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08-08-2008, 11:36 AM
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14 posts, read 31,188 times
Reputation: 10
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Hi Everyone, I'm new to posting on this forum but have been lurking for quite some time as I try to decide on a possible move location within Central/North-ish Jersey. You all seem very knowledgeable so hope to enlist your educated help!
Currently I rent in Somerset County and work in Jersey City. The commute distance is approx 40 miles each way, and I drive myself since this has worked out to be the quickest commute option. Door-to-door commute time (during peak rush hour) for me now hovers around 1hr 15 mins, which is absolutely bearable, however I am ready to buy a home of my own and would love to cut down the drive distance.
Since I love nature and need a decent-sized yard for my very big dog  I've ruled out any suburban developments built on prior farmland with cookie-cutter homes and small property. That said, I think anything which falls within the "established neighborhood with mature trees and .5 acre lots" to the "rural area with no visible neighbors and lots of open land" would work for me. My ideal town would be semi-rural with lots of trees and hills, but with some type type of artistic/cultural presence (read: i have a corporate job already so don't need to spend my down time in a corporate-type bedroom community). Oh - and my upper limit is around 425K, which complicates things. Ideally I would like to get closer to the 375K mark.
That said, based on loads of online research, mls searches, forum lurking and physically driving around .. I have narrowed my search areas to the following: Cranford/Mountainside/Watchung .. or Denville/Boonton Township/Montville .. or Madison area. I realize I'm searching in the low-end pricing in most of these areas, but in - for instance, Denville or Cranford I can definitely find something. Of course points I've considered are -- as much as I love Cranford's downtown and proximity to the JC/NY area for work, it's a bit more suburban than I'd like. Meanwhile the mountains near Boonton Township are so beautiful and peaceful, but what would the commute be like coming from that area?? I have to be in Jersey City at 9am.. does anyone currently do this commute and if so can you please chime in? It would shave about 10 miles off my drive, but will it add additional time sitting in traffic?
So, my question to you all is -- what would you do? Which town would you move to given those parameters? And please don't suggest going farther out than I currently live (more than about 30 mi from NYC - that would be against the point of moving/buying). I LOVE Hunterdon county, LOVE Sussex county and really like the shore towns, but not doing it ..
Also can not afford anything I like in Essex (so unfortunately Maplewood, et all is out as well).
Thanks in advance for reading my novel -- thought it better to give too much info than not enough!
You all collectively have so much advice and great options. All input will weigh very heavily in to my decision! |
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08-08-2008, 12:05 PM
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Location: Stewartsville, NJ
7,577 posts, read 22,059,458 times
Reputation: 1258
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Soon2BeMoving
Hi Everyone, I'm new to posting on this forum but have been lurking for quite some time as I try to decide on a possible move location within Central/North-ish Jersey. You all seem very knowledgeable so hope to enlist your educated help!
Currently I rent in Somerset County and work in Jersey City. The commute distance is approx 40 miles each way, and I drive myself since this has worked out to be the quickest commute option. Door-to-door commute time (during peak rush hour) for me now hovers around 1hr 15 mins, which is absolutely bearable, however I am ready to buy a home of my own and would love to cut down the drive distance.
Since I love nature and need a decent-sized yard for my very big dog I've ruled out any suburban developments built on prior farmland with cookie-cutter homes and small property. That said, I think anything which falls within the "established neighborhood with mature trees and .5 acre lots" to the "rural area with no visible neighbors and lots of open land" would work for me. My ideal town would be semi-rural with lots of trees and hills, but with some type type of artistic/cultural presence (read: i have a corporate job already so don't need to spend my down time in a corporate-type bedroom community). Oh - and my upper limit is around 425K, which complicates things. Ideally I would like to get closer to the 375K mark.
That said, based on loads of online research, mls searches, forum lurking and physically driving around .. I have narrowed my search areas to the following: Cranford/Mountainside/Watchung .. or Denville/Boonton Township/Montville .. or Madison area. I realize I'm searching in the low-end pricing in most of these areas, but in - for instance, Denville or Cranford I can definitely find something. Of course points I've considered are -- as much as I love Cranford's downtown and proximity to the JC/NY area for work, it's a bit more suburban than I'd like. Meanwhile the mountains near Boonton Township are so beautiful and peaceful, but what would the commute be like coming from that area?? I have to be in Jersey City at 9am.. does anyone currently do this commute and if so can you please chime in? It would shave about 10 miles off my drive, but will it add additional time sitting in traffic?
So, my question to you all is -- what would you do? Which town would you move to given those parameters? And please don't suggest going farther out than I currently live (more than about 30 mi from NYC - that would be against the point of moving/buying). I LOVE Hunterdon county, LOVE Sussex county and really like the shore towns, but not doing it ..
Also can not afford anything I like in Essex (so unfortunately Maplewood, et all is out as well).
Thanks in advance for reading my novel -- thought it better to give too much info than not enough!
You all collectively have so much advice and great options. All input will weigh very heavily in to my decision! |
Have you checked out Warren County at all? Sounds like what you are looking for...rural but with mini main streets...425 would get you a nice house with property. Minimum acreage my way is 5. Some older homes have less..worth a look? |
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08-08-2008, 12:57 PM
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14 posts, read 31,188 times
Reputation: 10
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Thanks for your reply WileyNJ. Warren County is great - but I've pretty much crossed it off my list because of distance. In terms of semi-rural I've limited myself to eastern Morris County b/c it seems to have the best mix of what I need. If I were to find something in the Boonton/Denville area I could keep my commute to around 26 miles ..
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08-08-2008, 01:00 PM
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Location: Stewartsville, NJ
7,577 posts, read 22,059,458 times
Reputation: 1258
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Soon2BeMoving
Thanks for your reply WileyNJ. Warren County is great - but I've pretty much crossed it off my list because of distance. In terms of semi-rural I've limited myself to eastern Morris County b/c it seems to have the best mix of what I need. If I were to find something in the Boonton/Denville area I could keep my commute to around 26 miles ..
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I lived in Denville for few years and loved it : ) Boonton is great as well. What kind of house do you like? you'll probably have to reach your max in those towns. |
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08-08-2008, 01:19 PM
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14 posts, read 31,188 times
Reputation: 10
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It's pretty disheartening because I'm pretty much priced out of the areas I like (doesn't everyone feel that way though ..). I drove around Boonton/Montville several Sunday's ago to check out the area and open houses .. and every single house I walked into which "appeared" affordable from the outside, ended up being over 600K. way WAY out of my price range. 425K is my upper limit, but is seriously stretching my budget. under 400K would be ideal. Based on an mls search I see options in both Cranford and Denville that I can afford (I'm open to pretty much any house style - ranch, expanded cape, cottage, farm house -- live in an old farm house now, love it -- pretty much anything as long as it has some character, feels solid, and has a nice basement for the SO's studio/office/workshop). Most important to me is the "feel" of the place if that makes sense .. I like nature, so a nice peaceful, green yard w/mature landscaping is important to me. I am leaning towards Denville at the moment b/c though the yards are smaller than what I prefer, it's appealing to potentially live on a lake? Anyway - this is why I'm looking for any and all feedback and all towns I previously mentioned.. or maybe I'm missing a few towns I should be looking at?? Thanks all!!!
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08-08-2008, 01:51 PM
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5,340 posts, read 13,620,112 times
Reputation: 1181
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OP - What areas are you considering as of now? Even counties...
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08-08-2008, 02:32 PM
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Location: Stewartsville, NJ
7,577 posts, read 22,059,458 times
Reputation: 1258
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Quote:
Originally Posted by EEEPNJ
OP - What areas are you considering as of now? Even counties...
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Hey..I have an idea! Sell her your place in Bergen Co. and then you can move out our way : )) |
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08-08-2008, 02:32 PM
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14 posts, read 31,188 times
Reputation: 10
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Hi EEEPNJ - currently considering Union, Somerset and eastern Morris Counties. Towns I have looked at are Mountainside, Watchung, Warren (to a lesser extent), Cranford .. and then Denville, Boonton Township, parts of Boonton Town near The Tourne and parts of Montville. I can find housing in all of these towns at or near 400K (some is more lower-end housing than others based on town cache), but am completely confused about which offers the better lifestyle and commute to Jersey City. Currently I take the NJ Turnpike, and though I drive over 40 miles each way to work, I really don't hit traffic until I reach the immediate JC area. If I moved to Denville, would I instead sit in traffic the entire way and have it end up taking me longer to get to work, even though the miles traveled are less? Google maps tells me my drive time from Denville is rush hour is 45 mins, versus my current 75 mins -- is that realistic? The only town I'm already very familiar with is Cranford because I grew up next door. Otherwise I'm at a total loss..
Thanks!
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08-08-2008, 04:10 PM
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526 posts, read 1,356,756 times
Reputation: 74
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Of everything you have talked about I would pick the Boonton, Madison, Florham Park, Denville, Morris Plains, even possibly Parsippany. But then again I am a bit biased having purchased in the area due to having a Labrador Retriever and a German Short Hair/English Setter mix, both of which are very active and needed a good sized yard.
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08-09-2008, 11:46 AM
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183 posts, read 485,176 times
Reputation: 89
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Based on the combination of these statements...
"established neighborhood with mature trees and .5 acre lots" to the "rural area with no visible neighbors and lots of open land" would work for me."
"need a decent-sized yard for my very big dog"
"my upper limit is around 425K"
...Cranford is not probably going to work for you. It's going to be very difficult to find a good-sized yard in your price range. As it is, a half-acre yard in Cranford is somewhat of a rarity in any price range.
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