OT: Moving - need town suggestions

[czxqa]

Pretty tough with the towns you think you’ll be priced out of, <$12k annual property taxes, and the commute you want. Millburn maybe, but I think those taxes will be high as well. It’s very small, but Clinton has a picturesque downtown drag.

Yeah, Clinton may just fit your requirements. The downtown is pretty small, but really picturesque, and the commute to Flanders won't be bad and it's right off I-78 so your fiancee would be looking at about 40 minutes straight shot on 78 for Newark/Short Hills or 78/287 for Florham Park.

 

[BROTHERSKINNY]

Denville or mountain lakes, on one of the lake communities.
In the sky lands region of nj, lower taxes and one of the prettiest places in all of nj.

 

[FELONIOUSMONK]

South Carolina.

 

[MCY]

Affordable, modest property taxes, nice downtown, yard space, commutable to two jobs in two different directions AND good to great schools. In NJ, or practically anywhere these days, you're looking for a Unicorn.

If your plans are long term about the best advice I could give you is to pick a town with a train line to NYC as it has the best shot of retaining value / price appreciation over the long term. Personally I live in Basking Ridge which would darn well meet most of your stated criteria except no downtown to speak of. Low taxes ~1.8% of home value, great schools, yard space and very commutable - trains and highway. Before BR I lived in Madison which does have a nice downtown, but smaller yards and perhaps not quite as commutable via car to the places you want to go.

Good luck!

 

[whatanerd]

Again, thank you all so much for the suggestions! All of these tips have been awesome and now we definitely have some more towns we’ll need to drive through. I knew this was the right place to come to with this question.

We’re both very financially conservative people (he’s an accountant) but it’s been hard for him to wrap his head around the fact that his first house as a young professional won’t be his dream house for when he’s more established.

 

[asgot]

I would give a plug to Somerville as the schools are better than you think and the downtown is being built up nicely and has excellent food options.
Bridgewater is very close and has excellent schools and easy access to all major road ways s well as a low tax base. Love the school system. We have about half an acre and some days is like wild kingdom in the back yard.
The Basking Ridge, Stirling, Long Hill area is really nice and they are link to excellent school systems.
If you are going to look in Somerset County you have to look at Basking Ridge.

You need to make sure that you are thinking about school systems.

 

[read option]

If I was to stay in the northern part of NJ, I’d go Somerville or Bridgewater. Somerset county isn’t nearly as hectic as the counties more north and east, but gets you to everywhere you want to go without the hassle.

Ultimately, I’d move somewhere close to the shore if at all possible. I live in Manalapan because my wife teaches here (it has its pluses and minuses), but if I had my way 100% I’d be closer to the water.

 

[knightfan7]

I've been down here for a long time but spent most of my life in North Jersey. I've lived in West Orange, Randolph, Flanders, and Bedminster. Of those 4 I liked Bedminster the best.

 

[Scarlet16E]

Westfield

 

[e5fdny]

Do not move to Monmouth County. There are no houses available. None.

Listen to this guy. He knows.

Zero inventory. Especially near the beach.

 

[Knight Shift]

Listen to this guy. He knows.

Zero inventory. Especially near the beach.

UPS delivery terribly slow too in certain pockets of the County.

 

[NotInRHouse]

Seems like anywhere N of 78, E of 287 and west of 24 would do.

Is there one school district in that cluster of towns that's bad? I don't think so. You have what, Bridgewater, Basking Ridge, Harding, Morris Twp, Florham Park, Summit, Madison, Millburn, Springfield?

 

[Caliknight]

Is your job tied to the area? Have you thought about leaving NJ?

 

[JERZEE73]

Is your job tied to the area? Have you thought about leaving NJ?

more important, do you even have children now? If not, then why spend the money on a town with better schools when the average person moves every 5 to 7 years.

 

[e5fdny]

more important, do you even have children now? If not, then why spend the money on a town with better schools when the average person moves every 5 to 7 years.

Well if you are going to move the better schools part (kids or not) should fetch you a better price when you sell, yes?

 

[Beancounter88]

Some useful info. There are many school ranking services, but Niche's top 10 school systems in NJ are:
1. Princeton
2. Millburn
3. Livingston
4. Summit
5. Tenafly
6. Northern Valley
7. Mountain Lakes
8. Bernards Twp
9. Haddonfield
10. Montgomery

Top 5 districts with best teachers:
1. Mountain Lakes
2. Livingston
3. Millburn
4. Pompton Lakes
5. Princeton

 

[BigLou]

I'll second my town , New Providence.
One thing you want to look at is length of commute. With one going to Flanders and the other as far east as Newark, you should consider who will drive further.Being west of 287 along Rt 78 makes the east bound commute a but difficult. Living in NP you would have about a 40 minute commute to Flanders gong against the traffic as you head west while making the other commute very manageable.
NP has some reasonably priced houses and excellent schools. While the downtown is nice, its nothing like Montclair but you are close to Summit, Westfield and Morristown.

 

[BigWill]

Do not move to Monmouth County. There are no houses available. None.

Son # 3 just moved off exit 109 9 months ago. Promoted/his boss begged him to move to Conn. Found house up there in two weekends, rented his 109 home in one day for a 2 year lease. To a couple from NYC with 2 kids. The rental was less than their apt in NYC.

Take a real map. Red dot where you both work. Draw 50 mile approx. radius circle. That's your best guesstimate. Figure out which highways you can get there without using GSP/287/80 during normal commuting hours. Where the circles overlap is your perfect area to look. Kids ? Townhouses can be a good deal if not. No upkeep and you don't cut crass rather than travelling somewhere. Still want a house, get something your talents, if any, can rehab from the lower price ranges in the specific town. Good/great towns are always appreciating so that if your family grows out of the home, you have an asset that can allow you to move up.

Sister lived in Madison, 2 Nephews still there and Convent Station. Can either of you use the train ?

 

[JERZEE73]

Well if you are going to move the better schools part (kids or not) should fetch you a better price when you sell, yes?

yes, but you’re also paying more upfront, so it evens out. No use worrying too much about a school system, if you don’t have kids

 

[FELONIOUSMONK]

Again . South Carolina .Leave NJ. now before it's too late.

 

[whatanerd]

Is your job tied to the area? Have you thought about leaving NJ?

Both of our jobs are in demand so we don’t have to be in NJ. I wouldn’t be sad about leaving NJ (minus missing Rutgers games) but my fiancé wouldn’t be happy to leave. His whole family is clustered in northern NJ.

 

[whatanerd]

Again . South Carolina .Leave NJ. now before it's too late.

I have family in SC that I love dearly but a lot of the people in SC...yikes haha

 

[RU4Real]

I have family in SC that I love dearly but a lot of the people in SC...yikes haha

They're hard-working Americans, just like you. They just see things through a different lens.

Although, my ancestors skipped South Carolina in their migration from Jamestown to North Carolina to Georgia. So maybe there is something wrong with SC. :)

 

[whatanerd]

If I was to stay in the northern part of NJ, I’d go Somerville or Bridgewater. Somerset county isn’t nearly as hectic as the counties more north and east, but gets you to everywhere you want to go without the hassle.

Ultimately, I’d move somewhere close to the shore if at all possible. I live in Manalapan because my wife teaches here (it has its pluses and minuses), but if I had my way 100% I’d be closer to the water.

I grew up in south Jersey so the further from north Jersey the better in my opinion hahaha. But yes I’m definitely interested in less hustle and craziness that I feel goes hand in hand with the more northern areas whereas my fiancé grew up in northern Jersey and doesn’t really notice it.

And yes if I could be near/at the beach I would in a heartbeat. Ocean City or Cape May would be a dream.

 

[rufan3860]

Hi All,

Long time member, very infrequent poster. I’m reaching out for help on a topic I think you guys could really help with. My fiancé and I are starting the process of looking for our first home and have some idea of towns we’re interested in but want to make sure we’re doing our due diligence.

We currently rent in Montclair and love it. We’ve been looking at starter homes in Montclair but we’re realizing that we’re going to get priced out due to the property tax (our top choice was a 3 BR with $17k in property tax).

My question to you is what towns are there in NJ that offer a similar vibe to Montclair?

Our main preferences/requirements:

1. </=.75mi to a Montclair-esque downtown

2. Good school district (We realize “good” is relative. We’re of the mind that a good education is about 70/30 the parents and the children vs. the schools themselves. We don’t want private school.)

3. </= $1,000/mo in property tax

4. Some type of yard/outdoor space for grilling, entertaining, enjoying the weather, etc.

5. House > townhouse > condo, ideally with at least 3 BR, 1.5 BA

6. Ideally <45 minute commute (I work in Flanders and my fiancé will either be in Short Hills, Florham Park, or Newark depending on which client he’s at)

Yesterday we took a drive around Cranford, Summit, Chatham, Madison, Morristown, and Somerville.

We really liked some of the places for sale in Cranford, have heard good things about the schools, and property taxes are what we’d like. It sounds like parts of Cranford are flood zones. Any other things to be aware of in Cranford?

We really liked Somerville as well but the taxes on some places were crazy and it sounds like the schools aren’t great?

How are Caldwell and Verona schools? Obviously familiar with the area due to proximity.

We’ll likely be priced out of Summit, Chatham, Madison, and likely Morristown based on our requirements. We also used to go to Morristown a lot in our right-our-of-college days so we’re kind of meh on MoTown.

I know this a bit long so congrats if you’ve made it this far. Thank you in advance for your help. I hope you’re all staying healthy and safe!

Keep in mind that if you do not yet have children you could give birth tomorrow and you would still have 4-5-6 years to make a decision on the town and school system.

 

[Ridge 22]

Another plug for Basking Ridge. Have lived here now for 18 years and love it. Great schools, close proximity to both Rt. 78 and 287, along the train line to NY, center of town, etc. One of the nice things about it is there is no ceiling to the town. Meaning, you can start out with a condo on the low end and move up to a multi-million dollar estate on the high-end as your means increase. You never need to make your kids move or take them out of the school system.