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Paulsboro is pretty much a no go, IMO. The town is very depressed socio-economically and the schools are poor. Woodbury is a mixed bag with some really nice areas and some poorer areas. The schools are below average, but better than Paulsboro.
You've made a few of these threads, so I need to ask, what are you looking for? Is this solely about investment property? Are you looking for a place to live and have a limited budget? If you are looking for somewhere to live yourself are there kids that will be going to school? Where do you work (city/state) and how much of a commute are you willing to make?
With some more information, we could really help you narrow down some areas to consider taking all the factors into account.
To help you make some comparisons, here is a link I posted in another thread.
Quote:
One of the easiest ways to compare towns socio-economically is to look at the NJ Dept. of Education DFG's (District Factor Groupings). These take into account the demographics of the population, the poverty rate and the overall income per capita and per family. They break the scale down like this from "worst" to "best": A, B, CD, DE, FG, GH, I, J.
FWIW, Paulsboro is rated "A" which is the same rating as Camden and Trenton. Woodbury is rated "B" which is the same as towns like Bulrington City, Gloucester City and Lawnside. I find that these groupings give you a nice idea of the socio-economic situation of a town. Consequently these numbers also give a decent indication of school quality as well, though there are towns with low DFG's that have good schools. Crime rates however have almost nothing to do with DFG's. For example, Paulsboro is an "A", same as Camden, but the crime rates are nowhere near similar.
moving ourselves want to pay cash for house....don't have to worry about schools but want a somewhat nice area to live
have cash to buy home 120k or less.........no worry about schools.....want a decent place to live that is relatively safe.....thanks......any suggestions would be great
have cash to buy home 120k or less.........no worry about schools.....want a decent place to live that is relatively safe.....thanks......any suggestions would be great
Well, one suggestion would be checking out any listings in the 08085 zipcode. That area comprises Swedesboro, Logan Twp. and Woolwich Twp. It is a quiet safe area with nearby necessities and easy highway access. There are some homes in Swedesboro proper that fall into that range. Additionally, there are some homes in the Bridgeport and Repaupo sections of Logan Twp. that are within that range. I would personally steer you towards homes in Logan as it is one of the lowest taxed towns in the state. Property taxes on an older 3 bed 1.5 bath home in the Bridgeport section may only run around $3k a year.
Outside of that would you consider Salem County? Both Oldmans and Carney's Point Twp. have homes in that price range and they are large spread out areas, so you should be able to find something private and quiet. The main towns in that area are Pedricktown in Oldmans Twp. and Penns Grove in Carney's Point Twp. Woodstown is another option, though homes in that price range may be hard to come by.
The town is very depressed socio-economically and the schools are poor.
...unless you play football or wrestle. But I would agree, unless you like the smell of oil, you probably won't like Paulsboro.
I don't really have anything against Woodbury though, other than the time I got speed-trapped on Cooper St when a 40 MPH zone suddenly turned into a 25.
For somewhat decent towns where you can get a house for $120K or less (I'm assuming SFH) that are still pretty convenient to Philly (seems like most of the places you asked about were), I'd maybe look at places like Sicklerville, Blackwood, and Pine Hill. Schools are below average in most of these areas (I know you said you don't need them, but still pretty important for resale), but are probably better than places like Gloucester City and Paulsboro. They're definitely no Moorestown or Cherry Hill, but they are decent enough towns where crime isn't a huge issue (although there are still probably parts you want to stay away from). Not sure on all the zip codes for Sicklerville, but Blackwood is 08012 and Pine Hill is 08021. If you search 08012 you may want to avoid Lindenwold (Clementon is included in that zip code as well and can also be hit or miss).
Good suggestion with Pine Hill. I'd add Atco to the list as well. Chances are you will find houses in that price range and they still have relatively easy access to Philly do to their proximity to the Lindenwold PATCO station.
I live in Gloucester County and would avoid Paulsboro, unless you really like high school wrestling. It's very economically depressed. Woodbury is odd. It has dumpy areas and old, over-priced (IMO) large homes that are very nice. You really have to do your research in Woodbury. Woodbury does have an old-fashioned downtown main street, but they have been trying to revitalize it for years, with varying degrees of success. Parking downtown is a major PITA. Check out Franklin Township, which is still semi-rural and pretty quiet. I would avoid Clayton, because it's schools are terrible (bad for resale, even if you don't have kids) and its taxes are much higher than those of Franklin Twp., which is right next door.
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moving ourselves want to pay cash for house....don't have to worry about schools but want a somewhat nice area to live
It's very economically depressed. Woodbury is odd. It has dumpy areas and old, over-priced (IMO) large homes that are very nice. You really have to do your research in Woodbury. Woodbury does have an old-fashioned downtown main street, but they have been trying to revitalize it for years, with varying degrees of success. Parking downtown is a major PITA. Check out Franklin Township, which is still semi-rural and pretty quiet. I would avoid Clayton, because it's schools are terrible (bad for resale, even if you don't have kids) and its taxes are much higher than those of Franklin Twp., which is right next door.
