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Hello, I searched the forum for recommendations for moving to NJ from NYC but most seem a little outdated so I'm hoping to get some fresh suggestions. We are looking to for an area with good schools but searching on Zillow gives mixed grading. Elementary rated a 10 while middle school rated a 6 and high school rated a 10. Brokers keep telling us not to worry about the ratings cause all the areas we are looking at (Glen Rock, Westfield, Livingston) have good school but I'm not 100% confident in that feedback. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Where are you coming from?
NYC Why are you moving?
Schools and land Where will you be working ? If NYC, what part of NYC?
Commute to the city - Around United Nations area Will you buy or rent?
Buy What is your budget ?
$1M What kind of place are you looking for ?
House Will anyone (spouse, children, pets) be moving with you ?
Spouse and Kids Do you need/want good public schools?
Yes Briefly describe the kind of neighborhood you'd like to live in
Young families, parks, close to the trains and driving distance to Brooklyn (max 1 hour no traffic) List three things that are important to you in order of importance.
Schools, entertainment, land
Hello, I searched the forum for recommendations for moving to NJ from NYC but most seem a little outdated so I'm hoping to get some fresh suggestions. We are looking to for an area with good schools but searching on Zillow gives mixed grading. Elementary rated a 10 while middle school rated a 6 and high school rated a 10. Brokers keep telling us not to worry about the ratings cause all the areas we are looking at (Glen Rock, Westfield, Livingston) have good school but I'm not 100% confident in that feedback. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Where are you coming from?
NYC Why are you moving?
Schools and land Where will you be working ? If NYC, what part of NYC?
Commute to the city - Around United Nations area Will you buy or rent?
Buy What is your budget ?
$1M What kind of place are you looking for ?
House Will anyone (spouse, children, pets) be moving with you ?
Spouse and Kids Do you need/want good public schools?
Yes Briefly describe the kind of neighborhood you'd like to live in
Young families, parks, close to the trains and driving distance to Brooklyn (max 1 hour no traffic) List three things that are important to you in order of importance.
Schools, entertainment, land
Be 100% confident in that feedback. All of those towns have good schools.
I second the recommendation to look north, not west.
Coming into Grand Central Terminal is much more convenient to the UN area than coming in on the west side to either Port Authority bus terminal or Penn Station.
The rankings of schools is somewhat of a nebulous concept. Most of them are based on median SAT/ACT and the % that go onto a 4 year university. As you can imagine, there is a correlation between quality of high school and the corresponding middle schools. These are also highly correlated to median family income. So the schools with the richest parents tend to do best in the rankings. I'm not familiar with Glen Rock, but the schools in Westfield and Livingston are fine.
The school districts with perenially high rankings are (in no particular order): Millburn/Short Hills, Princeton, West Windsor, Montgomery, Holmdel, Chatham, Mendham. But there is no need to chase a ranking. Just pick a place which is best for your commute.
Regarding commute - it will not be easy to get to the UN area in under 1 hour from the NJ side. You'd be much better off in Westchester, as you could catch a train to Grand Central. All of the trains on the NJ side terminate in either Penn Station or World Trade Center. There is also several ferries. And loads of bus lines. Most of the buses go to Port Authority, but a handful of buses in Bergen County go to the GW Bus Terminal.
The rankings of schools is somewhat of a nebulous concept. Most of them are based on median SAT/ACT and the % that go onto a 4 year university. As you can imagine, there is a correlation between quality of high school and the corresponding middle schools. These are also highly correlated to median family income. So the schools with the richest parents tend to do best in the rankings. I'm not familiar with Glen Rock, but the schools in Westfield and Livingston are fine.
The school districts with perenially high rankings are (in no particular order): Millburn/Short Hills, Princeton, West Windsor, Montgomery, Holmdel, Chatham, Mendham. But there is no need to chase a ranking. Just pick a place which is best for your commute.
Regarding commute - it will not be easy to get to the UN area in under 1 hour from the NJ side. You'd be much better off in Westchester, as you could catch a train to Grand Central. All of the trains on the NJ side terminate in either Penn Station or World Trade Center. There is also several ferries. And loads of bus lines. Most of the buses go to Port Authority, but a handful of buses in Bergen County go to the GW Bus Terminal.
Thanks, very helpful! Do you know when some of the top schools have such low passing grades? As an example, Pricenton middle school has a 53% Match passing rate for the school year 2021-2022. The trend seems to be that outside of Millburn which passing rate of high 70's% many of the top rated schools are passing at low 60's% to low 70's% in middle and high school.
Glen Rock is a great town. It has a slight leg up if commuting into the city since it sits on both bergen and main lines, thus getting trains more frequently. You'll also want to look in ridgewood (bigger town, slightly lower taxes, bigger school, maybe slightly nicer than GR depending on who you ask). HHK, etc/ Obviously as you head further north into Bergen Co. commute times grow. I live in RW and grew up with a lot of GR kids and know the area well. Happy to answer any specifics.
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