Hey guys, I wasn't sure what to do after I got my acceptance letter to NYU for grad school. I'm a small town white boy from TX, and my wife and I are kind of apprehensive about moving to NY. Fortunately, I was able to defer my admission for a year so that we could prepare for the big move. I know that this isn't really thirdgen related (I probably won't even bring my car.), but I need some advice.

Where to begin... I guess I need to know how I go about finding a place to live. Where should I look? Where should I stay away from? Where's the best place to look for work? Do you have any general advice to give someone like me as far as just surviving NY? I've never even been for a visit, so I have no idea what it's like. Sorry I'm so vague here, but I'm partially excited, and partly just lost. Any advice appreciated! Thanks!

 

Congratulations on your acceptance to NYU!

You have an excellent opportunity ahead of you.
Don't let the big city have an impact on your decision.

Use this next year to plan a visit or two to NY. I would imagine NYU will have some type of on-campus interview etc., and you will want to see the campus.

Since you are deferred for a year, see if NYU can put you on a list for NYU Housing. I am not familiar with the different campuses, but I have a friend who is recently married and lives in one of the NYU Housing complexes, which is also much cheaper than living off-campus.

If you are seriously considering NYU, the university should be able to provide you with some assistance (apartment information, maps, etc.) Call them!

As far as keeping your 91RS. Keep it if you can. I would.
Where you live will ultimately determine whether or not a car will be practical or not. Living in Manhattan and having a vehicle could be tough on your car and your wallet. You will have to put up with a lot of traffic and pay a monthly parking garage fee. $$$

I'm from NY, but have never lived in Manhattan. From Long Island, now live on Staten Island. Luckily for me, my wife has a car which we use to get around with (Firebird isn't going anywhere anyway). I work in Manhattan and commute by bus. No way I would drive to work.

The point is: You don't necessarily have to live in Manhattan to attend NYU. You could also use public transportation to get you there. Perhaps live somewhere outside the city (i.e. New Jersey).
This may be a better fit if you don't feel you and your wife are ready to handle big city life. You will also have an easier time keeping your 91RS!

Despite all that has happened to us here, NY is an exciting place to be. NY is not for everyone, but you should give it a try. What you decide for yourself after NYU is another story. Just focus on the opportunity at hand and keep your RS!

Hope this helps.
Feel free to ask any questions.

 

Hey, thanks for all the great advice. I might be wrong, but last time I checked, NYU didn't offer married housing for students who are married to non-students (don't know why). How long does it take you to get to work from where you live? Is the bus system pretty good (reliable, fairly inexpensive, safe)? Yeah, if we live in Manhattan, we will definitely not bring any cars because of the expense, which I'm not sure how I will handle that because I haven't been without a car since I was 16. Don't worry! I'll keep my car safe at my parents' house in central TX. Maybe I will be able to visit it during the summer or they can send me pictures of it every once in a while ! I'm sure it will be ok for a couple of years, though. I've also thought about NJ, but not sure if that would be better or not. Lots to think about. Thanks again, and I hope I meet more people who are as helpful as you!

James

 

Congrats on your acceptance!

I'm going to leave this up.

Please provide any relevant information that may be useful

 

If you plan on living out side of the city try and stay away from the New Jersey side of the hudson river, ie: fort lee, edgewater, hoboken, jersey city expecially, and wehawken, and oh yea west new york. west new york is cheap to live in but sucks and is pretty bad area. the other are way to damn expensive. for a 2 bed room you would be lucky if you can find a place for under $1,200. I have been looking for a place to live and have found some good deals in my area. Garfield, lodi, wallington, and that area of bergen county. a 1 bedroom goes for about $700 is the average. and the area is nice. All mass transportation is really good pretty cheap you can get a month pass for the bus for i think $60. I live in garfield and might be going abck to the city a block away from ground zero really soon, I am working for the bank of new york in the stock trasnfer dept now. The job market is comming back slowly in this area, but should really get better real soon. when you come to the area let me know I will keep my ears and eyes open for ya on a job and maybe some places to live. Hope that helps some for ya. Just don't be scared of the major change from where you live I went through it when i moved from the poconos in the middle of no where to the city life. it is a little scarry at first but there are plenty of people that would help ya trust me.

 

I really don't have a clue about NJ so I can't add to twiztidz28.

You will have to look into the NYU Housing thing further, but you may be right. My friend's wife is a full-time student and he is a night student. That could explain the arrangement.

The express bus service from Staten Island is pretty reliable, a little over an hour from home to work. The fare is $3.00 each way and the buses are clean and safe. I use an unlimited ride card (Metrocard) which lasts for one month and gives you unlimited access to all city buses and subways for that period. Cost: $120.
This is pretty much the normal monthly commuter expense in my area. I admit it is not the easiest commute into Manhattan compared to other areas, but it could be an option for you.

In my opinion, you will definately need a car if you plan on living in Staten Island. Rent on Staten Island can vary greatly just like anywhere else. I think your first step should be to figure out how much time you really want to spend going to and from NYU/work. From there we can determine which areas are too far and which are a better match for your needs.

It's all about the commute. It will have a major impact on your day. You don't want to be on a train or bus for 4-5 hours of your day, which is very common for many.
I know this is a lot all at once, but you still have some time - so don't worry.

Hope I answered your questions.

 

Wow! Thanks, guys! This is really helpful. I don't want to spend too much time communting, so I'd like to live as close to the school as possible; however, from what you're telling me, (and from what I've found out on my own), that may be too expensive. So stay away from the NJ side of the Hudson... Ok, that helps. I hope I can remember all this when the time comes. I will definitely be contacting you for a job. Are the usual places (newspaper, internet, etc.), the best places to look for employment? Thanks also to the moderator for keeping this thread open. I didn't really have anywhere else to go for advice!

James

 

You can move to nj just not right by the river. It is way to expensive. and not the nicest places to live in that are cheap. For me to comute to the City downtown where NYU is would take me about a hour and a half with the bus that is under $4 and the train which is a buck 50 if I remember. It isnt that bad and would save you the trouble of driving into the city. What are you looking to do as job wise. There are at least 7 malls within a 20 mile area if you want to work in that position. Otherwise there is always work in the city. What are you looking to do? there are so many places to find a job. I live in one of the most heavly populated area in the country so there are plenty of jobs. I am actually looking for a part time so I got more play money for goodies on my car. Or for comuting you could always drive to hoboken and take the path but then you have to pay to park. there are plenty of options. and endless amounts of opritunity you jsut have to want it and not give up. I almost quit this job where i am now last year before they hired me from my agency. they first said 3 months but it took a year. and now I am making double of what I was making last year because I waited. and will be making another 50-60% more next year the longest a year and a half after I trasnfer departments. Just dont get disgurntled of school and work and living in a city enviornment. any other questions let us know and if i can't help someone sure can.

 

I'm not from the area, but I'm glad that you have been able to get some helpful information.

Thanks for helping JRoy out, guys.

JRoy, I'm going to expand on this a bit. It's perfectly fine by me to ask for advice here on the regional board, because we're here to give advice.

Also, this will benefit you because you'll find guys in your area who are also fellow thirdgen enthusiasts. Also, though you may not be able to bring your thirdgen with you, I'm sure you'd still be welcome to hang out with the guys from your area if they had cruises and/or gatherings.

If you're looking for a job at one point, the newspaper can be very helpful. That's how I found my current job.

 

Thanks robertg! Any job in advertising, finance, technical writing, entertainment industry, broadcasting, etc., etc. I'm up for just about anything. My degree is in English and Philosophy with a minor in math. I will be getting my M.A. in Humanities and Social Thought at NYU. I've tutored math for the past 5 years or so, and just finished a stint with the IRS as a tax examiner. Ive got pretty good grades and good references. I may try the internet and newspapers (NY Times?), but it would be nice to have some contacts in the area.

700 a month really is much less than I expected for a 1 bdrm, but if I could get closer to school, I would be willing to pay more since the extra expense of living closer to Manhattan seems to be about the same as my transportation costs from outside the city. Do a lot of people ride bikes? That may be another option for me, although it's been years since my out-of-shape body has been on one .

 

People do ride bikes but if you don't live in the city there really is no point. From any where on the jersey side would be a pain in the rear. there are only 3 ways into the city, besides the staten island side and new york state side. The comute isnt really that bad from where I am a drive into the city takes about 20 minutes and you are down to times square which is like 43 st. and NYU is down over by SoHo area if I remember which is about 50-60 more blocks from there. I actually work for the Bank of New York in their stock transfer department. It is a good job and I get to go on here all day. But definatly keep in touch when the move gets closer.

 

Sounds like you allocated around $1,000 - $1,200 a month for rent and are willing to live in Manattan. This may not be what you had in mind, but let's work from here.

A friend of mine is paying around $1,200 a month for a pretty nice studio on the West side near 63rd Street. The building is less than 10 years old and has a door man. Some people prefer a "door man" building as opposed to a buzz-in door entry because there is always someone around 24/7 and they can accept and hold packages for you etc. This particular building has a gym and indoor swimming pool. I would imagine a 1 bedroom would be close to $1,400 in this building.

This is just to give you an idea what is out there, you would probably be better off finding a place closer to downtown. In my opinion, if you are going to live in Manhattan you should try to live as close to NYU as possible.

If you are considering this as an option, let me know. I can try to get you more specifics on areas and price comparisons.

 

Yeah, I guess about 1000-1200 is about what my wife and I had in mind. It seems as though it would be worth it to live within walking distance of NYU, so that one of us wouldn't have to pay for transportation costs. Of course, this is assuming that I will have a job within walking distance, too.

I heard about the "doorman" complexes, although I wasn't sure if we would be able to afford it. It sounds really nice, since we will probably only move with the bare essentials and have a lot of other stuff shipped to us a little bit at a time! I haven't really got an idea of what sort of salary we both would be able to make if we moved up there. Surely, they're somewhat higher than average or no-one could afford to live there. I'm kind of nervous. This is why I deferred admission for a year. No way we have the money to move up there now. I will revive this thread when moving time gets closer. Thanks again for all your help, and keep the advice coming!

 

Ah, you're sort of in the same boat as I.

When I moved from Alberta, Canada (after being raised there) I lived in NYC for a little while.
It was a complete 180*.
The city I came from was fairly large, as in over 3/4 of a million people, but nothing compared to The City.
I was used to big skys where you could see the horizon hundreds of miles away, and nothing but space. NYC is the exact opposite. I had trouble with not being able to simply stretch out. Restaurants are small, apartments are small, there's not a lot of room on the streets, etc, etc.

DON'T CALL 6th AVE THE "AVENUE OF THE AMERICAS", unless you want to look like a tourist. It's "6th Ave."

Don't bother with your car if you're living in Manhattan, even some of the relatively rich don't have cars. There's no such thing as free parking, and cars get dented at a rate of like once every 2 weeks. Take the subway, and walk. It's a little island.

And don't forget that NYC is one of the biggest cultural centers in the world. Take in things like the Metropolitan Museum of Art (or "The Met"), the Guggenheim, MOMA, the Museum of Natural History, and the little stuff too, which would take a year to list.

I left NYC wanting more. I think it's a great city, if you like being near the center of the action.

 

NTChrist, yes, that's one of the things I'm worried about. In TX, everything is big, and there is a lot of space. I'm used to being able to "stretch out" and travel. I'm also not used to having my car. That will be a big adjustment.

Where did you live? How much did it cost? Was it a good (safe) area?

James

 

There are plenty of nice parts of Brooklyn(dispite what some think)and there are many,many ways to get to the city from here.

Plus apartments are reasonable,parking is free(for the most part),and the people are gennerally nice(at least around me).

If your looking at any places in Brooklyn feel free to email me if I can be of help

Steve tta850@aol.com

 

It's 6th Ave, actually. Sorry, I'd never hear the end of it, if I called it that, and I figured that I would try to save you some of that irritation. Anyway you might want to try this question on this board: NYThirdgen They are all mostly from the NY area.

 

D'OH!

You're right!

I have to go hang my head in shame now...

5th Ave! Sheesh!

 

Congrats on going to NYU. My girlfriend is starting there in the fall. It's a good thing you're not dorming. They have student housing spread out all over the downtown area and none of it looks all that great. You might want to try looking someplace just outside the city, like the other 4 boroughs, westchester, or long island. Where I live is in lower westchester, and I'm a 5 minute walk from the train station, and it takes 15 minutes to get to grand central station. From there, NYU is a 5 minute ride on the 6 train. As far as your car, if you decide to live in manhattan, forget it. It's too much of a hassle. You can't park anywere except 24 hour garages, and they cost a fortune. If you live outside the city and take the train, you can keep your car, and not have to abuse it by commuting. Everyplace has their good and bad areas to live, so if you are considering a particular area, i.e. westchester, the bronx, NJ, etc., we can all point you towards a nice neighborhood. BTW, when you're in Manhattan, don't look up at all the buildings while you're walking around. Another thing that will mark you as a tourist.