Your Guide to NYC’s Tribeca Neighborhood

Skyscrapers and film festivals come to mind when you think of the Tribeca neighborhood, but this part of Manhattan has much more to offer [Insert Image] Many folks hear about Tribeca, even if they have never stepped foot into New York City. This portion of the city makes waves every year thanks to its acclaimed film festival. According to the Tribeca Film Festival’s website, the organization has found firm footing in the Tribeca neighborhood for over 20 years and helped launch many independent films to new heights.

If you don’t count yourself as a film buff, you should still keep an eye on this portion of Manhattan, especially if you are in the market for a new apartment, condo, or home. The area’s unique name stems from its unique location — Triangle Below Canal Street, or Tribeca for short. On a map, the neighborhood looks a bit more like a quadrilateral and includes everything between Canal Street, Broadway, and Chambers Street. Some have even extended the southern boundary of the neighborhood to Murray Street for marketing purposes in recent years, making this one of the more dynamic portions of the lower section of the city.

The Tribeca neighborhood’s vibrancy makes it a hot location for anyone who wants to get a taste of the Manhattan lifestyle. This sleek portion of town can catch anyone’s eye, but took many generations to evolve into one of the trendiest portions of lower Manhattan.

How Tribeca Evolved

The Tribeca neighborhood features stunning apartment complexes and trendy restaurants, but hasn’t always looked so hip. Forbes reports that the area that eventually became known as Tribeca started out as a shopping district during the 1800’s and took on local neighborhood names like “Washington Market” and the “Butter and Eggs District.” The area’s deep history comes out in its architecture, and many pre-Civil War buildings continue to dot the neighborhood. Despite these whimsical names, anyone who walked into what would become Tribeca at the beginning of the 19th century might not have seen bustling markets.

According to Civitalis, the area used to feature a ton of warehouses and it used to rank as one of the more industrial portions of Manhattan.

Tribeca eventually got its name due to a misunderstanding that eventually made its way to real estate developers. According to The New York Times, the current name settled into public knowledge after an artist co-op in the neighborhood registered their group as the TriBeCa Artist’s Co-Op in 1973. A local newspaper picked up on the story, but misidentified the whole neighborhood as TriBeCa and the name ended up sticking.

Other names for this portion of Manhattan started floating around at the same time, but competing titles like So Cal and SoSo just didn’t have the same ring to them. Around this same time, the area started to evolve into a very artsy neighborhood.

Tribeca House reported that the 1970’s saw a huge migration of artists to the area and many old industrial warehouses from the 1800’s transformed into lofts around the area.

As of 2018, the Tribeca neighborhood expanded and doubled the size of neighboring SoHo and ranked as one of the most expensive real estate markets in Manhattan. Some of the appeal stems from the new constructions that feature avant-garde architecture, while the steady influx of artists to the neighborhood has helped give the area its cool reputation. Celebrities like Leonardo DiCaprio, Scarlett Johansson, Mariah Carey, and more have all caught wind of the area’s reputation and Tribeca now ranks as a go-to destination for movie stars.

All of these changes have brought new life to this area, and as a result, Tribeca features some incredibly unique attractions that make it stand out against every other NYC borough.

The Best Things to do in the Tribeca Neighborhood

When it comes to spending a day in Tribeca, you have your work cut out for you. There are so many sites and attractions to visit, no single trip could truly encompass everything in this neighborhood. Art events rank as a must-do when you find yourself in the area, and luckily, you shouldn’t have a hard time finding a good gallery or theater to visit.

Art and Cultural Attractions

Loving New York highly recommends checking out the New York Art Center if you want to see the latest avant-garde paintings that the city has to offer. If you get to the Tribeca neighborhood at just the right time in the year, you also can’t miss the iconic Tribeca film festival that Robert DeNiro helms every year.

When you think about the best bookstores in NYC, your mind might go straight to The Strand, but Tribeca should also stay on your radar. The Culture Trip encourages you to check out Poets’ House, a literary center and library with a focus on established and up-and-coming poets and features live events and in-person readings. If you feel more inclined to quietly browse some bookshelves, The Mysterious Bookshop has your name all over it. This store specializes in mysteries, detective novels, and whodunnits, and even stocks rare collections of Sherlock Holmes books.

Tribeca Parks and Rec

While this very urban portion of Manhattan might not seem like the best part of the city to spend a day outside in, the Tribeca neighborhood also features some fun family-friendly attractions that keep you out and about. Pier 25 has found its way into the hearts of many locals thanks to its mini-golf course, volleyball court, children’s playground and more. If you need some culture but don’t feel like hitting up a gallery, you can also visit the Poster Museum, a small museum dedicated to vintage prints that go all the way back to the 1870’s. This portion of NYC also hosts the city’s smallest museum. The Mmuseumm sits inside an old freight elevator and features a bizarre of tiny collectibles sourced from all over the world.

Tribeca Bar scene

No day in Tribeca comes complete without hitting up the restaurant and bar scene. The huge selection of restaurants can’t disappoint — You can start your day at the Takahachi Bakery, a Japanese bakery that specializes in miso almond cookies, olive rye wasabi buns, French baguettes, and much more. Mulberry & Vine made a splash as a vegetarian-friendly cafe that caters to health conscious locals and visitors alike, while Brushstroke provides a luxurious Japanese-inspired dinner brought to you by award-winning chef David Bouley.

The bar scene can easily compete with the food offerings in the neighborhood. The Brandy Library lives up to its name and boasts a wide selection of craft spirits recommended by in-house spirit sommeliers. If you need a bar that’s more down to earth, you can’t go wrong with Nancy’s Whiskey Bar, the oldest bar in New York City.

All of these attractions can easily entice anyone to visit, but to get the true Tribeca experience, you might just need to find your perfect home in this neighborhood.

Where to live in the Tribeca Neighborhood

To get the most out of the area, you need to know exactly where you want to live in the Tribeca neighborhood. This portion of NYC features a lush mix of modern constructions based on bold architectural designs and antique renovations that date back almost 200 years. Some locals describe the 60-story apartment complex at 56 Leonard Street as a Jenga tower-like construction thanks to uneven layers that asymmetrically jut out from all corners. 67 Vestry Street relies on a more conservative architectural style that should appeal to those who want to live in a space with a more reigned-in look. The 13-story building recently completed its renovation and currently seeks residents.

Meanwhile, an apartment unit on the waterfront at 450 Washington Street has started nearing the end of its renovations. This newly remodeled building featuring tons of expansive windows and interior refurbishments now have units available for sale that range between $1 million and $10 million.

Insider found that some portions of the Tribeca neighborhood prove to be a bit quieter, and you can easily find a Civil War-era renovated apartment off the beaten path that leads out to cobblestone-paved streets. Public transit stretched through the area, and no matter where you settle, you shouldn’t have an issue finding a train nearby. The only difficult obstacle to overcome might be the price tags on some of the units.

How much does it cost to live in the Tribeca Neighborhood?

Tribeca has notoriously come to prominence as one of the most expensive places to live in the city. As of 2019, the median sale price of homes sat at $3.9 million. This steep price tag most likely doesn’t phase many of the neighborhood’s residents, who pulled in an average annual income of $879,000, making Tribeca the fifth richest area code in the United States of America.

If you have the money to spend, you can find a ton of great properties for sale across this portion of Manhattan. Listings in Tribeca generally range between $1.24 million and $65 million, and encompass everything in-between. On the low end, a cool $1.24 million helps you lock down a 1-bed, 1-bath at 450 Washington Street. If you want to spend a bit more, you could look into a 2-bedroom, 2-bathroom apartment at 93 Worth Street that currently has a market price of $2,325,000. As long as you are prepared to spend over $1 million, you can easily find your perfect home in Tribeca.

How to find the perfect home in Tribeca

The price tags on some units in the Tribeca neighborhood can easily make some heads spin. Getting the best bang for your buck on a real estate purchase takes some skill, but luckily, the experienced team at NewDevRev has what it takes to get you into your perfect Tribeca condo, apartment, or penthouse. If you can easily see yourself strolling down Canal Street and taking in the sites and sounds of this neighborhood on a daily basis, why wait?