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One of the most difficult parts of living in New York is actually moving here, both because of the difficulty in finding NYC apartments for rent and the notoriously high price tags that come with living in the city or one of the five boroughs. Fear not, there are always neighborhoods with great deals, new housing stock being constructed year after year, and an expansive public transportation system that serves well over a million commuters per day.
Many people say New York is the greatest…
One of the most difficult parts of living in New York is actually moving here, both because of the difficulty in finding NYC apartments for rent and the notoriously high price tags that come with living in the city or one of the five boroughs. Fear not, there are always neighborhoods with great deals, new housing stock being constructed year after year, and an expansive public transportation system that serves well over a million commuters per day.
Many people say New York is the greatest city in the country and many others say that Brooklyn is the greatest borough. For gourmet dining and innovative art shows, or if you’re looking for a quieter (and a bit cheaper) but still bustling alternative to Manhattan Brooklyn is the place to be.
Brooklyn is a big city in its own right. Kings County is the 2nd most densely populated county in the United States, and if Brooklyn were its own city, it would be the third largest by population. Brooklyn’s neighborhoods are diverse and dynamic, from stately townhomes in Park Slope to luxury condos in DUMBO, to pre-war railroads in Bedford Stuyvesant or to housing projects in up-and-coming East New York, the borough, at 70 square miles, has its own downtown, a beach and a ferris wheel, a botanical garden, and its own sprawling parks. Brooklyn’s neighborhoods (like most in the metropolitan area) are in constant churn and the ethnicities of different neighborhoods are constantly changing. The economic and rental landscapes are complicated. Over the last twenty years, the borough has been gentrifying rapidly, with some neighborhoods (Williamsburg and Greenpoint) seeing rental increases as high as 78% since 1990. In other neighborhoods, those changes are still in flux.
Brooklyn is known for its character. As Manhattan becomes more and more a borough exclusively for the wealthy and its character gets stripped away, young artists and performers have been moving to the outer boroughs, and Brooklyn, for the most part has been their home. Brooklyn has retained its bookstores, and opened new ones in the past 10 years, cafes and bars and restaurants are opening every week, and there is a culture of art and creation. While Brooklyn can be an oasis from the noise and intensity of Manhattan, many of its residents can’t avoid the city forever. 70% of people who live outside of Manhattan in NYC commute daily into Manhattan.
Many parts of Brooklyn are quickly becoming unaffordable for their original residents and their gentrifiers. So expect to see lots of change in the coming months and years.
The public transportation system of New York City is expansive and reliable. The services extend to Brooklyn and operate 24/7, and the subways supply access to most of Brooklyn’s vast neighborhoods. Driving and parking is generally considered to be easier in Brooklyn, as there are more parking spots, and likely also because there are fewer reckless cabs. This is a plus and a minus, however, because depending on the neighborhood you’re in, hailing a cab may be difficult. However, Uber is widely used in parts of Brooklyn, and local car services serve a majority of Brooklynites.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg's decade in office saw a dramatic increase in NYC support for bikers. Brooklyn has seen countless new miles of bike lanes over the last few years. That, as well as the expansion of Citibike to Brooklyn, creates a comfortable and speedy biking experience throughout Brooklyn. And while biking alongside seemingly reckless cab drivers, aggressive bus drivers, and blind-spot laden delivery trucks is not for everyone, a bike during rush hour traffic can often be faster than any other mode of transportation, especially when there is no direct subway line to your destination.
While not as expensive as Manhattan, Brooklyn’s no bargain either. In 2010 Brooklyn’s composite cost of living (based on annual data) was 81.7% higher than the average US urban area. Also in 2010 the Brooklyn cost of housing was a healthy 101% higher than the average US urban area.
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0.18 mi - Flatbush Av-Brooklyn College (Flatbush Ave and Nostrand Ave)
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0.66 mi - Newkirk Av (Newkirk Ave and Marlborough Rd)
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1.44 mi - 18th Av (18th Ave and McDonald Ave)
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