Prospect Heights

Located in northwestern Brooklyn, Prospect Heights offers an interesting and unique mix of old and new. The neighborhood has a convenient location, close to some of the best and most popular Brooklyn attractions, including Prospect Park, the Brooklyn Public Library, and the Underhill Playground. Prospect Heights will become even more well known once the Barclays Center opens next year and the Nets begin to play there. This town has become somewhat of a hotspot in Brooklyn, as developers invest more money and more retailers move here. Another point of pride for residents here is the fact that the crime rate has dropped amazingly, giving more people confidence to move here. Housing options are plentiful, and range from well preserved brownstones to town houses, co-ops, and apartment complexes. The pricing here varies; there are affordable low end homes and homes with prices that are comparable to Manhattan prices. The busiest streets in Prospect Heights are on Washington and Vanderbilt. There are lots of shops and restaurants. Access to public transportation is amazing. There are nine subway lines, the Long Island Rail Road, and a number of buses. The commute to Manhattan takes about 30-40 minutes. In my opinion, the major problem with living in Prospect Heights is the school district. The schools here are mediocre; one is doing so badly that the city is thinking of getting rid of it altogether.

I considered moving to Prospect Heights, but the problem I found was that the apartments available in the area were not only overpriced, but seriously cramped. I know you're probably thinking that this is merely an NYC phenomenon which can't be avoided, but it's worse here than in other areas! Prospect Heights is on the up-and-coming side of things, but it's not quite there yet - unbeknowst to realtors. I'm sorry, but I don't want to pay $2200 for a crappy two bedroom on a cruddy street just because someone opened a cool bar a few blocks away. To make matters worse, people are actually paying these ridiculous rents to live in Prospect Heights, which I predict will put a damper on the neighborhood's development. (Obviously, if the rents are too high, then the cool but poor start-up businesses will start in other areas - like Gowanus. Or Bushwick. Or even Crown Heights.)

The bright side: Prospect Heights is home to cool things, like the greenmarket in Grand Army Plaza, the main branch of the Brooklyn Library, Brooklyn Botanical Gardens and the Brooklyn Museum. The area in and around Prospect Park is where most of the trendy new cafes and bars are located, as well as some of the better real estate.

There is a variation of residents here – people of a mixture of ethnicities live in the rowhouses on these tree-lined streets. The actual neighborhood is relatively small, and you can have your pick of 1890s brownstones or shiny new luxury apartments if you can afford the rents. Though Prospect Heights borders on some not-so-nice spots, there are actually some pretty cool places to go here, like Flatbush Farm. Local farms supply this restaurant with organic ingredients, which is always reassuring, and even if the restaurant has the word ‘farm’ in the title, this space is actually chic and chill. Oh, and the food is great, too!