It seems like a lot of people say you either really love living in NYC or you really hate it. After more than a year here, I think I can safely say we love New York. I’ve been surprised at how doable it is with kids. Who knows if we’ll stay forever, but it is great for right now. My husband is loving his work and I’m having a great time. I do worry a teeny bit about my girls here though. They say they love it here, but they also talk a lot about wanting a dog and they reminisce about our backyard in Cambridge and in Delaware (they mostly miss the family of bunnies that lived in our backyard in Dover). Part of me thinks we should consider moving up to Connecticut or Westchester next year so the kids can have a more normal childhood, but I just can’t wrap my mind around adding a three hour commute to my husband’s already too-long work day.
Lately Brooklyn is feeling like a good in-between option. The commute to my husband’s downtown job would be super easy. And most Brooklyn neighborhoods feel a little quieter on the streets (more kid-friendly) and it’s easier to find a place with outdoor space. I keep telling Michael that we just need a cool 10 million so we can buy a townhouse in Brooklyn Heights. No big deal right?
Check out this one that’s available for (only!) $14 mill. What? Don’t you real estate stalk all the crazy expensive homes in your city?
This townhouse is HUGE for NYC (or anywhere I think) at 7,000 square feet. I want to marry that front door. Completely amazing.
The view’s not bad either.
CT is a great option and its hardly 3 hours we are in NEw Canaan the nicest if you ask me CT town the schools and the town are amazing and its only a 45 min ride in and I think worth every minute to live here.
As a former city dweller and now suburban, I love love love my home. The proximity to the city allows me to "zip" in when I get the urge. I love having a garden or plot of land. I love shoveling our driveway, making fires, and having city guests!
I hope you move near me and my neighborhood. :)
A girl can dream. Good luck with your decision.
pve
I am right there with you. I am always dreaming of taking over our entire Brownstone. It used to be just one lovely house instead of four apartments.
Fabulous house….doesn't hurt to dream!
You picked the perfect dream house. Of course, you would be the first person I would call if this house were mine!!
Looks amazing, those high ceilings!! I lived in an apartment for 12 years and live in a house now, and don´t think I would like to go back to an apartment! The joys of having a garden, space around you, especially when you have kids is priceless. But of course not always possible when living in a bigger city like NY. You have other pros of course.
Lovely home! We live in CT, and love it here. Of course my hubs works in Stamford so his commute is 40 minutes.
Um, WHY are these homeowners moving? ;)
Oh my goodness – what a dream home! I love how much charm it has! But I was a designer on a townhouse on the UES and running up and down all those stairs is exhausting!!! (just to make us feel not so bad we dont live there!)
xo Allison
Spicer + Bank
http://www.spicerandbank.blogspot.com
Dreaming of real estate is one of my worst time wasters! But someday when we're actually looking for a place it will all come in handy, right?
I love the purple room! I really don’t have much purple in my life, which is surprising, since it is such a beautiful and lively color. :)
I can totally see you and your family living there. My writing this post, you have already put the wheels in motion!
Print a photo of the home and place it on your inspiration board!
It's lovely! Funny, I just came across this one:
http://ny.curbed.com/archives/2011/10/17/brooklyns_most_valuable_townhouse_now_asking_75_million.php
Could be another option!
Come live next to us in CT! We have a lovely family of skunks that prowl around all summer, which is almost like rabbits?
It's beautiful! We were just up in Boston and I was pining for all the rowhomes with their beautiful architectural details. Someday!
Such an amazing house! I dream about buying and redoing my building (it's a house from 1880 that's been divided into two apartments) but this one has it beat hands down.
Dear heavens that is a gorgeous home!!!!!!!!
You should definitely look into Connecticut! I am from Darien and my parents live in New Canaan now. Its an hour by train and the school system is one of the best in the country. Not to mention quaint downtown, great parks, etc. I think its why I go home to visit so often!
Dreamy! And yes, I spend a disturbing amount of time real estate stalking very expensive real estate in NYC. It's not even healthy.
You know, I may be biased as a New Jerseyan, but often the commute to NYC is faster from parts of NJ than from Brooklyn or other parts of NY. Hoboken, Jersey City, and lots of suburbs that connect directly on the NJ Transit train lines…. Just sayin. :)
i remember when you were first moving back to NY (i read your blog daily) and i reco'd BKLN and I still do. It is literally the very best place to live! Much more green, slower pace & less congestion than NYC but a hop, skip and jump to the city for fun activities. We live in Cobble Hill and absolutely love it (borders Brooklyn Heights) but has a bit more to do than BH. I will happily provide a tour if interested.
What a great find! We totally stalk our local real estate listings too.
I love living in my "brownstone" in Charlestown. There is a lot of up and down the stairs, but it is a great workout:)! We call our living room on the entry level our "parlor", too!
Oh my goodness! How beautiful! I think you could really decorate that place nicely :). I real-estate stalk all the time and I'm nowhere near buying my first house. I considered being a realtor because of my stalking habits. Haha! xoxo
Champagne Lifestyle on a Beer Budget
the real estate prices are so crazy! you should check out williamsburg. it's a great area and is right across the brooklyn bridge.
Wonderful home! so fun to see it! I actually like the bright blue – it really pops!
xx-Gina
I've always dreamed of living in the Cosby house. What neighborhood was that? Maybe not Brooklyn, but the house was just up my alley!
Only 14 million! Crazy. I've never been to NY but my step dad went back to live with family for a while when he was younger and he talks about it sometimes. All the family would live in one building. Aunt so and so on one level, cousin on the other, etc. Sounds good and bad lol
Um… just. WOW. Totally gorgeous. I'm a real estate stalker as well. We live in my ideal neighborhood in Seattle now because the rent is doable, but to buy here is like at LEAST half a million for a run-down fixer-upper with no view. Better than 4 million, but there are those options too. A girl can dream, right?
Everyone has their opinion… but I would live in the city or brooklyn as long as I could stand it with the kids. It's just an experience that can't be replicated. When you are itching for some grass in the backyard, westchester is wonderful. I grew up there (im lds) and LOVED my childhood. Dad commuted to the city daily. 25 minutes by train and a 15 minute walk to the office. It was his time to read and work or unwind. Not as taxing a commute as driving!
Growing up in NYC – Manhattan, even – IS a normal childhood for kids who grow up there. I know that statement is a little "duh." It may not be what us suburban kids remember, but I think raising girls in the city is just as normal and fabulous as raising them in a ranch style single-level with a backyard. One's not better than the other. Just different.
oh. my. gosh. who do i have to marry to live there? hope they dont mind that i have a kid…and am already married…ill make it work! gorgeous!
Smoking Crayolas Blogspot
That is bananas!!
Gosh this place is amazing and yes, I love floor plans too. When I was little I used to beg my parents to buy me the architect magazines filled with renderings and I would spend hours and hours decorating these homes and imagining the families that lived there. Good stuff.
I have always wanted to try out city living, but with two dogs I just can't spare a yard. If I could afford this place I could just put in a dog park on the terrace, problem solved! I just love the high ceilings, flooring, and architectural details. Sleek, Modern furnishings would be a wonderful contrast to the traditional moldings and ceiling work. The possibilities are endless!!
That is a gorgeous home! I grew up in Brooklyn (Carroll Gardens) and we had a yard and a dog and a fairly normal childhood! CG is still pricy, but not as much so as Bklyn Heights, but it's still so close to Manhattan (15 minute subway to lower, about 30 min to midtown).
Though I live in Iowa now (yes, Iowa), i still like to look at ny real estate.
I will say that as for a church community in the city, it was great except that there were not many kids my age that stayed, so as me and my sibs got older there were very few other ym/yw.
I would stay in NYC or go to Brooklyn. The kids will remember the time they had with their father far more than being able to have a pet. As a fellow wife of a busy lawyer you cherish the time you get to have with him! ;)
I LOVE NYC. After 15 amazing years in Brooklyn, we sold our apartment and bought a beautiful 5 bedroom, 3 floor colonial built in 1924 in South Orange, NJ – 12 miles from the city for less than a one bedroom! Just sayin'. We love it here too.. 1/2 hour commute by the way.
Sweet mother! That place is perfect in every way. SWOON
I'm out in bucolic Northport, LI, and while I love it here, neither my husband nor I have to commute into the city for work. I know people out here who do, though, but that just seems like such an arduous journey. Weekend home? :) Winter rentals are pretty cheap out here.
I love that brownstone and used to stop and admire it almost daily on our walks to and from the playground. Thanks for the interior pics… much better than what I ever got peeping through the windows!
I bet you could move your whole family in and they would never notice! That house is HUGE and, yes, mega lovely!
I think New York is definitely a love-hate thing. My husband took a job in NYC a year ago and despite our best efforts we just couldn't make the move. My hubby has commuted all this time.
We were astonished at the prices, not just in the city but in Westchester and CT too. We couldn't find a school that wasn't $35K/year. And we live in Chicago so it's not like we were coming from a small town or inexpensive housing.
I think it must be easier if you have children who aren't school age or a Wall Street job.
It's a great place to visit but I think it's a tough place to live.
I want to go to there.
I want to go to there.
As someone who grew up in New York City (don't have kids, but if/when I do it will probably be in a big city), I I have to point out that a "normal" childhood is really relative. I wouldn't trade mine for anything in the world.
Thanks for your feedback guys!
To those in Westchester/CT, I wish I was your neighbor too! Sadly, Michael's commute would be at least three hours (an hour and a half there and back) every day, since he works down in the financial district. Even the closer in suburbs (like Pelham and New Rochelle) are about an hour twenty from door to door. :( We're keeping it as an option, but it doesn't feel like a good fit right now.
Same problem in NJ! Not a fun commute at all!
Also, I hope I didn't offend people with the comment about having a more normal childhood in the burbs. I meant normal more in the statistical sense. Like, most American children don't grow up in the middle of Manhattan. :) I'm sure if we decide to stay in NYC forever our kids would continue to love it here and have super fond memories of their childhood. I guess it's just different than my childhood and I can sometimes relate to their desire for more space and some grass, trees and fresh air! :) It's hard to be at the park for half of the day, especially in the cold months. I'm sure we'll find a balance somehow though. A lot of my girlfriends here go away for a month or two every summer and they say that helps a lot. Dang it, I really just need those extra couple million so I can buy a house in the country for weekends!! :)
Yes please. I'd like to live here now!
Thanks for your feedback guys!
To those in Westchester/CT, I wish I was your neighbor too! Sadly, Michael's commute would be at least three hours (an hour and a half there and back) every day, since he works down in the financial district. Even the closer in suburbs (like Pelham and New Rochelle) are about an hour twenty from door to door. :( We're keeping it as an option, but it doesn't feel like a good fit right now.
Same problem in NJ! Not a fun commute at all!
Also, I hope I didn't offend people with the comment about having a more normal childhood in the burbs. I meant normal more in the statistical sense. Like, most American children don't grow up in the middle of Manhattan. :) I'm sure if we decide to stay in NYC forever our kids would continue to love it here and have super fond memories of their childhood. I guess it's just different than my childhood and I can sometimes relate to their desire for more space and some grass, trees and fresh air! :) It's hard to be at the park for half of the day, especially in the cold months. I'm sure we'll find a balance somehow though. A lot of my girlfriends here go away for a month or two every summer and they say that helps a lot. Dang it, I really just need those extra couple million so I can buy a house in the country for weekends!! :)
Lived in the city and loved it but also loving having a house and yard for the kids and parties.
Ok, so for fun I went and looked at that listing. It really is gorgeous and amazing. But, all I could do was laugh, I mean LAUGH at the monthly mortgage payment. A mere $59,000.00 a MONTH. The fact that anyone can do that is so mind boggling I just have to stop thinking. WOW! But thanks for sharing it anyway.
Holy crap, Jenny!
I looove it.
Everything about it.