Moving from White Plains to North Jersey (Paterson, Clifton: to rent, condos)
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Hello all, I've been reading these boards for months and trying to piece together what I want to know, so that things don't have to be rehashed too much. So hopefully this is a specific enough post. Thanks in advance. We don't know a ton about NJ, but based on the boards (and our realtor) we are looking at Fair Lawn and Rutherford any additional suggestions would be welcome and any comparison of those two places would be appreciated. I'm filling out the suggested form as directed, but I think it's one of these two. I could be wrong though, which is why I am here. Feel free to skip the rest if you want.
Where are you coming from? White Plains
Why are you moving? Wife got a great job in Morris County (Morristown/Parsippany area) and present commute is an hour drive for her each way.
Where will you be working ? Wife's job requires access to midtown by Grand Central. I need access to Wall Street area intermittently, but plan to work from home office primarily. Wife also wants Parsippany/Morristown to be 40 mins or less by car.
Will you buy or rent? Looking to buy as renting is difficult with our two small dogs.
What is your budget ? Buying budget is 225-270k. Condos would need to be cheaper than houses depending on maintenance fee.
What kind of place are you looking for ? We are looking for at least a 2 bed 1 bath small house or condo (with at least one large bedroom) that takes multiple pets. If house then would want at least a relatively small backyard with enough room for a toddler and two small dogs to run around in while I bbq. We are fine being the poorest people around, and we are fine if we are not as long as it's safe. We have combined income of approximately 150k-200k. Varies year to year but at least 150k (but with substantial student debt so 270k would make us house poor for a little while)
Will anyone (spouse, children, pets) be moving with you ? Newborn baby, spouse, and two small dogs.
Do you need/want good public schools? Would like good schools at a min a good elementary school. Not super likely that we would stay long enough for high school, but we might especially if the economy doesn't rebound. Hence Fair Lawn seems attractive.
Briefly describe the kind of neighborhood you'd like to live in: Safety and excellent transportation options to the city are a must. Access to a train that would take us to NYC in 45 mins or less is essential. Buses are great, but we need a train at least as a backup. Door to door for wife of about an hour is fine. At our budget, I am not naive and expecting super fancy schools or blueblood neighbors.
List three things that are important to you in order of importance. Safety, commute to NYC via train, and Fair Lawn type schools.
You might find something appropriate in the southern Bergen County towns (Garfield, Wallington,Woodridge, Carlstadt, Lodi etc). Maybe Clifton in passaic county. I'm not sure how great the schools are in those towns but they probably aren't too bad. Some of the towns have train service, but most should have bus service to NYC
hello all, i've been reading these boards for months and trying to piece together what i want to know, so that things don't have to be rehashed too much. So hopefully this is a specific enough post. Thanks in advance. We don't know a ton about nj, but based on the boards (and our realtor) we are looking at fair lawn and rutherford any additional suggestions would be welcome and any comparison of those two places would be appreciated. I'm filling out the suggested form as directed, but i think it's one of these two. I could be wrong though, which is why i am here. Feel free to skip the rest if you want. :d
where are you coming from? White plains
why are you moving? Wife got a great job in morris county (morristown/parsippany area) and present commute is an hour drive for her each way.
Where will you be working ? Wife's job requires access to midtown by grand central. I need access to wall street area intermittently, but plan to work from home office primarily. Wife also wants parsippany/morristown to be 40 mins or less by car.
Will you buy or rent? Looking to buy as renting is difficult with our two small dogs.
What is your budget ? Buying budget is 225-270k. Condos would need to be cheaper than houses depending on maintenance fee.
What kind of place are you looking for ? We are looking for at least a 2 bed 1 bath small house or condo (with at least one large bedroom) that takes multiple pets. If house then would want at least a relatively small backyard with enough room for a toddler and two small dogs to run around in while i bbq. We are fine being the poorest people around, and we are fine if we are not as long as it's safe. We have combined income of approximately 150k-200k. Varies year to year but at least 150k (but with substantial student debt so 270k would make us house poor for a little while)
will anyone (spouse, children, pets) be moving with you ? Newborn baby, spouse, and two small dogs.
Do you need/want good public schools? Would like good schools at a min a good elementary school. Not super likely that we would stay long enough for high school, but we might especially if the economy doesn't rebound. Hence fair lawn seems attractive.
Briefly describe the kind of neighborhood you'd like to live in: Safety and excellent transportation options to the city are a must. Access to a train that would take us to nyc in 45 mins or less is essential. Buses are great, but we need a train at least as a backup. Door to door for wife of about an hour is fine. At our budget, i am not naive and expecting super fancy schools or blueblood neighbors.
List three things that are important to you in order of importance. Safety, commute to nyc via train, and fair lawn type schools.
rutherford-new arlington could be both close to new york and morristwon on either side.both are easily accessible to public transportations
Wood Ridge has some condos and townhomes that might work for you. It is a really nice town that is close to NYC and not that bad of a commute to Morristown/ Parsippany.
You are pretty much the perfect candidates to rent rather than buy if you can find a place that will take you despite the dogs. I'd say at least look, and because you'll be leaving by the time the kid hits school age you can be less picky with the precise town and open up your options to hopefully find a place that accepts the pets. It's worth the shot. In terms of geography, southern Bergen county and the cheaper suburban towns surrounding Fair Lawn and Rutherford are both good picks as others have said. Also consider going out further towards Parsippanny and Morristown. It will be cheaper out there, there's a train line into the city (slower but hey no driving/parking), and it sounds like between the two of you there will be a lot more Morristown commutes than NYC commutes anyway.
Thanks everyone. We found a couple places in Fair Lawn that we like, and we are going to see if one of those works out before expanding to the surrounding areas. Looked in Morris County, but the wife wants a faster train to the city. She practiced the commute from Fair Lawn to Parsippany, and she thought it was great.
I really haven't seen anything in Rutherford in my price range that wasn't in a flood zone or in need of serious repair. We are looking at a couple houses near the Library and the Police station in Fair Lawn. I believe it's the Westmoreland section. There are also a couple in Warren Point. They both seem like good neighborhoods. The Milnes section had some openings this summer, but we missed them. The houses in the Lyncrest section were either too expensive or major fixer uppers.
Anything about Fair Lawn, we should know before we consummate one of these deals? We know about the blue laws. We know that Paterson is not the best and it's next door. There doesn't seem to be a lot crime trickling in from there to Fair Lawn. It looks like if I want to go to a Sports Bar or if we want to go shopping then we need to head to Paramus. The Radburn train station would be our train. So what are we missing? Thanks everyone!
Thanks everyone. We found a couple places in Fair Lawn that we like, and we are going to see if one of those works out before expanding to the surrounding areas. Looked in Morris County, but the wife wants a faster train to the city. She practiced the commute from Fair Lawn to Parsippany, and she thought it was great.
I really haven't seen anything in Rutherford in my price range that wasn't in a flood zone or in need of serious repair. We are looking at a couple houses near the Library and the Police station in Fair Lawn. I believe it's the Westmoreland section. There are also a couple in Warren Point. They both seem like good neighborhoods. The Milnes section had some openings this summer, but we missed them. The houses in the Lyncrest section were either too expensive or major fixer uppers.
Anything about Fair Lawn, we should know before we consummate one of these deals? We know about the blue laws. We know that Paterson is not the best and it's next door. There doesn't seem to be a lot crime trickling in from there to Fair Lawn. It looks like if I want to go to a Sports Bar or if we want to go shopping then we need to head to Paramus. The Radburn train station would be our train. So what are we missing? Thanks everyone!
I guess by Sports Bar you mean a nice, clean upscale place to watch sports on TV? Otherwise, you've got The Dutch House in Radburn--historical building housing a small bar with several TVs and serving good burgers or JJs Pub on the corner of Plaza Road and Route 4--more TVs, sports always on, might even find a bookie or two, hehehe.
Fair Lawn's a good all-around town. It's a really good town to raise kids, very family-oriented. There are tons of sports and other activities always going on. It's big enough that you can likely get to know a wide range of people but also small enough that you have that community feeling in your neighborhood.
Morristown is a good area and I believe there is a train that will take you to NYC. When you leave Bergen County, you'll find that prices drop considerably. Also, a driving commute to Morristown from Bergen County is hellish, too.
I see that you're set on Fair Lawn. I grew up next door in Ridgewood. Just know that taxes are very high in Fair lawn and traffic is a problem because the only highways you have going there are route 4 and 208 which just takes you North.
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