I am new to NYC and have been renting a room for the past month as I settle into my new job. I’ve now settled into my job and I want to now get an apartment of my own. I can afford about $1300 a month, and don’t care if it’s just a studio. My requirements are that the neighborhood has coffee shops and organic food stores. I work in Midtown, and would like to keep the commute within reason (less than an hour each way).
Are there any nice, laid-back, residential neighborhoods that anyone can suggest I begin apartment-hunting in?
I commute from Queens to midtown is pretty easy, and you can get something much nicer than a studio for $1300 a month in neighborhoods like Astoria, Long Island City, Jackson Heights or Flushing (but that’s pushing it commute-wise.)
If you want to live in Manhattan, the far-north neighborhoods like Inwood and Washington Heights are fairly cheap and close to the subways.
Forest Hills, Queens to Midtown is a quick easy commute. Austin Street around Continental Ave has everything you are looking for, including my favorite green grocer, Natural, featured prominently in the first Spiderman movie.
Bayridge is a great neighborhood and the commute to Mid-Town was around ½ hour by Subway.
Hoboken is still a nice Neighborhood just outside of NYC but connected by Path Train and Ferry. Probably better if you worked Downtown.
My brother’s apartment in Bayridge was under $1000 per month and a 1 bedroom with a nice view. He just moved out in February.
Bayridge has great restaurants, bars, Coffee-houses and Bakeries.
You’ll have to look for the organic food stores but I saw at least one on 3rd Avenue. I mainly looked at the Bakeries.
If you get FH near the 71st/Continental E/F station, it’s a very quick, express ride into Manhattan.
RP is a local ride on the V (or R). Usually more comfortable, as the trains aren’t as packed, but adds about 10-15 minutes to the commute.
Near Target / Queens Center Mall is actually Elmhurst. I think the dividing line is where the LIE crosses Queens Boulevard. The better part of RP is near where Sears is.
RP might give a bigger bang for the buck, tho. I live in FH and my friend is in RP; he’s got a similar place to mine - one bedroom - plus he has a balcony, for less. So with the OP’s limit of $1300, s/he could get a nice roomy 1 bedroom or junior 4, or save some cash with a studio in RP compared to FH. And hell, I take a local from 71st/Continental just to get a seat. My friend, however, transfers to an E/F at Roosevelt for the speed and gets to his job near Penn Sta. fairly quickly - under the hour specified.
The dividing line is muddled for sure - Queens Center is certainly Elmhurst, but aforementioned friend lives off of Woodhaven Blvd, south of the mall and west of Woodhaven, yet he’s in Rego Park. Go figure.
This is definitely true, I looked up that way last year, the prices are pretty good. Check out the NY Times online, they have a big real estate section and show dozens of studios in my old neighborhood (Upper East Side) for $1,300 or less. When you get up in the 80’s and 90’s, and towards York Ave, it’s pretty comfy and laid back, in comparison to Midtown, at least.
Inwood is positively sleepy in comparison, and I don’t know if they have the coffee shop/health food store thing going.
One can also look east of Forest Hills into Kew Gardens. In my apartment days, I was choosing between those two places. Both the E/F also stop at Union Turnpike, along Queens Blvd. KG is walking distance to the shopping area on Austin Street, but it is quieter.
