Pro Big Dog Rental Buildings???

50 Murray St in Tribeca. But going to cost u more than $4500/month. Probably more like $6000/mnth but definitely worht it. Great building in a great location. Also, no brokers fee. Usually u can get a free month as well.

95 horatio is v dog friendly. my friend has 2 english bulldogs there.

Thank-you for the information.

Cheers,
Nell

Dog issues aside, I don't think your budget is realistic for most of Manhattan. And the sq/footage seems off--three bedrooms and 1.5 bathrooms do not fit well into 1000 sq/ft. Thus, not many such apartments even exist. If you go down to 2 bedrooms, there will be more options...potentially. But think hard about this: 2 nine years olds and a large dog in that kind of space will make you want to go to prison rather than return home at the end of the day. You may want to seriously consider Brooklyn and Queens in your searches where your dollars will go much further and where you may have more options.

Pet-friendly, safe, good schools? BATTERY PARK CITY. Brodsky, Rockrose, Related, and Albanese Mgmnt companies all have buildings there that are pet friendly, with flexibility on the size of the dog.

Kyle,
Your post made me chuckle. We'd be fine with 2BD/1.5 or 1B and 1000 sq ft. I look at as much less to clean ;)! We'll only be in NYC for 2yrs, so we really want to live in Manhattan and enjoy all that it has to offer. Some of the listings I've seen for 4000k-4500k/mo for a 2bed/1 bath were quite nice. Luckily for me, I will be a stay-at-home Mom, with a dog that is very well trained, (as I'm a bit too type A) and will receive great long walks daily.

Our boys are also not your stereo-typical "grr" crazy children. We're quite old school, a.k.a "strict" by American standards, and our boys are very well mannered and well behaved. For example, they say," yes sir, yes mam", they take off their hats in a building,etc and have been taught that the world does not completely revolve around them and their needs. This is not to say they don't receive a ton of hugs, kisses, and various praises/day. How can I put this nicely, we never have to worry about taking them to more adult locations and having those who don't adore children cringe, if you know what I mean. :)

Plus, my husband will be working in Riverdale and I really didn't think I wanted to have the boys be in the Bronx school district, and we are not extremely weathly, so we cannot afford to send our children to some of the private schools up there. I'm not really fond of "suburbia" I either love 30 acres and a mule, or living in the heart of the city. Crazy to some I know, but I think having our boys have an opportunity to live in one of the best cities in the world, even for two short years is truly a gift.

Cheers,
Nell

FWIW Riverdale (from what I understand, which is apparently not much regard dog-size rules in rental buildings) has some very good public schools.

Yes, for all intents and purposes, Riverdale is a different borough than the rest of the Bronx. Nevertheless, nellm, you sound flexible which is key to staying sane through this process. Good luck in the search. And enjoy your time in NYC.

be careful in related buildings. they accept pets, but i have heard that their rules allow them to evict your pet if your neighbors complain a certain amount. even with a great dog an intolerant neighbor could make your life miserable.

Thanks again everyone- I do believe things that are worth attaining usually require a ton of effort! :)

check battery park, very dog friendly and close to the one.
in my building we have everything from tea cups to a french mastiff, and LOTS of rescues. We LOVE them all!!!!@

RE2009,
Would you mind passing on the name of your building/management company. Mostly those that I am finding to be pet friendly to bigger dogs, those over 35lbs, tend to have a 50lb limit a/o they don't accept agressive dog breeds, aka dobies/rotties. While I'm certain our "craigslist special dog" is by no means a full rott, as he is skinny,long-legged and has a mini-head, he has the markings of one, so I'm assuming most landlords etc. will consider him as a rott. If you don't feel comfortable doing so on here, please feel free to email me at our home email 4mccafferys@comcast.net

cheers,
Nell

Nell, I see a number of people are recommending downtown. Since your husband will be working in riverdale, you should keep in mind the commute to Riverdale. You might want to consider the UES near Grand Central so he can take Metro North to Riverdale. I can't help you with your animal issue but location and commuting time is a factor.

love to cook,

i know it is a bit of a haul, but i guess, i was looking at it like this, if he is going to have long hours and a commute, I would rather the boys and I live in a city that ALWAYS has a ton to do vs. living in the burbs and needing a car to go and do various things.

Don't laugh, but is Metro North different from the #1 red line?

Thanks for the tip just the same.

I'm not laughing because I know you are not from NY. It's a regular commuter train that leaves from Grand Central and heads up north to Riverdale and Westchester County. It cost more than a subway but is more comfortable and faster. My niece who lives in Riverdale and works in mid town commutes by Metro North. The subway from Riverdale is long because there are many stops. Metro North goes from Riverdale with a stop on 125th Street and then down to Grand Central. I'm not 100% positive if there aren't more stops but with a long day, your husband would probably want to minimize his commute time.

Oh, if he is working in Riverdale you should LIVE THERE. Its in NYC, it has big doorman apartment buildings or stand alone places where you can have a dog, it has good schools and its NICE. Do NOT live in manahattan.]

If you MUST, do morningside heights, washington heights, etc. Do not do anything below 96th, you will hate it.

But you should LIVE IN RIVERDALE. Its very, very upscale. yet cheaper not just than Manhattan, but than comparible places in HARLEM.

See Glenwood Riverdale, for example.

If you're a bit intrepid, you can probably find what you're looking for in Washington Heights and Inwood -- the two northernmost Manhattan neighborhoods along the Hudson, so just below Riverdale. These neighborhoods have better and worse parts, but some of the enclaves (esp. in Wash. Hts.) feel Manhattan-sophisticated residentially. Not so much retailly, though.

If you don't mind my asking, and perhaps it's a stupid question, what sort of job does one relocate to NY for that's in Riverdale?

Another important question is whether you plan on having a car in NY or not. If so, you might well rue the day you were born, and/or it will very strictly define where you seek residence.

If you do do Riverdale, make sure its really in "riverdale". RE agents lie like rugs.

Alan,
No worries, my husband is a pilot in the USAF and he will be doing a staff/non-flying job for two years. He will be in charge of 30 colleges ROTC programs. The funny thing is they come to a small school called Manhattan College to do their weekly training. We thought it would be a fun experience for our entire family to live in NYC, where we didn't need a car, could walk to parks, I could walk the boys to school, and embrace all that NYC has to offer culturally and socially. We are guaranteed a parking space at Manhattan College and plan to keep my Acura MDX there, which is a nice bonus if we wish to go visit extended family and friends along the East Coast. While we cannot afford to send our boys to Horace Mann or Fieldstone, I think it is called. I did here PS 24 and PS 81 were decent in the District 10.

I'm not certain why Jason would think I would hate living in Manhattan, I've lived in SF and traveled extensively around the globe, and spent quality time in many of the world's greatest cities. I'm white, but I'm not as white as wonderbread so to speak in regards to my education and cultural background. I completed my undergrad from Cal-Berkeley, but grew up in the midwest, so I feel I am well-rounded, and have a good work ethic/character, a nice mixture from both locations.

Thank-you again for all of your insight-
Cheers,
Nell
Love to Cook,
Thanks for not laughing at me, well, you can laugh at me, but thanks for enlightening me as well :)

Hi Nell, if you will email me at luciclaud@gmail.com I will be glad to give you a few suggestions - I live in a building you would love and would be happy to share the info with you.

DC

nellm, my building is not a rental so you would be renting from the owners and more then likely would look for the tenants to be pet free. battery park is a great place for dogs and kids so my reco would be to just do a search. rose associates is one of the larger property managers in nyc and manage a few buildings down here but i can't offer an opinion as i have never worked with them on the rental side.'
good luck and welcome to nyc!

RE2009,
I did look at your link, and I did notice that they did allow for dogs,but only for those who own, which I can understand, as we own a rental property ourselves. Thanks for your POV just the same. PS. I'm very excited for our move to NYC, I miss living in a more diverse area on many different levels.

:)Nell

Dconiglio,

Grazie mille, I'll contact you soon.

Cheers,
Nell

Nellm - I grew up in Riverdale and now live on the UWS. I think you should seriously consider living in Riverdale. For $3000-3500 you could get a VERY nice 2BR or a really nice 3BR, with views and amenities like doormen, pool, etc. Manhattan will be very nearby and the money you save just put towards parking when you visit there (that is a psychological trick. mostly you probably will be able to find parking in the evenings and weekends).

PS 24 is certainly very good (though no, I didn't go there as I went to parochial schools).

You will have many options on how to get into the city, from car (15 minutes off hours), express bus (look into those as an option for the commute up to Manhattan College from the city as well), Subway, and Metro North. There are two stops for Metro North in RIverdale, neither close to Manhattan College. But look into the RailLink, shuttle buses that go from the rail around Riverdale (and also to the RR in time with the train schedule).

The plus is that your husband will have a very nice walk to work from almost wherever in Riverdale you choose to live.

I recently saw that Rose apartments owns the Briar Hill which are very nice buildings, and there are many others including Condos you could rent.

I forgot to add some things to consider:

Kids in Riverdale can be independent at a relatively young age. It is a safe neighborhood with lots of parks, fields, very little traffic, etc.

If you choose to live in Manhattan probably best on the #1 train (still strange for me to use "red" line. There were no colors when I grew up, only IND, IRT and BRT and the number/letters of the lines.) The #1 stops right below Manhattan College so the time lost on the subway will be made up for by being close to the destination. It is about 40 minutes from the UWS to 242nd street.

Hi AvUWS,

Thank-you for all of your good tips and information. I think we might have a better chance looking at apartments to rent by simply talking directly to the owner and having he or she actually meet our dog prior to judging him via his coloring. My husband wouldn't even mind looking into purchasing a condo if we could find one for a decent price that is truly pet friendly with no restrictions. It is nice to hear from someone who grew up in Riverdale, liked it and now lives in Manhattan.

Thanks again :)

No dummy I said you would hate living downtown, I listed several places in MANHATTAN you would want to live. But commuting from the FiDi to Riverdale is suicide. 2 hours.

Riverdale was a great place to grow up. Safe, close to the city, affordable, and very beautiful.

I would warn away from buying a condo though. It is not the smartest way to move somewhere. There are lots of quality rentals up there, from apartments to houses.

Contact Sopher Realty, they are the Riverdale experts. Also see if you can get a hold of some copies of the Riverdale Press, the local paper.

Update: www.riverdalepress.com

Sopher Realty 718.601.4000

nellm, you and your family sound like great people. All the best to you and yours. You're going to love it here. Enjoy!

Steve,
Thanks for the nice comment.

AvUWS,
Once again thanks for the information.

Jason,
You might want to double check your verbage prior to trying to attack someone, you clearly stated

"Do NOT live in manahattan. If you MUST, do morningside heights, washington heights, etc. Do not do anything below 96th, you will hate it." Cut and pasted directly from your post 16 plus hours ago.

So actually, you never stated I would hate living downtown now did you.

While I'm not from NYC, I am quite certain Manhattan consists of multiple neighborhoods, all containing various positive and negative attributes to living in those various neighborhoods.

Feel free to keep throwing out random comments, they are like I stated earlier quite commical.

I listed several Manhattan neighborhoods you could live in in what you quote. Living downtown would be suicidal. And please, start a fourth thread on this topic.

sort of like it's suicidal for the people who live in riverdale who commute to downtown. or the people who live on long island who commute to midtown east.

way to avoid her comment, jason, which was that you DID say do NOT live in manhattan.

nell, good luck. i think riverdale is a very good option, but i think there are plenty of neighborhoods where you and your pooch might be accepted. i'm not certain that riverdale landlords are any more inclined to accept certain breeds than other landlords, so it's just a question of finding a good fit where you'll get the most out of your compromises. apologies to the proponents of riverdale, but given your willingness to "make do" in terms of space and your desire to be out and about for the limited two years you'll be here, i'd advise looking in at least a couple of locations. both the UWS and the UES have dog-friendly areas and aspects to them, and both have decent access to Riverdale as well. it pains me to admit it, given the tone of his posts, but jason is correct that morningside heights could be a nice option as well.

one idea, if you're going to be visiting in advance and have the time, is to go to the dog runs and ask people who are there with their big dog breeds. central park has a number of dog-frequented areas, carl shurz park on the UES at 86th and the east river has a big-dog run.

Aboutready-

Thank-you for your advice and clarifying the obvious on various aspects of this thread for Sir Jason.

My ideal location was the UWS, as it had access to the #1red line, close to Central Park,decent public schools and very family friendly. The only reason I was even considering lower Manhatttan, as there were some great neighborhood schools in Greenwich Village and Tribeca. Some of the FIDI locations we were considering also were zoned for those schools. There are also some great public schools on the UES, but the access to the #1 line was a bit tougher, more transfers and then a longer commute time to and from Riverdale for my husband.

That's a great idea about visiting the dog runs to get low down on where these folks live with their over 50lb dogs. :)

I'm not against living in Riverdale, in fact it is less expensive, but since we only have 2 short years to be in NYC, I figured why not truly live in NYC and experience city life.

nell, just keep in mind that the UES has the metro-north stop at 125th street, which goes to riverdale. i'm not a huge fan of the UES (or UWS, really, i'm a downtown creature), but there are some very good deals to be had on family-sized rentals, a few of the schools are excellent, and it is also close to either central park or the east river parks and promenade. you don't want to spread yourself too thin looking around, but something to keep in mind as you do a few initial searches on SE. many buildings up there are also very dog-oriented.

but it sounds like you'll have a good time wherever you land!

Aboutready,

Honestly, in all of our various moves across the country we have yet to rent a place, so having a dog was never an issue. Plus, I was a bit naiive, as we too are "landlords" and our rental home is pet friendly, and by pet friendly, we don't care if you have a dog, or a cat, lizard, bird, rabit, you name it, as long as you pay the non-refundable security deposit, and your pet is not a nuisance to the surrounding neighbors, it is all good as far as we are concerned. I'm starting to wonder if we'll find anywhere be it Riverdale/NYC that will take a large dog, that is a mix of an "agressive breeed." That description simply makes me smirk as I look at our dog currently lounging on his toddler mattress while his head rests upon a large pillow, yep, that's our "killer ;)" I guess I've always looked at pets and children in some what of the same manner, in that it is all about how they were raised, taught, what was expected from them etc. So when I see an annoying a/o unruly child, do they bug me, heck ya, do I blame them, heck no, I blame the parenting or better put lack there of. Same thing with pets, they are who they are mostly do to their environment vs. genetics. Okay, time to step off the soap box. Have a good night y'all :)

Nellm - One other thing you might try to find a building that will take you and your dog - see if there is a Rottweiler rescue organization in Manhattan or the surrounding area. You could call them and say you have a dog that is part Rotti and ask if they have any volunteers who live in NYC and know of buildings that would accomodate you and your dog. Just a thought.

nellm--i have lived in manhattan off-and-on for over ten years with a giant breed dog (dark in color, which i notice always frightens people more than light colored dogs...) and rented throughout manhattan. i think your search may be a bit easier than mine in that there seems to be quite a difference between large (small lab size) and giant (mastiff/great dane size). that said, a couple thoughts: (a) it doesn't matter that the coloring of your dog is rottie. if he isn't a rottie or dosen't really look like a rottie, i would not bring this up at all. i would just say he is a lab mix as labs tend to be stereotyped as "acceptable" breeds. (b) canine good citizen cert is a big deal. i'm not sure how much landlords may or may not be aware of what having that cert means, but i would definitely let them know and perhaps describe how onerous a test that is. (c) offer to put in extra security for the dog if the building is on the fence. (d) offer references from prior landlords if you have them. (e) the search is truly building specific. some management companies state outright that they do not allow dogs or (as you note) that there is a ridiculous weight limit. if you go to the actual building which has an onsite leasing office or doorman, you will find, however, that specific buildings will make an exception. some will absolutely not. for example, the lyric, which is a related rental on the UWS allows large dogs on an individual basis, but many, if not almost all other related rentals that i know of, will not. that said, a word of warning about that particular building, it may be over your budget and the leasing manager is an absolute nightmare who has been the reason for several tenants i know to leave the building. (f) it is difficult because you aren't currently in nyc, but as someone above already said, one of the best ways of finding a dog-friendly place is indeed word-of-mouth and hitting the streets. i found an apartment by simply going and speaking with doormen to get the scoop. (g) i found that most leasing agents haven't really wanted all the above background/documentation, so just asking about their dog policy and telling them you have a medium size lab-mix who is very friendly should be enough. just bring out the rest if needed. for some reasons, being too eager right away can sometimes backfire. (h) so sorry for the long post, but one other thought--i think i recall that one columbus place which is a brodsky managed building is very dog friendly. i don't know anything about school districts, but perhaps worth looking into. Good luck! For a city with so many dogs, renting in NYC with a big dog is a bit difficult, but definitely doable!

Nell - i think you are overthinking it. While many buildings don't like dogs (any) many also don't care about the breed, just the temperament. And some don't care about any of that. I think you should look to a broker for Riverdale and for Manhattan. don't give them the data as negatives. I liked the above post: "you have a medium size lab-mix who is very friendly".

If you decide on Manhattan I thnk the UWS is a good choice. To Manhattan College I think the #1 will be easier and cheaper than metro north + RailLink. For $4500 a 3BR would be hard to do. a larger or nicer 2BR is more likely. Look at it as living like a manhattanite. Leave the car in Riverdale. :)

We live at West End Towers (which is at 75 West End Avenue/63rd street) in a 2bed/2bath (approx. 1000sq.ft) and pay $3600 per month. The building is very dog friendly and has several really large dogs. The apartment also has a nice balcony, which I think would be useful if you have a dog.

The only downside of the building is that it's a bit far (from Manhattan standards) from the subway station. It's a 7-8 minute walk to the 1 train. The upside is that it's close to Riverside Park, which is a great place for kids (and dogs!)

The building opposite ours (101 West End Avenue) has apartments similar to ours in terms of layout/square footage, but are a bit pricier I believe. You should check out both buildings if you like the area.

LaylaRE-
Thank-you for your advice, I have actually called the a few buildings that are managed by Brodsky and they stated that their weight limit is 50lbs.

AvUWS- I like your ending sentence! That was the original plan. We'll simply have to have a broke show us some options in both, hopefully their will be some and go from there!

Uptown2010. I googled your building, and unfortunately I saw that it was run by Brodsky, who stated they had a 50lb weight limit. Have actually seen some bigger dogs? Danes, Pyrenneses? Thanks for the tip just the same.

I do have a question. When starting one's apartment hunt, can you talk to 2 different brokers, see what they both can offer you and then pick one? I'm a-ok at paying them one month's rent, everyone is entitled to make some $$ at their job, but if they don't have the listing, and someone else does it seems like high way robbery to pay nearly 2 months rent half to a person with whom I really never came in contact. Please excuse my cluelessness in advance, we've never rented, since being married with a dog, only bought, so this is all new ground for me.

Cheers,
Nell

Hmmm...lots of concern about the dog. What about the kids, Nell?

i'd guess that just about all buildings will take the kids.

I disagree wholehartedly, aboutready. Just because you saw a few seasons of "Friends" in which they have poultry living in their apartment should not make you think New York landlords allow juvenile goats to live in their buildings.

Condos, however, are another story.

Nell - I used to think the same way about brokers. But often in a listing where it is listed as full fee there still isn't any negotiating room on the fee price, so if you have a "buyers" broker (really no such thing) they are getting half of the other broker. You will be moving here in the summer so you wouldn't have had a lot of negotiating room anyway. (Late fall is a different story. market is very slow and every prospective renter that moves on means that much greater likelihood of another month or two of rent missed.)

You still should take two brokers, one for Riverdale and one for the UWS since it is less likely any one will know both neighborhoods well. I strongly recommend Sopher for Riverdale. They have been there for decades, multi-generation family business. And they are Riverdale experts.

For the UWS there are a couple of choices. I always liked Fenwick-Keats-Goodstein. They don't have the fast talking pushy broker types working for them. Anyone I worked with there really cared about what you were looking for, which is a remarkably rare and usefull skill in a broker.

But we just moved from one UWS apartment to another (needed more space, one kid growing and another on the way) and we had help from a broker at Citi-Habitats, which isn't usually a firm I recommend because so many of their brokers are young, fast talking, pushy types. He was awesome. He cares about placing someone in the right place because 3/4 of his business is now repeat or referral. And though he is based in the West Village he knows the UWS very well. A good broker has resources that even SE can't match. For example, Citi has keeps data in their database on many buildings that is proprietary. (His name is Joey Tolino. If you want to pay little fee, just tell him that is a criteria, but remember that there might be deals where the extra month is worth any savings over 2 years.)

Spending time on SE is invlauable. you will learn the market and be able to gear your expectations, something you can't do on NYT or Craigslist since so much of their ads are just bait and can lead to inflated expectations.

Peter Cooper has 2br 2bth for around $4200 and 1200 sf. They take dogs now and I've seen a lot of big ones.

PCV is pretty far of a commute to 242nd st. and Broadway, and not exactly what people picture when they want to live the NY lifestyle.

true but you can take the 23rd st bus to the 1

I didn't realize it was all the way at 242 st. I would look around columbia

Mom- No worries about our children, I love them to the moon and back, and of course their safety, over-all well being and happiness, comes first without a doubt. They are very excited to move to NYC. They've traveled extensively and look forward to our many adventures. They are also quite caring and thoughtful and understand their new school will have children with many different backrounds and experiences than our family has had, let alone look different, and they too see that as a positive. I was blessed to give birth to one and then have the means to adopt one, in fact our first born, actually chose his own brother, at 4.5 yrs of age, so again, both my husband and I, and our two boys are a very fortunate family and multiple levels. I am just so worried about our dogs, because he too, is a part of our family, and not only do I, but our boys love him to pieces.

AvUWS- Once again, thanks for always being positive and putting forth various options and ideas for our family.

aboutready, your comment had me in stitches :)

cccharley, thanks for the input

alanhart, no worries, no goats for us, I'm too type A for farm animals :)

Enjoy your Sunday everyone!

Nell,

I had a dog for years that sounds like yours, he had the colorings of a rottweiler and the build of a lab and he was a handful. The trump buildings on upper west seem to be pretty reasonable there are a lot of dogs I live here now.

Also, I'd say a better bet is between battery park city and tribeca, its called river terrace, I lived in 22 river terrace and they were always pretty cool with my dog situation, and it's pretty reasonable, its rockrose rental. I just checked their listings and they have a 2br on the market at 22 river terrace apt 20D for $5300. 41 tribeca pointe is also a very nice bldg.
here's the link.
http://www.rockrose.com/residential/
Good luck!

JM 75681-

Thanks for the tip- Yep, he's definitely got the rottie coloring, but not the build whatsoever, nor the "stereotypical" rottie. We've had our share, and while I hate to admit this, our girls were way more alpha and intense than our boys. Our boy simply wants to be near us 24/7 and play, play, play be it with people or dogs, big or small, he could care less.

Unfortunately, I checked with rockrose, and I believe they had either a 50lb weight limit and no "agressive" breeds. I had a broker simply say it is a lab mix, which I know is not technically lying, but nor is it technically telling the truth either.

Thanks for the tips just the same. I'll double check

Cheers,
Nell

try 27w 96th - huge preware apts I think in your range. 2 blocks from 1 train. 1/2 block from park - full service building 24hr doorman. lots of dogs and kids. only 3 apts on each floor and i think some have w/d. don't know if there are any apts available but you can check on SE

nellm--i believe you said you are not in the area and therefore this may not be helpful, but just thought i would mention it in case you are able to come into nyc and do some apt hunting in person. many of the management companies tell you 50lbs. i have lived in buildings managed by several of the management companies listed in this thread (with a very large dog). if you call the office and ask about dogs, in my experience generally, the 50lb limit (or sometimes 30lbs) answer is what you will get. if you are able to actually visit the leasing office itself (at each building) and speak with an individual, you oftentimes find that the dog policy is a bit more flexible. if you are able to find out (perhaps from this site) whether large dogs do indeed live in any individual buildings before doing the legwork, that might be useful in saving you time. nothing against brokers, but the times i have used brokers, they have been completely unhelpful on the dog-friendly front. also--if your dog is 70lbs as i believe you said and lean/petite looking--i might just stretch a bit and consider your dog to weigh in around 50lbs. on a final note, i spoke with a friend of mine who also has a giant dog and he lived at one columbus place a few years ago without problem and was also granted permission to live at another brodsky building on the UWS, but i do know that he went and inquired/applied in person. this may be the case for rockrose building that JM 75681 references as well...

Move to Forest Hills and rent a house. Schools are good for the kids and you might even get a yard for the dog. And, if you can find a place in the Gardens, paking might be free, too. The best choice. Forget Manhattan.

Hi Nell and others!

My husband and I are moving to NY this Spring with our 2 year old, 4 year old and TWO Golden Retrievers! We are hoping to stay in Manhattan and are looking at the UES and UWS. My husband is being relocated for work and will be working in midtown east. We are selling everything before we move.. Our cars, furniture and tons of our 'stuff' that has accumulated over the years. We want a one bedroom or two bedroom if possible but prefer location, good public elementary school and of course a friendly building that will allow our two 65 pound goldens! Of course they are sweet as can be and they are older, ages 8 and 10. But the dogs are a big concern. I wonder if it is even realistic to live in manhattan with two large dogs.

Good luck and please any info you get to me!

Amy

See my previous post 27 w96th will take multiple large dogs - it's a very dog friendly building.

The william beaver house has a covered outdoor dog run on the 3rd floor, that you can let your dog loose in.

Hi Everyone!

Wow, thank-you for all of the tips once again. We will get a chance to "househunt" prior to moving, and I look forward to actually pounding the pavement and talking to people who actually work/live in various "pet friendly" buildings. I am hoping bring photos of our dog, with our children will and with our pet resume, refs, from our trainer, our vet, re: our dog's temperment will be helpful. While my Dad did offer to take our dog for the 2 yr assignment, we would all be crushed not to have him with us.

LaylaRE,

I'd love to show you a picture of our dog, if you would email me at 4mccafferys@comcast.net You can let me know if you think he'd be allowed at some of your previous buildings.

Cheers,
Nell

William Beaver House looks amazing, though a bit over our budget, but I put a call in to see what exactly "pet friendly" means to them ;) I also checked on 27th W. 96th and no rentals at this time!

Thanks again everyone!

It's mentioned in passing by someone above, but I would check out the 101 West End building (@ W64th). It's an Archstone building and I'm pretty sure that it and other Archstone buildings do not have any weight/breed limits for dogs. There is nothing extraordinary about the apartments or building, but it is a no-fee building and the leasing/move-in process is very smooth and quick. It also has the benefit of being very close to Riverside Park and a smaller park with a dog run. We moved with young kids from a west coast suburb to the UWS ~4 years ago and have been thrilled with it. There are many, many families with young children and it is family-friendly to the extreme. Regarding schools, if you are have decided on public schools, my advice would be to decide what school(s) you are interested in and then determine the relevant catchment(s) and limit your search to apartments within those boundaries. For example, in the UWS, there are two very good public schools (PS 87 and PS 199) and probably others, but you need to live within a fairly small catchment area surrounding the schools to be eligible to attend (and, even then, there can be waitlist issues you should look into). Unfortunately, the PS 87 and PS 199 catchments have been shrunk recently to avoid overcrowding and the 101 West End building (which used to be within the PS 199 catchment) is now outside the catchment. Gpod luck - it will be worth the effort! (Apologies if this repeats information in another post - I tried to submit a comment previously but it doesn't look like it went through....)

rwf 62,
thanks for the tip, but i called archstone, the good news is they take 1 big dog up to 80lbs, but not rotties or rottie mixes. yes, the school thing is the doozy. i have one child who has been tested as GT and while I'd love for him to go to the Anderson School, getting in will be tough, also his issue is that while he'll been in 5th grade next year, he'll need to have 6th grade math, as he is currently doing the 6/5 Saxon Math book in a 5th grade classroom as a 4th grader. Craziness, craziness, but I am still so darn excited for our many adventures,sure we may have some hurdles, but I'm not giving up!

Interesting article about William Beaver House, not doing well on the sales end so more rental opps available, still a bit pricey, but perhaps they'll come down a bit more as they're zoned for a good school in Battery Park.

AglarsNYC- make certain to check out insideschools.org a/o greatschools.org and the DOE for NYC, you can read some great reviews by parents and check out test scores.

Nell

I just had to report that we did finally find a wonderful 2BD/2BA with a rec room and private outdoor space on the UWS 2.5 blcks from the subway, the boys' school and CP. We also feel fortunate that the dog park at 72nd and Riverside Park is only about 5 blcks away as well. We'll be moving in July 1st and can't wait for all of the fabulous adventures NYC has to offer our family. Searching daily for 6 months or so finally paid off.

Again thanks for all of the tips and adivce-

Cheers,
Nell

Congratulations, nellm ... enjoy your time here!

curious, what did you end up paying?

ali

Thanks Alan-

Ali,
We are paying $4100 direct deposit, without it it was $4250 It is about 1100 sq ft.

Cheers,
Nell

Congrats, Nell. With the generally negative outlook from many of the posters, it sounds like you should start giving advice to them on how to find a place rather than the other way around.

nellm, congrats, well done. Are you willing to share more details? That does sound like a good deal...

Thanks Inonada- :)

Newbuyer99- Thanks for the kind words. Honestly, I think simply checking various sites daily truly paid off. This particular place happened to be an ad on craigslist. A family of 4, wished to get out of their lease, as the wife was having a hard time having a 2yr old, and a 3 month old, plus two medium size dogs to take care of, while her hubby worked long hours. The husband and wife were both former Marines and we thus had the military connection. We also liked the fact that if we took over their existing lease it would be good for us as there were no weight/breed restrictions regarding the dog.

We lucked out not having to pay a broker's fee. Before people get all upset, I do believe brokers should get paid for their services. Not being from NYC paying 15% for something that one does not even own, and for us, only having the luxury of living in NYC for 2 maybe (hopefully) 3 yrs, seemed a bit steep. I understand that brokers can find you some great deals if you had specific needs, (as we did), a/o you are hoping to live in your apartment for a longer period of time. We had figured we'd try first on our own, and if not go with a broker, as we really wanted to live in Manhattan with our dog.

As crazy as it seemed to most, and annoying to some,(Jim :)) I'm still glad I started my search far too early, as I received some great tips from people, got a better feeling for the areas that we felt would be a good location for our family due to schools, museums, dog parks, etc.

Okay, back to packing Hades! I hope everyone had a fun Memorial Day week-end!

:) Nell

nellm - I meant more details about the rental. Location, size, type of building, etc. Thanks, and happy you found what you were looking for.

I think you should be looking in Morningide Heights west of Amsterdam. 106th to 116th. Two big parks- Riverside and Morningside. It feels like the UWS but is less expensive given above 96th street location. Next to 1 trains and easy to get to riverdale.

Grunty, she already found the place.

nell sounds way too nice. but she's also a smartie, so maybe she'll be ok

Newbuyer99-

Sorry, it's on 77th and Broadway, a landmarked building, 1st floor 2BD/2BA plus rec room and a bit of private patio space. About 1100 sq ft. Yes, we're super excited and happy about the location, good for my hubby, our boys, and our dog, being that the dog park at 72nd and Riverside park is a mere 5 blocks away.

Grunty, we were looking in that area as well as my husband is familiar with that area as he went to grad school at Columbia back in the 1990's. What we liked about this location was that it was zoned for PS. 87, a decent public school and the GT school, I think it is called PS. 334/ The Anderson school is just down the block, as our son, Ian is on the GT track.

Lucillebluth-
I like your comment. :)

Hello Nell,

I really enjoyed reading your thread! It seemed to generate a lot of great people helping you and giving you advice! As a fellow dog-lover and big-dog owner, I found your thread helpful. I am wondering if you have already moved there yet this month? I’m so glad you found a place to take your big doggie and if you have any time at all in the next couple of weeks or even months, I would love to ask you a few questions as I am in a similar situation yet I have an even bigger doggy than you! I have a 10 year old Saint Bernard and a 4-year old 50 pound mixed dog. I am moving to the city in January 2012 and like you, trying to plan ahead and get tips and advice from as many as possible. I know the search may be difficult because I have a big boy, but big dogs live in NY - - I mean I already know that. I’ve been several times and see huge Great Danes, etc., all over the city. I have been talking to a broker who specialized in pet-friendly apartments and I plan to visit in December for him to show me some places. He did say that he has a few places in mind on the UES and that it’s not impossible - - it will just be a limited selection. Also, since I’m planning to move in January, he said that works in my favor to have more options than say summer. I would of course like everyone like to avoid a broker fee but I’m extremely hesitant to deal with all the scams on Craigslist and since I live in CA it’s not practical for me to go there more than once before I move. But what I wanted to ask is how you did it and if you found certain areas to be more open to big dogs or if it was as difficult as everyone makes it out to be? I want to make the most out of my December trip in the most time efficient way. I don’t have as a big a budget as you, but I can go up to 2,000 a month for a 1-bedroom which the broker guy told me is do-able. I don’t need a lot of space because although I have a big dog, he is a senior. He is over his play days and just sleeps all day and just kind of lounges around wherever I am. A lot of people always freak out and say OMG you can’t have a Saint Bernard in a tiny apartment but yes, even in my 2 bedroom house, he doesn’t roam around …he lays at my foot wherever I may be and prefers walks outside and to the park as opposed to being in a backyard. My other dog, same thing. She sleeps in the day and prefers walks outside. It’s so funny, as I was reading all of your posts, you sound just like me and has all the same concerns as I do!! Any advice or locations you may know of if you are there now would be awesome! I see you gave some info on here about your new place but if you can think of anything else, I’d sure appreciate it!

hi nell! i loved reading your thread as well. i'm a tremendous dog lover, lived in nyc from 1977 to about 1990, then moved back in 1997 and ultimately ended up in stamford, ct, one of the burbs you didn't want to live in. my husband commutes to the city each day (about 50 minutes on metronorth, which you now know is a commuter train). what i want to know is, how do you like being in the city now? it's a hot time to be there, but you will LOVE the fall. by the way, i found your thread by googling "i like our building in riverdale, except for"! i can't really afford to buy in manhattan, though i think we'd eventually like to move back into the city. our son won't be here with us much longer, so we think we'd like to do retirement in nyc, as crazy as that sounds. giving your sons the chance to live there is terrific and the best education in the world. all the best regards.