m in my 30s now and unless it’s through a friend, i’m not going there.
i know about realtor gimmicks, etc. boston is not that different, so can handle my own, even in NY.
any realtor recommendations?
thanks much!
Street parking in Bay Ridge will become a source of aggravation for you. I would avoid unless you can afford to put your car in a garage. I lived with a car in Brooklyn Heights for sometime, and believe it or not, i think BR is just as difficult. I am also a single female and again, I can not say enough positive things about the nightlife options in Bay Ridge. It’s all right there, no need to walk far etc. Kensington pretty much relies on Cortelyou Rd which is across CIA. no thanks. But Cortelyou does have that liberal, hipstery vibe, which of course Bay Ridge has zero of.
Ok, Kensingtonian, if you grew up in Brooklyn, I can accept your point of view (it’s your opinion). If you’re not from here, you’re the one who is making idiotic statements. When I was growing up, until very recently, actually, Kensington was NOT the safest area around. My parents grew up near there, and it definitely was not the best neighborhood. I would agree that Kensington is on the upswing, but, really, get real. Bay Ridge has always been quite safe.
hollifer, I think if you go through the super, the requirement for 40x rent and such are not strict. I know that my friend who rented in the building is a medical school student and has no income at all and pays for her apartment from the student loans and didn’t have a problem getting the apartment. I know some are stricter then others. I never rented, always owned so I can’t tell you exactly but anecdotally, none of my friends had problems from what I know.
Parking is not bad. Alternate street cleaning is once a week anywhere by my house. It’s twice a week on some of the bigger busier streets.
Bkoriginal, you are making idiotic statements. I am single and young (28) and Kensington has great restaurant and bar options and my friends from Bay Ridge come here as often as I go to there for bars and restaurants. Also I wouldn’t say Bay Ridge is safer than Kensington unless you lived in both or can show me statistics of robberies and assaults in both neighborhood that back up your statements.
I too highly recommend Bay Ridge — especially if you’re a young single girl. It is a little further to Manhattan, but just jump on the R train and you’ll be there in 35 – 50 minutes (depending on where you’re going). It’s a very safe neighborhood (I think safter than Kensington), with many restaurants, bars, etc. It’s really a neighborhood that is on the rise. I just moved there from Carroll Gardens and, while I was very reluctant to leave my previous neighborhood, I ultimately couldn’t be happier with my decision. Definitely consider it. Good luck!
kensingtonian – thanks for your kindness. i may get in touch with you soon. there’s a lot that went on this week, so have much thinking to do. i’m just too drained today to think straight.
luckily, i have a friend in NJ close to the city that i will be able to stay with for a couple of months. my temp gig in boston ends in oct, but i may leave earlier, which will make job searching and apt. hunting easier. i don’t need a large palace, but something that will fit a queen bed, small dresser, small kitchen table, love seat, coffee table, tv/stand and one of those large cube ikea bookshelves. maybe a chair and side table too.
my present concern is getting someone who will rent me a place without a job. i do have savings that will cover $1000 rent for a year or more, if needed. plus, i’ll be collecting unemployment again after this gig is done. i’m always seeing how you must make 40x the rent. well, there may be a job that is a step below my last one that won’t be 40x the rent, but a good opp. nonetheless. i’ll wait tables, if i need to. that may be a good way to meet people.
definitely cannot do the broker’s fee. the fees in boston are half month rent or whole rent, but i hear nyc is way more.
so, any thoughts on renting to the unemployed?
how about parking? how often is alternate parking in brooklyn? is it the same in all areas? 2x a week/more? here in cambridge, it’s 1x/month and somerville it’s 2x/month.
thanks!
I vote for Prospect Lefferts Gardens as well. Easy commute and good transportation. Prospect Heights is definitely maybe as well. Even try down Eastern Parkway close to Franklin stop a bit over the border into Crown Heights. I also like Kensington, but I don’t think the commute is any better than from Bay Ridge because its on the FG train side. I prefer the other side of Ocean Pkwy and Coney Island Ave (South Slope/Ditmas Park) that might be worth looking at. Not much nightlife down there though but Cortelyou Road is kind of cool. Just thinking about the F and G makes me want to gouge my own eyes out.
The best advantage to using a broker at the price point you are looking at, is sometimes owners can be a touch flaky about taking your deposit and getting you the lease. Of course I don’t mean any one here 🙂 The broker will keep the owner moving to score the fee…and if you are coming from Boston, that may be well worth. Sleeping in the Hotel Chelsea waiting for your cell phone to ring, only to find out the apartment has been rented to someone else is not fun. Even better might be to find a share through Craigslist for a short time…a few months. Then you can physically get acquainted with a neighborhood before signing a lease.
hollifer, if you want to meet some new friends, Open Thread is a good way to start. We BROWNSTONERS get together once in a while for drinks. Come over to the dark side anytime you like :o).
P.S. there is a bunch of ladies with cats on here so you’ll definitely have a lot to talk about.
Like I said, feel free to email me. I know of a building right by me, Webster Avenue and Ocean PKWY that a friend of mine looked for studios in a couple of months ago and they were going for $850-$900 a month but were on the smallish side. I am sure you can get a one bedroom in the building for 1,100. No brokers involved, just the super.
just me. no kids. just a cat. the only concern i have is lack of subway access in bay ridge. i most likely will be getting a job in manhattan. i’ve read other sources saying that there are some good buses (as noted here also) that get you to manhattan relatively quickly.
i’m also a single girl, so don’t want a neighborhood that is too family oriented.
everyone has posted great comments, and i appreciate that! great forum. i’ve been on here before and there’s always intelligent, mature posts.