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Hello! My family is looking to move into Bergen county and two of our top priorities are school system and commute into the city. Our budget is $800k (3-4 bedroom,2 bathroom). Right now our list includes Glen Rock, Ho Ho Kus, Oradell and River Edge. I know Ridgewood is a great town too but I feel like taxes are even crazier there. Maybe not?
I do like proximity to the GSP as we have a lot of out of town friends and family and I find everyone is a lot happier visiting us since we moved to Bloomfield and are about 1 mile from the GSP. I realize Glen Rock isn't as close to the GSP as the other towns. Also, being in Bloomfield, my husband's commute into mid-town is under an hour door to door - with about 30ish mins on the bus. He realizes this commute will increase but looking at the bus schedules from the towns I mentioned it appears he would be on the bus for under 45 mins which is great.
Although it's not a huge priority I will say we enjoy eating out especially all the restaurants in Montclair on a regular basis. And being able to enjoy events and activities for young kids would be a great plus! (like parades, clubs, classes, etc).
Any insight would be appreciated! I realize nowhere is totally perfect Thanks!
Glen Rock is an easy shot to the Parkway. Just down 208 to Saddle River Road/Paramus Road and boom you're on in less than ten minutes.
Ridgewood has tons of great restaurants, and there are many others in NW Bergen County, so that's easy enough, and all the towns will have the activities you want for the kids. You just have to look into the train and bus commutes and see what works. Glen Rock and HHK are on the Bergen/Main train lines, so more service than River Edge and Oradell which are on Pascack Valley. Frequent bus service for them, too, though I don't know anything about buses from RE and Oradell.
All excellent towns. It really depends what you're looking for. Ridgewood and Glen Rock have the best downtowns, if that is important to you. I believe they also have the highest propery taxes, along with Oradell.
All of the school districts are excellent, you won't go wrong with any. Although I've heard Ridgewood is insanely competitive and it's a very pressuring atmosphere.
Ho Ho Kus is probably the most expensive town on your list in terms of home prices. You could find something nice in Ridgewood, Oradell and Glen Rock. You will definitely get the most house for your money in River Edge. It's also the most down-to-earth town, as the other towns have a reputation for being snobby.
Those at all great towns. As mentioned, HHK is the wealthiest town with likely the best schools (Northern Highlands) and lowest taxes. Ridgewood has hands down the best downtown, Glen Rock is also nice but it doesnt compare. Oradell and River Edge while nice, are probably on the low end for your budget, and I really wouldn't consider them unless you want one of the most expensive homes in town.
Great information and things to consider! I didn't realize Glen Rock was that easy to get to from the Parkway - that's good news. I do see home prices are more in HHK, however taxes are less so I kept them on my list for that reason. I have heard great things about Ridgewood and it's downtown, however it does seem to have a reputation for very competitive schools and some snobbery.
I probably don't want to have one of the most expensive homes in town so while we may still consider Oradell I will probably not look as much in River Edge. I really appreciate the feedback!!
Personally I don't care for River Edge because there is no real supermarket close by except for the Whole Foods in Paramus (although if you have a budget of 800k for a house that will probably not be an issue) and the Shop Rite in Paramus is absolutely ape s--t at all hours of the day. Also you get lots of spillover from the horrible Paramus traffic in River Edge. So, I would opt for the other towns.
Great information and things to consider! I didn't realize Glen Rock was that easy to get to from the Parkway - that's good news. I do see home prices are more in HHK, however taxes are less so I kept them on my list for that reason. I have heard great things about Ridgewood and it's downtown, however it does seem to have a reputation for very competitive schools and some snobbery.
I probably don't want to have one of the most expensive homes in town so while we may still consider Oradell I will probably not look as much in River Edge. I really appreciate the feedback!!
The HHK schools will at be least as good as Ridgewood, if not better. HHK feeds into Northern Highlands HS which usually ranks similar or above RW. I think the atmosphere in Northern Highlands may actually be less cutthroat than Ridgewood. In addition to HHK, the high school has students from
Upper Saddle River, Allendale, and Saddle River (though I would venture a good portion of SR kids go to private or boarding school). If you can deal with a couple extra train stops, you may want to consider Allendale-same hs as HHK, decent downtown, somewhat lower house prices and easy access to route 17 and gsp.
WOW what a nice problem to have.....ha. All great towns with great schools, but my vote would be between Glen Rock and Oradell. HHK is the wealthiest of all four, but the prop taxes are really high, and that would bother me because I'm not sure why you would have to pay more into property taxes for the same or similar services/amenities as most towns in that area. Oradell, esp if you look into the homes off of Soldier Hill RD, or near Prospect, I find that to be a wonderful place to live. Could walk to the train station, walk to downtown Oradell, schools and parks. Best of Luck
WOW what a nice problem to have.....ha. All great towns with great schools, but my vote would be between Glen Rock and Oradell. HHK is the wealthiest of all four, but the prop taxes are really high, and that would bother me because I'm not sure why you would have to pay more into property taxes for the same or similar services/amenities as most towns in that area. Oradell, esp if you look into the homes off of Soldier Hill RD, or near Prospect, I find that to be a wonderful place to live. Could walk to the train station, walk to downtown Oradell, schools and parks. Best of Luck
Um, Ho-Ho-Kus has the lowest tax rates out of all the towns the OP mentioned....
Um, Ho-Ho-Kus has the lowest tax rates out of all the towns the OP mentioned....
This is true. I'm not sure what that posters logic was in knocking Hhk for tax rates while the other towns have higher rates.
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Thanks!
