Considering offer in NJ (Jersey City, Hoboken: real estate, apartment, car insurance)

[kingpottymouth]

I'm a 21 year old male who recently graduated from college, and will be coming from Columbus, OH. I just received an offer to work for a company in Englewood Cliffs, NJ, and was hoping to get some advice on possible NJ locations.

Ideally, I'd like to live in one of the NYC boroughs, but this might be impractical either due to commute time coming from the outer boroughs or due to the exorbitant cost of living in Manhattan. I'd be willing to room with someone in a shoebox there, but at the same time, I don't know how much money I could actually save living there anyways. I'm expecting to receive somewhere in the neighborhood of 45-50k, though I'm still awaiting details on the offer.

Which brings me to this forum.. ideal criteria as far as location..

Easily commutable to Englewood Cliffs NJ via public transit (hour max), I do not want to bring my car or pay for insurance (though I could just keep my Ohio registration ... ).. but based off of just driving around in CT during an internship I had there (particularly on I-95 or Merritt in the southwestern area), I don't think I'd want to put up with the hassle of driving in crazy-assed traffic. At the same time, I hear NJ doesn't have as good public transit coverage as NYC, which is a big source of appeal for me (being able to conveniently get everywhere without having to drive).

Easily commutable to NYC (1/2 hour or less commute).. I'm sure I could live more affordably if I lived further out, but my main reason for considering this offer would be proximity to NYC.. and I'm going to assume that public transit coverage is going to be spottier the further out I go.

Lively area, preferably w/ many people around my age (heard Hoboken would fit this criteria).. at the same time, I still want to move somewhere culturally unique.. i.e. don't want to move somewhere that's going to have a cookie-cutter, suburban-esque vibe to it.. I really don't want to relocate just to feel like I'm in Columbus again.

Apartment budget - w/ or w/o roommates is fine, prefer under $1000-1200.. don't think this should be a problem in comparison to living in NYC.

Any areas that fit my criteria or would I be better off trying to tough it out in the city?

[joe moving]

Hoboken is lively but I don't know about public transportation from Englewood Cliffs to Hoboken or vice versa. Maybe the bus? Check out New Jersey Transit - Home if that is an interest.

[kingpottymouth]

I checked NJ transit -- the best I get involves transferring busses once and a total time of an hour and a half which seems pretty excessive since it looks like it only takes a half hour by car.

[BarbaraNJ]

I'm guessing if the job is in Englewood Cliffs it is one of the major companies on 9W. Honestly there isn't any public transportation other than the bus to get you to that area. I know there is a bus that goes over the GWB and winds up in upper NYC but not sure where and I don't think it runs down 9W but check NJ Transit. The closest boro would be the Bronx and you would have to drive to work. There is Fort Lee in NJ which is down the road Englewood Cliffs but again may have to drive. Good luck.

[syncmaster]

kingpottymouth (your screen name rocks, dude!) - I know you said you don't want to drive but I highly recommend you consider bringing your car. Don't sweat the traffic, you'll get used to it. Everyone does.

[yCf]

Originally Posted by syncmaster

kingpottymouth (your screen name rocks, dude!) - I know you said you don't want to drive but I highly recommend you consider bringing your car. Don't sweat the traffic, you'll get used to it. Everyone does.

Agree. I can't imagine anyone living in NJ and not having a car unless you live in Hoboken or Jersey City and works in NYC.
Bring your car and keep your Ohio registration. Car Insurance for someone <25 is obscene here in NJ...

[syncmaster]

Originally Posted by yCf

Bring your car and keep your Ohio registration.

Is that legal?

[yCf]

not really but if poster still have family in Ohio and have some of his bank statement or credit card bills with an Ohio address, he can always say that he is only here for a few weeks or month in case he gets pullover...


My wife used to have a Connecticut license even though she lives in Nj for years.

[syncmaster]

Interesting.

[kingpottymouth]

I also forgot to mention that the company also provides a shuttle for commuters from Manhattan - it's supposed to run down the east and west sides of it from 14th to 125th - with the cost being around $250. Not sure if that would influence anyone's opinions.. daily commuting here in Ohio about 20 miles each way runs gas around $40-50 a week.. I'm going to assume gas is going to be even more expensive in NJ.

I also heard that the office in Englewood Cliffs NJ has a NJ Transit bus stop in front of it which would be nice, with the bus coming from the GWB.. so I could also commute via MetroCard within NYC then take the bus, which should result in cheaper commuting costs overall.

Assuming I keep the car and the Ohio registration - how much do you think I'd save in terms of real estate and transportation living in NJ? Ideally I would like to still live in an urban environment that would allow for getting into NYC easily. Would I save much more if I picked a place like Hoboken or Jersey City vs. rooming in the city?