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So I'm a senior in high school now and I plan to hopefully attend SVA next year as an incoming freshman in the fall. I'm not really into dorms and I know that's the whole "college experience" but I don't think they're for me. I like the idea of more privacy and being able to stay at a place during breaks if traveling back to home is too hard when some dorms close for holiday breaks.
So I was just wondering what are the safest and most affordable places? The max. price for rent would probably be $1400. I have already found a roommate to help split the cost but my friend from Sweden may also go to school here so that's 2 other people to help pay for rent! (Max price for rent would be higher, possibly 1800-2000?)
I've read that Park Slope (not Park Slope South), Brooklyn Heights, Prospect Heights and some places in Astoria are safe, is this true? I found an apartment for around $1300 in Park Slope and it seems like a good fit for me and my friend but it seems kind of cheap for Park Slope? (its a 1 br & a den) I've been thinking of Queens also since it's definitely cheaper than Brooklyn, any safe places?
My friend is going to attend either Pratt or Parsons and it's not positive but my friend from Sweden is looking at CUNY Brooklyn.
To rent in NYC you have to prove that you earn 40X your monthly rent each year. Perhaps your parents will sign for you?
Beware of advertisements on craigslist - a LOT of bait and switch.
And, as someone who did live in a dormitory in college, I will tell you that that's where you make friends you'll have the rest of your life, because common experiences, helping others who are having problems with a course, etc. help make relationships that last. I think you'd be missing a LOT.
OP... those areas you named are all fine. $1300 in Park Slope is probably too good to be true.. or really crappy.. or not in Park Slope. Are you saying you're looking to pay $1800-2000 for a two bedroom? You can do that in Park Slope (but it could be a little tough) or Astoria (easier). Not in Brooklyn Heights. Anything for that price in Prospect Heights is likely to be in the most seedy parts bordering actual Prospect Heights. You may want to check out Williamsburg. There will be more of an artistic community there, and it's also a younger, cooler vibe. The whole area around Bedford Avenue on the L train is very college-y. The only downside is it's far from Brooklyn College, but close to Pratt on the G train and easy to SVA (if it's in fact on East 23rd, as a cursory Google search leads me to believe).
To follow-up on Viral's post, be prepared to have your parents act as guarantors. If they're from out of state, that'll mean a lot of faxing tax documents and things for them to sign, probably at the last minute, because apartments don't last long in NYC.
The rooms there even have their own bathrooms! And it's in Gramercy, you'd be nuts to pass that up.
Agreed. I would suggest the dorms as well, since you can get the private single and feel as though you have your own place. I know what you're thinking, since I am not into communal living at all, myself, but there are some great positives to living around people in one's own age bracket, and in a good part of Manhattan. You could not come close to renting for the same amount in the immediate vicinity, and when your friends are having fun, you have to schlep to an outer borough on the subway.
The romanticized notion of the Greenwich Village apartment, or a chic loft that's reasonable for a group of college students is a myth perpetuated by movies and television. The reality will be akin to a less desired part of town, or a rotten apartment that's not managed well that will be inconvenient for school. Plus, if you want to stay over a summer, say for an internship, you can always get a sublet or a room to rent with roommates for your stay. That way, you have a good base in the dorms and can really get to know the city well before committing to living under less than ideal conditions for a year's lease.
$1400 does not go very far at all, especially not in a good neighborhood, and as others have said, it's either a bait-and-switch ad or there is something fundamentally wrong with the apartment. To get that price in a stabilized apartment, you are going to pay a hefty hefty broker's fee that they generally will not negotiate since the rent is below market. At market rent, there's still a broker's fee, unless you are dealing directly with a landlord. I would reconsider the dorms, since for your situation, the positives far outweigh the negatives (the realities of NYC's rental market).
So I'm a senior in high school now and I plan to hopefully attend SVA next year as an incoming freshman in the fall. I'm not really into dorms and I know that's the whole "college experience" but I don't think they're for me. I like the idea of more privacy and being able to stay at a place during breaks if traveling back to home is too hard when some dorms close for holiday breaks.
So I was just wondering what are the safest and most affordable places? The max. price for rent would probably be $1400. I have already found a roommate to help split the cost but my friend from Sweden may also go to school here so that's 2 other people to help pay for rent! (Max price for rent would be higher, possibly 1800-2000?)
I've read that Park Slope (not Park Slope South), Brooklyn Heights, Prospect Heights and some places in Astoria are safe, is this true? I found an apartment for around $1300 in Park Slope and it seems like a good fit for me and my friend but it seems kind of cheap for Park Slope? (its a 1 br & a den) I've been thinking of Queens also since it's definitely cheaper than Brooklyn, any safe places?
My friend is going to attend either Pratt or Parsons and it's not positive but my friend from Sweden is looking at CUNY Brooklyn.
Thanks so much!
I totally understand your aversion to living with strangers - even in a college dorm. I myself would rather eat sawdust than do that. I believe that you or you and your friends mentioned can find something decent in Astoria.
You'll still be able to get the classmate experience of a dorm in many respects. You'll be studying in the library with others, hanging in the cafeteria, attending college functions, becoming a member of an on-campus student organization where you'll enjoy being with classmates who share common interests and majors.
The suggestions given by other posters are also good ones. However, I have a feeling that you're like me and would much prefer live off campus even if you were able to do the on-campus single-room. Being on and off campus each has its own positives and negatives. You must choose what's best for you taking into account the various points of view and very good guidance from the other posters.
Also if you got housing in Astoria with the friends mentioned, you'll still duplicate the dorm experience to some degree, but have much more flexibility and a good change of scenery from the arduous lengthy hours you'll be spending on campus as a student.
Thanks so much, this is all helpful info There use to be a girl who went to my school that goes to School of Vis Arts and has been living in apartments. She use to live in Brooklyn Heights last year but i think it was in a dorm, but now lives on the lower east side and says she pays around $1400 a month or something like that. I was looking at some places in Astoria but heard it can get quite shady but is/has improving over time. I'm sure my parents will co-sign so I don't think that's a problem. My mom though, she feels that a dorm would be better just because I'm in a new place and for safety and security reasons, so I would live in GW Single if I had no other choice.
Yes, a 2BR apt for 1800-2000, but that's only if my friend from Sweden decides to go to CUNY Brooklyn. If he doesn't then it's back to the 1400 budget. I was actually hoping maybe going for 1500, I guess if we do find one in a good neighborhood and semi nice for that price then we'd have to discuss it.
dixiecupdrinking - My friend who attends SVA now mentioned Williamsburg and Bushwick.
"The L is really convenient to Lower Manhattan, and spans all of Williamsburg and Bushwick (which is getting progressively safer as time goes on). The most desireable subway stops to live off of are (in order), Bedford, Lorimer, Graham, Grand, Montrose. "
Last edited by Green Irish Eyes; 12-17-2008 at 07:17 PM..
Reason: No direct links to other real estate sites, please
Don't do Bushwick. It is getting better, but it can still be shady and it's not worth it. If your choice is a place in Bushwick versus the dorms, really, just do the dorms. I know plenty of people who live in Bushwick and are happy enough with it, but they're people who know the city better, and who have been through college. You don't want to move to a new city, be dealing with beginning undergrad, and also be in a relatively unsafe area. Of the "L" stops you mention, it should be Bedford, Lorimer, Graham, or bust; if you have to go past that, don't bother.
Astoria, however, is NOT SHADY. At all. That is bad intelligence, right there. one of the safest areas in the city.
I'm also a little unclear: are you talking about a one bedroom for $1400-1500, or a two-bedroom? Are you planning on possibly sharing a one-bedroom apartment with another person? 2BR for that price will be very tough. It could be a realistic price for a one-bedroom in some of the areas you mentioned.
What we're both looking for is anything really under 1400-1500 whether it is a 1br or 2br because me and my friend are ok with sharing in a 1br
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There use to be a girl who went to my school that goes to School of Vis Arts and has been living in apartments. She use to live in Brooklyn Heights last year but i think it was in a dorm, but now lives on the lower east side and says she pays around $1400 a month or something like that. I was looking at some places in Astoria but heard it can get quite shady but is/has improving over time. I'm sure my parents will co-sign so I don't think that's a problem. My mom though, she feels that a dorm would be better just because I'm in a new place and for safety and security reasons, so I would live in GW Single if I had no other choice. 
