A friend of mine just got a job in NYC. This is a very important opportunity for him.
One problem he’s facing is that his is a single-income family with two adults and four kids. (I know I’ve described my own family as such in the past, so just to be clear, this isn’t me–it really is a friend of mine! :D) And NYC is expensive.
I don’t want to say where exactly he’ll be working, but on google maps I’m seeing nearby several words I recognize, like Melrose and Harlem and Manhattan. I don’t know how important this info is as I figure commuting is the thing in a situation like this anyway.
I believe his income is going to be probably in the $60,000 to $70,000 range, though I am not sure. That is based on my general knowledge of his field, but I don’t know if it’s going to be higher because of the neighborhood. Let’s just assume that’s it unless I find out otherwise.
Well, where can a family of six live in a situation like this one?
Maximum payment: $2300/mo
Will be working in East Harlem
Wants to live in Brooklyn in a safe place with good schools
Found reasonable prices in Harlem and Washington Heights, but dismal schools
Does not mind long commute–will only be going into office 2 or 3 times a week.
It’s going to be tough. I’ll let more recent New Yorkers chime in with details. But, for some idea, my daughter shares a small two bedroom apartment in a bad part of Brooklyn (probably not the worst section though) with two other people. It’s a fourth floor walk up, and their are constant problems with the heat, the stove, and rats. They pay $1800 per month.
I’m sorry to say this, but your friend is going to have a tough time, if his income is going to be between sixty and seventy thousand dollars, and he’s got a wife and four kids to support on that.
Brooklyn might be impossible. The nicer neighborhoods, with good schools, in Brooklyn are going to be too expensive for him. He is not going to find a large enough apartment in his price range in Brooklyn Heights, or Park Slope, or Cobble Hill, or Carroll Gardens. Maybe, maybe out in Bay Ridge or Bensonhurst, but then he’d have a very long commute.
I’d recommend that he look in Queens, along the 7 train line or in Astoria (although Astoria is getting expensive).
Along the 7 line, he could look in Sunnyside, Woodside, Jackson Heights, Corona and Flushing. All nice enough neighborhoods, especially Sunnyside. And the commute to East Harlem would be way better than the commute from Brooklyn, anywhere in Brooklyn.
If your friend did not get a substantial raise to compensate for the move to a much more expensive area, he should re-think this. He’ll be working for people who are effectively offering him a pay cut, forcing his family to face poorer living conditions, education, and safety (not to mention higher taxes).
He might try to re-negotiate. But what kind of employer puts him in this situation?
How about living in Westchester or Fairfield county and taking the train in? But I agree that income is going to make it difficult. I hope he’s earning more than that.
I suggested Westchester or Fairfield because they’d be closer to Harlem and Metro-North has a stop in Harlem at 125th Street. But the OP does say that the friend won’t need to go into the office every day. So he might consider the northern ends of the Harlem or Hudson lines, in Dutchess County.
Another thing. With a family that size and that level of income, he might qualify for low-income or subsidized housing (although there are probably waiting lists).
I’d throw northern NJ into the mix. Generally better schools than any neighborhood they could afford in NYC plus it’s kind of pretty out there in a hilly and woodsy kind of way the further out they get. Of course that might not be what they’re going for. Not an easy commute though.
As previously stated, the best commute to E Harlem would be using Metro North to 125th st. or the Lexington avenue line (4,5,6). There might be some express bus options. Metro North would involve coming down from places in the Hudson Valley (east of the river) and places east into Connecticut. Certainly they could find an adequate place for $2300 a month up there.
In the city, $2300 a month can get a good 2 bedroom in Inwood (for instance). I’m assuming they’ll need more than 2 bedrooms though. Some apartments have nooks and crannies (for instance dressing rooms or unused dining rooms) that they can stick a bed in (most likely theirs) if they want to be creative and are so committed to living in NYC.
They’d have to be extremely wily and persistent to live in a lower income neighborhood (and Inwood is kind of at the upper end of lower income neighborhoods) and get their kids into a decent NYC public elementary school (that won’t be in the neighborhood) though. Middle and High school they can apply to schools outside their neighborhood but bad local elementary schools they’re pretty much stuck with otherwise.
The long and the short of it is landlords won’t consider you unless you make 40x the rent. So, op’s friend won’t get approved for an apartment with rent above 2,000 unless he gets a guarantor.
He wants a 3br for 2k or under in a neighborhood with good schools that’s also under an hour from east Harlem? Hahahahahah… And I want a pony.
I pay 2150 for a 2br in a cheap, inconvenient, unhip area of eastern queens.
Close to Manhattan fitting all the criteria would be pretty damn expensive. There is a reason why people commute all the way from PA. NJ ain’t cheap either.
I would suggest looking in the Bronx, in areas such as Pelham Bay, Throgs Neck, and Schuylerville. Maybe even City Island if he is only going in to the office twice a week. I think it’s possible to find something in that rent range, although he will really have to make a concerted search. These areas will be a pretty direct commute to East Harlem, easier than from Brooklyn. They are safe neighborhoods, there are good school options.
The OP didn’t mention if there was going to be a car involved. When you start moving out further into the suburbs a car will become essential particularly when speaking about NJ. Even if he moves close enough to public transportation going into Manhattan he will still need a car just for living. So that’s an added expense on top of any rent. Along with the highest car insurance rates in the country.
If someone wanted me to relocate my family to NYC for a job paying 60-70k I don’t know what my exact response would be but it would contain the phrase “Eat me.”
Your cost of living will be at least 15% higher in NYC than in most other metropolitan areas. Your friend needs to find out if this job is worth taking. If he lives out past the suburbs somewhere now he better count on spending at least 25% more. In NYC a family that has 60-70K income a year is poor.
I suggested moving to the northern suburbs and taking Metro-North to the 125th Street station, especially given that the friend will only need to come to the office two or three times a week. Housing should be cheaper that far from the city and he should be able to find a good suburban school district. But the train fare isn’t cheap. From the northernmost two or three stations, a monthly pass is about $500. But since he’s not commuting every day, he could just get a ten-ride pass, but that’s still about $250.
You can manage a lot on very little income in NYC, but this is basically a pipe dream. A safe neighborhood with good schools is almost impossible at that price point. My husband and I left NYC in 2013 because good schools and safe neighborhoods were basically impossible on our budget (which was about 30k higher than his budget, FWIW.)