Cranford, NJ vs. Westfield, NJ (for sale, houses, school)

[CuCullin]

Originally Posted by ahkeer

Co-sign on that..

All you need to do is spend an hour or two in Panera or Starbucks after 3pm. The way some of these people think and act has to be seen to be believed.

"Some" hits the nail on the head. There are a set of people who think the world needs to be handed to them, and children who act worse than their parents as a result. This isn't to say you won't find this behavior in Cranford, because you will. I lived in Westfield for a few years, and prior to that, was there often hanging out around town.

I like Westfield. I don't like the trend of mall stores coming in, it ruins what I like about Westfield.

Schools are negligibly different. I wouldn't worry there, a great education is available in both towns.

Cacciola is a single street btw, and no, you wouldn't want to live by it. So don't. In general, you rarely see the people of Cacciola, unless you go down the street. Which I liked to avoid, quite a bit.

You'll see a difference in people between north side and south side (yes, the tracks *do* divide the town this way). The south side is "less desirable", but certainly not undesirable - its a differentiation the snooty people make. If you have some specific questions, I'd be glad to help.

[njmom8]

Wow! I can't believe the negativity on this thread about Westfield.

I lived there for 8+ years, and just left a few months ago for my husbands job relocation.

While I do understand and agree that living there is expensive, I think if you can afford it, it is worth it. The high cost of housing is the only downside. When we moved there, we purchased a starter home and renovated it. We sold it and made a good buck. we then moved to Hunterdon County, NJ (tempted by a larger home & no longer needing to commute to NYC). We missed all of the good things about Westfield so much, that after two years we moved back. I have found the people in Westfield are among the friendliest I have met anywhere. Believe it or not, I never ran across any "snootiness".

Here are some of the positives: amazing, convenient and usable downtown w/ NYC train, top-rated school system, beautiful tree-lined streets with sidewalks, caring and active parents/ sense of community, nice library,parks, town activities, next to no crime, everyone who lives there loves it .

PM me if you have any specific concerns/ questions.

Oh, and by the way the North side/ South side issue is really only the joking remnants of an old tradition...

[CuCullin]

Originally Posted by njmom8

Oh, and by the way the North side/ South side issue is really only the joking remnants of an old tradition...

Unless you're a kid in the schools

Seriously, I've spent quite a bit of time in Westfield, lived there, have been friends with Westfield people starting atleast 10 years ago, and there is more than a joking remnant of old tradition. I wouldn't say its a major thing, but this is one of those things I've seen kids tease other kids about.

[njmom8]

I have owned a home (and lived) on both the south and north sides. I continue to have great friends on both sides. I can honestly say it does not matter to level headed people.

[CuCullin]

Originally Posted by njmom8

I can honestly say it does not matter to level headed people.

Nope, it doesn't matter to level-headed people. That was my point

[NJNJNJ]

Both towns are great, but I currently live in Cranford and love it! (I am moving to Martinsville, Bridgewater, though). I know people from both towns and they are both down to earth. I have spoken to many people about the snottiness factor in Westfield and get very mixed responses.

I think it really depends on what you are looking for in a town. I work in a school environment and have found that those rankings do not mean too much...it is better to visit/talk with teachers and personnel of the school district.

I can not say enough wonderful things about Cranford. People are extremely friendly, I like the fact the down town is not too busy, and it does have a great small town feel.

My only concern is I work with at-risk students in neighboring towns to Cranford and some pretty bad things happen near Cranford (sometimes in Cranford) that the general population is probably not aware of. This probably happens in every town, but I am just more attuned to it because of my job.

This is just based on my experience and of course this is not to generalize the whole student population, but I find that Cranford students abuse alcohol more and Westfield students abuse harder drugs. My at-risk students tell me their best clients are usually from Westfield. I also went to a high school that was very similar to Westfield and it was amazing to see how many high performing students (honor roll, all AP's, state ranked althletes, high SAT's) could balance drugs but perform so well. Just something else to keep in mind

[MrTudo]

I grew up in Garwood. It was a cute little town back then and based on what I'm reading nowadays it still is

[Toblerone]

I was in exactly your position about twelve years ago -- my husband and I had lived briefly in Cranford, liked it a lot, then lived in South Plainfield for a while (didn't like it so well), then moved to Westfield when our son was entering kindergarten. He is now a senior in high school, and my daughter is a freshman.

Overall, I've been very happy in Westfield. I've made some great friends, and people have not struck me as snooty. The schools, while not as creative as I would like, do seem to prepare kids well for college, and have some great teachers, especially in elementary school. We bought a small cape on the north side, and most of the people our kids knew have quite a bit more money than us, but it doesn't seem to have bothered them that much. Their friends are nice, although I do notice that now, in high school, my son tends to be friends with kids whose families are more in line with our income (and yes, that means some are from the south side!).

What do I like about Westfield? There are lots of interesting people, often from other countries -- I was in a playgroup with women from England, Germany and Australia when my kids were little. The downtown is great, with a movie theater and lots of restaurants. It's a very pretty town, but then, so is Cranford. It has a nice library and a nice town pool. Westfield has some fun traditions, like a parade and trick-or-treating for kids the Saturday before Halloween, or the holiday tree lighting.

I can't really say anything against Cranford, nor would I want to, but I will say that I like Westfield. Even though our income is lower than many people here in Westfield, it doesn't seem like a huge issue, and it means your kids will be friends with children who have great toys .

[Stace08]

I've lived in Westfield for 16 years and have 3 children going through the school system. I'm certainly not rich and do not live an extravagant lifestyle. I've enjoyed the people in town and have made many friends who are very down to earth.

The schools are excellent although my daughter found the high school very competitive. The downtown speaks for itself.

Clearly, you do not get a lot of house for your money in Westfield. I'm lucky I bought 16 years ago. To get an idea of the market try realtor.com to see what's available. Good luck.

[Sergio M]

Cranford is the Westfield you don't hear about. I live in Cranford, my children go to school here. The people here are very friendly. Currently Cranford's absorption rate is at 4.3 wheras Westfield is at 6.7. In other words there is about a 4.3 month's supply of homes in Cranford vs 6.7 months supply in Westfield. This statistic actually shows that Cranford is a more desirable town.