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I work in nyc and live with my parents in northern NJ. I pay mortgage for the house I live in currently (paid about 70% of it). I have an extra 1k to spend monthly now and I am looking for a small house where I can work on my music hobby (will use it as a mixing/recording place). So I need a 1-2 bedroom small house.
Where are some good (cheap, low tax, and safety, and able to resell without much loss come into mind) places to look around for this second house for the weekend stay? (I don't have a lot of saved money and looking for a place like 100k to 150k since it fits my monthly cap)
(I have looked at many places but coming from northern jersey i think brick nj is best, but please share if you know any good areas to look for.)
Brick is certainly an option, however, since Hurricanes Irene and Sandy, and Winter Storm Jonas, I would be weary of buying anywhere along the shore. But that's just me. (I've never been too big on the beach.) Personally, I'd be looking north west, not south, in the likes of Vernon, Wantage, Sussex.
Brick is certainly an option, however, since Hurricanes Irene and Sandy, and Winter Storm Jonas, I would be weary of buying anywhere along the shore. But that's just me. (I've never been too big on the beach.) Personally, I'd be looking north west, not south, in the likes of Vernon, Wantage, Sussex.
Northwest would probably be his best bet. A small shack in Vernon is probably affordable, but beware of the outrageous property taxes there. Sussex and Warren counties would be a good starting point.
Brick is certainly an option, however, since Hurricanes Irene and Sandy, and Winter Storm Jonas, I would be weary of buying anywhere along the shore. But that's just me. (I've never been too big on the beach.) Personally, I'd be looking north west, not south, in the likes of Vernon, Wantage, Sussex.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ilovemycomputer90
Northwest would probably be his best bet. A small shack in Vernon is probably affordable, but beware of the outrageous property taxes there. Sussex and Warren counties would be a good starting point.
Thank you for the recommendation of Northwest from where I live, however, most places in this area have high tax or houses that look very worn out (I don't know why but Zillow has 100k houses that are very worn out). Reselling is also a big thing for me because it might not be forever I keep this second home.
Few of the houses I looked at in Toms River or Brick are not near shore and are a little bit west of it. They have low tax rates for a ~100k house (around 2k yearly) + hoa fee (150 per month) which comes to about 300 per month. It seems like places northwest of where I live either are too into the woods (and maybe that's why houses look in bad shape, for small ones), or are too expensive, or have high taxes (or high hoa fees). Considering all this, do you still think south of where I live is a bad investment? What are the reasons why you think the Northwest is better?
Again, thank you very much for your replies, I just want to make the right decision.
I'd just say to watch places with HOA fees, there might be restrictions in the Homeowners Association which you may not care for. I knew someone who bought in and adult community, motorcycles were not allowed, it didn't bother them, but I ride so it would have been a deal breaker for me. I wouldn't want to find this sort of thing after I closed.
Thank you for the recommendation of Northwest from where I live, however, most places in this area have high tax or houses that look very worn out (I don't know why but Zillow has 100k houses that are very worn out). Reselling is also a big thing for me because it might not be forever I keep this second home.
Few of the houses I looked at in Toms River or Brick are not near shore and are a little bit west of it. They have low tax rates for a ~100k house (around 2k yearly) + hoa fee (150 per month) which comes to about 300 per month. It seems like places northwest of where I live either are too into the woods (and maybe that's why houses look in bad shape, for small ones), or are too expensive, or have high taxes (or high hoa fees). Considering all this, do you still think south of where I live is a bad investment? What are the reasons why you think the Northwest is better?
Again, thank you very much for your replies, I just want to make the right decision.
I guess the taxes in Vernon/Sussex/Wantage are more in the $4000 range. But then, you'll find houses there for as low as $75,000. But yeah, I guess Ocean County does win in the lower property taxes category.
Maybe some shore people will chime in (people who live year round in Ocean County, as well as people who have summer houses there)?
My post is biased because I'm not a beach person (I prefer the mountains, woods, and lakes to the northwest). I also prefer the northwest towns because I feel like they would be more quiet and less crowded. I think the shore towns would get packed in the summers. Traffic going down on Friday night, and coming back up on Sunday night would be pretty bad, I'm guessing? But then, an advantage of a shore town is that you can rent it out when you're not using it (Monday-Friday?) during the summers, and make some extra cash. That's what I'm thinking, but I don't know.
My major concern about a shore town, like I said, is flooding. But it is entirely possible that flooding would not be an issue in parts of Toms River and Brick...I really do not know. But I would really do my research on that, as well as whether or not flood insurance is mandatory, and how much extra that would cost.
I also echo Blue Biker's note of caution about HOAs.
I'd just say to watch places with HOA fees, there might be restrictions in the Homeowners Association which you may not care for. I knew someone who bought in and adult community, motorcycles were not allowed, it didn't bother them, but I ride so it would have been a deal breaker for me. I wouldn't want to find this sort of thing after I closed.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Docendo discimus
I guess the taxes in Vernon/Sussex/Wantage are more in the $4000 range. But then, you'll find houses there for as low as $75,000. But yeah, I guess Ocean County does win in the lower property taxes category.
Maybe some shore people will chime in (people who live year round in Ocean County, as well as people who have summer houses there)?
My post is biased because I'm not a beach person (I prefer the mountains, woods, and lakes to the northwest). I also prefer the northwest towns because I feel like they would be more quiet and less crowded. I think the shore towns would get packed in the summers. Traffic going down on Friday night, and coming back up on Sunday night would be pretty bad, I'm guessing? But then, an advantage of a shore town is that you can rent it out when you're not using it (Monday-Friday?) during the summers, and make some extra cash. That's what I'm thinking, but I don't know.
My major concern about a shore town, like I said, is flooding. But it is entirely possible that flooding would not be an issue in parts of Toms River and Brick...I really do not know. But I would really do my research on that, as well as whether or not flood insurance is mandatory, and how much extra that would cost.
I also echo Blue Biker's note of caution about HOAs.
Thank you very much for the informational replies. I would have missed all that if I hadn't posted here. And yes, traffic would definitely be an issue for me. I will do more research and take all this into consideration. Thank you again!
I guess the taxes in Vernon/Sussex/Wantage are more in the $4000 range. But then, you'll find houses there for as low as $75,000. But yeah, I guess Ocean County does win in the lower property taxes category.
Maybe some shore people will chime in (people who live year round in Ocean County, as well as people who have summer houses there)?
My post is biased because I'm not a beach person (I prefer the mountains, woods, and lakes to the northwest). I also prefer the northwest towns because I feel like they would be more quiet and less crowded. I think the shore towns would get packed in the summers. Traffic going down on Friday night, and coming back up on Sunday night would be pretty bad, I'm guessing? But then, an advantage of a shore town is that you can rent it out when you're not using it (Monday-Friday?) during the summers, and make some extra cash. That's what I'm thinking, but I don't know.
My major concern about a shore town, like I said, is flooding. But it is entirely possible that flooding would not be an issue in parts of Toms River and Brick...I really do not know. But I would really do my research on that, as well as whether or not flood insurance is mandatory, and how much extra that would cost.
I also echo Blue Biker's note of caution about HOAs.
In addition the traffic on the GSP from Memorial Day to Labor day as a weekend commuter.
Depending on where in NJ you are what about the Catskills or Poconos
They are pretty cheap in NJ. Your idea if I understand it is to buy a small place which you will only use one the weekends to play and record music. That makes no kind of sense whatsoever.
Also, you live with your parents. Why not just play at home. When I lived with my parents, I played whenever I wanted, loud too, and they were cool with it.
Best idea is to save for a down payment and get a small house that you will actually live in some time down the road.
They are pretty cheap in NJ. Your idea if I understand it is to buy a small place which you will only use one the weekends to play and record music. That makes no kind of sense whatsoever.
Also, you live with your parents. Why not just play at home. When I lived with my parents, I played whenever I wanted, loud too, and they were cool with it.
Best idea is to save for a down payment and get a small house that you will actually live in some time down the road.
Thank you for your reply but:
Renting is not an option for me because I want to design my own recording/mixing environment and not rely on someone else's. Also, if I share, there might be time issues and I'd rather not get into that.
I also think it's personality and environment. ie. I have concentration issues playing in my house and I want to compose/record/mix (mixing is very important and needs acoustic treatment) at night and they sleep early. My dad sleeps right below me and I feel bad and gets in my way of working.
I have enough downpayment which is why I'm considering this. It's not just a hobby for me, it's a more serious hobby, music making is I would say top 3 of my life goal. So spending time on weekend while I'm still not married I believe is a must in my situation. It might not make sense to you or someone else, but it makes sense to me and that's my desire.
Again, thank you for pointing out options but it's not what I want.
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