Parents in NYC - buying multifamily townhouse in UWS?

Townhouses are usually 20+ mil, not 4-6 mil. If you have a listing, I'd like to see myself. Ideally househacking that you're thinking of would work if it was any other non-blue state, but you're talking about NY State and NYC, the absolute worse place for a mom/pop landlord. Very tenant friendly laws, can take up to 2-3 years to evict a professional tenant while you're hemorrhaging on mortgage, code violations, and taxes. I only see tenant laws getting worse in the future for landlords, not better. It's a matter of time that only Sec8 will be common in NYC.

Plan approximately 75% chance of going to the elementary school in your zone. 25% kids are outside of the zone, some very far from Brooklyn/Bronx/Queens. IS/JHS has less chance. HS is almost no chance.

NYC Public schools are approximately 35:1 student/teacher ratio. There's no remedial school because of karens/kevins in 80's so chances are you'll have a lot of trouble maker kids in the class with borderline spectrum kids as well. Your kids may be bullied or shaken down for money too. There's a reason why kids are sent to Trinity (UWS) or Dalton (UES), both are excellent IPL's (Ivy League Prep school), better odds of getting into Ivy versus public school if you really want your kids in Ivy.

Another thing nobody has mentioned yet, NYC is getting rid of the Special Ed classes. If you have a smart kid, the kid can attend special ed. Think of it like AP Classes for high school but it's at elementary and IS/JHS level. Not any more... gone due to "equality". Now your kid has to rough it with one class level.

Kids are also subject to a lot of placement exams. Need to take one for Kindergarten, one for IS/JHS, and more well known SHSAT for HS. That's a lot of pressure on kids to be academic smart. If you want your kids to have a high paying W2, then go for it, but if you want to teach your kids business, not that important.

There's a reason why many wealthy young parents move out of the city to raise kids. Far better quality of education and life for the kids. NYC Education system is crap, it permeates even to pre-school/nursey school level which are required to follow NYC BOE.

What I suggest, go to the top school districts nearby. Takes about 30-45 min commute to Port Authority / Grand Central Station / Penn Station. Ridgefield / Tenafly in NJ (30 min bus). Rye / Scarsdale in Westchester (30-50min Metro North). Great Neck (30 min non-stop to Penn), Jericho (40 min with 2 stops), Syosset (50 min non-stop Penn).

Pre-covid, it wasn't too bad living in cramped apartments and townhouses of 1000-1200 sqft because there's the parks, indoor playgrounds, and everything else. Now, a lot of those places are shutdown or restricted. Many parents saw first had how much their children regressed and affected their mental/emotional/psychological growth. Kids need space. 2000 sqft is the minimum I'd recommend for growing kids with their own backyard.

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