Deciding between two great towns Basking Ridge and Chatham Township (Newark: fit in, condos)
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Hello –
I wanted to ask / solicit feedback on a discussion me and the wife have been having. We are looking to move from our humble 3 bedroom Townhouse in Somerset to a bigger place. Our two final options are Basking Ridge (The Hills) or Chatham Township. We do not need a really big place 2500-3000 square feet is enough. The Wife works in BR and I work from home or go to client sites in Princeton, NYC, PA, CA etc. We have a 2 year old and are planning to have another one sooner rather than later. We are in are low to mid 30s. Our budget tops out at 1 Million. Some points we go back and forth on:
1) Resale – Selling a 1 MM house (whenever needed in the future) would be easier in Chatham – No data to support this so if wrong please correct
2) NYC travel – If jobs shift to NYC, travel from BR will be prohibitive
3) Sense of community – BR will have more younger families
4) Open Feeling – BR provides more parks and places for kids
5) No Land - Concerning about with The Hills, houses are too close together
6) General – There is much more room in BR to build compared to Chatham Township, and other big communities can spring up anytime depreciating the value of the current homes
7) Commute time for wife’s job from Chatham will be 5 more minutes than The Hills
8) Not sure if it makes a difference between Morris and Somerset Counties
A lot of this is anecdotal and please do not be offended if you live in one town or the other. We are not looking at this as an investment, but if we need to move for some reason in 2 ,5 or 7 years do not want to lose $$ either. All feedback is appreciated.
Last edited by danjmac; 04-11-2014 at 08:40 AM..
Reason: formatig issue
You're right, these are both wonderful towns to live in.
First, are you deciding between two home or simply two areas of where to look for homes? If you feel that you like both towns, then look for homes in both towns! As you look at homes, you will get a better feel of where you think your family will fit in better.
First, concerning commute. Your wife's commute will not be affected too much regardless of where you live. However, if you have to go into NYC, there is a train station in Basking Ridge and it takes ~80 minutes to get into the city, about 20 minutes more than Chatham. But, if you have flexible hours, you could also drive in and it won't be so crazy.
As for resale value -- I think that both are pretty good in that regard. They're comparable. While homes in BR may have taken longer, in general, to sell at that price range, some sold in less than a week for full asking price (and many are under contract now after not even being on the market for a month). But, regardless of current data, nobody knows what the market will be like 5-7 years from now. As for open land in BR -- there are current zoning areas that prevent certain lots from being smaller than a certain size. In many areas, the size is 2-3 acres. So unless they change this, I wouldn't worry too much about the building of communities. (I'm not saying that it won't happen, though -- many areas of BR also allow for much smaller lot sizes, so subdivision can happen).
As for an open feeling, how much land are you looking for? BR has more parks, but Chatham has many, as well. Chatham is more accessible to shopping and downtown areas, but Basking Ridge isn't quite in the middle of nowhere either.
Overall, they are both fantastic towns. If you've narrowed it down to these two and haven't begun looking at homes, I think that now is the time. It may be much harder to find a home you love if you are so rigid about where you want to live.
By the way, not to confuse you more, but have you considered neighboring Harding Twp?
I recently moved back to NJ and after looking at many different areas, we picked Chatham and am very glad we did. I've found it to be very family friendly and love having access to green spaces and a great downtown. Basking Ridge is also nice and we looked there as well...but found that Chatham had a little more to offer AND the commute into the city is shorter - I don't do the commute every day but frequently enough where the 20ish extra minutes it would take from Basking Ridge would wear a bit thin if you had to do it every day.
Thank you Samantha for your reply. see some answers below
First, are you deciding between two home or simply two areas of where to look for homes?
We are looking at homes and have been to a couple of open houses / get new listings etc. Looks like getting a better house in BR compared to Chatham (~15% price difference). As per original question still not 100% sure which town is best.
As for an open feeling, how much land are you looking for?
.5 -1 Acre would be ideal. I know there is a lot of land in BR but not in The Hills area in our budget.
By the way, not to confuse you more, but have you considered neighboring Harding Twp?
No - not something we had considered
Thanks Tampa Resident - looks like a lot of us are/ were in the same boat
Ex GF grew up in Chatham, I grew up in Basking Ridge. I can definitely spell out some things you need to know:
Geography in Chatham: Chatham is separated between the borough and the township. One is more affulent the other is slightly less affuluent. Both are very wealthy areas to live in. Chatham is nestled on the JFK PKWAY (route 24) which connects to I-78 which gives it significantly better access to Newark Airport and NYC than Basking Ridge. The other direction on Route 24 is towards Morristown (and 287) which is slightly more direct than from Basking Ridge. Access to train station and service to NYC better and has less stops than BR stations. Chatham is also right next to the ritzy Short Hills Mall.
Geograpahy in Basking Ridge: Basking Ridge compared to Chatham is huge. Excellent 78 and 287 (they criscross in BR) access but further away from NYC than Chatham by a good 20-25 minutes. Basking Ridge although has better roadway connections to route 22, route 202, and 287 which lead to places like Princeton, New Brunswick, and Bridgewater. All of these destinations are a shorter trip than from Chatham.
Schools: Both are highly ranked with Chatham being slightly lower than Basking Ridge in the ratings (at least last time I checked.) You can't go wrong with either as long as you are willing to fork over a truckload of money for property taxes.
People: Chatham kids my age I met seem to have less of a chip on their shoulder than Basking Ridge people. As a whole, both are equally snooty and being preppy is highly respected.
Homes: Chatham has older (1930s-1950s) type neighborhoods that are widespead and cookie cutter. Basking Ridge has these as well but the big housing theme there are condos and developments (see THE HILLS). Chatham homes have more personality for sure, but BR has tons of McMansions that dwarf most home sizes in Chatham.
Food: Both have excellent restaurants. Basking Ridge has more options since its sprawled out over a larger area.
Between Morris and Somerset Counties: Both are very wealthy but note that many areas of Somerset sprawl into central NJ, whereas Morris is almost all Northern NJ.
PM me if you have more questions. Good luck in your search!
Geography in Chatham: Chatham is separated between the borough and the township. One is more affulent the other is slightly less affuluent. Both are very wealthy areas to live in. Chatham is nestled on the JFK PKWAY (route 24) which connects to I-78 which gives it significantly better access to Newark Airport and NYC than Basking Ridge. The other direction on Route 24 is towards Morristown (and 287) which is slightly more direct than from Basking Ridge. Access to train station and service to NYC better and has less stops than BR stations. Chatham is also right next to the ritzy Short Hills Mall.
Homes: Chatham has older (1930s-1950s) type neighborhoods that are widespead and cookie cutter. Basking Ridge has these as well but the big housing theme there are condos and developments (see THE HILLS). Chatham homes have more personality for sure, but BR has tons of McMansions that dwarf most home sizes in Chatham.
Just wanted to clarify that JFK parkway is not Rt 24, but intersects it. JFK Pkwy actually leads right into River Rd and then Shunpike Rd, ergo Chatham Twp. (Not that big of a deal, but just wanted to say...)
I have to say, though, that depending on where in Chatham you are, many homes are close together and smaller. Some homes are bigger, but I feel that in BR, you tend to get more home for your money.
Quote:
Originally Posted by danjmac
Thank you Samantha for your reply. see some answers below
First, are you deciding between two home or simply two areas of where to look for homes?
We are looking at homes and have been to a couple of open houses / get new listings etc. Looks like getting a better house in BR compared to Chatham (~15% price difference). As per original question still not 100% sure which town is best.
As for an open feeling, how much land are you looking for?
.5 -1 Acre would be ideal. I know there is a lot of land in BR but not in The Hills area in our budget.
By the way, not to confuse you more, but have you considered neighboring Harding Twp?
No - not something we had considered
Thanks Tampa Resident - looks like a lot of us are/ were in the same boat
I agree with you that you do get a bit of better house in BR as compared to Chatham.
The main reason why I mentioned Harding Twp is that you get a lot of land with your house. However, I just double checked and there aren't too many homes available for your budget.
I really hope that you find something you love and in your budget, even if that means venturing a little out of The Hills section and into other areas of Basking Ridge/Bernards Twp. I know it can be so hard when you're trying to choose between two wonderful towns, but I'm sure that when you find the right house, you'll realize that it's the best place for you and your family to live!
Thanks everyone - We have prioritized Chatham Twp although depending on the house are still open to BR. The main reason is we like the feel (more suburban than rural) of the Chatham a bit more and NYC would just be undoable from BR. The types of places we like, seem to be more abundant in the township compared to the borough (which has the train station parking). Will try and keep everyone updated on the process.
Just wanted to clarify that JFK parkway is not Rt 24, but intersects it. JFK Pkwy actually leads right into River Rd and then Shunpike Rd, ergo Chatham Twp. (Not that big of a deal, but just wanted to say...)
I have to say, though, that depending on where in Chatham you are, many homes are close together and smaller. Some homes are bigger, but I feel that in BR, you tend to get more home for your money.
I agree with you that you do get a bit of better house in BR as compared to Chatham.
Thanks for the JFK PKWY/Route 24 distinction. The way the signs are labeled along the highway it makes it seem like the same thing
Yes you are correct. In many ways you get a bigger home in BR than Chatham. A 3 br center hall colonial is well over 700K in Chatham, but can be around 500K in Basking Ridge. Condos are more widespead and cheaper than Chatham. But then again, location, location, location. Chatham has the higher price tag because of it's slightly better proximity to NYC.
I would also like to mention you can take backroads from Basking Ridge to Chatham through the Great Swamp. Takes slightly less time (and more scenic) than the highways.
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