Relocating to NYC

[Bozzle]

Hello, We will be moving to NY from London in the new year and wondering if anyone has any recommendations for relocators/ moving specialists. We have 2 children - DD is 7, 8 in November and our DS is 10 , 11 in January. It is really bad timing for him as we are applying to independents and the posting is for 2 years. So he would be going back into UK school 13+ entrance, which is a lot more competitive. Having read some threads on here, I am concerned about education levels being different and possibly having to tutor as well. But I'm hoping the benefits and the experience will outway the downsides. Any advice much appreciated. Thanks

Hi Bozzle

Sorry no advice, but my DH has an opportunity to work in NY for 2 years, I love NY but like you my worry is the dc education, my 2 are currently in year 4 and 7, so one is already in secondary school and I'm not sure how 2 years away pre GCSE would affect him. Watching your thread with interest, we're also from London.

I work in midtown and live in North Jersey, Hoboken to be specific.

Where are you working and how much $$$ do you have? A family 3bed rental in Hoboken is $4500-5500 a month. It's about $8-10k in Manhattan and the parts of Brooklyn with good schools for a small 3 bed but I'd probably budget more because I like some space.

Our elder 2 have autism so we use public schools. Our eldest was offered a place at Spence for kindergarten. It's a good girls school and easily commutable from Hoboken. When the time comes, probably middle school, they will attend school in Manhattan. Expect fees of $50k a year for each child.

If it's a stretch to afford school fees spend the money on rent and live in a good school district. Friends live in TriBeCa and the public schools are amazing.

Wow!!!! that sounds Amazing been 3 times best place ever i would love to live there.. I think you’ll be fine and also children will have an amazing experience

Do you want to live in the city or would out in the 'burbs suit you? We're a 35 min train ride north of NYC in westchester - its pretty bucolic / white picket fence round here, and if you search in the right places (and can afford the rent...) some of the public schools are excellent

Lots of the big agencies are specialist in international moves - I would recommend them as they will be used to expats / immigrants with no or little credit history, which will work against you when trying to find a place to live. I used Corcoran and Sothebys

It very much depends on where your DS is likely to go to school in the UK and where he ends up at school in the US whether he will find a big difference. The biggest difference we have found is curriculum (so DS has learnt about the Pilgrim Fathers rather than, say, the Vikings) but it's bit of a MN myth that the US education system is terrible and leaves children far behind their UK counterparts

Oh, get an Amex card now if you don't already have one - they will turn it into a US Amex, so you will at least have something that you can pay with in $$s from the outset (no credit rating in the US will make it hard to get a US credit card with a limit of more than a couple of hundred dollars)