Moving and need some info please! (Browns Mills, McGuire AFB: real estate, home owners insurance, houses)

[FamilyCasa]

My husband has received orders to McGuire AFB. We will be moving in July and I need a real estate agent as we would much prefer to live off base. Please could i have some recommendation for local areas to purchase a home as well as agents who have worked with military before. We have 2 small children, whom will be home schooled so local school are not an issue. My husband would like a commute less then 20 minutes.
I very much appreciate your help and we are excited to move to New Jersey!

[FamilyCasa]

so today i have done a little more research and it seems like browns mills is not a good choice to move too. which makes me sad because they have the best taxes. cookstown and new egypt seem like nice quiet areas. any opinions on them? i like the mount holly area but i was lead to believe that the taxes are much higher.
we only have the money the military will give us for BAH for the monthly payments- so we are looking for a single family home (no DUPLEX!) in the $215,000 range.
again i would really like recommendations for a real estate agent that has worked with military before.
i appreciate your help!

[Farmerkd1]

Here's one to get you started. Housing Office would probably be a better source, though. This company is close to base and very familiar with military requirements. I didn't use them because they tend to keep steering you back to Browns Mills and Pemberton, but they were very friendly and knowledgable on what we could afford.

Davis Realty
S Pemberton Rd
Pemberton, NJ 08068
609-894-4333

You didn't mention a rank or where you're coming from, but you're probably in for some sticker shock! As long as you're E-6 and up, you should have no trouble finding something you can afford though, but not much in the range you gave. Always ask about the taxes -- they vary greatly, but are always high. Also keep in mind your auto and homeowners insurance will probably double, depending on where you're coming from.

Not being worried about schools helps for finding a more affordable place. (That's why Brown's Mills and Pemberton are less expensive - the perception of poor schools, but a lot of base folks live there and don't think the schools are actually too bad). The immediate area around the base is the same story. But if you don't choose one of these then a 20 min commute is a pipe dream!

Cookstown and New Egypt are as you described, but are expensive and have higher taxes. Might want to add Medford, Tabernacle, Shamong to your list to look at too. But for your price range, Mt Holly is probably your best bet to start looking in. Quite a few houses on the market right now.

Good luck!

P.S. I'll keep checking back if you have more specific questions.

[billb7581]

New Egypt is supposed to be pretty decent.

[FamilyCasa]

thanks for the help! we are coming from north dakota and i have been warned about auto insurance. we have usaa so i'm hoping because we do all of our business with them we can get some kind of discount with the home owners insurance. my husband actaully lived at fort dix for about 8 years in the 1990's growing up he was a military brat. he remembers a little bit about the area. and we are excited to be stationed on the east coast. i grew up in maine and so new jersey is much much closer to family then north dakota is!
i was wondering if i could have more info on commute times. how far away from mcguire is toms river? would it be more than a 30 minute drive? also does anyone know the commute time to mcguire afb from
bordentown
hightstown
hamilton (or hamiliton sqaure)
freehold

thanks again!

[Farmerkd1]

USAA is pretty good, but they're still bound by NJ silliness. They upped my homeowners about 20% from CA originally and another 20% on top of that this year. Auto went up over 60% from CA. That's been several years ago, but keep it in mind when you're projecting your budget.

As far as commutes, I guess McGuire is a "geographical oddity" -- 30 minutes from everywhere! Well, for the towns on your list anyway. Bordentown is about 20, but 30 for the rest, (in every different direction).

There are nice sections in all those towns. Taxes are probably similar, with Hamilton probably the highest.

[FamilyCasa]

great thanks a lot! now i can broaden my house hunt. i was worried that we might be stuck to browns mills, which i heard was undesirable.