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I have been searching through this forum for a while and finally decided to post. Thanks in advance for your help.
Where are you coming from?
Virginia
Why are you moving?
For work
Where will you be working ?
UMDNJ University Hospital. Sometimes working the night shift. Otherwise 6am to 6 pm.
Will you buy or rent?
Rent
What is your budget ?
$1500 max since I will be making 50k/year. I hope that is realistic.
Will anyone (spouse, children, pets) be moving with you ? NO
What kind of place are you looking for ?
I am a young 30 yo single F. I would like to rent a one bedroom apartment within 30 minute commute to newark with traffic. I do not want a roommate. Ideally I want to live closer to NYC so that I can enjoy my free time there. I have looked at various threads and I really like the sound of living in Jersey City/hoboken. My question: Is it feasible and would I be able to afford a nice enough apartment in a safe area of jersey city on my budget? Also what is the parking situation there? I don't want to spend time finding parking on the street after working long hours and want to be able to sleep during the daytime after working a night shift. So a quiet residential street would be a plus. Any ideas?
I moved here from VA nine years ago. Hope you'll enjoy it.
$1500 is tight for rent in a safer part of JC. And paying that rent doesn't give you a whole lot of breathing room in your monthly budget. You can find apartments in the Grove St area at that price, but they'll be the bottom of the barrel. No laundry, no dishwasher, no central air, etc. Most apartments do not include parking. Street parking is "competitive" and to rent an off-street spot in a lot somewhere will cost about $150/mo.
Your money might go farther in Montclair. It's a little farther out from NYC, but it's pretty popular with young professionals. I lived there awhile myself. It has a quieter residential feel and a nice downtown with restaurants and bars. Parking is simpler too.
Also some new lux apartments by the Harrison PATH station start at around $1500 I think. Close to work, and the apartments will have modern finishes.
Thanks so much. I had not even heard about Harrison before. I checked Harrison station where one bedroom is $1750 but hopefully there are other such apartments at slight lower price. The location is ideal and hopefully crime is not an issue.
One should be able to rent a one bedroom apt in downtown Jersey City for $1,500 (until a year ago, I rented a one bedroom apt for $1,300 in downtown), and I don't think it would have to be "the bottom of the barrel" (mine certainly wasn't). I would agree that it would probably not have a washer and dryer in the unit, but the area is very safe and offers great options particularly for people who need to have a car for commuting. I do not believe parking in downtown is competitive, unlike Hoboken. I live in Van Vorst Park neighborhood, and the longest time I have ever spent, looking for a space is 3 minutes. Most of the time, I can park right in front of my building (when I come home around 6PM). Parking does get a little more difficult when it gets really late, like after midnight. When I come home after midnight, I either park a couple of blocks away from my place or I sometimes (though still rarely) park my car a little too close to the intersection. But the parking authority won't come around until 8 in the morning, so the chance of getting a ticket is very slim. Another benefit of downtown is its proximity to NYC. From Grove Street station to WTC is only 7 minutes. To 33rd, 18 minutes. If you choose to drive (if you know you will be back late, it is better to drive), Holland tunnel is only 5 minutes away. If you are young (like in 20's) and party in NYC all the time, then I won't recommend Jersey City. Jersey City is for people who are a little older, more mature or laid back. If you are happy going to the city twice a week, then Jersey City will be the place. If you want to go there more than 4 nights a week, it would probably be better to find a roommate in NYC. But I have to warn you this; if you live in Jersey City, your "cool" friends in NYC will NEVER come to visit you, and you will have to be secure about who you are when snobby New Yorkers look down upon you. Personally, I much prefer Jersey City to NYC.
I know you said you do no want roommate but I strongly encourage that you do. Two people paying 3000 can get you a nice luxury apartment with ton of perks. Proximity to Path, washer/dryer in unit, more space, doorman, gym, etc.
If you absolutely cannot and would much rather live alone. 1500 is doable but you need to adjust expectations. Rental prices have gone up alot. Even though Atsuhi was there a year ago, I'm actually looking now for 1 bed in JC (downtown JC around Grove St station) and it's pricey. Cheaper units are past Grove and going toward Journal Square (JSQ).
Big thing that's going to matter is your comfort level of perceived safety of an area and what is "Nice" to you. If you are used to living in more urban area that may be more gritty. You can find apartments in places like JSQ for that range. If you are used to live in more suburban or more upper class part of towns...then No, you may find places like JSQ unacceptable to you.
If that's the case, 1500 in downtown JC won't be easy. Doable but not easy and definitely not possible for what's considered luxury buildings.
Harrison is really convenient to UMDNJ and completely within your budget. Going northwards, you can also consider Kearny, North Arlington. Street parking is much easier in these towns than Jersey City and $1500 can get you a nice 2bd even in a multifamily house. Luxury rentals (e.g. Harrison Station) may be out of your budget though.
I think $1500 on 50K (before taxes) is really tight. Well, it depends on your other obligations too (car, student loans, credit cards etc).
Are you currently living on 50K and paying rent? I think $1100 would be the max you would want to pay for rent.
I would suggest looking in towns such as Kearny, North Arlington (slightly better than Kearny), Lyndhurst, and Rutherford. Those towns are more middle class than the neighborhoods directly next to Newark and I have seen rentals for studios and 1 bedrooms for $1100 and less. They have bus service to Newark Penn Station, if you want to try public transportation. They also will have some sort of public transportation to NYC (pretty much all of northern NJ will have decent transit options to NYC).
Thank you all for your input. To answer a few questions:
1. No roommate mainly since I would like to have the place to myself when I am at home. Last roommate experience was painful and I am burned for life I guess.
2. Except for rent and utilities, I really have no other definite expenses. No car payments and no student loan payments either. But 1500 is the max I am willing to pay provided I get to live close to nyc. $1200 is more ideal for me personally. I am not expecting to live luxuriously but would like to be close to things to do (not nightclubs exactly). Hence, Jersey city, hoboken seemed perfect but appear out of my reach.
I looked at the cheaper hoboken apartments and at $1400 you can get a small studio with not much amenities. Downtown jersey city also similar. I was wondering about Journal Square area. I am Indian and was told there are other Indians in the area. Is that area safe? I don't want to start a debate but just wondering if I stay close to the path station would there be better and cheaper options available? Other wise I am looking at Harrison and Kearny mainly due to their proximity to nyc and with Montclair as last resort.
Also if I am looking to start renting on June 1 or 15th would first week of May be the best time to come down or view apartments? Not much in the market at present for Harrison or Kearny.
Again thank you all for your help. I am very excited to move to this area and would be lost without this forum.
JSQ is reasonably safe. It's not a clean neighborhood, nor is it very beautiful. If you're coming from Northern Virginia, where most of the housing stock has been built since 1980, you'll find Journal Square to be older, dirtier, and uglier by comparison. BUT, it's not very crime-ridden, it has great transit access to Newark and NYC, and rent isn't as expensive as Hoboken/downtown JC.
On-street parking is more difficult in JSQ than downtown JC in my experience, so you'll want to find a place that offers parking (rare) or rent a space in a parking garage or lot in the neighborhood.
Also, in JC, apartments are often advertised on craigslist or lovely only a few weeks before the move-in date. There will be some inventory for June available to see the first week of May, but don't get discouraged if you don't find something at that time. Ads for apartments for June 1 will be popping up into the first week of June. Since your time is limited, I would recommend making appointments with 3-4 realtors each of whom can show you 4-6 apartments at a time, and save some time to arrange to see any places for rent by-owner that you find on craigslist or lovely.
Jersey City is doable on that budget, but the problem is parking. You can probably get a decent 1BR with 1,500, but probably not one with parking. Because you sometimes work night shift (6p-6a) you will get back before most people leave. Parking is tough and the spaces that open up first are usually the ones with street cleaning. So you will need to get up at 10, 11, 1 or 2 to go move your car, which you probably will not be able to do if you are very tired. You will end up getting a ton of tickets. I would look at Bayonne. It is actually closer to Newark and a decent commute into the city.
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