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Is living in Brooklyn without having a car difficult? Is this feasible in cities other than NYC (that have a frum community)?
Would there be a lot of cost savings to not owning a car if that entails often use of car services (Uber or local) and public transportation?
In Brooklyn, it depends. If you have a large family and need to travel often (e.g. pediatrician office not close to public transportation, supermarkets not near your house/apartment) then having a car may be cost effective. I personally know somebody (family of three) who does without a car but lives near Ave J and shops in Pomegranate. She uses public transportation while her husband often rides a bicycle.
We lived on a yishuv with a frum community, and we managed without a car. We walked to local places, took buses to the cities when we traveled, and occasionally borrowed or rented a car when we needed one for a longer time period.
We now live in Be’er Sheva, and there is also a frum community here. We still manage without a car; we are within walking distance to malls, shopping centers, and the train and bus stations. The bus system is excellent here. If we need to get out of town, for a wedding or to run errands, we rent a car.
so you want to know if cost of car+ gas + insurance + maintenance +possible parking fees < or = or > cost of cabs+public transportation
That will depend on your needs-
Do you live within walking distance of the essentials – stores, banks, schools, etc. If schools are far, is there always bus service or will you need to carpool? Does shopping in local within-walking-distance stores mean you will be spending more? What about the commute to work- is there public transportation for that? If you live in an apartment building, how much time will you spend circling to find a parking spot?Brooklyn stores all have home delivery because many Brooklyn residents don’t have cars. If it weren’t for families without cars, there wouldn’t be so many local grocery stores. Most people in the frum areas of Brooklyn are in walking distance of a grocery store.
yehudayona: Brooklyn stores all have home delivery but not for the reason you state (just go to Moisha’s, KRM, Pomegranate) and see the full parking lots. Stores have home delivery as people do not only shop in one store. My wife shops on Sunday as she does other shopping while I am at home waiting for the delivery.
If you live in Brooklyn you likely have Zipcar or Car2Go available near you. It can be a cheaper and perhaps easier option than taking a cab/Uber. Just one more part of the puzzle to consider.
You have to get insurance & car payment quotes, and estimate how often you’d need to rent a car etc. to get an idea of how the costs compare. If you buy a used car, you might need repairs more often yet have cheaper monthly payments. AND IN NYC, DON’T FORGET ABOUT THOSE PESKY PARKING TICKETS! (Sorry for the shouting. Hope de Blasio heard me.) Also, how do you usually commute?
The short answer for most people in Brooklyn and Queens is probably that not owning is the cheaper option. Manhattan definitely so. In Staten Island I would guess a car is a must.
I don’t know about other Jewish communities, but if the town has sidewalks it’s a good starting point. If there are none it likely means it’s not a walkable or even bus friendly community, but I’m sure there are exceptions.
Moisha’s, KRM, and Pomegranate have tiny parking lots. On a busy shopping day, it’s simply impossible for all of the shoppers to park in their lots. The only store with a decent amount of parking is Bingo. I have no way of proving it, but I suspect Mrs. iacisrrma’s shopping habits are unusual. Rather than risking losing their street parking spot or getting stuck behind a school bus or garbage truck, many car owners would rather walk to their local grocery store and have the purchases delivered. In some chassidish circles women don’t drive (and men don’t shop for groceries), so women usually walk to the local store.
yy: We live in the E. 30’s, most of my neighbor’s drive to Moisha’s and have their purchases delivered as they don’t want to shlep 30 bags and instead choose to have Moisha’s deliver the 5 -8 boxes. This is the norm not the exception. Most people do not shop locally. They go to the store with the cheapest prices.
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