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The wife and I [both early 30's] are looking around for a house. We currently live in Fort Lee in a condo and are planning to rent it out when we find a place.
Our key requirements are:
1. Good school system for our 3yr.
2. Friendly community, where people actually interact and are not stuck up.
3. a small downtown, with parks.
We have been looking around RidgeWood, Ramsey, River Edge, Paramus, Wayne, Hasbrouck Heights, but saw some posts where people say these areas are stuck up.
We really cant seem to narrow down which place is right for us. our budget 600k with wiggle room if the house is very nice.
Can anyone please give your experiences in any of the neighborhood listed or have suggestions on others not on the list.
Thank You =]
Last edited by SunnysBroke; 11-07-2021 at 11:27 AM..
Fort Lee, where you already are. Although the 600k budget will only get you a small fixer upper.
Hey Leps,
We love[d] Fort Lee, that was the reason we bought a condo here, but in 1-2 years the area really changed.
1. its very crowded, especially now when NYers are moving here and to get food\ shop. on Sunday afternoons, you will be stuck in traffic for hours because all the roads will be locked down by people going to city. We basically cant go anywhere Sunday afternoon.
2. Demographics changed, its not as safe as before.
3. There is a very big Asian\Korean community, they only talk to each other and ignore anyone else, there are exceptions of course, but it feels unwelcoming.
It's more of a working class community and it's the type of place where people in their 50s still are best friends with the people they went to high school with. That is extremely rare in NJ these days to say the least.
We love[d] Fort Lee, that was the reason we bought a condo here, but in 1-2 years the area really changed.
1. its very crowded, especially now when NYers are moving here and to get food\ shop. on Sunday afternoons, you will be stuck in traffic for hours because all the roads will be locked down by people going to city. We basically cant go anywhere Sunday afternoon.
2. Demographics changed, its not as safe as before.
3. There is a very big Asian\Korean community, they only talk to each other and ignore anyone else, there are exceptions of course, but it feels unwelcoming.
We were in Fort Lee for 2 and a half years before moving in July. I would not say it is less safe. We lived in a single family house/duplex neighborhood though, not where the condos and apartments are. So maybe your experience is different. Our neighborhood was maybe one-third Asian, if not less. We were over by Inwood Terrace Park in one of the older single story brick houses from the 60’s. Those are now selling around $750k if in good shape. It was a great area and amazing neighborhood feel, but we moved out to get a bigger house.
All of the towns you mentioned were in Bergen and Passaic counties. Are you limited to only there? What is the commuting situation for you?
We were in Fort Lee for 2 and a half years before moving in July. I would not say it is less safe. We lived in a single family house/duplex neighborhood though, not where the condos and apartments are. So maybe your experience is different. Our neighborhood was maybe one-third Asian, if not less. We were over by Inwood Terrace Park in one of the older single story brick houses from the 60’s. Those are now selling around $750k if in good shape. It was a great area and amazing neighborhood feel, but we moved out to get a bigger house.
All of the towns you mentioned were in Bergen and Passaic counties. Are you limited to only there? What is the commuting situation for you?
Hey Leps,
We are both working from home permanently, so commuting is currently not an issue. We mainly want to stay near Bergen and Passaic because the grandmas would go crazy for not seeing the kid at least once a week lol.
For Fort Lee, I am familiar with where you lived, its a nice and quite area. I am very near the center, next to the fort lee high school so I guess its more hectic for me. The housing in the area is very expensive for what you get, its not worth it since we don't really need to commute, but will like a place that is not too far away from city, just in case.
It's more of a working class community and it's the type of place where people in their 50s still are best friends with the people they went to high school with. That is extremely rare in NJ these days to say the least.
We are both working from home permanently, so commuting is currently not an issue. We mainly want to stay near Bergen and Passaic because the grandmas would go crazy for not seeing the kid at least once a week lol.
For Fort Lee, I am familiar with where you lived, its a nice and quite area. I am very near the center, next to the fort lee high school so I guess its more hectic for me. The housing in the area is very expensive for what you get, its not worth it since we don't really need to commute, but will like a place that is not too far away from city, just in case.
The $600k budget with a little wiggle room is what will limit you most, but you can find some smaller no-frills kind of houses in Ramsey, Cresskill, Dumont, Bergenfield, Westwood, New Milford, and Fair Lawn that might work for you.
Just make sure you are not getting a house in a flood zone.
It'll be a lot easier to meet neighbors when you have kids in the school system.
I would suggest looking for a house in an older area where the lots are small, the houses are close together, and there are sidewalks and people out walking. If you live on a half-acre lot in the country and everyone drives everywhere, it's tough to meet neighbors.
I don't know what makes one area or town more "stuck up" than other, unless as the OP mentioned it's dominated by one ethnic group and they're more tuned in to each other. I used to spend a lot of time in downtown Milburn and Summit, where you would expect a lot of "stuck up" people, but I always had great service in the stores and great interactions with random strangers on the street, fellow customers in restaurants, etc. And I am the least rich-looking person you'll ever meet. If I lived there and was trying to break into Wall Street social circles, I'm sure it would be completely different experience. Good thing I'm not!
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