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Both areas are very similar overall, but I think in NJ you get more landscape diversity overall. Within a 20 mile radius in NJ you might encounter leafy suburbs, dense cities, and rural areas. Most of Westchester is somewhere between suburban and rural. Both are nice places. Westchester is a little "sleepier" overall, I'd say. For example, it would be much harder to find a place to shop or a 24-hour diner in Westchester than almost anywhere in NJ.
You're forgeting that lower westchester towns are on the water! Larchmont, Rye and Mamaroneck have yatch clubs and golf clubs. Their top schools are excellent- Scarsdale in particular. That being said, those SE towns are very expensive and relatively homogenious. Also, outside the immediate village areas,it is a bit more rural feeling (very much so in N towns, and you can't walk to too many places meaning you are ferrying kids all the time.
New Jersey. The schools are probably better, there's less of a snotty attitude in most places, and there are more housing options. However, don't rule out Mount Vernon in NY.
What makes life in Westchester vs life in NNJ different? Why would someone choose to live in NNJ over Westchester, or vice versa?
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Originally Posted by Praxis
Metro North Vs. NJ Transit; Grand Central Vs Penn Station
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Originally Posted by BrownstoneNY
Mostly this. The most likely reason to choose one over the other is where in Manhattan your office is, assuming you work in Manhattan. One is not easier than the other necessarily; it depends whether your office is in West Midtown (NJ) or East Midtown (Westchester). The Financial District, NJ is probably easier because of the PATH connecting to NJ Transit in Newark or Hoboken (but the 4/5 do take you straight from Grand Central to the Financial District, too).
Westchester and also adjacent Fairfield County have a certain prestige factor. They also seem to be interconnected socially and economically for alot of people. Whether you can afford it and even then if its worth it, is up to the individual.
Praxis and Brownstone make a good point about commuting and the trains. I would also add travel by car. If you work west of the Hudson River in N. New Jersey or the Hudson Valley, you will be doing yourself a big favor by living there. But if you work in Westchester or Fairfield, you will be doing yourself a big favor by living east of the Hudson River.
The good towns in lower Westchester are very expensive and the less expensive towns are countrified or ghetto. Places like Mahopac are not walkable at all...no sidewalks..dark at night and dead as far as shopping or any kind of social scene. Mt. Vernon has crazy property taxes, bad schools, and certain areas look worse than the ghettos of the S. Bronx. Most of N. NJ is densely populated with more shopping and amenities than Westchester. NJ is better for a W. Side commute and Westchester is better for the E. Side.
You're forgeting that lower westchester towns are on the water! Larchmont, Rye and Mamaroneck have yatch clubs and golf clubs. Their top schools are excellent- Scarsdale in particular. That being said, those SE towns are very expensive and relatively homogenious. Also, outside the immediate village areas,it is a bit more rural feeling (very much so in N towns, and you can't walk to too many places meaning you are ferrying kids all the time.
I like the coastal part of Westchester for a couple of things besides the obvious that its just a nice area. First off there is alot of history along the Boston Post Road and nearby areas. I remember when I was visiting IONA college one time and I was shocked that one of our founding fathers had a house right around the corner!
The other thing that stands out to me about this part of Westchester along with part of the Northeast Bronx is the rocky shoreline. Parts of shoreline, especially some of the offshore islands are indeed very rocky and it is more or less the begining of the famous New England rocky coastline.
Politically, I think Westchester tends to be more liberal. The further west you go into New Jersey, the redder it gets! Of course, New York does not have marriage discrimination and a very different governor.
Northern NJ is more diverse in term of everything....
As well as better commute to Manhattan....
Much more shopping and malls... More entertainment places.
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