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Please help - I am taking a job in Oradell, NJ and need advice on best places to live in northern NJ. I have two children ages 9 and 11 so schools are important. I will be making a salary of $100K so I can't really afford to purchase a house in Oradell.
I would prefer to buy rather than rent, but I figure it'll be six months to a year before we can do that. I would like to find something affordable to rent in a good school district with a short commute into Oradell. That way when we are ready to buy my kids can remain in the same school district and we'll just be switching houses.
We aren't opposed to condos or townhomes, but want to make sure we are in a safe, family-friendly area. Also, I'm open to an hour commute if we can buy a house at a reasonable price.
We could swing payments/rent in the $1500 range. Possibly more if we could live in an area where we could get rid of one of our cars. I don't want to be putting all my hard earned money into rent.
OK - I've been surfing tons of sites looking at rentals and houses and it hase become apparent that I won't be able to find anything close to what I would like without paying at least $2000.
Any suggestions? I've found a house in Roselle Boro that looks nice and is a reasonable price - any insights on this area?
I'm new to this forum so if I'm breaking any rules I'm sorry.
You're in a beautiful area of Bergen County. The way things are going with the housing market these days, you can probably find something in Oradell. Get yourself a knowledgeable realtor and they can help you. I should know, we have a wonderful realtor and she sold our home in Oradell in 10 days-but the market is very slow-and that's to your advantage. Ridgewood is also nice, but you get a little more property wise in Oradell. Good luck-you're in a good place! If you need a reference for a realtor you can send me a private message.
Please help - I am taking a job in Oradell, NJ and need advice on best places to live in northern NJ. I have two children ages 9 and 11 so schools are important. I will be making a salary of $100K so I can't really afford to purchase a house in Oradell.
I would prefer to buy rather than rent, but I figure it'll be six months to a year before we can do that. I would like to find something affordable to rent in a good school district with a short commute into Oradell. That way when we are ready to buy my kids can remain in the same school district and we'll just be switching houses.
We aren't opposed to condos or townhomes, but want to make sure we are in a safe, family-friendly area. Also, I'm open to an hour commute if we can buy a house at a reasonable price.
We could swing payments/rent in the $1500 range. Possibly more if we could live in an area where we could get rid of one of our cars. I don't want to be putting all my hard earned money into rent.
Am I going to end up in a mobile home in Mahwah?
Any suggestions would be great.
I agree with others. Don't rule out Oradell or other towns - even Ridgewood. As expensive as it is, there are plenty of houses on the market under $600K. (which is considered cheap for Ridgewood) Yes, they are small and probably don't have top-of-the-line anything but they are in Ridgewood, one of the best schools districts in the state.
On the other hand, if you don't need to commute to the city, look at towns that don't have train lines to the city (like Wyckoff) - they tend to be a little less expensive, for that reason, I think.
I agree with others. Don't rule out Oradell or other towns - even Ridgewood. As expensive as it is, there are plenty of houses on the market under $600K. (which is considered cheap for Ridgewood) Yes, they are small and probably don't have top-of-the-line anything but they are in Ridgewood, one of the best schools districts in the state.
On the other hand, if you don't need to commute to the city, look at towns that don't have train lines to the city (like Wyckoff) - they tend to be a little less expensive, for that reason, I think.
And how do you think he can purchase a $600k house on a $100k salary? And, he wants payments of $1500/month- the taxes in Ridgewood alone would eat up most of that. Even without taxes, $1500/mo equates to roughly $250k in mortgage debt, which won't allow anything in the general area of Oradell, unless there's a HUGE downpayment involved.
And how do you think he can purchase a $600k house on a $100k salary? And, he wants payments of $1500/month- the taxes in Ridgewood alone would eat up most of that. Even without taxes, $1500/mo equates to roughly $250k in mortgage debt, which won't allow anything in the general area of Oradell, unless there's a HUGE downpayment involved.
Bob
FWIW: 250k woould cost you less than 1200, plus taxes
FWIW: 250k woould cost you less than 1200, plus taxes
With rates in the low to mid 6%'s, that's around $6/1,000, or $600/100k. Unless they're getting some crazy ARM or interest-only loan, I can't see getting $250k for $1200/month.
And how do you think he can purchase a $600k house on a $100k salary? And, he wants payments of $1500/month- the taxes in Ridgewood alone would eat up most of that. Even without taxes, $1500/mo equates to roughly $250k in mortgage debt, which won't allow anything in the general area of Oradell, unless there's a HUGE downpayment involved.
Bob
The original poster did not say that his/her $100K will be the only source of income. The spouse might be working. Plus they might have some kind of savings. Just because they don't want to pay more than $1500 in rent doens't mean they can't afford more in mortgage payments. Considering that rent is a waste of money, many people don't want to spend too much on rent.
Anyway, what I was saying in my original post was not to dismiss towns just because they are considered expensive. There are houses available in lower price ranges (of course it's all relative)
I contacted a realtor and they sent some suggestions of rentals in the Oradell/River Edge and Tenafly areas as well as Paramus within the $1500-$2500 range. I've read the schools in Oradell/River Edge as well as Tenafly are pretty good, but haven't seen much about Paramus. Thoughts?
We will have my husband's income on which to attain a mortgage, but not for a few months - as he'll likely need to reman in KS to sell our current home.
Bob - I was thinking a $250K mortgage was probably within budget on $100K salary. I would prefer not to have 50% of my take-home pay going to rent/mortgage - two kids to put through college at some point.
With everything I've seen in Oradell at $500K+ I figured we were out of that market. Although I won't rule it out entirely as we may be lucky and find a lease/option or other great deal, but I'm a realist and just really want to get the best option possible within a reasonalbe budget.
I have seen some houses in Roselle that are 3 & 4 bedrooms for 250 to 270, but I haven't seen much information about that area - again any thoughts?
There are also houses out in the Sparta area in that price range, but I figured from other posts here that the commute would be horrendous.
Again, thanks for all the help - please keep the suggestions coming.
Sorry for the long post. Dana
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OK - I'm upping my budget
relocating to NJ-4 weeks
