Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I am thinking about purchasing a summer home on the Jersey Shore. I would love to purchase in Point Pleasant but will get more bang for my buck elsewhere. Can anyone tell me their thoughts on lavalette or Ortley beach? Are these places family friendly or filled with college kids partying all summer along?
Either town would be a great choice. Orltey Beach does have Joeys surft club which can get a bit crazy but other then that is a family town. I love both towns but would prefer Lavalette if I had to put my money on it. Big time family town.
Forgot to mention the big party day or what used to be the big day is only Sunday. Other then that Surf club has lots of kids and families the rest of the week. If you bought in Ortley beach I dont think you would notice Surf Club at all unless you were right next to it.
if you can afford those towns, either one would be a good choice. you can have the ocean on one side, the bay on the other. not really a college town. like the other poster said, the surf club is a party spot, but nothing like the seaside boardwalk area. couple of surf spots in both beaches if your into that too.
We owned in Lavallette for many years, sold, and recently purchased another second/rental home again there. Some generalities....
The Borough of Lavallette is an independent municipality with a mix of year-round residents and seasonal residents, as well as seasonal visitors in rental properties and a few motels.
Ortley Beach has a similar population but is not a municipality. It is one of several sections of the much larger Toms River Township (formerly Dover Township) which spans across Barnegat Bay and includes Toms River proper, Ortley Beach, and some beach communities north of Lavallette such as Ocean Beach and Chadwick Beach.
Because local mail goes to the Lavallette post office, MLS real estate listings typically misrepresent that houses in those surrounding communities are located in Lavallette or "North Lavallette", which does not exist. Realtors blame MLS for this, and it makes for some very confusing home shopping at times, especially on the internet where you really need to know the Lavallette street names to know if you're actually looking at a property in town.
This is an important distinction because the property taxes in Toms River Township are considerably higher than in Lavallette. Housing prices per square foot are more affordable in Ortley than in Lavallette, but Toms River Township was recently reassessed and the property taxes are quite high by comparison. If you Google around you can find the Ortley Beach Taxpayers Association web site and read what they are dealing with. One street, Bay Beach Way, elected to succeed from Toms River and join Lavallette, and as of tomorrow will become the new northern border of town. That went all the way to the NJ Supreme Court. Other sections of the larger Township have left and joined Lavallette over past decades - Westmont Shores and West Point Island. The general argument given is that taxes are lower and municipal services are superior in Lavallette. Not having lived in Ortley, I cannot confirm that personally.
Both communities have similar amenities, shopping, beaches, etc. I'm not sure about Ortley but Lavallette has no facilities at the beach such as parking lots, bathrooms, food vendors, or changing facilities. Both have some recreational facilities on the bayfront with limited parking, such as tennis courts. As a result, most people found on the beach in the summer are residents or renters, not day-trippers.
The average age of residents is documented in the census data on this site, but can probably be characterized as being on the mature side, at or close to retirement age. However, both are very family-friendly communities with established church-based, civic, and social networks. Neither would be characterized as party towns by any stretch, with the possible exception of the nightlife found at the aforementioned Surf Club at the beach on 6th Avenue in Ortley. Ortley Beach is, however, located immediately north of Seaside Heights and its commercial boardwalk, motels, and nightclubs.
Both are barrier island communities in Special Flood Hazard areas, and Flood Insurance would be required by any mortgagee.
either one, but you are going to get overflow of the summer crowd regardless. I would say Lavallette would be my first choice, only because I know people there.
I am thinking about purchasing a summer home on the Jersey Shore. I would love to purchase in Point Pleasant but will get more bang for my buck elsewhere. Can anyone tell me their thoughts on lavalette or Ortley beach? Are these places family friendly or filled with college kids partying all summer along?
Thanks.
I read this and I think houses are cheaper in Point Pleasant than Lavalette and Ortley.
If you are serious about these areas, probably the best $45 you could spend in your research is to subscribe to the Ocean Star, the weekly newspaper. It covers both Point Pleasant and Point Pleasant Beach very thoroughly, and also covers Bay Head, Mantoloking, and Lavallette (but not Toms River Township or its beach communities, which have their own paper.) On online-only pay subscription is also available.
This paper will give you a real insight into the differences between the Point Pleasant area and Lavallette, as well as real estate listings.
Do yourself a big favor and avoid Ortley Beach for the following reasons:
*The Surf Club has a huge negative quality of life issue for the immediate area near the club. Public drinking, noise, fights, public intoxication, sex on the beach and in parked cars, underage drinking, huge crowds etc etc
*The politicians in Toms River could care less about Ortley and provide the very bare minimum of municipal services.
*They always have crime issues especially burglaries and the Police Dept is very secretive and reluctant to provide crime stacticts for the Beach Area.
*The homeowners pay about 500K for fire protection to the Toms River Fire District located on the mainland. The Toms River Fire District in turn contracts out fire protection to the Seaside Heights Fire Dept for about 68K. What happens to the the other432K?
*A recent reassessment has dramatically increases property taxes in ortley.
*The councilwoman that represents Ortley has a political full time job in Seaside Heights...a source of many problems for Ortley & a clear conflict of interest.
*The actual beach area is poorly maintained, cleaned and patrolled during the summer season and non existent during the off season.
*Lifeguards leave the beach at 4:45PM ever day despite the huge crowds especially on weekends.
*The Toms River Police Chief tells good stories but does not provide anything new or innovative in preventing or reducing crime.
*Speeding on 35S & 35N is never addressed by the Toms River PD
This December item from the Asbury Park Press pretty well sums up the tax situation on the barrier island portion of Toms River Township, especially the last paragraph.
Rhys
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
