Might be headed the central Jersey... Questions! (Fort Lee, Princeton: mcmansions, salary)

[Wah]

Hi,
I'm originally from Fort Lee, NJ. Lived there most of my life. I might be headed out to Central NJ permanently to work in the Freehold/Manalapan area. I was wondering what life is like in that part of the state compared to bergen county.

My ideal location would be an upscale community with an easy commute to Freehold, with excellent schools, lots of parks, shops, golf and restaurants. I want more space than what I can get right outside NYC. Is princeton too far to commute everyday? I've been there, and I thought it was nice. My friend told me Cranbury was really nice, but I've never been there before.

I'll probably be heading down there soon to check out towns and neighborhoods... any suggestions would be nice.

thanks!

[jerseyshoregirl]

I don't know what kind of salary you would be making, but if you are looking for an upscale neighborhood and money is no object, then you can find one right in the freehold/manalapan area that you would be working in. That whole area has beautiful developments and from what i hear really good schools. Colts Neck is a very pricey, beautiful town with lots of property per house. Princeton is also an upscale neighborhood that would not be far from freehold. You definately have many, many options if you are willing to spend the money.

[christina0001]

Princeton is a bit of a drive from Freehold, maybe 45-50 minutes. Cranbury is cute. Manalapan is nice, ditto jerseyshoregirl re: Colts Neck. Also you may want to consider Cream Ridge and Millstone.

[Phish Head]

Jackson has a lot of open space and prices are a bit lower- a bit more Piney, though . Cranbury, Colts Neck, and Princeton expect to pay $1 million plus for a nice house. My vote would be Allentown, NJ. Easy commute to Manalpan or Freehold, Really great downtown, always alive with people and festivals, plus lots of open space and the homes can be found around $400-500k. Good schools too. Its one of those slightly undiscovered NJ places.

Expect a more laid back area than Bergen County. Not quite so rush rush, slightly less traffic, not as much old money either (compared to Alpine, Rockleigh, etc). Does not revolve around NYC as much, kind of has its own economy. More farms (although they are disappearing), flatter landscape. I think you'll like it better here- I lived in both Mahwah and now I'm in Monmouth County near Freehold, and I prefer it here.

[Wah]

Maybe you guys can help me with something else... Where do you think all the growth is in that region? I've heard there are lots of new buildings and developments in Central NJ, but I'm having trouble finding statistics to show it.

Thanks for the replies! I'll be sure to check some of these places out.

[christina0001]

ditto Phish head - Allentown is adorable.
There is tons of growth here. I live in Robbinsville (Washington Twp, Mercer County), and they are building like crazy in the center of our small town. I read in the newspaper about 6 months ago that houses prices in Robbinsville had gone up 41% in one year alone. We are being flooded with people from Manhattan, who are taking the train to work. As far as new construction goes, I can only speak for Robbinville, but just driving around you will see it everywhere. I was also in Englishtown a few months ago (another nice area not too far from Freehold) and was surprised at how many new houses were being built. All the nice towns (and even not so nice ones) have new developments of McMansions being built.

[Otis Houston]

Hey Wah, I'm a lifer from Fort Lee as well, still live here. I have a friend who lives outside of Princeton in Montgomery, check it out.

[Ms.Charlotte]

Great advice from everyone. Freehold is a dream town to work in because there are so many great towns to live in. Freehold Township itself is very nice. I just moved out of Colts Neck, and we do have plenty of golf (as does Cream Ridge), horse farms, a wonderful park system and great location. It is very pricey, though. Check out Holmdel, too. It's a little further out but not a bad commute at all to Freehold. The schools are fantastic.

You're going to find most of the surrounding areas of Freehold to be as expensive as Bergen County.

Going West (Millstone, Allentown, Cream Ridge) is a good suggestion, although those towns are experiencing growth they've never had before. They are having some overcrowding in the schools. Still great towns-Allentown is incredibly charming. The people are wonderful. Coming from Fort Lee, you'd be pleasantly surprised.

I grew up in Bergen County and this is a different world altogether. You might, however feel too isolated in Western Monmouth County. Don't rule out the Eastern parts. Fair Haven and Rumson are wonderful towns with great schools but very expensive to buy a home. You'd be about a 1/2 hour from Freehold, and right next to Red Bank.

Good luck!

[jerseyshoregirl]

Wah
You have great replys from everyone! You will be working in a great location with many, many options on great places to live. Any choice i think would be a good one. I guess i'm partial to the jersey shore (grew up in Belmar). Love it here. So many things to do here and you will be so centrally located you can go in any direction and find something great. You find central NJ to be a great place to live. Good luck!

[GrittyMcDuffy]

Heard there was immigrant influx overload in Freehold area. Can anyone elaborate? The particular focus was on school system overload.