Dear NJ Forum members,
I came to this forum in 2008 seeking advice for my move from St. Louis to Northern NJ. (link -
//www.city-data.com/forum/new-j...rsey-help.html) I got a ton of timely and useful suggestions. Since then I've come back to this forum often to read and research. So, thank you all for this wonderful and dynamic resource.
I will be moving to Cambridge, MA before the end of this year to take up a new position. But, before I do I wanted to put down a few thoughts and let you all know how my 3.5 years in NJ went -
Good things first
1. NJ has an image problem. What you hear about NJ around the country does not match what is reality. Jersey has beautiful highlands in and great beaches, all within a couple of hours of each other. Great towns and urban areas in Morristown and Jersey City to name a couple. Unfortunately, what every one else sees are the factories and highway spaghetti when they transit through EWR.
2. The ethnic diversity in NJ might be a cause of consternation to a few, but I think it is resource that we should nurture and figure out how to exploit. It is a rare place where anyone in the world can come to and immediately find a community to feel at home with.
3. The people of NJ I find are generally a helpful and friendly bunch. There have been numerous instances of a good will gesture when none was required or expected.
4. Though many here might not agree with me, given the weather here the road infrastructure is top notch. Well planned and maintained roads gets you around easily even with the high population density.
Now for a couple of gripes -
1. For the life of me I do not understand the 100s of municipalities all around the state. Though this might allow a finer level of self determination for a community, it comes at a real cost. These small communities just cannot come up with the resources to build up social and cultural institutions. It is sad that for almost any kind of quality cultural pursuit it is NYC or bust. Even then, a trip to NYC ends up taking a whole day. Where are the museums, plays, zoos that I would like to go to when I have free weekday evening?
2. Though the road system is good, it is incredibly unfriendly to bicyclists and pedestrians. Even if you live only a mile away from work any where in Northern NJ, I would strongly advice you to leave your bicycle home if you value your life.
3. Though the public transit system had great reach and accessibility, the state is too far spread to fully benefit from it. The time and cost savings are never there. In fact in most cases, it takes more time and costs more than driving.
A few general comments -
1. Malls and shopping are an import part of NJ life.
2. Jug handles and U-turns take some getting used, and in the case of my wife, never.
3. Great food all around.
4. Property taxes, oh boy!
Hope the following helps someone in a similar situation as I was in -
(Quick background if you did not read my original post: My work place was in East Hanover, I wanted to buy a 3 bdrm house within an hour's commute and wanted to take transit if possible)
1. For the first year I rented (~$1100 for 1bd/1ba) in Randolph in one of those apartment farms and rode down Rt. 10 to work. It took me about 30 min each way. Randolph is either quite or dead depending on how you see it.
2. We move to another rental (~$1800 for 2bd/2ba) in Morris Plains and continued to drive down Rt. 10 for a 15 min commute. This is not much different from Randolph, but Morristown is closer and we had wonderful views of the NYC skyline (~30 miles away).
3. The smartest thing I did was deciding against buying. The houses we looked at in 2008-2009 have dropped further in value, and now that I am moving am not saddled with an illiquid asset.
Again, thank you all for your help over the last 3 or so years. Good luck. Though I have never come around to calling NJ home, it felt like visiting family. And of course, never got around to liking the Yankees. Go Cardinals!.
Now off to the Boston city data forum.
Cheers
-indy