Kid-friendly neighborhoods downtown

battery park city has the best parks, playgrounds, etc. for kids. schools are also very good - ps 89 and brand new 276.

Battery Park, Tribeca and South Street Seaport have great public schools, good playgrounds (with the edge to Battery park, which feels almost suburban.) Rents should go from $5,500 to $8,000 for a real 3 bedroom apartment, from modest to fancy.

> battery park city has the best parks, playgrounds, etc. for kids

Problem is, the adult has to live there too...

nowhere near me.

Agree, BPC is great for kids and Tribeca too. Continues to improve in terms of restaurants and general infrastructure. Lots of folks dislike (see swe post) but it has just exploded with young families in the past 3 years and most who live there love it.

oh, and as far as price - think maly nailed it above for 3 bedrooms although some can be a bit higher for the "upper end" buildings.

They may want more of a Manhattan experience if they are moving from upstate. My fave is the West Village, but this is probably the most difficult place to find a 3 bedroom. You have good parks, access to all the activities on the Hudson, close to Chelsea Piers and some very good public schools. There is still a very good community feel, great restaurants and cafe's of all shapes and sizes. Start at 14th Street and stroll South on Hudson for a good feel of whats going on.

BPC hands down. Its walled-off from cars, pracitcally. Has TONS of small children already, and is the lowest crime area in the entire city, lower even than Inwood or Lenox Hill.

They should only do BPC if they can't afford tribeca.

Brokers can't advise on neighborhoods, only on pricing -- but let me say that I think Maly's rent numbers are a little low. $5000 for a three-bedroom in BPC, okay, but the last three-bedroom I rented in Tribeca (which was admitted a cute loft with outdoor space) went for $13,500.

FiDi might have in-between pricing, though I've never rented a three-bedroom down there and I'm frankly not sure how much of the inventory is that big.

Keith is right that 3-BRs are really really rare in the West Village, and I can't think of any that aren't co-op or condo sublets.

ali r.
DG Neary Realty

if you can deal with a slightly generic rental building, 95 horatio has a handful of 3 bedrooms that rent for around $6500-$8000 approx. 1700-2000f2. hard to get because many families in the building are lined up for these when they come available. these are 11 former refrigerated warehouses, high ceilings, dm, two roof decks, one just for kids with a playground area. gym, parking and storage available.

another vote for BPC/Tribeca!
Riverhouse and Visionaire (and i am sure others) are close to playgrounds, have kids rooms and lots of kid activities.