Thanks for the tip. We have another friend and his partner who live in Bethpage. Aren't LI taxes high? It really all depends on where I end up working. I finish my masters in December in Ed leadership and will be certified as a secondary school principal. I have already applied for licensure in both NY and NJ, so whichever state I get a job in will be the one we move to, so that we won't pay double income taxes. My partner is a pharmacist, so he is waiting on me to find a job first before he reciprocates his pharmacy licensure into just one or the other state. There are pros and cons to each. NJ has tremendously high property taxes, but somewhat cheaper housing. NYC has really cheap taxes, but higher housing prices, so it's a toss up between the two. As long as we are within 30 minutes of the city I am fine with wherever we end up. I really like Brooklyn attached multi family housing (buy the building, live on one floor and let your tenants on the others make your payment). We have had rental property here before, so being a landlord doesn't bother me. My partner likes Brooklyn, Manhattan, or Jersey apartments. There are some nice remodeled developments in East Harlem that look cool, as well as in Union City NJ. We have always been used to having huge spread out southern houses with big yards and such, 2 vehicles and all that driving and vehicle expense. I am sick of taking care of yards and big houses and ready to let someone else do the driving. Give me a row house or apartment, bus or subway, and let someone else do the upkeep. I intend to be out, involved in my school and the community, taking in the culture.