Brooklyn Apartment
Rental Info:

Flatbush, one of the six original towns settled on Long Island, was originally known as "Vlackte Bosch", Dutch for "a plain with woods". After the British took over New Amsterdam in 1664, the name was anglicized to "Flatbush." Flatbush is the largest and most ethnically diverse neighborhood in Brooklyn. Strongly middle-class, you’ll find friendly, welcoming neighbors who like to share their cultures. Ethnic groceries and restaurants almost run the gamut from A to Z: Caribbean to Russian food is easily sampled all along the bustling streets.

Ditmas Park is an enclave of Victorian homes along tree-lined streets. Mostly made up of single-family Victorian homes, this section of Brooklyn is a sylvan sector in the midst of row houses, apartment complexes, and crowded avenues. There are a few condominium and rental units, but most of the housing is grand one-family homes, often three or four stories, 80 to 100 years old. A range of architectural styles includes Victorian, Queen Anne, shingle style, colonial revival, neo-Tudor, Spanish Mission and Georgian. The neighborhood is enjoying a wave of popularity as people are being priced out of Park Slope and Brooklyn Heights. Low rates of owner occupancy in some co-op buildings add to the rental market. Cortelyou Road is the major shopping street. The population is a mix of Caribbean, African-American, Hispanic, Asian, Haitian, Orthodox Jewish, Indian and Bangladeshi backgrounds, and some residents cite this cultural richness as one the area's biggest draws. Some 56 different languages are spoken at the schools.

Prospect Lefferts Gardens: The Lefferts family was among the earliest European settlers in Brooklyn. They trace their roots to Dutch colonist Pieter Janse Hagewout (1650-1704), a farmer and shoemaker who emigrated from Holland. In 1687, Hagewout's son Leffert Pietersen bought 58 acres of land in the area now known as Prospect Lefferts Gardens where he built the original Lefferts Homestead. That estate is now the landmarked Historic District where 600 single-family homes were built in the mid-1800s. Outside of this District you'll find two-family homes and mid-rise apartment buildings. Prospect Lefferts Gardens is solidly middle-class neighborhood and solidly integrated with whites, blacks, Asian and Hispanic residents. Nostrand Ave and Flatbush Ave are the main shopping streets.