If we gave Manhattan neighborhoods human personalities, the meatpacking district may be the hip,  in-the-know popular cousin and Central Park South would be the conservative  Wall Street banker uncle, it would stand to reason that Murray Hill is our dear  old grandma, very quiet but endearing; you wouldn't want to spend Friday night  with her but she has frequently offers gems of wisdom and history.  

 Grandma might tell us the how the neighborhood got it's name. The Murray family  were Quakers who settled and farmed the land that now stretches from 33rd to  39th streets east of Madison Avenue. The name persevered though the family is  no longer with us.  

 Today, a gradual stream of young professionals are snatching up apartments in  the brownstones that line the East 30s and co-ops in apartment buildings closer  to the river and the 40s. Real estate is more reasonably priced than anywhere  else on the island south of Harlem; and being that everywhere in the  neighborhood is a short walk from Fifth Avenue and Grand Central, it's as sure  as any investment. Perhaps Murray Hill will never be a part of the glitz and  glamor of the meatpacking district but there is a gradual evolution is  underway, with new apartment towers being built on 34th Street and the  restaurant and bar scene on Third Avenue becoming spicier with each liquor  license issued.  

 The boundaries of the neighborhood are: 42nd Street to the north, 27th Street to  the south, and Fifth Avenue to the west. Some stretch Murray Hill's eastern  boundary all the way to the East River, but historians generally place it  between Third and Second Avenues, which allows for Kips Bay and Tudor City to  remain distinct waterfront neighborhoods. Real estate agents occasionally  stretch the southern boundary to 23rd Street, to eliminate a gap between Murray  Hill and Gramercy. Park Avenue brings heavy two-way traffic through the area, but Third Avenue has  more delis, bars, and shops. East to west, 34th and 42nd are the grandest and  busiest streets.  

 Average Price to Buy

 Most of the beautiful brownstones in the lower 30s are being held by the  well-to-do families that have owned them for decades. But there are plenty of  co-op spaces turning over continuously. Recent real estate sales show that the average listing price for a condo in  Murray Hill is $940,075 with the median sales price being $840,000. The average  price per square foot is $1,013.  

 These prices for Manhattan are a tremendous bargain when you consider that  average listing prices for The Upper East Side and Upper West Side are  $2,692,956 and $2,289,846 respectively.  

 The Morgan Library and Sniffen Court carriage houses on 36th Street are  architectural tour stops. Whether for use or touring, the New York Public  Library brings many guests to Murray Hill, as does the Queens-Midtown Tunnel  (though the constant traffic and noise are not so welcomed by residents).  

 A Quiet Place to Call Home

 Speaking of residents, the Murray Hill Neighborhood Association is a small but  active group of locals who maintain the area greenery by keeping tree support  hoops sturdy and planting flowers in the Park Avenue median. The group's Ivy  League maintains the area ivy beds. Community Board 6 includes several  residents and takes neighborhood issues to City Council. As far as cultural  institutions, Murray Hill lacks in movie theaters but does feature a handful of  performance spaces with diverse calendars. The New York Art Theatre on Park  Avenue, the Folksbiene Yiddish Theater on 33rd, and the Jewish Repertory  Theater on 40th are there, just to name a few.  

 Though often overlooked, Murray Hill is a thriving neighborhood full of gems,  and many residents like the fact that the neighborhood hasn't gained the attention and popularity of other nearby neighborhoods.   

 Liam P. Cusack is associate editor of The Cooperator.