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If you are a Jersey/NYC person it's apples and oranges to attempt to compare it to Virginia.
Its like asking if two people are alike when they clearly have two different outlooks.
The western portion of NJ, Sussex County for example has some beautiful countryside,
though much of Virginia outside of the cities in most of the state going west is a site
to behold. Breathtaking rolling hills and farms and wide open spaces. If you've come
from an urban setting and feel parched for an idyllic vista, then you've found nirvana in Virginia.
Stick to Kansas and Indiana. The first clue that you know very little about NJ is calling it eastern NJ. No one from NJ ever calls it that. It is the ultimate North/South State. People say Western NJ sometimes because it's very rural compared to the rest of North Jersey primarily. You're talking about all towns further South because all the ultra money is in the Northern counties minus a few towns down the Shore like Rumson and Colts Neck (where Bon Jovi and Springsteen live). Your synopsis sounds like it's from 1985.
I'd be embarrassed to publicly announce my ignorance of a place where I had once lived.
Virginia is better NJ is good but its really expensive in the subrubs and if u find a cheap home in NJ your gonna have to deal with murders, gunshots, crackheads ,etc but Virginia is really cheap and u could find a great home here in a nice suburban neighborhood
Both states have gems, but both areas have their serious fall backs
New Jersey has nicer shore areas compared to Virginia, and they are underrated. I mean NJs coastline isnt top tier, but its a solid day trip quality place to go to. What really wins NJ over for me is the diversity and suburbs in Northern NJ like Maplewood, Montclair, Far Hills and Summit. They are really nice and transit accessible. I love Jersey City and Hoboken. Great nightlife, fun places to go to, and super urban.
Vitginia has amazing suburbs as well, weather, infrastructure and cost of living are better for sure. The natural beauty of VA is unmatched. But I am in urban planning, so I judge built environments mire so Il have to go with NJ on this one. New Jersey is in my top 5 states, its a tier below Massachusetts and Washington.... But its right up there with Virginia. I like both. Virginia is like a slightly better, more developed NC ... and NJ is like a slightly less appealing and grittier Massachusetts.
What a bizarre and delightful slap fight this has turned into!
I didn't vote as for me as it's a tossup. I've lived in both states (VA twice, although was a toddler the first go round so don't really count it).
But, I am a bit surprised at how much VA is winning this poll, and there are lots of misconceptions about NJ being thrown around so wanted to clear them up.
- For one, as other posters have noted, you simply can't compare Jersey City (of all places) to all of NOVA. Of course the schools will not measure up, you're comparing a densely populated city to a largely suburban area (side note: McNair HS in Jersey City is one of the top schools in the US)
- County comparisons don't work in NJ either. NJ, for better or worse, is economically segregated. There are counties that have beautiful country estates and quaint downtowns and 6 miles away are Newark & Irvington. Those inner cities don't exist in NOVA, so skews the average statistics. Example: most lists will rank Morris county as the wealthiest in NJ, but for anyone that lives there they know that Morris county is not the wealthiest area in Northern NJ, it just doesn't have any cities that weigh down the averages
- Glen Ridge is not the wealthiest town in NJ by a country mile. I'm not even sure how statistics could be bent to show that? And I realize that was USA Today, not anyone here (note: it is a nice town though)
- Outside of about 10 miles (total) of seedy shore areas (Seaside, Wildwood, etc), the coastline is really nice, and mostly upscale. Someone mentioned "past it's prime". Huh? Most of it is gorgeous (and 100% nicer than VA Beach).
- I'll leave comparing F500 companies to others, but I can believe that VA has more (many have left NJ)
- To summarize, I would surmise that NJ has areas that are both "much nicer" and "way worse" than anything in VA
- VA is absolutely a prettier state
Again, not sure which way I would vote, I do like both of them.
Don't know as much about Virginia but lived in a lot of different states, including South Jersey for 4 years. New Jersey has very quaint, beautiful landscapes. You don't pump your own gas there, a very old-fashioned touch. I loved how they had strict emissions laws for cars, felt like the air was cleaner. We do a lot of road/day trips and New Jersey is probably on the top of my list for places to go for a beautiful getaway. I would literally be shaking my head as we drove around seeing breathtaking landscapes all around. To me, it's the perfect place for a weekend vacation at a
Bed & Breakfast. Northern NJ is much busier area, but another nice feature about New Jersey is being centrally located, about an hour from Philadelphia or 2 hours to NYC. If it weren't for the higher cost-of-living I would consider living there.
Businesswise, finance is good, but finance can kind of be done anywhere, especially now that we're in the Zoom workplace. This year has shown that 'spillover effects' from being in proximity to industry people aren't as big of a deal as touted. New Jersey does not have anything to compare to data center alley in NoVa, which is literally the world capital / heart of the internet, a massive infrastructure of fiber that cannot be easily replicated elsewhere.
People surprised Jersey is losing by this margin, I think moreso underestimated how well rounded of a state Virginia is. Completely underrated since within the borders of The Commonwealth there is no "major" city, so people tend to devalue the strength of VA cities; as well as there are some who view VA in the light of the 1860s or 1960s South and cant be convinced that Virginia today is different than preconceived notions allow for it to be...
Been to Central Jersey (Monmouth County) and thought it was interesting and pretty. Not surprised Virginia is winning the thread, though...
It's not surprising. NJ is an unpopular state and Virginia is definitely one of the top states in the US.
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