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1) Westfield - E Broad Street - 3 BR, 2 1/2 BA - 575K
2) Long Hills twonship- Millington - 4BR, 4BA - 639K
Im leaning towards westfield because of better commute to NYC, schools, downtown and close knit homes
My husband seems to be liking Millington home because of the house itself, it has everything we wanted for, and I could find a job in warren , so I don't have to worry about commuting to NYC.
I am afraid I dont know enough about Millington town as such, not sure if the house is priced right, so not very confident choosing this one.
1) Westfield - E Broad Street - 3 BR, 2 1/2 BA - 575K
2) Long Hills twonship- Millington - 4BR, 4BA - 639K
Im leaning towards westfield because of better commute to NYC, schools, downtown and close knit homes
My husband seems to be liking Millington home because of the house itself, it has everything we wanted for, and I could find a job in warren , so I don't have to worry about commuting to NYC.
I am afraid I dont know enough about Millington town as such, not sure if the house is priced right, so not very confident choosing this one.
My question for you is - is it really between these two houses? No other WF houses work for you ?
I think your question illustrates the premium that a person has to pay for WF. I happen to love the place (see my other posts), but it looks like you have to pay almost 65k more for one fewer bedroom and 1 1/2 fewer baths. Millington is in Morris County, right? So I shall assume the taxes will be lower than Westfield's since Elizabeth being situated in Union County sucks out the money from people who actually work for a living. Also, East Broad is a busy street. Is the Millington house on a quiet street? Tell us a little bit more about your needs and preferences, to help guide the discussion.
Millington is an area in Long Hill Township. It is a "less dense" feeling area, but not rural-feeling (as Readington or the like are), still not far from restaurants, grocery stores, etc. It is very nice, has pretty much no crime, and the schools are quite good as well.
In short, this comes down to personal preferences, geographic considerations, price, etc. The quality of both areas is similar enough that it doesn't matter, IMO. But they are totally different areas in terms of lifestyle.
Also, the NYC commute is not necessarily better from Westfield. Transferring in Newark Penn from the Raritan Valley Line is not a particularly pleasant experience. Millington has a handful of direct trains in peak hours, and I would prefer the extra 15 minutes on the train instead of having to get up, get off the train, stand/wait, get on another train and hope you can get a seat, etc.
My question for you is - is it really between these two houses? No other WF houses work for you ?
I think your question illustrates the premium that a person has to pay for WF. I happen to love the place (see my other posts), but it looks like you have to pay almost 65k more for one fewer bedroom and 1 1/2 fewer baths. Millington is in Morris County, right? So I shall assume the taxes will be lower than Westfield's since Elizabeth being situated in Union County sucks out the money from people who actually work for a living. Also, East Broad is a busy street. Is the Millington house on a quiet street? Tell us a little bit more about your needs and preferences, to help guide the discussion.
Yes, its in Morris county, tax is 3K lower than Westfield. we noticed that E Broad is a busy street, but the nearby homes pretty close which I liked. Millington house is also on busy street (Valley Road) and it's the first house we have seen in this town. We have been seeing many houses in WF<, I have an idea about the area, but not Millington. that's why I was confused to make a decision.
Where are you coming from? Jersey City
Why are you moving? Would like to own a house in nice suburb
Where will you be working ? If NYC, what part of NYC? Mid town NYC
Will you buy or rent? buy
What is your budget ? 500 - 650 K
What kind of place are you looking for ? Westfield, Chatham, New Providence, Scotch Plains, Long Hills
Will anyone (spouse, children, pets) be moving with you ? yes, my husband and 2 kids (6 ,3 years old)
Do you need/want good public schools? yes
Briefly describe the kind of neighborhood you'd like to live in
(examples: families with young children, young, mature, artsy, diverse, safe, close-knit, block parties, etc)
Families with young children, great schools, safe, close-knit, easy commute to NYC
List three things that are important to you in order of importance.(examples: nightlife, outdoor activities, rural/urban, safety, downtown area, charming, new construction, proximity to XYZ, family oriented, easy parking, short commute, etc)
Millington is an area in Long Hill Township. It is a "less dense" feeling area, but not rural-feeling (as Readington or the like are), still not far from restaurants, grocery stores, etc. It is very nice, has pretty much no crime, and the schools are quite good as well.
In short, this comes down to personal preferences, geographic considerations, price, etc. The quality of both areas is similar enough that it doesn't matter, IMO. But they are totally different areas in terms of lifestyle.
Also, the NYC commute is not necessarily better from Westfield. Transferring in Newark Penn from the Raritan Valley Line is not a particularly pleasant experience. Millington has a handful of direct trains in peak hours, and I would prefer the extra 15 minutes on the train instead of having to get up, get off the train, stand/wait, get on another train and hope you can get a seat, etc.
Hi
Are you sure there are direct trains from Millington to NYC ?
New Jersey Transit
I checked NJ transit schedule, all of them seem to be transferring at Summit or Newark.
I live in Long Hill. I also looked at Westfield when we purchased 5 years back.
I've done both commutes to NYC (downtown) and I do prefer the Gladstone Branch commute. I change at Hoboken typically and get the ferry or the PATH to Wall Street. I have now moved work location to NJ (Parsippany) and the commute is much better - If I had have been in Westfield the benefit would not have been as great for me. Also consider that the train stations in Long Hill are quite close to each other and therefore the commute difference from all three stations is around 8 - 10 minutes in total. Parking is generally available at each station each year but Gillette tends to fill up first. Parking is not a concern for me because I walk to the station when I have to go to NYC (about once a week). Since you will be in Midtown there are two trains per day in each direction to Penn Station - its about an hour door to Penn for me from Gillette when I go to Midtown. For off peak a change in Summit is usually required and its about 5 minute wait.
We ultimately decided on Long Hill because we didn't see much difference between the schools and preferred the size of house and land that was possible in Long Hill. I've heard positive reports about the High School - note that it is a large school - around 1200 students I believe - but that certainly enables more specialization than at the smaller schools. Also Pre-K is full day in Long Hill as of last year
Westfield definitely has a more city feel than Long Hill - Long Hill can feel quite rural at times. The nightlife is certainly not as good as Westfield and the downtown scene can feel sleepy at times. The other item here is that generally the houses in Long Hill (certainly in my area) are approaching 30 years old - new construction excluded - and what I'm seeing in our neighborhood recently is a lot of the owners (probably purchased new in the area) are moving out of the area and new families with younger children are moving in. Our neighborhood used to be quiet at times but I see alot more young children out and about on the streets riding bikes etc...
I'm not sure I'd buy directly on Valley Rd. For 650K you'd be able to get off the Valley Rd in Long Hill - look north of Valley Rd. There are a number of areas with newer construction in Long Hill (less than 20 years) worth considering - look at Cottage Place in Gillette, also near Stirling (just past the Lake - it does get expensive in there - north of a million), generally the newer construction is north of the train line. Also look at Clover Hill in Millington. Also consider Meyersville as well.
We also looked at New Providence as well (We lived there for a year) but the predominant housing design wasn't to our liking (splits) so we looked elsewhere.
Long Hill is a very different lifestyle to Westfield. We prefer the slower pace out in Long Hill and the larger lot size - but its a change - we lived in cities for almost 14 years and it took a while to get used to it. We tend to be in Westfield every two weeks or so anyway on the weekend for a walkaround! And the tax is lower in Morris County! The town seems to be pretty well run as well.
and if you are going to get a job in Warren then the commute over the hill from Scotch Plains / Westfield can be painful. Bonnie Burn Rd can be blocked up during peak hours. Its not like its an hour - but its not the 10 mins it would be from Milllington. The folks we purchased from moved from Long Hill to Mountainside due to this issue alone.
You taking the 114 bus from Westfield since you live on the north end? How far North? There is a wait for a parking spot at the train station.
Also, keep in mind, even if you catch the train where you do not have to transfer (from Millington), it is still 20+ minutes longer than the express train out of wesetfield (WITH a transfer). And if you are working downtown, the transfer doesn't matter
Also as a heads up, a lot of people in Westfield take the bus into the city in the morning, and the train home (train ticket works on both)
Not having looked at the houses itself, it still seems too high a price to buy on a busy road. If it is the better house that is swaying you, there are always more, and you can continue to look in the general area. Westfield has a lot going on in terms of kids' activities, what about Long hill? Lower taxes is a definite draw but given the general trend, I would expect to pay lower for the house for being farther from NYC, if all else was more or less equal (and that may not be the case here because the two towns have different vibes).
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