Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Great to see they finally finished the TP construction - weren't they also adding another exit?
I don't see the train as an option simply because Penn Station is too far south from where I'll be working (I'm a 5 min walk from Port Authority).
No new exits, just a widening from what used to be the merge of the car and truck lanes around 8A. The bottleneck is now shifted South to exit 6, but we don't care about them down there. You could do the NJ Transit train into Newark and switch over to PATH, but I'm with you in taking a direct bus if possible. Nothing worse than having to switch trains twice every day. The ride is long enough.
No new exits, just a widening from what used to be the merge of the car and truck lanes around 8A. The bottleneck is now shifted South to exit 6, but we don't care about them down there. You could do the NJ Transit train into Newark and switch over to PATH, but I'm with you in taking a direct bus if possible. Nothing worse than having to switch trains twice every day. The ride is long enough.
It's not so much that "we don't care about them down there" as that I-95, since NJ failed quite expectedly to build most any of it, I-95 will head off the NJ Pike at Exit 6, go over to PA and connect to the rest of I-95 when PA finishes that interchange in PA where I-276/95 goes over I-95.
IF you're considering commute from Monroe you might as well look at Lincroft (part of Middletown) - great schools, nice lots, great town, close to restaurants, shopping, and a straight shot to the Academy Bus stop at 109 to midtown.
In your price you'll find a 70's-80's house- prob about 2-2.5k sq ft -somewhat updated- but in my opinion a much nicer town with a lot more activity- esp when you have a little one. Parks in Monmouth County are great- you'll be near Red Bank and all the entertainment and shopping, 20 min or less from beach and 20 min from Marlboro/Manalapan/Colts Neck, an you're also in Middletown a larger town with a lot of amenities.
In Monroe the taxes are going to go way up once the thousands of families that moved in start voting up the school budget and wrestle away decision making from seniors- and currently the HS is not so hot -receives from Jamesburg. And as others mentioned - there is a huge new construction bubble there at the moment- once that pops it may bring down rest of housing with it. Also- Asian population is exploding in Monroe - might not matter (it shouldn't) but to some people it may be an issue.
Thanks for the input - already checked out those locations and crossed them off the list for other reasons. It's also rare to find something around $10k in taxes in those towns in my price range.
Route 9 traffic is bad, but Route 1 traffic is worse (all of those towns go thru Rt 1). I lived in Franklin Park and Freehold so I can attest to it.
Sure - those towns are desireable (I don't think I would say East/South Brunswick is very desireable though..), but the difference isn't high enough to justify the increased taxes IMO.
You're right RT 1 is bad. But u take 130 to the turnpike problem solved. Taxes are rough anywhere u go in these areas. Anyway good luck with your decision.
I would stay towards the northern part of Middlesex. All of those towns you listed are overpriced, commutes are expensive and lengthy. I don't see anything wrong with Clark and surrounding areas you can find decent homes about the $400-550k range and commute to city in 60mins.
Places south of East Brunswick you're looking at commute of 75-80mins minimum and winter times with delays you're looking at 2 hrs each way. Good luck.
I would stay towards the northern part of Middlesex. All of those towns you listed are overpriced, commutes are expensive and lengthy. I don't see anything wrong with Clark and surrounding areas you can find decent homes about the $400-550k range and commute to city in 60mins.
Places south of East Brunswick you're looking at commute of 75-80mins minimum and winter times with delays you're looking at 2 hrs each way. Good luck.
You can't find any decent house for around 400k around clark, and if you do its has a lot of problems. What northern towns in middlesex are nice??? Also my commute on the 139 from Monmouth would be around 60 to 70 min most days and never 2 hours even with bad delays.
What would be the best bus option from Metuchen to midtown? Understanding I could simply hop on the train, I'm trying to see if there's a cheaper option that drops me off closer to midtown than the train would at Penn Station.
Have you considered a return to Freehold? One of the best school districts in the state. The bus is an even hour commute to Port Authority and there are some GREAT properties available. Middletown is also an excellent area and has an excellent school district with the train nearby. I'm a Realtor in the area so feel free to let me know if I can be of any help. [url=http://www.henrygraebe.com]Henry GraebeHeritage House Sotheby's International Realty[/url]
So I'm trying to get a feel for the more "desireable" part of Metuchen, just like there are more desireable parts of any town. Based on my research, anything near Main St. is pretty good/higher property value just from being closer to the train and walkable to downtown. How is the area west of Central Ave/Main St? It seems like there are some newer construction over there, as well as in the very south part of town.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
You could do the NJ Transit train into Newark and switch over to PATH, but I'm with you in taking a direct bus if possible. Nothing worse than having to switch trains twice every day. The ride is long enough.
