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01-22-2009, 09:26 AM
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Member
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Join Date: Aug 2007
53 posts, read 42,007 times
Reputation: 10
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Quaint Town, Good Schools, Good Commute to NYC?
We are unfamiliar with NJ except for driving through it. Have lived in NY all our lives. Have friends in maplewood, ridgewood, etc though and have heard great things.
We are looking for a walkable town, good community feel,good schools, but the commute to NYC has to be under 1 hr. House purchase price we are looking for 500K and under.Any suggestions?
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01-22-2009, 09:36 AM
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Feb 2008
1,503 posts, read 832,298 times
Reputation: 335
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gwenrn
We are unfamiliar with NJ except for driving through it. Have lived in NY all our lives. Have friends in maplewood, ridgewood, etc though and have heard great things.
We are looking for a walkable town, good community feel,good schools, but the commute to NYC has to be under 1 hr. House purchase price we are looking for 500K and under.Any suggestions?
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This seems to be a common starting point: good schools, good community, walkable, and under 1 hour commute to NYC.
You can get most of the above (at a price) generally with the exception of the under 1 hour commute to NYC. Sure, there are many towns along train lines where the trip from the town station to NYC is under 1 hour (e.g. Maplewood it's around 33 minutes on average, or something like that). But when you tack on the time it will take you to get from your house to the train station, and then from Penn Station NY to your ultimate destination (either by walking or by subway+walking) you're probably looking at already over an hour. Then you've got to build in some cushion time and account for delays ...
Much depends on where exactly you work in NYC, but I'd say right off the bat, if you can adjust your expectations for a commute of 75 to 90 minutes one way, you will be more prepared for the reality of a commuter's life in NJ.
As for towns, you've named some very popular towns: Maplewood has tons of ex-pat NYers and has a very diverse and artsy type of community. Don't know much about Ridgewood except that everything I hear sounds good. Other towns that come to mind: South Orange, Millburn, Metuchen, Montclair, Glen Ridge, River Edge, Cranford, Westfield (the last few have added complications due to no direct trains to NYC).
One way to go about it would be to check out the NJ Transit website map of the rail system, where you can see what towns are on lines that go to NYC and then you can check the schedules and travel times. You'll generally find that most typical "suburban" towns are at least 30 minutes away from NYC by train, and within the 30 - 45 minute range you can check out some of the towns from there.
http://www.njtransit.com/pdf/rail/Rail_System_Map.pdf
I'm sure others will have more suggestions.
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01-22-2009, 10:13 AM
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Old Bridge, NJ
171 posts, read 132,107 times
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That combination doesn't exist or I would be living there  . |
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01-22-2009, 10:21 AM
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Feb 2008
1,503 posts, read 832,298 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jenn76
That combination doesn't exist or I would be living there . |
All too true. I didn't dwell on the "under 500K" issue, because I agree it's probably not even a reality right now. But check back at this time next year after prices in NJ fall 25% and it'll be within range. |
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01-22-2009, 10:57 AM
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Old Bridge, NJ
171 posts, read 132,107 times
Reputation: 47
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Lusitan
All too true. I didn't dwell on the "under 500K" issue, because I agree it's probably not even a reality right now. But check back at this time next year after prices in NJ fall 25% and it'll be within range.
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Unfortunately I was naive enough (first time buyer) to buy at the end of 2006! Right before prices started falling  . Now it seems that we're stuck indefinitely... |
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01-22-2009, 11:42 AM
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Where's the chocolate?
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Join Date: Dec 2007
1,010 posts, read 752,117 times
Reputation: 308
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I think you could find something in Metuchen for that price.
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01-22-2009, 04:08 PM
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: a warmer place
1,013 posts, read 891,310 times
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I think you can find a house in Maplewood at that price. Your taxes would be pretty high though. I have to say we lived there a while back and really loved the town. The commute (my husband worked in Timesquare) was about an hour sometimes more. The town has a jitney service that can run you down to the train station for a small fee or you can walk. The train ride itself is about 30 minutes but add some time on for getting in and out of Penn Station at rush hour.
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01-24-2009, 03:42 PM
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Member
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Join Date: Jan 2009
50 posts, read 27,062 times
Reputation: 18
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New Providence or Madison
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01-24-2009, 03:46 PM
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Feb 2008
1,304 posts, read 1,046,993 times
Reputation: 186
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Wayne or Pequannock twsp everyone commutes to NYC just about.......
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01-24-2009, 03:48 PM
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Feb 2008
1,304 posts, read 1,046,993 times
Reputation: 186
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I forgot Lincoln Park also, trains and buses right there!
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