Moving to Bergen or Morris County from Passaic County (Wayne: crimes, day cares)

[yayabobo]

Greetings everyone, just wanted to get some opinions on the Bergen County areas that my wife and I do not know a lot about.

I was born and raised in Wayne, NJ. I moved away for college, stayed out of state for 10 years. I got married and moved back to be closer to the family in 2005. In the height of the market and a rush to get into a house, we decided to move to Bloomingdale... small town feel, good home prices.

Time has passed and my wife and I have decided we want to look at other areas to raise our family. We have a newborn son, schooling for him going forward is a big priority for us. I would like to get out of Passaic County, $11,000 in taxes on a $475,000 house is high compared to other counties. Bloomingdale is a nice town, but it isn't the town for us. It's not that I mind paying $11,000, it is just that I do not like to pay $11,000 and have nothing to show for it... no High School, no community parks worth visiting, nothing really at all.

We are fairly successful, combined income in the range just a nudge under $200,000 a year. We would like to be in a 4BR colonial, basement, 2 car garage... the usual... nothing spectacular. Our price range we feel is in the $600,000 range, we don't have much of a downpayment, so that is why we want to stay in that price range. We have discussed either moving to Morris or Bergen counties. I already know a good deal about Kinnelon and Pequannock, two areas we like in Morris County, but we do not know much about Southwestern Bergen County... Wycoff, Franklin Lakes, Oakland, Midland Park, Ridgewood... those areas. I know $600,000 is tough for those areas, we could probably do a little more, but to be safe, we would like to keep it in that range.

All of my experience is in Passaic County as that is where I grew up. Can anyone give us some thoughts on those areas of Bergen County to raise a family? Types of communities, recreation and parks for the kids, schooling, etc... Most of the areas we know are pretty crime-free of major crimes, but needless to say we have no interest in living in somewhere where we don't feel safe. I work in the Roseland area, my wife in Ridgewood, so we have no specific preferences on location regarding work, I don't mind the commute.

Any help for a fellow New Jersian looking to take his family to the next step is appreciated. Thanks!

[ira]

Originally Posted by yayabobo

Greetings everyone, just wanted to get some opinions on the Bergen County areas that my wife and I do not know a lot about.

I was born and raised in Wayne, NJ. I moved away for college, stayed out of state for 10 years. I got married and moved back to be closer to the family in 2005. In the height of the market and a rush to get into a house, we decided to move to Bloomingdale... small town feel, good home prices.

Time has passed and my wife and I have decided we want to look at other areas to raise our family. We have a newborn son, schooling for him going forward is a big priority for us. I would like to get out of Passaic County, $11,000 in taxes on a $475,000 house is high compared to other counties. Bloomingdale is a nice town, but it isn't the town for us. It's not that I mind paying $11,000, it is just that I do not like to pay $11,000 and have nothing to show for it... no High School, no community parks worth visiting, nothing really at all.

We are fairly successful, combined income in the range just a nudge under $200,000 a year. We would like to be in a 4BR colonial, basement, 2 car garage... the usual... nothing spectacular. Our price range we feel is in the $600,000 range, we don't have much of a downpayment, so that is why we want to stay in that price range. We have discussed either moving to Morris or Bergen counties. I already know a good deal about Kinnelon and Pequannock, two areas we like in Morris County, but we do not know much about Southwestern Bergen County... Wycoff, Franklin Lakes, Oakland, Midland Park, Ridgewood... those areas. I know $600,000 is tough for those areas, we could probably do a little more, but to be safe, we would like to keep it in that range.

All of my experience is in Passaic County as that is where I grew up. Can anyone give us some thoughts on those areas of Bergen County to raise a family? Types of communities, recreation and parks for the kids, schooling, etc... Most of the areas we know are pretty crime-free of major crimes, but needless to say we have no interest in living in somewhere where we don't feel safe. I work in the Roseland area, my wife in Ridgewood, so we have no specific preferences on location regarding work, I don't mind the commute.

Any help for a fellow New Jersian looking to take his family to the next step is appreciated. Thanks!

The towns you listed are considered Northern Bergen County. The whole area is beautiful. Very upscale, virtually crime-free, top schools, great place to raise a family. $600K is completely doable, especially in this market. The only problem I see is 4 Brms. Might be tough. Of the towns you listed, Oakland and Midland Park are more affordable (by Bergen COunty standards, of course). The other three are expensive. I live in Ridgewood and I love it here. But to tell you the truth, if we didn't need daily commute to the city, we probably woudn't be here. There are many towns in this area that are really nice but not "in demand" as much as Ridgewood, for example, because of commute. Wyckoff is a very nice town. Also, look further east and north. Places like Hillsdale, Haworth, Old Tappan are really nice towns.

My advice (since you don't need to commute to the city) is to stay away from towns are on the train line. They tend to be more expensive.

Hope this helps.

[jenny819]

Great area to raise kids great day cares , public schools and highschool.
Try town called white Meadow lake

[wileynj]

OP - where do you need to commute too? Your 600K will buy you a mansion in either Sussex or Warren Counties. But commuting from those areas can be a bit rough - depends on where you have to go to get to work.

[wileynj]

Sorry - just saw the Roseland / Ridgewood comment. Not terrible for commuting but you will need to head out around 6:30 am to beat the morning rush hour traffic. Have you checked out Essex Fells? Very nice area... I would take a peek at gsmls.com.

[wileynj]

well I checked Essex Fells in your price range and nothing came up : ( I did map quest this area and it's around 37 miles - 43 mins. to Roseland so this area may be doable for you. I would look into it as an alternative? More house, more land...if the commute isn't too unreasonable.