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We are an early 30's couple relocating to NJ and after scouring Craigslist, Zillow, Trulia, etc, I'm feeling very disheartened about finding a place to call home and was hoping to get some insight from the resident experts here!
Details about our impending move are below and I'd appreciate any feedback on properties, neighborhoods, or towns that I should research further.
Thank you in advance!
Where are you coming from? Buffalo, NY (however we have lived in NYC in past
Why are you moving? His job
Where will you be working ? He will be working in Newark & Hackensack; I can work out of either Iselin or NYC (Penn Station) and we'd like to keep our commutes under 45 minutes door to door (30 is ideal)
Will you buy or rent? Renting
What is your budget ? $2500-ish
What kind of place are you looking for ? Must have: 2 bedrooms or 1 plus den, washer & dryer in unit, updated kitchen, parking nearby for 1 car; Like to have: outdoor space, no carpeting (wood/tile preferred), walkable restaurants/shopping would be great but not necessary, a 2nd bathroom, 1000+sf, good closet space
Will anyone (spouse, children, pets) be moving with you ? No kiddos or pets but we would like the flexibility to get a dog in future
Do you need/want good public schools? Nope
Briefly describe the kind of neighborhood you'd like to live in:
Safe! In trying to find a place in the Northern New Jersey area that is newer construction and is updated plus a decent square footage (1000+), we seem to be priced out of Hoboken, downtown JC, Montclair. I found some great places in Bayonne and the area of JC near Liberty Park and Jersey City Heights but after reading up on these boards, it seems like they may still have a few years to go before being a place I feel comfortable living due to gangs/crime. Weehawken seems like it may be a good fit for us, but there just appear to be fewer properties so I'm having trouble finding the right fit.
We have some flexibility in that I don't NEED to work out of the city but in looking at some towns (Westfield, Maplewood, South Orange) they don't seem to have rental properties with our criteria that are in our price range (their rental houses are over $3K because they are bigger, 4 bedroom nice family homes).
In an ideal world, I'd love an apt in a little updated brownstone with a small garden in a city or a newer construction stand alone house/duplex/condo in the burbs. Unfortunately, my taste seems to be in the $3500-range and our budget is in the $2500 range. I'm the buyer on House Hunters demanding granite countertops in the city center on a $100K budget, I know, but I feel like there has to be some little gem out there right? I have friends with amazing deals on rent controlled places in NYC - don't those exist in NJ??
List three things that are important to you in order of importance.(examples: nightlife, outdoor activities, rural/urban, safety, downtown area, charming, new construction, proximity to XYZ, family oriented, easy parking, short commute, etc) New construction; short commute; parking available
Hi, I'm born and raised in NYC, lived upstate in Binghamton NY for close to 6 years, and then back to NYC. Rents are exorbitant, so I decided to try my hand in NNJ. PLEASEEEE DO NOT pick anywhere in Newark or Paterson.... Bergen County is your best bet: Bloomfield, Montclair, and Little Falls are nice areas. Another poster mentioned, the closer you get to NY the more expensive; this is TRUE, a good example is Hoboken. Also in Bergen county is Dumont which has a more suburban feel -- there are many express buses into NY (personally, I wouldn't suggest a daily driving commute into NY due to the agonizing traffic)...Hackensack is fairly nice and has a 35 minute bus into NYC...on the flip side of the coin, you may want to check into Union County...Roselle, Linden, Rahway which has nice neighborhoods...Elizabeth, eh meh...definitely better than Newark but not my first choice. Ok, so I realize I was being unfair in my assessment of Essex county...Maplewood is nice, but Irvington is trash lol...a difference of a few blocks.
I live in Little Falls and I can confirm you can get these "nightlife, outdoor activities, rural/urban, safety, downtown area, charming, new construction, proximity to XYZ, family oriented, easy parking, short commute, etc" around this area. A brand new construction is a bit tougher since many of these towns were built long ago and modern rental apartment buildings are often built closer to highways rather than in the center of town. Some towns you may want to consider:
Little Falls
Cedar Grove
Verona
Caldwell
Montclair
Is walk-ability a factor? Mountainview Crossing Apartments in Wayne are a good option, but they are literally along side a busy highway and while you do get great amenities it will seem like you're on an island which you need a car to escape.
C'mon, people, check the dates before you resurrect ancient threads and respond to them.
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