KRNS

Just rec'd word from son who has accepted a job in Queens. We know nothing about that borough, but he is desperate for work. He pays under$1000/month currently ( in south central NJ), any ideas what rents are in Queens? Any unsake neighborhoods he should avoid? Most likely will have to share if $1000 is his budget, haven't heard back about his salary so possibly he can afford more than that.

Thanks for any info you can provide.

Karen

doug_stallings

This should really be in the lounge as it has nothing whatsoever to do with travel, but rents in Queens now are definitely above $1000. He's probably looking at around $1,500 for a one-bedroom depending on where he lives. Just beware that there are some really dicey areas in Queens. Rents around Jackson Heights (midway between Manhattan and Forest Hills) are usually among the best, as are rents in Astoria (which is not really accessible directly to other parts of Queens).

If he drives, that's a real consideration since parking is almost never included and not always easy to find in many parts of Queens, though Astoria has a lot of 2- or 3-family homes with driveways.

nytraveler

Agree that a basic one-bedroom in a decent neighborhood will run at least $1500 per month. Also - if he rents in an apartment house landlords typically want your income to be 40 times your rent. However, Queens has a lot of 2 family houses - for which rules may be differnt. But - these are often larger apartments and have all of the detriments of living on top of your landlord.

There are two potential issues in Queens:

There are a couple of neighborhoods that you do NOT want to live in (very high crime)

There are even more areas that are not really convenient to transit - esp if the job is in Queens too. For that he may well have to have a car - and parking can be a bear, since it's mostly street parking with few budget places having garages (at extra $) and hardly any parking lots.

Agree you should post this in the lounge. But please include the area he will be working in - so people can reco potential areas to live (Queens is large - and during rush hour it can take an hour or more to get from one end to the other - esp if not well served by public transit.

J62

Agree that the most important info is where is the job. He can also consider living in adjacent counties - Nassau county to the east, and Kings county (aka Brooklyn) to the west.

KRNS

Thanks so much for taking the time to respond. I'll post in the lounge as suggested. The job is in New Hyde Park which may be LI and he has a car to consider.

Thank you again.

Karen

sf7307

New Hyde Park is on Long Island but in Nassau County (close to the Queens border - Queens is also on Ling Island).

nytraveler

There is a lot of info on your post in the lounge. the areas mentioned here won;t work well for someone working in New Hyde park.

doug_stallings

New Hyde Park is on the Port Jefferson branch of the LIRR, so if your son wanted to live in Queens he'd probably want to choose Bayside, Floral Park, or maybe Elmont, which straddles the Queens, Nassau border.

nytraveler

Sorry - IMHO - if working in Nassau it makes much more sense to live in Nassau and avoid NYC taxes.

And which train station he uses depends on where n NYP the job is. On your other post someone mentioned Lake Success - which isn't really near any train station.

doug_stallings

I think the question here may not be taxes so much as proximity to the city. The son is younger and has friends in Manhattan, so he wants to be within easier travel to there. If his job were near the New Hyde Park LIRR station, he could live in Woodside if he didn't own a car.

I do agree, however, that if he owns a car and drives it often, he's probably better off in Nassau, where apartments usually come with a parking space and are cheaper.

nytraveler

Agree that the key is exactly where this job is. NHP takes is several different neighborhoods - some near train and quite a few not. My suspicion is that he will have to drive to get to work.