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I am a male in early 30's moving to Jersey City first week of next month. I am a Computer Engineer and have a decent job. I have found a lot of options to rent a 1/2 bedroom apartment with affordable rent. My questions is, how safe the area is between Kennedy Blvd and Summit and how long would it take to get to PATH train to NYC if you are staying close to Kennedy Blvd. Any other recommendations in Journal Square would also be appreciated. I am very social and would like to stay in the area where you could just go for a walk or come home after 10 pm without having a fear of getting robbed. I don't know much about Jersey city and If anyone could help then I will be greatly thankful. I could even buy you a dinner/lunch at a nice restaurant (just a Southern way of saying thank you for your help and time).
Since I am moving from another state, I am not trying to pay high rent at the beginning. I am trying to sign a 6 months lease so I could get familiar with the area and see how much rent I could actually afford. Journal Square seems nice and fairly flexible with short term lease.
One of my friends used to live near Summit Ave and got beaten up once while walking home from the PATH station at night. He was not robbed or anything... just couple of random guys game out of nowhere, beat him up and left. Considering that it is the only data point I have I will not recommend anything in Journal square. If you can afford, go some where else.
Avoid sip avenue area. Actually for that matter avoid most of the areas around js except maybe around Newark ave. with lot of indian population there, it is lot safer and walkable to js.
What's wrong w/ the Sip Ave area? I'm living in the area and it is perfectly safe! The area is bit run down and not pleasant looking but in all the time I've lived here, nobody's scratched my car, mugged me, robbed my house, etc. I often take my toddler son to the park and no one's swiped his stroller or tricycle when we're on the slides. I've walked around after 10pm and JFK is very well lit.
Anyways, signing a 6 month lease is a great idea to get a feel of the area, esp if you're used to friendly Southern neighbors. People in the area generally mind their own business so you won't see your neighbors much. Sip Ave between JFK and Summit is a great block, super convenient to the PATH (there is act. a side bus entrance on Sip Ave, so you literally cross the street during winter months). As in many urban areas, the seediness can change block by block. PM the address you're looking at and your budget/comfort level and maybe I can give you more specific advice?
Edit: Forgot to answer the commute question. JSQ-WTC is about 15 minutes on weekdays, 20-25 minutes on weekends if you time it well. Signal work just ended so 24/7 service resumes. (It was shut down on weekends and a subsidized $2.50 ferry to WTC ran instead). JSQ-33rd is about 20 minutes on weekdays, 30+ minutes nights and weekends due to stop at Hoboken.
Thank you all for your help and very useful advices. I have been looking for a decent apartment in this area to sign a lease and i was able to find two 2 bedroom apartments.
Option 1 is on Lincoln Street between Summit Ave and Central Ave close to Kennedy Blvd,
and option 2 is on Newark Ave close/next to Tonnelle Ave. I think Newark Ave will be closer and walkable to JS path station ? Do you think both areas are relatively safe ? Any suggestions will be highly appreciated ..
Thank you
Last edited by Live_Life; 12-28-2014 at 11:25 PM..
Lincoln street is in the Heights, that's about a 20 minute walk. Again, safe are but not very commuter friendly. Option 2 is the better out of the two choices.
I'm leaning more towards Newark Ave, any idea how long will it take to get to Time Square if I take JSQ path ? Should I consider taking cab omw back to Newark Ave from Manhattan after midnight ? Y'all know how much cab ride would cost during weekend nights ?
It's fixed rate, not metered, once you go out of the boroughs. They'll pull out a little book and look up the rate to Jersey City. I think it's about $50? However, some of my friends have had success negotiating with the cab driver before getting in and gotten it for as low as $40. My coworkers are big Uber fans now and say it's a lot cheaper to Uber, though I don't know the price.
I used to work by the M&M store in Times Square. Door to door was 42 minutes on weekdays if I walked. About 36 minutes if I took the NRW line and timed it well. It took me about 7 minutes to walk to the PATH station from my apt, so YMMV.
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(just a Southern way of saying thank you for your help and time). 
