<p>Main issue with the UES is that the critical mass of residents living there are families with young children and middle/older adults…and well-off ones at that. The neighborhood is geared toward that so if one wants more excitement from trendier places with college students and young adults, the UES would be much more sedate in comparison. </p>
<p>However, the distance between the UES and lower Manhattan is such that it’s less than a 30-40 minute ride by subway…if that. Hey, it’s even a manageable walk on a nice day. Hence, my feeling it’s weird so many folks…mostly transplants feel the UES is “soo far away”. No, it’s not. </p>
<p>Thank you all for the info. It appears I worry more than D or her roommates in these matters. Apparently they talked about housing with their seniors and this was within their comfort zone.</p>
<p>After reading all the fine print, it appears the amount is $3.5K/month including the discount if we provide a bank account for auto debit, of course a deposit too, and a month and half fee for the broker.</p>
<p>@Woody, I know some hospitals she could have selected had a security escort service - I’ll have her check both her main hospital and for her rotation in Harlem. I was nervous too about sending personal data, but they gave me no options - they wanted copies of our 1040s, payroll info, and copies of drivers license without anything redacted, so I ended up faxing them.</p>
The primary reason I’m reviving this thread is to give a retrospective view - firstly thank you for all your advice, especially the posts about safety. (Oldmom, after I mentioned it, she actually did end up getting furniture from Ikea.) This weekend it was time to move out most of her stuff. DW had booked a rental van and I had muddled ideas about restrictions on where you could/couldn’t drive or park or load, etc., but somehow things worked out.
All in all, I believe that the one year in Manhattan and the Metropolitan Hosp has made her a whole lot more mature in so many ways. The apartment itself, the neighborhood, and the commutes, and most importantly the interaction with all the people at work, socially, and in the city seems to have worked out very well. She was really happy where she ended up living, and there were no significant problems of any kind. For brief periods she was even able to keep a car when she needed to commute out to suburban facilities.