Grad student @ NYU looking for safe housing in Brooklyn-- Need New Yorkers' help! (Bedford: apartments)

[chriss714]

I am soliciting the help of New Yorkers that know where the best areas in Brooklyn are for a fast, safe commute to NYU.

I've read that Prospect Park is probably one of the best places to live in Brooklyn but I'm not sure I can quite afford the rent.

Does anyone have any recommendations that are also safe near Prospect Park or close to the metro lines?

Also, I have a car that I will need an area that is safe to park (without paying for parking garages) but will not use this for commute.

Thanks!

[SeventhFloor]

First, why are you limiting yourself to Brooklyn?
Second, how can you afford in rent?
Third, the car will be an issue, because we have alternate side of the street parking. Certain sides of the streets cannot be parked on at certain times so that they can be cleaned.

[Henna]

Prospect Park is surrounded by these neighborhoods: Windsor Terrace, Park Slope, Prospect Heights, Crown Heights, Prospect Lefferts Gardens, and Prospect Park South.
You can see that from this map City of Neighborhoods - New York City Department of City Planning

It's an official nyc map from the gov't but I really think they are wrong by showing that Crown Heights does not border the park. It does, and it north of Prospect Lefferts Gardens and south of Prospect Heights.

Anyway, the "good" neighborhoods near the park are Park Slope and Windsor Terrace. Kensington is nearby as well and also nice. Prospect Heights is hip and also sort of expensive but IMHO is not safe enough to merit having those prices. Crown Heights is not a nice place to live (my opinion only). Lefferts Gardens and Prospect Park South are considered sketchy by some and have the low-ish rents to match but plenty of people live there successfully and safely.

Having said all that, I actually think you are going at this all wrong - which I think may be what seventhfloor was getting at.

First, you determine what your price range is for monthly rent. Will you consider roommates? This will help if you are on a budget. Remember to factor in utilities. THEN and only then do you move on to figuring out what neighborhood is best for you.

And if you are truly on a budget, you may want to expand your search to areas of Brooklyn that are not near the park, and also to other boroughs such as Queens, which tend to be cheaper.

[Henna]

I want to add that parking for your car should NOT be an after-thought. Almost all areas where you will be looking for apartments have alternate side parking. If you want a place to park outside your place without paying for parking and without having to consider moving it all the time at specific times for street cleaning, then you will end up living somewhere like Middle Village Queens. And you will not be near a subway. That's the way it goes.

[SeventhFloor]

Henna, actually Crown Heights does not touch the park. Crown Heights ends at Franklin Avenue. After Franklin Avenue, the neighborhood is Prospect Heights north of Eastern Parkway, and Prospect-Lefferts Gardens south of Eastern Parkway. :-)

[Henna]

Originally Posted by SeventhFloor

Henna, actually Crown Heights does not touch the park. Crown Heights ends at Franklin Avenue. After Franklin Avenue, the neighborhood is Prospect Heights north of Eastern Parkway, and Prospect-Lefferts Gardens south of Eastern Parkway. :-)

Yes, I know that's the official story on the nyc.gov website, but a location such as Crown St. between Bedford Ave and Washington Ave (for instance) -- and this is north of Empire Blvd -- is widely thought of to be Crown Heights. I'm not the only one who thinks this way.

Here's an article saying that north of Empire Blvd. is Crown Heights.
village voice > nyclife > Neighborhoods: Close-Up on Crown Heights by Carol Telpha

Also, the website of Crown Heights North Association also states the same thing About Us (http://www.crownheightsnorth.com/About_Us_1.html - broken link)
"Based on a survey conducted by the Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1978, the team delineated Crown Heights as being the section bound on the north by Atlantic Avenue, on the south by Empire Boulevard, on the southeast by East New York Avenue and on the west by Washington Avenue."