What's the story with Morristown? How does it compare to Westfield/Cranford? (Madison: condos, crime rate)

[Tanisdrew]

Hi,

We are looking to move to NJ fairly soon from Brooklyn and have been concentrating on Westfield and Cranford but there isnt a whole lot we like at our $550K price range. We only passed thru morristown and saw how robust the actual town is but know nothing about it.

We have two small boys (3 yrs and 1 year) so schools and safety are important. Commute to the city is also important since my husband works in Manhattan (times square).

How are the schools in Morristown? Are they as good or close to Westfield, ratings-wise?

Are there areas to avoid?

Any other info/tips would be so helpful. Thank you!

Christina

[KoalaNJ]

Originally Posted by Tanisdrew

Hi,

We are looking to move to NJ fairly soon from Brooklyn and have been concentrating on Westfield and Cranford but there isnt a whole lot we like at our $550K price range. We only passed thru morristown and saw how robust the actual town is but know nothing about it.

We have two small boys (3 yrs and 1 year) so schools and safety are important. Commute to the city is also important since my husband works in Manhattan (times square).

How are the schools in Morristown? Are they as good or close to Westfield, ratings-wise?

Are there areas to avoid?

Any other info/tips would be so helpful. Thank you!

Christina

Morristown is a wonderful town. Great walkable downtown with restaurants, bars, and shopping. The train station, which has just been renovated, is on the Midtown Direct line which makes for good NYC commute. As far as safety, I as a female personally feel safe walking around at night, even when alone. There are only two small areas of town that I would reccommend to avoid living in, the hollow and a small section of Speedwell Ave. (thought that may soon change, as there is approved plans for re development of that area of Speedwell Ave.) Schools are good, Morristown HS is ranked 66(out of 322) in the NJ Monthly rankings of the schools in the state - not the best in the state, but certainly much better than the public schools in NYC. Your housing dollar will go much further in Morristown than in Westfield.

You may want to also look at Madison and the Chathams, (Boro and Twp.) they are just east of Morristown and on the midtown direct line. Both are wonderful places to raise a family, and boast top tier schools. You will not have trouble finding nice housing in your price range.

Another thing to note is that Morris County has significantly lower taxes than you find in Westfield and Cranford.

HTH

KoalaNJ

[Tanisdrew]

thank you!! my husband told me theres a difference between morris township and morris town but I dont understand the difference at all. is one better/safer than the other?

thanks again!

C

[KoalaNJ]

Originally Posted by Tanisdrew

thank you!! my husband told me theres a difference between morris township and morris town but I dont understand the difference at all. is one better/safer than the other?

thanks again!

C

Yes, Morristown and Morris Twp. are two different municipalities, although they do share a school district and some municipal services. Morristown is pretty much in the middle of and surrounded by the Twp. Both are quite safe, though I believe Morristown's crime is slightly higher, probably due to the businesses and all the people/traffic they bring in 10,000+ weekdays. Morristown is also the county seat, and home to the county courthouse and much of the county offices/agencies. Morristown also has a very small number of public housing, (aka the projects) located in the Hollow. There are several areas, or neighborhoods within the twp, and the Convent Station area has a reputation for being more upscale/affluent - though with the re-development of downtown Morristown bringing all the high end condos and apts, I do not think that still applies. Crime of any kind is rare in either the town or twp, and mostly consists of a few home break-ins, car break-ins and a handful of drunken fights, post clubbing in downtown. Morristown has a lower crime rate than Westfield, or Cranford, and is light years away from Brooklyn. I really recommend you visiting the area to see for yourself, get a feel for the area. (also check out Madison and the Chathams)

KoalaNJ

[tahiti]

Morris Twp's taxes are much lower.

[KoalaNJ]

Originally Posted by tahiti

Morris Twp's taxes are much lower.

Although the taxes are lower in the Twp, I would not go so far to say "much lower" For 2011 the tax rate in Morristown was 2.635, in Morris Twp it was 2.379. Which means for a home assessed at $500,000 (per the OP's housing budget) in Morris Twp. would have a tax bill of $11,895 in Morristown it would be $13,175.

BTW the tax rate in Westfield is 7.563 and Cranford is 5.236, making the tax bills for a home assessed at $500,000 at $37,8115 and $26,180 respectfully.
(Ouch!)

KoalaNJ

[msulinski]

BTW the tax rate in Westfield is 7.563 and Cranford is 5.236, making the tax bills for a home assessed at $500,000 at $37,8115 and $26,180 respectfully.

I think you will find in practice, however, that a home that actually sells for 500k will not have a tax bill nearly that high. I took a look on GSMLS for a property in Westfield with an asking price is $550k, and taxes are 12k. And a listing in Morristown, list price is $550, and taxes are 10k.

[RiggerNY]

Tanis - You have to be careful with some information provided by users on city data. Morristown's crime rate (4.24 per 1000) is significantly higher than both Cranford (0.40 per 1000) and Westfield (0.56 per 1000). Taxes are a factor of tax rate and assessed value, tax bills for Westfield and Cranford will NOT be $37,811 or $26,180 even for $1 million dollar homes in those towns because the assessed value is not actual market value. In your range of 550k, you can expect to pay anywhere from 9k to 12k depending on variables that impact the assessed value (lot size, renovations, etc). It's a major purchase obviously, so I highly suggest doing your own research and validating information provided by others. Taxes and crime aside, I also highly suggest reviewing the school ratings for Morristown vs. Cranford/Westfield. Look at sites such schoolratings.com, njmonthly.com, etc. Madison and Chatham are both lovely towns, but I think you'll find difficulty in your price range for those 2 towns just as you have with Cranford/Westfield.

[tahiti]

Originally Posted by KoalaNJ

Although the taxes are lower in the Twp, I would not go so far to say "much lower" For 2011 the tax rate in Morristown was 2.635, in Morris Twp it was 2.379. Which means for a home assessed at $500,000 (per the OP's housing budget) in Morris Twp. would have a tax bill of $11,895 in Morristown it would be $13,175.

BTW the tax rate in Westfield is 7.563 and Cranford is 5.236, making the tax bills for a home assessed at $500,000 at $37,8115 and $26,180 respectfully.
(Ouch!)

KoalaNJ

Assessed <> Market Value, especially when comparing towns. In regards to Westfield and Cranford, all those rates tell me is that they haven't been reassessed in awhile.

Back to M'town, a home that sold for $525K in the Twp has taxes of $8400 and a home in town that sold for $550K has taxes of $14K+ (houses approx same size). I'll admit this is an extreme comparison.

A home selling for the same price in Westfield has taxes about $11.5K.

[KoalaNJ]

Originally Posted by RiggerNY

Madison and Chatham are both lovely towns, but I think you'll find difficulty in your price range for those 2 towns just as you have with Cranford/Westfield.

A quick search on realtor.com indicates that currently there are 22 properties listed in Madison, and 35 in Chatham, for $525,000 or less - considering the that these are small communities, I do not think the OP would have trouble finding something they would like. Not to mention that both have top tier schools....Chatham is 10 on NJ monthly's list, Madison is 15. (Westfield is 41)

KoalaNJ