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Old 12-23-2014, 06:08 PM
 
22,359 posts, read 11,886,395 times
Reputation: 20198

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I'm asking in part for myself and in part for our daughter. She is currently living in Hackensack and we hope to move closer to her when we retire.

Less than a year ago, her company transferred her to NYC. She didn't have much time to locate an affordable place to live and ended up in Hackensack. While she and her family like some aspects of Hackensack---walkability, good public transportation, the schools are another matter. Plus when the lease is up, their rent will go up another $200/month. So...they are looking to move.

She has a co-worker who recommends Hasbrouck Heights. However, from looking at greatschools.org the elementary schools rate 3 out of 10 and the MS and HS rate 5.

In addition, she is also considering River Edge. Looking at greatschools.org the 2 elementary schools have great ratings---one is an 8, another is a 10. However, River Edge appears to not have a MS or HS. Where do kids in River Edge get sent for middle school and high school?

New Milford looks good to both of us. The elementary schools all rate a 7 as does the MS. The HS rates a 6.

I would appreciate hearing any of your thoughts on these 3 towns. Do you prefer one over the others?

Thank you!
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Old 12-24-2014, 02:31 PM
 
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in river edge they get sent to oradell...which is also good.

I think river edge is great.
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Old 12-24-2014, 03:15 PM
 
22,359 posts, read 11,886,395 times
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Thank you for the info!

I will encourage my daughter to look into moving there.
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Old 12-24-2014, 11:53 PM
 
Location: New Jersey
66 posts, read 166,392 times
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If we knew what your budget is I think it would help us better narrow down the choices as these three towns are all very different in their own way. I'll tell you what I know of each of these three towns.

River Edge: The most elite of the three towns you listed. After elementary school, kids from River Edge feed into the River Dell Regional School System which has a very good reputation. The River Dell School District is shared between River Edge and Oradell (hence the name River Dell). While the downtown area is nice and there are two train stations in town, many of the houses look exactly the same and are from the post-WWII era. Some parts of town also have issues with flooding.

New Milford: While the schools are not as good as River Dell's, New Milford offers a community that is safe and family friendly. There is no train station in town, however for many the train station in River Edge is walkable from their house. Also, there really is no defined downtown area like in River Edge or Hasbrouck Heights. (However most of the stores are along River Road). New Milford is also more affordable than River Edge. The biggest con to New Milford has got to be the widespread issue with flooding, particularly on the west end of town.

Hasbrouck Heights: The ratings you gathered for the Hasbrouck Heights schools do not seem accurate. Hasbrouck Heights schools have a great reputation (and are arguably better than New Milford's.). Hasbrouck Heights offers a nice downtown area and is definately a family-oriented community. Of the three towns you listed it is the most "urban"/built-up. Hasbrouck Heights also offers the best access to highways of these three towns (17, 80, 46). It is also more affordable than River Edge.

Another town that sticks out to me is Maywood, however after 8th grade you're back dealing with the Hackensack School System. Fair Lawn could be an option as well as it is walkable and offers public transportation and great schools, however there is no defined downtown and it is farther from Hackensack than these other three towns.
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Old 12-25-2014, 01:38 AM
 
22,359 posts, read 11,886,395 times
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Thank you for responding!

Later today, I'll ask my daughter about her rental budget and will post back here.

I have to admit from what I've heard about Hasbrouck Heights, it surprised me that the schools didn't rate better. That said, I know that when dealing with a site like greatschools.org you're reading other parent's opinions which, of course, are subjective.

I will pass along this info to my daughter.
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Old 12-25-2014, 01:24 PM
 
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As for rent---She is looking to pay no more that $1600/month for at least a 2 bedroom apartment. The $1600 excludes utilities as she is aware that they cost extra.
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Old 12-29-2014, 02:23 PM
 
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BOS2IAD - I have been looking into Hasbrouck Heights and Wood-Ridge as well as a good alternative to Hackensack which is/was my initial choice but is always on the expensive side (it is just my opinion). I have the same budget criteria (rent of approx $1600-1800 /month) as you have mentioned above & looking into a 2-bedroom apartment. Although I have a 2.5 month old & not really worrying about a good school just yet, it will be on my priority list in a couple of years time

I have been reading posts & opinions in these forums for a few months now but haven't concluded my search yet. Please keep me posted on your progress too.
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Old 12-29-2014, 03:04 PM
 
357 posts, read 1,025,145 times
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Hasbrouck Heights and Wood-Ridge are much better than Hackensack all day every day. I'm not all the familiar with the rental market but I would guess the price reflect that as well. I would be surprised if Hackensack is too expensive, HH and WR were not
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Old 12-29-2014, 03:12 PM
 
Location: New Jersey
472 posts, read 809,580 times
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They're all fine towns with good schools.
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Old 12-29-2014, 03:45 PM
 
22,359 posts, read 11,886,395 times
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Thank you, everybody, for your helpful answers!

Sharath---I, too, would be interested in hearing how your search turned out.

Our daughter's current lease is up at the end of March. Right now, I'm urging her to start her search for a new place. She works lots of crazy hours so I told her to go visit some places as soon as she has a day off.

Once they (daughter and family) decide on a place that they like, it will help us when we're ready to retire as we'll know where to look for our own place
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