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My family will be relocating to NJ from Maine at the end of the school year. I have a son who will be in 2nd grade and a 4 year old daughter. My spouse is working in Jamesburg primarily, but also commutes to Keasbey weekly for meetings. Our biggest concerns are good public schools, distance to work (both places, equal to similar commutes) and convenience to NYC and airport for entertainment and/or travel approximately once per month. The areas we were considering (broad search!) were the Princeton area, Manalapan area, or the W.Orange area. I think the Princeton area is going to be too far of a commute to Keasbey, so we may have ruled that out. However, I would like to hear any input on the Manalapan/Marlboro/Colt's Neck/Freehold Township areas and if that would be a good option (or any other options welcome!). We are going to try and find a house to rent for a year before buying and are willing to spend about 4k in rent. I would like to find a "neighborhood/development" that I can walk in, meet people, and that is somewhat convenient to shopping (grocery, etc.) I do like rural, so as long as it's within 10 mins of shopping, that would be fine. I have noticed there are quite a few horse/farms around this area, but we could have been driving out too far. Just learning the areas, so please be kind.
Schools in Monroe and Jamesburg are very good. My friend used to live in Jamesburg before moving to a development in Monroe. It is a upper middle class area. My friend works in New York City and says it usually takes 45 minutes to an hour on a bus.
Monroe really is a beautiful town. Also near Jamesburg are Millstone and Jackson, but depending on your budget Millstone can be pretty pricey and the houses are usually on at least 2 acres which means lots of upkeep. Being from Freehold Twp originally (have lived in the city for 17 years) and moving back to Manalapan later this month, I am biased, but you really can't go wrong with the Freehold Twp./Manalapan/Marlboro stretch. All three are nice towns with good schools and are convenient to Jamesburg and Keasbey, not to mention they are closer to local shopping and entertainment options (which mind you, also makes them a little more congested compared to more rural towns like Monroe, Millstone, Jamesburg). Western Monmouth is a beautiful area and you have a lot of great options - good luck with your search.
TJ011215 - thanks for the info! We are pretty sure we decided on the Monmouth County area, specifically Manalapan or Marlboro. The convenience, schools and housing options all seem to fit our needs perfectly. Do you know which elementary schools in Manalapan are best? Thanks!!!
Do you know which elementary schools in Manalapan are best? Thanks!!!
No kids for us, so I can only speak vicariously through our friends down there who do have them. On the Southwest end of Manalapan (by routes 527 and 33), where we're moving and most of our friends live, the kids go to Wemrock Brook School for elementary and they (parents) seem very happy with it when the subject comes up. They often talk about how much they like the teachers and the extracurricular activities, like for instance I believe they offer after school study groups for a few hours for kids of parents who work late. I don't know much else about the school but I believe it to be one of the newest in the town (but may be mistaken). Frankly, with the amount of property taxes paid to these towns I can't see parents tolerating bad schools, so you probably won't go wrong no matter where the kids go in either Manalapan or Marlboro.
I would do East Brunswick. Great schools, kind of in the middle (but closer to Jamesburg since spouse works there 4 days a week and can get there via back roads), easy weekend train ride to Manhattan, quick ride to the Jersey Shore, ..
Keasbey, had to look it up. It is just part of WoodBridge Township. You might want to call it that in other posts so people know what you are talking about (and I lived in that area for years and never heard of it)
Sonofagunk - thanks, I've since learned that locals don't know of Keasbey. I only know that's the name of where the office is, which is why I said, it. Now I say - near Edison. Thanks.
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Monroe Township
