moving to philadelphia/wanting to consider living in new jersey (Camden: for sale, car insurance)

[skw22]

I would like information on moving to new jersey vs philadelphia. I want to live in great school district, family friendly neighborhood, and need to be able to get to philly without a super long commute. I am hearing about taxes between the two and would like to hear more to make the right decision. please send any information regarding places to live and understanding the financial difference between NJ and philly.

Thanks.

[veuvegirl]

I would say live in PA solely because of the taxes. The taxes in NJ are out of control.

[billb7581]

Gasoline and utilities are cheaper in NJ, it's 6 of 1 half dozen of another IMO.

I live in Cinnaminson NJ which is an inner ring suburb of Philadelphia, mostly 60's homes but affordable and taxes aren't terrible.

Working in Philly but living in NJ you will not have to pay any state income tax as you can write off the Philadelphia wage tax against your NJ state tax.

Living in PA you'll pay both the wage tax and the PA state tax.

To pimp my own town a little you have the River Line making a downtown commute by public trans doable.

[amgoff]

First of all... when you say Philadelphia, do you mean the actual city or the PA suburbs surrounding Philly, ie - Delaware Co., Bucks Co., etc...? That makes a big difference...

Where are you moving from? Are you more accustomed to the "city life" or the suburban and/or possibly rural life?

I'm not too familiar with the property taxes in the actual city, but I can tell you that you won't find all that much difference between some of the nicer PA suburbs and South Jersey.

As has already been mentioned, if you live in PA and work in the city you'll be subject to PA income tax as well as the Philadelphia wage tax. And I'll just echo the fact that gasoline and utilities are higher in PA... especially in the city itself. South Jersey has some of the lowest gas prices not just in the region, but the entire country... you'll generally be looking at anywhere from 10-20 cents less per gallon in SJ than you'll find in PA... and you don't have to pump it yourself in NJ.

Also, what do you consider a "super long" commute? Most places in Camden and Gloucester counties are generally anywhere between 15-30 minutes from Philly... and in Camden County, you'll have access to the PATCO train/subway system which connects directly to Philadelphia. Where I'm at (Salem Co.), it takes about 40-45 minutes to get to Philly, but this is a largely rural area so that might not be too appealing to you... on the other hand, house prices and property taxes tend to be a good deal lower than those area a bit farther north, so financially it makes up for the longer commute.

Anyway.. if you could give some more specifics about your particular situation, it would help.

[Mickey421]

Originally Posted by billb7581

Gasoline and utilities are cheaper in NJ, it's 6 of 1 half dozen of another IMO.

With Corzine adding taxes consistently, IMO it won't be long before he increases the gasoline tax to reflect the neighboring states.

[MoorestownResident]

Some facts to consider PA burbs to NJ's.

Facts:

NJ Negatives:
Property taxes potentially much higher in NJ, leading to higher housing costs
Car Insurance much higher in NJ

PA negatives:
PA roads around Philly can be congested mess, worse than NJ
PA burbs have limited access to anything other than Philly
PA doesn't have the same stature or income level as NJ
Less stringent zoning and open space policies than NJ, can lead to less stable housing prices
Stronger economic growth in NJ burbs versus PA burbs
More reliance on Philly metro than NJ burbs
Gas prices higher in PA but NJ catching up

Neutral
Schools depend on the district

[jenne03]

I just moved back to Nj in November. My husband works in Philly and I did the same thing..comparing pa to Nj...The majority of the answers I got told me NJ's taxes are so High and it would be better to live in pa.

I found that actually there wasn't that big of difference. I was looking for a newer 4 bedroom home with a decent sized yard in a decent school district. I found the housing so expensive in Pa. Yes some of the areas had lower taxes, but the housing was more. Also some of the taxes really weren't all that much less. I went out to Chester County(which is really pretty btw)..where some of the housing was more affordable , but the commute was a nightmare. For us, we wanted my husband to have a better commute instead of going to work at the crack of dawn and then not getting home in time to see the kids.

Some of the really nice areas around Philly closer in ..we couldn't touch pricewise.

We actually ended up in the Harrison Township area(Gloucester county). The commute is about a half an hour. Now our taxes are definitely high here..but we were able to get what we wanted..

It just depends on your situation really and what you are looking for..But from my research, I didn't find the places out in Pa all that cheaper.

[billb7581]

Agreed, it's not that much of a difference. The only guys at my work who are living much cheaper than I am are living in NE Philly row homes. The ones that live in Bucks County are paying roughly the same money I am.

[MoorestownResident]

I don't think there is a huge difference but you ended up in Gloucester County where you will be able to find more reasonable housing costs. You can find mansions on the Main Line or very affordable towns in PA around Philly. I think if you looked at the same house in comparable towns your costs will be higher in NJ. If not, then that's good for us because we are more centrally located to Philly, NYC and the shore.

[rainrock]

Originally Posted by MoorestownResident

Facts:

Property taxes potentially much higher in NJ, leading to higher housing costs
Car Insurance much higher in NJ

PA negatives:
PA roads around Philly can be congested mess, worse than NJ
PA burbs have limited access to anything other than Philly
PA doesn't have the same stature or income level as NJ
Less stringent zoning and open space policies than NJ, can lead to less stable housing prices
Stronger economic growth in NJ burbs versus PA burbs
More reliance on Philly metro than NJ burbs
Gas prices higher in PA but NJ catching up

Neutral
Schools depend on the district

Wow this kid is seriously delusional or incredibly misinformed.
There isnt a single shred of truth in that entire paragraph. This kid came over on the Philly board and started pounding his chest about Moorestown and South Jersey how it is so superior to the Pa Burbs. I just had to smile and laugh.

Housing prices are exorbitant in suburban Pa compared to South Jersey. No offense but its not even close.The 4 PA burbs compare more favorably with the North Jersey counties than the South Jersey counties.Not quite of the same ilk as Hunterdon, Bergen etc but impressive nonetheless.

The avg housing prices in Chester, Bucks, + Montgomery Counties are approximately $100K more than the South Jerey counties.

As far as south jersey having stronger economic growth than the Pa suburbs, that is just hilarious.The PA burbs account for almost 50% of the metro economy. Philadlephia 25%, South jersey 13% and N. Delaware 12%.

Chester County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau


Median Household Income 2004 census information.
Pa and South Jersey suburbs

Chester County (PA) $69,904
Montgomery County (PA) $65,899
Bucks County (PA) $64,696
Burlington(NJ) $63,396
Gloucester(NJ) $57,338
Delaware County(PA) $52,287
Camden (NJ)$48,748


Prudential Fox has 170 listed homes for sale in Gladwyne+Villanova Pa.

Only 6 houses are listed for under 600,000.Only 1 under 500,000.

1 out of 170 houses listed under $500k . Let that sink in before making claims about getting more house for your money in Pa compared to NJ.


On to Moorestown NJ per PrudentialFox.com

130 houses listed for sale.

86 houses listed under $600,000. 55 under $500,000.


66% of the houses in Moorestown sell below $600k
43% of the houses in Moorestown sell below $500k
2.3% of the houses in Moorestown sell above $3,000,000


Gladwyne/Villanova

3% of the houses in Gladwyne/Villanova sell below 600k
0.005% of the houses in Gladwyne/Villanova sell below $500k
17% of the houses in Gladwyne/Villanova sell above $3,000,000