West Orange? (Newark, Paterson, Clifton: townhouse, transfer to, public school)

[Whome?]

I posted a question about Maplewood and got some mixed responses.

The other area we've been considering is West Orange.

How bad is that commute? They have jitneys to the train and a bus line that goes into Manhattan, right?

Anyone out there do that commute?

Any thoughts about West Orange, good or bad?

Areas in West Orange to avoid?

Much appreciated.

[Onizuka]

Whome, I don't know much about West Orange, but you might find Roselle Park reasonable and in your price range. That town has a train that goes to Newark Penn Station, where you'd have to transfer to get to NY Penn Station. I believe there is also a bus line that goes to Port Authority, but I'm not sure about that.

There's also the Woodbridge area a bit further south that BobKovacs might be able to tell you about that might have decent houses in your price range and a train to NYC.

To be honest, $350k is not going to get you much in Northern NJ, possibly not even a decent townhouse. Good luck with your search, though...

[mead]

There is one bad section to West Orange down around Main St, Park Ave, and High Street, but the rest of the town is really nice.

I disagree about the no good town with 350k remark. Look into a place like Totowa, very nice Italian/Irish town with a very good public school system. Same goes for Little Falls. I see some houses on Trulia.com that are within your range. 3br/1 bath.

Clifton, NJ is also really nice, the schools aren't as good as in Totowa, Little Falls, and West Paterson though. Clifton does have lots of cheap housing though.

[Whome?]

Thanks for the replies.

Anyone else know anything about West Orange?

How about the commute?

[BobKovacs]

West Orange is a mixed bag. On one hand you have Llewelyn Park, which is exclusive $million+ mansions, and then you have single and multi-family houses stacked on top of each other a few blocks away. Many of those homes have no off-street parking, so you can end up parking blocks from your house at night.

If you want the easiest commute to NYC, stay on the NE Corridor line, as has already been said. If you're interested in Woodbridge, I just put my house on the market, so let me know

Bob

[Whome?]

Thanks.

How is the commute from West Orange, though? How easy is it to get/park at a train station? How long does the bus really take? Any info about the commute from West Orange would be much appreciated.

Thanks.

[njlover]

i used to live in west orange & the commute isn't bad. you can take nj transit at either the orange or highland street station. this will take you into new york penn/ via newark or even hoboken (where you can take the path downtoen). you also have buses that take you to mid town. or buses that take you to newark penn station also to get the path. the midtown direct from orange station is about 23 mins (30mins in real time). you will be on the essex line - go to njtransit.com & check. it's not bad at all.

as for area - i agree witht he fellow about the main street/ high street issue. but realistically for about #350k you'll probably get something down that area or something very small else where in west orange.

[sunshinecities]

Most of West Orange is nice (except as Mead posted). My brother lives there - near Livingston boarder.

[Melland]

I live in the Grgeory section & take the Jitney (Free) to the SO Train Station....the 8:20 train is direct ot Penn and gets me in the office by 9:10...There are earlier options available.

My neighbors swear by the buses on Northfield.....I have not used them, but they do come very frequently.

I believe one of the main reasons that prices are a bit better is WO is that there isn't a train stop in the town...but if you move to some specific locations you can be just as close.

[EB2]

Originally Posted by Melland

I live in the Grgeory section & take the Jitney (Free) to the SO Train Station....the 8:20 train is direct ot Penn and gets me in the office by 9:10...There are earlier options available.

My neighbors swear by the buses on Northfield.....I have not used them, but they do come very frequently.

I believe one of the main reasons that prices are a bit better is WO is that there isn't a train stop in the town...but if you move to some specific locations you can be just as close.

Buses on Northfield aren't bad at all. While they can get rather crowded (to the point where you may even have to wait for the next bus) - they come frequently, which is great.