Alexis

I live in Queens now but I lived (rented) in Suffolk County (Deer Park) for three years and I liked it fine except for the commute, which was hellacious!!! I don't know if you or your husband will be commuting to Manhattan, but if so, seriously consider what adding 4 hours to your workday will be like. The train ride (LIRR) was just under an hour but door to door, it was at least 2 hours, each way. My quality of life sucked those 3 years. If you won't have to go to the city then this won't matter. - Wed May 28 2008, 16:08

I don’t know what you consider reasonable but we own a condo in Queens. (Kew Gardens Hills). 2 bedroom, 2 bath, parking, doorman, pool, gym that’s around $400,000 -$430,000. There are new buildings that cost a lot more but frankly I think some of these places are getting carried away with the amenities and then charging a fortune for a modest sized apartment. (Seriously, I love having a 24 hr doorman, but I don’t really need a 24 hr in-house massage therapist.)
When we bought in 1998, we definitely preferred a condo to a co-op and there were even fewer condos available back then. There are a lot more new condo buildings but I've been checking them out and honestly I've been kind of shocked at the common charges. My husband saw several that were over $1100 per month and the property taxes are separate. (Our monthly charge is $497/mo and $2200/yr in tax) When we were buying back then, the lower charges was one of the reasons why we preferred condos to co-ops. But of course at least with a co-op the maintenance charges include taxes.
The other reason was that as others have said, co-op boards can be hard to deal with and with a condo you don't have to apply, get references, sit for interviews etc. and then wait to see if the board will accept you. Condos do require board approval but it's far less strict and at ours (maybe all?) if they turn the buyer down they have to buy the condo at the negotiated price to compensate the homeowner for ruining their sale. - Wed May 28 2008, 15:47