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Real Estate Prices & Overview

Gowanus West median real estate price is $3,891,418, which is more expensive than 99.2% of the neighborhoods in New York and 99.8% of the neighborhoods in the U.S.

The average rental price in Gowanus West is currently $5,423, based on NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis. The average rental cost in this neighborhood is higher than 94.2% of the neighborhoods in New York.

Gowanus West is a densely urban neighborhood (based on population density) located in Brooklyn, New York.

Gowanus West real estate is primarily made up of small (studio to two bedroom) to medium sized (three or four bedroom) apartment complexes/high-rise apartments and small apartment buildings. Most of the residential real estate is renter occupied. Many of the residences in the Gowanus West neighborhood are relatively historic, built no later than 1939, and in some cases, quite a bit earlier. A number of residences were also built between 2000 and the present.

Gowanus West has a 11.9% vacancy rate, which is well above average compared to other U.S. neighborhoods (higher than 69.2% of American neighborhoods). Most vacant housing here is vacant year round. This could either signal that there is a weak demand for real estate in the neighborhood or that large amount of new housing has been built and not yet occupied. Either way, if you live here, you may find many of the homes or apartments are empty.

Notable & Unique Neighborhood Characteristics

When you see a neighborhood for the first time, the most important thing is often the way it looks, like its homes and its setting. Some places look the same, but they only reveal their true character after living in them for a while because they contain a unique mix of occupational or cultural groups. This neighborhood is very unique in some important ways, according to NeighborhoodScout's exclusive exploration and analysis.

People

Wealth makes most things in life easier, and a few things harder. If you are wealthy and enjoy keeping up with the Jones', this neighborhood will interest you. In fact, according to NeighborhoodScout's research, the Gowanus West neighborhood is wealthier than 98.3% of the neighborhoods in the United States. Residents here are truly in a unique situation even when compared to other Americans, based on the sheer amount of wealth concentrated here. Even in times of economic downturn, residents of this neighborhood, as a group, suffered less and recovered more quickly. This is indeed a stand-out characteristic of this neighborhood. As one would expect in a considerably wealthy neighborhood such as this, Gowanus West also has one of the lowest ratings of child poverty in the nation.

In addition, if you're a regular supporter of the arts and enjoy outings to the theatre, weekend boutique-ing, or even a finely aged wine with dinner, than you're in good company with the people of the Gowanus West neighborhood. This neighborhood is uniquely immersed with more "urban sophisticates" than 99.4% of neighborhoods across the country. The people here truly stand out as a class among their own. They are an exclusive community characterized by refined tastes, cultural inclinations, and the means to live well. Urban sophisticates live a big city lifestyle, whether or not they live in or near a big city. They are educated executives or managers by week, and serial patrons of the arts by weekend. If this lifestyle pertains to you, than you'll certainly feel right at home in the Gowanus West neighborhood. In addition to being an excellent choice for urban sophisticates, this neighborhood is also a very good choice for highly educated executives.

Also, the rate of college educated adults in the Gowanus West neighborhood is a unique characteristic of the neighborhood. 82.7% of adults here have received at least a 4-year bachelor's degree, compared to the average neighborhood in America, which has 34.3% of the adults with a bachelor's degree. The rate here is higher than NeighborhoodScout found in 98.6% of all U.S. neighborhoods.

Occupations

The Gowanus West neighborhood has a higher proportion of its residents employed as executives, managers and professionals than 99.7% of the neighborhoods in America. In fact, 85.2% of the employed people here make a living as an executive, a manager, or other professional. With such a high concentration, this truly shapes the character of this neighborhood, and to a large degree defines what this neighborhood is about.

Modes of Transportation

In the Gowanus West neighborhood, 47.9% of people ride the train to work each day. This is a very high percentage compared to most places. In fact, NeighborhoodScout's analysis reveals that this is a higher level of train ridership than in 99.3% of the neighborhoods in America.

Also, if your dream is to be able to ride your bike to work each day, look no further than this unique neighborhood. With 7.4% of residents in the Gowanus West neighborhood commuting on a bicycle to and from work daily, this neighborhood has more bicycle commuters than 99.2% of all neighborhoods in the U.S., according to NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis.

Finally, a unique way of commuting is simply not to. And in the Gowanus West neighborhood, analysis shows that 31.2% of the residents work from home, avoiding a commute altogether. This may not seem like a large number, but it is a higher proportion of people working from home than is found in 97.5% of the neighborhoods in the United States. One thing NeighborhoodScout's research reveals is that the wealthier and/or more isolated the neighborhood, the greater the proportion of residents who choose to work from home.

Real Estate

The Gowanus West neighborhood is very densely populated compared to most U.S. neighborhoods. In fact, with 37,843 persons per square mile in the neighborhood, it is more packed with people than 97.8% of the nation's neighborhoods. Even if you drive or take transit to your place of employment, many people enjoy being able to walk in their neighborhood. What many people don't realize is that most of America's premier vacation locations are also very walkable. The Gowanus West neighborhood is among the top 5% of American neighborhoods in terms of walkability.

In addition, corner bodegas, stores on the first floor and apartments above, former grand Victorian residences converted into apartments, three-deckers built shoulder-to-shoulder, duplexes. Such building types define the real estate of neighborhoods dominated by small 2, 3, and 4 unit apartment buildings. Many are in older core neighborhoods of Eastern and Midwestern cities, or historic town centers in their hinterlands. If you wax romantic about the look and feel of such neighborhoods, with fresh pizza, falafel and an independent florist at the corner, then you might find the Gowanus West neighborhood worth a close look. This neighborhood is an absolutely outstanding example of the dominance of small 2, 3, and 4 unit apartment buildings compared to neighborhoods across the nation, as they make up a substantial portion of this neighborhood's real estate stock. In fact, no less than 37.7% of the real estate here is made up of such dwellings, which is higher than 96.6% of all U.S. neighborhoods.

Furthermore, do you watch 'This Old House' on Public Television? Do you love the idea of fixing up a Colonial or Victorian era home, complete with the charm of yesteryear? Do you like to stroll or drive streets lined with gracious older residences? If you found yourself nodding yes to any of these questions, you are going to be interested in this unique neighborhood. The Gowanus West neighborhood stands out on a national scale for the sheer concentration of historic residences it contains: 55.1% of the residential real estate here was built from 1939 or earlier, some much earlier. This is a greater concentration of historic homes than 95.2% of the neighborhoods in the United States.

Car Ownership

Most American households own a car or other vehicle. Many own two cars or perhaps three. In the United States, it is useful to have an automobile not only for commuting, but also for shopping and getting to other services one needs. But NeighborhoodScout's analysis revealed that households in the Gowanus West neighborhood have a highly unusual car ownership. 44.8% of the households in this neighborhood don't own a car at all. This is more carless households than NeighborhoodScout found in 98.5% of U.S. neighborhoods.

Diversity

Did you know that the Gowanus West neighborhood has more Austrian and Lithuanian ancestry people living in it than nearly any neighborhood in America? It's true! In fact, 5.1% of this neighborhood's residents have Austrian ancestry and 1.9% have Lithuanian ancestry.

Gowanus West is also pretty special linguistically. Significantly, 1.1% of its residents five years old and above primarily speak Persian at home. While this may seem like a small percentage, it is higher than 97.9% of the neighborhoods in America.

The Neighbors

There are two complementary measures for understanding the income of a neighborhood's residents: the average and the extremes. While a neighborhood may be relatively wealthy overall, it is equally important to understand the rate of people - particularly children - who are living at or below the federal poverty line, which is extremely low income. Some neighborhoods with a lower average income may actually have a lower childhood poverty rate than another with a higher average income, and this helps us understand the conditions and character of a neighborhood.

The neighbors in the Gowanus West neighborhood in Brooklyn are wealthy, making it among the 15% highest income neighborhoods in America. NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis reveals that this neighborhood has a higher income than 98.3% of the neighborhoods in America. In addition, 0.0% of the children seventeen and under living in this neighborhood are living below the federal poverty line, which is a lower rate of childhood poverty than is found in 100.0% of America's neighborhoods.

The old saying "you are what you eat" is true. But it is also true that you are what you do for a living. The types of occupations your neighbors have shape their character, and together as a group, their collective occupations shape the culture of a place.

In the Gowanus West neighborhood, 85.2% of the working population is employed in executive, management, and professional occupations. The second most important occupational group in this neighborhood is sales and service jobs, from major sales accounts, to working in fast food restaurants, with 10.9% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in government jobs, whether they are in local, state, or federal positions (4.3%), and 3.7% in clerical, assistant, and tech support occupations.

Languages

The most common language spoken in the Gowanus West neighborhood is English, spoken by 83.4% of households. Some people also speak Spanish (5.1%).

Ethnicity / Ancestry

Culture is the shared learned behavior of peoples. Undeniably, different ethnicities and ancestries have different cultural traditions, and as a result, neighborhoods with concentrations of residents of one or another ethnicities or ancestries will express those cultures. It is what makes the North End in Boston so fun to visit for the Italian restaurants, bakeries, culture, and charm, and similarly, why people enjoy visiting Chinatown in San Francisco.

In the Gowanus West neighborhood in Brooklyn, NY, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as Irish (22.0%). There are also a number of people of Italian ancestry (19.2%), and residents who report German roots (12.6%), and some of the residents are also of English ancestry (8.0%), along with some Asian ancestry residents (7.3%), among others. In addition, 13.2% of the residents of this neighborhood were born in another country.

Getting to Work

Even if your neighborhood is walkable, you may still have to drive to your place of work. Some neighborhoods are located where many can get to work in just a few minutes, while others are located such that most residents have a long and arduous commute. The greatest number of commuters in Gowanus West neighborhood spend between 30 and 45 minutes commuting one-way to work (49.9% of working residents), which is at or a bit above the average length of a commute across all U.S. neighborhoods.

Here most residents (47.9%) take the train to get to work. In addition, quite a number also bicycle to get to work (7.4%) and 7.2% of residents also hop out the door and walk to work for their daily commute. This neighborhood is distinguished by the high number of residents who take the train to work each day, which can be a very good way to get to work at a lower cost and with less pollution.


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