http://brooklynian.com/forum/the-lounge-random-stuff/is-brooklyn-really-that-much-cheaper-than-manhattan en-US Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:31:34 +0000 http://bbpress.org/?v=1.0.2 q http://brooklynian.com/forum/search.php http://brooklynian.com/forum/the-lounge-random-stuff/is-brooklyn-really-that-much-cheaper-than-manhattan#post-661520 Fri, 01 Jan 2010 21:31:11 +0000 hunter.gatherer 661520@http://brooklynian.com/forum/ <blockquote><cite>Cool The Kid&nbsp;&raquo;&nbsp;</cite>Get over yourself. You're no better than anyone else for wanting to stay in BK. And I have been in NYC since 84.</blockquote><p></p> <p></p> That's not what I meant at all. I just mean I don't want to live with people who don't want to live with me. If they'll be happier in Manhattan, I hope they make it there. http://brooklynian.com/forum/the-lounge-random-stuff/is-brooklyn-really-that-much-cheaper-than-manhattan#post-661475 Fri, 01 Jan 2010 16:24:48 +0000 armchair_warrior 661475@http://brooklynian.com/forum/ in alot of places still yes, like in area where my parents are. still dirty cheap and fairly middle/working class but asian/russian/Bangladeshi/other immigrant their version of gentrification :p. besides the old jews and italians in the area. http://brooklynian.com/forum/the-lounge-random-stuff/is-brooklyn-really-that-much-cheaper-than-manhattan#post-661458 Fri, 01 Jan 2010 14:02:14 +0000 richmintz 661458@http://brooklynian.com/forum/ <p class="post-subject"><span class="post-subject-header">Subject:</span> I made the move</p>After 2 happy years in Boerum Hill, I moved into Manhattan's Financial District earlier this year. I pay significantly more ($100s/mo), but I have a VASTLY better apartment in a much better class of building in a convenient neighborhood -- and I have more space and a better floorplan, and I'm closer to a better grocery and services and right on top of a subway station. (I am not in &quot;new construction,&quot; I'm in a well-renovated older building.) I even have a washer-dryer in my unit, which I had given up hope of ever having again when I moved to New York.<p></p> <p></p> For the same money I was paying in Brooklyn, I could easily have found an apartment here in the Financial District, probably with somewhat less space, but otherwise with many of the improvements and amenities I now have.<p></p> <p></p> I liked my Brooklyn neighborhood fine and I wasn't planning to move. The neighborhood amenities were okay, and it was very convenient to work near Union Square (2 stops on the express from Atlantic Avenue). The main reason I started looking is that when I asked my Brooklyn landlord for a slight rent reduction at my renewal date (commensurate with what I could clearly see going on in the market all around me), he wouldn't return my calls, and it irked me.<p></p> <p></p> When I did start looking, it became obvious that not only were rents competitive with Brooklyn in certain Manhattan neighborhoods, but the Manhattan landlords were much more willing to deal. I used a broker (although I found this apartment myself, by diligent use of Craigslist and brokerage Web sites over a period of weeks), and the broker's fee was paid by my new landlord. I also got a month's free rent (which shows up as a 13-month rent reduction) and a lease end date chosen for my convenience.<p></p> <p></p> For what it's worth, my Brooklyn place was re-rented within a month, I believe for around the same rent I was paying (which was no longer a bargain by the time I moved out). This leads me to think that the market is indeed a bit softer in Manhattan at the moment.<p></p> <p></p> So: if you're considering it, especially if you have a bit of flexibility in how much you pay, I'd say definitely expand your search to Manhattan. I was very happy in Brooklyn and there are many things I miss about it, but in a different way I'm also happy in my new place and it's clear it was a good move for me. There's nothing special about me, I have no &quot;connections,&quot; just common sense and intelligence, and I found a new place I'm very happy with, at a price I am comfortable paying.<p></p> <p></p> One final note: I socialize more in the evenings now, and am much more likely to go home after work and then go out again, even though the actual trip time from home to work is about the same as before. I didn't realize how much of a psychological barrier the river crossing was until I no longer had it to contend with. http://brooklynian.com/forum/the-lounge-random-stuff/is-brooklyn-really-that-much-cheaper-than-manhattan#post-661448 Fri, 01 Jan 2010 13:14:14 +0000 Ishtar 661448@http://brooklynian.com/forum/ <blockquote><cite>jeffrey&nbsp;&raquo;&nbsp;</cite>[quote="neo-social"]Also, do you want to have a faster commute to work. Or would you like to save funds to buy a home someday.</blockquote><p></p> <p></p> If a person works downtown (say...below or up to the 14th Street / Union Square area), it's worth noting that living in Brooklyn may be *both* faster commute to work *and* less expensive / more space if one is comparing living in Brooklyn against Upper East Side, Upper West Side, Harlem etc.[/quote]<p></p> <p></p> I work in Midtown East in the 50s. My coworkers living on the UES have a slightly shorther commute than I do by about 10 minutes because of their transport issues on that side of town. They also spend MORE than I do on taxis and more time in general traveling to the parts of Manhattan frequented by our demographic.<p></p> <p></p> Besides work, Brooklyn makes sense for someone like me who rarely travels above 14th St outside of work. <p></p> <p></p> I don't buy that argument that moving to the city saves you money in transport unless you're the provencial type who doesn't leave the 10 blocks surrounding your pad. http://brooklynian.com/forum/the-lounge-random-stuff/is-brooklyn-really-that-much-cheaper-than-manhattan#post-661434 Fri, 01 Jan 2010 12:31:52 +0000 jeffrey 661434@http://brooklynian.com/forum/ <blockquote><cite>neo-social&nbsp;&raquo;&nbsp;</cite>Also, do you want to have a faster commute to work. Or would you like to save funds to buy a home someday.</blockquote><p></p> <p></p> If a person works downtown (say...below or up to the 14th Street / Union Square area), it's worth noting that living in Brooklyn may be *both* faster commute to work *and* less expensive / more space if one is comparing living in Brooklyn against Upper East Side, Upper West Side, Harlem etc. http://brooklynian.com/forum/the-lounge-random-stuff/is-brooklyn-really-that-much-cheaper-than-manhattan#post-661427 Fri, 01 Jan 2010 12:09:33 +0000 neo-social 661427@http://brooklynian.com/forum/ it is a lifestyle decision. I can bet that the spaces are smaller in the city than BK. Also, do you want to have a faster commute to work. Or would you like to save funds to buy a home someday. Do you plan to have children some day? The question is bigger than the price. Some people have moved to BK and just love the space. Have you lived in FT green or Clinton hill. The boutique shops are everywhere. I went to a fancy pizza spot in BED STUY. I thought I was in Europe somewhere. This city is crazy. I have lived in all parts of the city and I guess I prefer Brooklyn. It is just so diverse. http://brooklynian.com/forum/the-lounge-random-stuff/is-brooklyn-really-that-much-cheaper-than-manhattan#post-661274 Thu, 31 Dec 2009 14:10:22 +0000 Cool The Kid 661274@http://brooklynian.com/forum/ <blockquote><cite>hunter.gatherer&nbsp;&raquo;&nbsp;</cite>Please, please, please. It would make me so happy if everyone who didn't want to live in Brooklyn, and only moved to New York because of the &quot;if you can make it here&quot; bullshit, simply packed up and left. Manhattan, Canada, Idaho; I have as much chance of bumping into you in any of those places.</blockquote><p></p> <p></p> Get over yourself. You're no better than anyone else for wanting to stay in BK. And I have been in NYC since 84.<p></p> <p></p> Nobody in this thread has had anything bad to say about BK anyway. I don't get it. I work in Manhattan, so if I can get a place there for a little more money, the time (and Metrocard $$$) saved would be worth it for me. http://brooklynian.com/forum/the-lounge-random-stuff/is-brooklyn-really-that-much-cheaper-than-manhattan#post-661268 Thu, 31 Dec 2009 13:55:45 +0000 hunter.gatherer 661268@http://brooklynian.com/forum/ Please, please, please. It would make me so happy if everyone who didn't want to live in Brooklyn, and only moved to New York because of the &quot;if you can make it here&quot; bullshit, simply packed up and left. Manhattan, Canada, Idaho; I have as much chance of bumping into you in any of those places. http://brooklynian.com/forum/the-lounge-random-stuff/is-brooklyn-really-that-much-cheaper-than-manhattan#post-661260 Thu, 31 Dec 2009 12:45:55 +0000 Ishtar 661260@http://brooklynian.com/forum/ <blockquote><cite>Cool The Kid&nbsp;&raquo;&nbsp;</cite>[quote="pitu"]For a few years now there's been comparable places cheaper on the upper east side, but who would want to live there?</blockquote><p></p> <p></p> Other than having to take the 6 train, what's so bad about it? Everything under 96th st seems pretty peaceful.<p></p> <p></p> And there are quite a few flex 1 BRs in Battery Park/Wall St area with square footage comparable to my (relatively huge IMO) brownstone 1BR in Crown Heights, for only about $300-500 more. I guess that is kind of a big diff, but a new building w/no mice, city views, and walking distance to like 12 trains, seems worth it.<p></p> <p></p> I mean I'm used to CH now, but I was just looking and was surprised by what a little more $$$ could get across the river.[/quote]<p></p> <p></p> This is exactly why I would move if my apartment weren't rent stabilized. http://brooklynian.com/forum/the-lounge-random-stuff/is-brooklyn-really-that-much-cheaper-than-manhattan#post-661248 Thu, 31 Dec 2009 11:28:18 +0000 Cool The Kid 661248@http://brooklynian.com/forum/ <blockquote><cite>pitu&nbsp;&raquo;&nbsp;</cite>For a few years now there's been comparable places cheaper on the upper east side, but who would want to live there?</blockquote><p></p> <p></p> Other than having to take the 6 train, what's so bad about it? Everything under 96th st seems pretty peaceful.<p></p> <p></p> And there are quite a few flex 1 BRs in Battery Park/Wall St area with square footage comparable to my (relatively huge IMO) brownstone 1BR in Crown Heights, for only about $300-500 more. I guess that is kind of a big diff, but a new building w/no mice, city views, and walking distance to like 12 trains, seems worth it.<p></p> <p></p> I mean I'm used to CH now, but I was just looking and was surprised by what a little more $$$ could get across the river. http://brooklynian.com/forum/the-lounge-random-stuff/is-brooklyn-really-that-much-cheaper-than-manhattan#post-661240 Thu, 31 Dec 2009 10:49:32 +0000 Boygabriel 661240@http://brooklynian.com/forum/ Prices are equalizing more, but the same money still gets you a much bigger space in Brooklyn. http://brooklynian.com/forum/the-lounge-random-stuff/is-brooklyn-really-that-much-cheaper-than-manhattan#post-661235 Thu, 31 Dec 2009 10:23:54 +0000 BrooklynJack 661235@http://brooklynian.com/forum/ <blockquote><cite>pitu&nbsp;&raquo;&nbsp;</cite>For a few years now there's been comparable places cheaper on the upper east side, but who would want to live there?</blockquote><p></p> <p></p> I don't know. We liked living there. We lived in Yorkville, 86th and 1st, for years before moving to Windsor Terrace. Very convenient neighborhood and close to Carl Schroers park http://brooklynian.com/forum/the-lounge-random-stuff/is-brooklyn-really-that-much-cheaper-than-manhattan#post-661215 Thu, 31 Dec 2009 09:02:21 +0000 pitu 661215@http://brooklynian.com/forum/ For a few years now there's been comparable places cheaper on the upper east side, but who would want to live there? http://brooklynian.com/forum/the-lounge-random-stuff/is-brooklyn-really-that-much-cheaper-than-manhattan#post-661208 Thu, 31 Dec 2009 08:41:45 +0000 Cool The Kid 661208@http://brooklynian.com/forum/ I don't know if it's just the shit market, but I have been seeing a lot of places in Manhattan (south of 125th St!) that go for not much more than comparable places in close + safe Brooklyn neighborhoods. Has anyone made the move back? I know about 3-4 people who moved to Manhattan from BK w/o any significant increases in pay or anything.