OT: MGoRelo to NYC/Brooklyn

mods?

Williamsburg is a really cool neighborhood, but also the hipster capitol of the world. Not for everyone.

Worked for Jigga

To be totally honest if you can stay with someone for a little bit (and if you went to Michigan and you have friends, some of them are in NYC), I would check these places out for yourself. As an earlier poster said, places like Williamsburg are cool for people who like that kind of place, but they absolutely are not for everyone.

That said, Williamsburg is very convenient to Manhattan, has a lot of recently upgraded housing, good restaurants (Peter Luger's, anyone?), interesting bars.  Bedford Avenue is interesting.  And the hipster thing is true.

If you can afford it, I'd stay out of Bed-Stuy, its cheaper, but it's a kinda dangerous area. Another area not mentioned on your list, is Astoria Queens. Like Park Slope and Williamsburg in Brooklyn, Astoria has become a young neighborhood over the past decade, and like the other two, it's a very short train ride from Manhattan.

but, as with most neighborhoods, as they get more expensive/gentrified, the adjoining neighborhoods get better, and then in turn more expensive and gentrified.  Choice may also depend on if you're a single male, single female, family, what your work schedule is (i.e., if you're going to have to walk distances from the subway in the dark).  Some neighborhoods may look "adventurous" but are well-populated enough to feel safe coming home at night.  And in NY, it's often block by block.  I have friends in old neighborhoods in Queens that are inexpensive but possibly not too exciting (probably inexpensive and not too exciting because they inherited rent-controlled apartments from grandmothers), but Queens has become a haven for inexpensive ethnic dining. 

But congrats on your new job.  It's a great city with neighborhoods to please everybody, and you get really spoiled by the food options.  [But you may miss your Chicken Vesuvio.]

Sorry, gotta go.  Lights back on in Giants Stadium in time for me to see Manningham make a TD.

I live on the upper east side of Manhattan. You can get some decent deals up here but there is a huge space deficit. You may also want to look into Brooklyn Heights. It's an expensive neighborhood but you can get some nice deals from Craigslist.

Carroll Gardens/Cobble Hill has better bars and restaurants than Park Slope, prices are about the same (expensive), and it's 10-15 minutes closer to Manhattan on the F. Doesn't sound like much, but it adds up, especially if you end up coming home late/having to pay for taxi and car service. They're both pretty yuppie family oriented, but CG/Cobble Hill feels less stodgy than Park Slope IMO (and I've lived in both). The subway is a nightmare for each neighborhood on the weekend (track work can leave you taxi dependent).

Fort Greene's also great and a bit cheaper than those neighborhoods (a bit), and offers relatively easy transfers to the F either at Jay (C) or Broadway/Lafayette (B/D) but avoid anything that will leave you dependent on the G at all costs. Even the C is going to be frustrating, but if you have to rely on the G, you'll go out of your mind.

I live in park slope and I recommend it, but it's on the pricier side.  You can get many of the benefits of park slope for cheaper by living across Flatbush avenue in Prospect Heights.  Fort Greene is also quite nice, but isn't as close to Prospect Park, which was a huge draw for me.  Pretty much anything north of Prospect park is good:  Carrol Gardens, Cobble Hill, etc.

It's worth trying to avoid paying a broker's fee, but I wouldn't rule it out outright. If you do that, you're immediately limiting the number of places you'll be able to see, especially in the more gentrified neighborhoods of BK. In my experience, if you are in a hurry (and it sounds like you are) you're likely going to end up paying a broker, just because they have access to so many more apartments. It's an awful system that exists nowhere else that I know of, but it is what it is.

Many employers will cover a broker's fee as part of a job change, it's at least work asking your new employer. If it's a larger employer (corporate law, Wall Street), they may actually expect to pay it as part of your relocation package. At any rate, it's better long term to find an apartment you're happy with (especially since you're moving in with your fiance) than to settle for an apartment that you like less but is not brokered. After all, the longer you stay in the apartment, the more you offset the broker's fee.

Broker's fees are also negotiable. You should never pay more than 12%.

 FYI - there was another thread like this within the past year giving advise on bklyn neighborhoods.  Use the search function on this site and that should assist. 

Brooklyn is cool though.  You'll like it. 

This site is a community, and it was properly labeled OT, it would be kind of douchey to drop the D bomb.

Love Brooklyn Heights, lived at Atlantic and Henry for a couple of years, easy to get to the subways, close walk to the water. Just love it. Live in Westchester County now and love it, but it's no Brooklyn Heights...

I can't recommend highly enough-- try to get a sublet for a month or two, or even a couple weeks.  That way, you can spend a week or two walking through neighborhoods and getting a feel for what you like and what you could live with.  It's not just about the name of the neighborhood because there are some shitty streets in just about every area listed above, including Park Slope (the definition of Park Slope keeps widening).  Bring paper and a pen and write down streets that you'd find  desirable.  

Then you can spend another week or so looking at listings and you'll actually have an idea if the apartment is near things you like.  You'll be an educated buyer and will avoid getting taken advantage of.

I lived in Brooklyn Heights and Park Slope and got lucky both times in finding a place that was under price for the area.  But a big part of it was walking around and making lots of calls.  

At the time (2002-2005) , I'd get a copy of the Village Voice (in front of the Village Voice headquarters in Greenwich Village) on Tuesday nights before it officially came out on Wednesday.  I'd make calls to all the desirable places in my price range on Tuesday nights, mostly leaving messages.  That way, the broker or landlord would call me first thing on Wednesday before anyone else and I'd get first viewing of a good deal.  That may all be moot now due to the expanded use of the Internet but it worked then.

Good luck.  I LOVE Brooklyn and miss it like crazy.  It may take a year to really appreciate it because you will be spending lots of money for very little space.  But there's SO much going on and you can get to it all on the subway.

P.S.  The best burger in the world BY FAR is the panini burger at Bar Toto on 6th Ave and 11th street in Park Slope.  Not near anything else, but worth walking to.  I still dream of it.

I recently moved from midtown (east 40s) to the Financial District. I looked extensively at Brooklyn, and while Brooklyn has a lot going for it, you don't save any money on rent.  None whatsoever (for comparable buildings).  If you're going to be working in Manhattan, you're better off finding an apartment in a low-cost Manhattan neighborhood and saving yourself the commute.