Why would moving out of Brooklyn save me so much money???

amother

Tangerine

Tue, Jun 23 2020, 8:26 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Everyone seems to be saying that Brooklyn is so expensive and if we move, things would be so much more affordable. We are not so likely to move at this point, so this post is more about me just being curious... Just wondering why moving oot would save us so much

- we would need two cars out of town - here one car is enough since things are very walkable and when it's too far, there is usually a way to get where you want to go with public transportation. And even the car we do have, doesn't get used as much as a car would oot since things are a much shorter drive here (so less gas and car maintenance...)

- my job and my husband pay more here then oot (and I'm guessing most jobs probably do)

- from what I hear tuition is more expensive oot. We get a break on our tuition (pay around 4,000 a yr per kid - is it as likely to get a break oot?) But even if not, and we paid full, full tuition is $8,000 per child. (Even if oot is only two thousand dollars more, times that by a few kids and it's alot)

- most other places, the food is more expensive

-( I guess I shouldn't really count these bec there specific to me - but the services here are great (speech, ot, P3...) - we'd probably end up paying alot out of pocket anywhere else. Also we have family here so save alot on babysitting )

Yes a mortgage/rent is ALOT more in ny, but if you add in all the above money saved, doesn't it at least somewhat equal out? Or is there something I'm not thinking of?

It wouldn't save you money. You would just be moving your expenses to different forms. Less mortgage. You'd gain space. Would need to spend more on tuition, taxes, cars, HVAC for bigger space, maintenance for more space, etc. Everyone needs to decide what their family needs. But it's not money you'll save.

amother

Aquamarine

Wed, Jun 24 2020, 2:47 am

As someone who moved from ny to oot 17 years ago, let me give you my perspective. Cheese, meat, etc. are more expensive, but a lot of people stock up when they go to visit family. We’re a 7 hour drive from Lakewood so people go in all the time for simchas pre corona. Tuition costs are very similar to yours plus there are vouchers so that helps a lot. Speech OT PT well we live in Ohio and get the Peterson scholarship, which is for kids who have an iep but don’t attend public school. It gives us 10K a year from the state to pay for therapies. Cars - if youget a good used car then it doesn’t have to be a budget buster. Unfortunately I see a lot of young families leasing new cars, which isn’t financially smart. Houses - under 200 gets you a regular good house for a family. Non financial benefits: way less focus on conformity and gashmius,down to earh attitude. Zero stress from traffic, no issues with parking ever. Beautiful hiking areas within a 20 minute drive from the frum community. As a mother of teens, I like the way my kids are turning out b”H, it’s been a good place to raise a family - wholesome. People are friendly but give you your space if you want it.

fleetwood

Wed, Jun 24 2020, 3:35 am

naturalmom5 wrote:

Brooklyn is no bowl of cherries in that dept..
And at least Lakewood has a vaad to help you...

There are so many choices in Bklyn. Plus, if you are willing to pay you can find a school. I don't hear about kids not having a school in Bklyn,unlike Lakewood.( Same with mikvah btw).

amother

Red

Wed, Jun 24 2020, 3:54 am

It depends. For us, school in NY would not less expensive, housing would be unattainable, and our income would not be higher. We live comfortably in the suburbs about an hour away. The expense of the second car is easily absorbed by the other savings. You do your own math.

Mommyg8

Wed, Jun 24 2020, 4:00 am

fleetwood wrote:

There are so many choices in Bklyn. Plus, if you are willing to pay you can find a school. I don't hear about kids not having a school in Bklyn,unlike Lakewood.( Same with mikvah btw).

Actually... 25 years ago, when Brooklyn was then bursting at the seams, I did. I did hear that some families couldn't get into any school. They weren't the "top" families so no waves were made and nobody cared. Maybe some of these kids ended up in public school.

I remember it happening.

fleetwood

Wed, Jun 24 2020, 4:14 am

Mommyg8 wrote:

Who is talking about 25 years ago?? Although to be honest,I didn't hear of kids not having a school 25 years ago... In any case,I'm talking about now. There are all types of schools for all types of kids in Brooklyn.

amother

Papaya

Wed, Jun 24 2020, 4:16 am

oneofakind wrote:

People think the grass is greener on the other side and don't look at the details like you do. Sometimes they have unpleasant surprises.

True but in brooklyn there is barely any grass. 😁

banana123

Wed, Jun 24 2020, 4:55 am

amother [ Papaya ] wrote:

True but in brooklyn there is barely any grass. 😁

The concrete emits less heat on the other side of the fence?

amother

Olive

Wed, Jun 24 2020, 5:17 am

amother [ Natural ] wrote:

I moved out of Brooklyn to Long Island. Everything is cheaper in Brooklyn besides for housing. Full tuition and all fees for my second grade is over 16k.
When people say leave Brooklyn because it’s cheaper they don’t mean you actually save money each month. It’s just money goes further. I’d rather spend 4K a month on a mortgage for a 4 Bdrm house with a yard and two cars then 4K for a three bedroom fully attacked rental with no yard and one car.

In fairness and reality, 95% of people who live in long island/5towns are not paying 16k for a second grader and it's not even close. Yeshivos like Darchei, South Shore and Yeshiva Ketana ask around 12k and give scholarships and even in more modern schools like HALB and Haftr where maybe the asking price is 16k but most parents are paying way less. The girl schools are actually a little cheaper.

watergirl

Wed, Jun 24 2020, 5:19 am

These threads always amuse me. Is this about Brooklyn vs. out of Brooklyn in general? Or is it Brooklyn vs. Monsey/Lakewood, which is the sort of replies people are giving here and tend to give. I laughed when high property tax was mentioned as a detractor to living out of Brooklyn. There is an entire country left in the States with super low property taxes. Where I live, it is under 4k a year for the fanciest neighborhoods with the biggest, newest homes.

OP, I live in a different state, one not mentioned in this thread. I will address your points.

- we would need two cars out of town - here one car is enough since things are very walkable and when it's too far, there is usually a way to get where you want to go with public transportation. And even the car we do have, doesn't get used as much as a car would oot since things are a much shorter drive here (so less gas and car maintenance...)

OK, so you get another car. Get a used one and pay less than 10k for it. Thats what we have always done. Yes, it will need gas and repairs every now and then. The money you are saving on rent can more than cover that.

- my job and my husband pay more here then oot (and I'm guessing most jobs probably do)
Depends on the job. Some pay more, some pay less. The whole heimish job situation is not a thing in the greater majority of the States, so you will not find the superficially inflated salaries, and you will need actual credentials to be hired, as opposed to the right age, gender, and place in life.

- from what I hear tuition is more expensive oot. We get a break on our tuition (pay around 4,000 a yr per kid - is it as likely to get a break oot?) But even if not, and we paid full, full tuition is $8,000 per child. (Even if oot is only two thousand dollars more, times that by a few kids and it's alot)
We also get a tuition break and we pay less than you do. Where I live, full tuition is around 10k, give or take, and high school is around 12k. I used to live WAAAAAY oot and tuition was extremely high. Before that, I lived even further than that and tuition was so low it was laughable. But please see what you are getting for your money. When tuition is higher, there is a reason. Other than paying more for the building which may or may not be a thing, you will generally find a different class of schooling "out of town". These schools with shockingly low tuition in Brooklyn do not offer the same caliber of educators, curriculum, co-curricular activities, specialties, etc. You will find QUALIFIED teachers who have degrees and years of experience. Not a post seminary girl. The higher tuition dollars accomplish a good goal. There is a reason for the price tag, believe me.

- most other places, the food is more expensive
That can be true or not true. I have lived all over. In some places, heimish food was more. In others, it was less. In the crazy far oot place I lived, kosher chicken/cheese/meat was even lower then in Brooklyn because the owners of the grocery store (which was a chain, not a kosher one), brought in the food and sold it at the price they paid as a chessed to the community. In another city I lived in, there was a local company so the products were not brought in special. Where I live now, we pay the same prices you pay in Brooklyn. We have a ton of people moving every year from there and they all agree it is the same here. Yes, in other cities, food is more expensive. Do your research before choosing a town.

-( I guess I shouldn't really count these bec there specific to me - but the services here are great (speech, ot, P3...) - we'd probably end up paying alot out of pocket anywhere else. Also we have family here so save alot on babysitting )
I cant comment to the family thing because I have never had that. Well, I did once but long story. How often do you use a sitter? My daughter is 16 and I am begging her to raise her rate from $8/hour. She refuses. Thats what her friends all charge.
As to therapy, why would you pay out of pocket? There is this thing called insurance... If you are on medical assistance, it will be 100% covered and if not, you just pay the copay.

Yes a mortgage/rent is ALOT more in ny, but if you add in all the above money saved, doesn't it at least somewhat equal out? Or is there something I'm not thinking of?
I paid 200k for my house 2.5 years ago. It is smaller than others and larger than others. It is a semi detached and perfect for my family. Very low property tax. BH very high comfort. High quality of life. Yes, there are comforts and conveniences that we do not have here that you have in Brooklyn or Lakewood/Monsey. We deal with it because its worth it for the rest of the package.

Lita

Wed, Jun 24 2020, 3:56 pm

Water girl, may I ask you where you live?

watergirl

Wed, Jun 24 2020, 4:12 pm

Lita wrote:

Water girl, may I ask you where you live?

I share so much about my personal life on here, my location is one thing I keep private.

amother

Wine

Wed, Jun 24 2020, 4:14 pm

silverlining3 wrote:

I moved to Monsey, not with the thought of a cheaper lifestyle. Rather, you get more for your price.
-I'll rather pay more tuition, something that's worth, than more rent, something that's by far not worth.
-I don't have a huge apt, but in city, you won't ever find this size for the price I pay.
-We didn't have a car in the city, got here, only 1. I don't drive.
-We had more school options.
I'm not sure it comes out more expensive oot, but even if it does, a tiny bit, I still say, there's something about harchavas hadaas.

I moved out to monsey from Brooklyn too and had such a hard time with schools. So be grateful for that.