OT: Town Recommendations

[tom1944]

Greenwich, CT. Yes homes are expensive but interest rates are at historic lows. It is a beach town with a very good downtown, an excellent commute to NYC and very good schools. https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/64-Richland-Rd-Greenwich-CT-06830/57306408_zpid/
This $975 is only a little more than you'd pay for the same house in a good NJ town and the taxes are only $6K with services and schools NJ can't touch. Plus your kid will make connections that can't be bought. These rich people know a few things.

That looks like my brothers Westfield house. His taxes are over 15k. His yard is larger and his landscaping/gardens are nicer.

His 2 neighbors recently purchased for 1.3 million and 900k so I would think his home is in a similar price range

 

[rutgersdave]

Depends on a lot of factors you may or not feel like sharing; ie, budget, drive vs. train or even ferry, importance of diversity, etc, etc.
But for me, I'd suggest Ridgewood (w/ smaller neighbor Glen Rock), Montclair, Maplewood, Summit, Westfield and Morristown (w/ smaller neighbor Madison). The latter pair in Morris county are further, while Summit, Montclair and Maplewood will be costly tax-wise.

If you're looking in the city and commutable to midtown, Williamsburg in Brooklyn is littered with young families, Riverdale in the Bronx and maybe even Bayside in Queens. I'm less familiar with the schools in those, but it's vital to check into because in the city you can get what's called a variance, and send your kid to a school you prefer in another neighborhood. But I moved long before I had kids, so I'm sure those still living in the city can give you more accurate details.

Lot of expensive towns in the mix. Need to know how much he can afford.

 

[jmc11201]

If you and wife still like some energy as part of being in the big city, while most of NYC will feel busy relative to Boston, you might find neighborhood pockets just like you did with Back Bay. Unless however you're committed to your next move being with your young and growing child in mind and prefer a more suburban location for that reason.

Keep in mind that you may still have a few years (until school-going age for your child) to be able to hold off on a more permanent move and just rent somewhere with a reasonable commute while you explore options locally in NY/NJ metro.

Yeah...renting for a period of time could be an option as well. Since getting married in 2005, we've gone from Indy to Chicago to Minny to Boston and now to New York. Not sure I've got the energy to make it a move into the city and then a move into the burbs.

 

[tom1944]

Lot of expensive towns in the mix. Need to know how much he can afford.

He posts on this board he can afford all of them.

No poors here

 

[Source]

Try this website and pop in some towns within commuting distance of NYC:

https://www.niche.com/places-to-live/wood-ridge-bergen-nj/

 

[jmc11201]

Have you posted what you want to spend on a home?

As little as possible, but I'll provide some context.

In Minny we had the 4,000 square foot house in the burbs. No kids, but expected some.
Moved to Boston and bought a 1,000+ sq ft apartment in the center of Back Bay. Got a call literally a month after closing that we were selected to adopt a girl born a few days earlier...so it got small fast. Paid a little over a million for the apartment.

In an ideal world, we would get something in between that gives us more space than we have now and room to grow, but I'm over the 'ego' element of a house and don't know that I need 4,000+ square feet again. I would also prefer to take some money off the table and buy something for less than I sell the Boston apartment.

I would be comfortable in the $600k - $850k range, but could go above for the right place.

 

[bitnez]

Avoid Metuchen. It's a donut town of Edison, which is an epic disaster. The state will force the merger of donut towns within the next 5-10 years.

Not happening. Metuchen is very politically connected and no Democrat is going to force the donut holes to disappear

 

[RUnTeX]

Yeah...renting for a period of time could be an option as well. Since getting married in 2005, we've gone from Indy to Chicago to Minny to Boston and now to New York. Not sure I've got the energy to make it a move into the city and then a move into the burbs.

If you lived in all those cities proper, maybe you're both more city dwellers than you realize, ha ha.

Of course, moving and living in most/all of those places as DINKs versus now with a child can make all the difference in terms of priorities going forward.

If being close to family (such as grandparents?) for the extra helping hand or convenience of nearby support in a pinch with the youngin is desirable, then consider NJ burbs that offer you that priceless built-in network.

 

[koleszar]

So it looks like my company may be moving a few of us from Boston to New York at some point over the next year or two. I'm looking for recommendations on towns to look into. I grew up in Middletown, so I know the Monmouth County area reasonably well, but I'm open to other alternative areas if it makes sense.

A few things about our situation and what would be important:
1. Reasonable commute to Midtown.
2. Not a super congested area and a nice downtown within a reasonable distance (something as large as Red Bank but could be smaller).
3. We have a 7 month old...so good schools and reasonable property taxes.
4. Open to places outside of NJ (Long Island (feel dirty saying that), Connecticut, NY State)), but with family in NJ, all else fairly equal, NJ would get the nod.
5. Budget-wise, we have a budget that should work in most places, even if we have one of the more modest homes. I'd rather the worst house in a great area than the best house in a bad area.

Wife is from Iowa, but we currently live in Back Bay Boston and were in the Minneapolis suburbs before that. Boston has surprised us by not being too busy and when we go down to New York, my wife always comments how busy and high energy it is, so all things considered, something that doesn't feel too busy is ideal.

Any suggestions appreciated.

Go back to Monmouth county. God's heaven in NJ. It's all still here, the shore, the state parks, open land( a little more crowded thanks N. Jersey/NYC), Farms.

 

[JMORC2003]

Chatham, Madison, Cranford, Westfield come to mind.

I've lived in Cranford for about 11 years, owned a house for 8 of them, commute to midtown and have kids in the schools. When we were buying I also looked closely at Westfield, Scotch Plains, New Prov and Metuchen. Happy to answer any questions.

 

[mdk01]

I commuted from NJ into NYC for most of my career. One tip: if you look at towns along train lines consider not just the length of the commute but also the frequency of service. If you miss your train by one minute you don’t want the next train to be 45-60 minutes later.

Ridgewood and Glen Rock (and stations farther north) get train service from both the Main Line and Bergen Lines.

 

[scarlethoops]

Go back to Monmouth county. God's heaven in NJ. .

Moved back to NJ from the west coast about 2 years ago. Pre COVID - would take the Seastreak Ferry into Manhattan, get off at Wall St & take the 2/3 up to 34th street. Ferry is amazing - 1 time in 2 years it wasn't running on time. Enjoyable commute - but pricey. If we ever go back into city, will likely stay on the ferry until East 35th & walk over to the west side to avoid the subway. Regardless - after doing the ferry I would never, ever set foot on NJ Transit again. Did that for 8 years from Princeton Junction & Metropark. Worst years of my adult life.

 

[RUnTeX]

Ridgewood and Glen Rock (and stations farther north) get train service from both the Main Line and Bergen Lines.

While true, for a reasonable commute to midtown Manhattan would someone really want to be any further north, which invariably adds more travel time? Just sayin.

 

[mdk01]

How bout these towns?

Fair Lawn
Rutherford
Fairfield
Mt Arlington

Fair Lawn a little cheaper than Ridgewood/Glen Rock but the schools aren't quite as good. Rutherford a little cheaper yet and another drop in school quality.

 

[mdk01]

While true, for a reasonable commute to midtown Manhattan would someone really want to be any further north, which invariably adds more travel time? Just sayin.

Only to pay less for the house.

 

[RUnTeX]

Only to pay less for the house.

Got it, that's certainly one of the tradeoffs.

 

[T2Kplus10]

Not happening. Metuchen is very politically connected and no Democrat is going to force the donut holes to disappear

Sweeney says hello.

 

[RUbacker]

Go back to Monmouth county. God's heaven in NJ. It's all still here, the shore, the state parks, open land( a little more crowded thanks N. Jersey/NYC), Farms.

I recommend you move back to Middletown area . Great area .

 

[Proud NJ Sports Fan]

Fair Lawn a little cheaper than Ridgewood/Glen Rock but the schools aren't quite as good. Rutherford a little cheaper yet and another drop in school quality.

In what ways is the school system worse?

 

[mdk01]

In what ways is the school system worse?

They're lower rated. I don't mean Fair Lawn and Rutherford are bad, it's because Ridgewood and Glen Rock are usually rated near the top of the state

 

[Proud NJ Sports Fan]

They're lower rated. I don't mean Fair Lawn and Rutherford are bad, it's because Ridgewood and Glen Rock are usually rated near the top of the state

Do you mean test scores?

What criteria being used?

Thanks

 

[SkilletHead2]

So it looks like my company may be moving a few of us from Boston to New York at some point over the next year or two. I'm looking for recommendations on towns to look into. I grew up in Middletown, so I know the Monmouth County area reasonably well, but I'm open to other alternative areas if it makes sense.

A few things about our situation and what would be important:
1. Reasonable commute to Midtown.
2. Not a super congested area and a nice downtown within a reasonable distance (something as large as Red Bank but could be smaller).
3. We have a 7 month old...so good schools and reasonable property taxes.
4. Open to places outside of NJ (Long Island (feel dirty saying that), Connecticut, NY State)), but with family in NJ, all else fairly equal, NJ would get the nod.
5. Budget-wise, we have a budget that should work in most places, even if we have one of the more modest homes. I'd rather the worst house in a great area than the best house in a bad area.

Wife is from Iowa, but we currently live in Back Bay Boston and were in the Minneapolis suburbs before that. Boston has surprised us by not being too busy and when we go down to New York, my wife always comments how busy and high energy it is, so all things considered, something that doesn't feel too busy is ideal.

Any suggestions appreciated.

I can get you everything but #1.

https://www.lonelyplanet.com/new-zealand/dunedin-and-otago/dunedin

 

[T2Kplus10]

So it looks like my company may be moving a few of us from Boston to New York at some point over the next year or two. I'm looking for recommendations on towns to look into. I grew up in Middletown, so I know the Monmouth County area reasonably well, but I'm open to other alternative areas if it makes sense.

A few things about our situation and what would be important:
1. Reasonable commute to Midtown.
2. Not a super congested area and a nice downtown within a reasonable distance (something as large as Red Bank but could be smaller).
3. We have a 7 month old...so good schools and reasonable property taxes.
4. Open to places outside of NJ (Long Island (feel dirty saying that), Connecticut, NY State)), but with family in NJ, all else fairly equal, NJ would get the nod.
5. Budget-wise, we have a budget that should work in most places, even if we have one of the more modest homes. I'd rather the worst house in a great area than the best house in a bad area.

Wife is from Iowa, but we currently live in Back Bay Boston and were in the Minneapolis suburbs before that. Boston has surprised us by not being too busy and when we go down to New York, my wife always comments how busy and high energy it is, so all things considered, something that doesn't feel too busy is ideal.

Any suggestions appreciated.

By the way, commuting into NYC blows. No matter where you live or what mode of transportation you use, it blows. Now, in the current corona environment, it is dangerous as well. Can you WFH or maybe even change companies to avoid NYC?

Just something to think about.

 

[jmc11201]

By the way, commuting into NYC blows. No matter where you live or what mode of transportation you use, it blows. Now, in the current corona environment, it is dangerous as well. Can you WFH or maybe even change companies to avoid NYC?

Just something to think about.

I'm open to job offers. I'm borderline intelligent and flexible.

 

[JMORC2003]

I'm open to job offers. I'm borderline intelligent and flexible.

I started a whole other thread a few weeks ago about changing careers. I've been commuting from Cranford it's about as good as it's going to get living in the NJ burbs (runs frequently, 1 hr 10 door to door on a good day, can take bus or train), but it still sucks. Working from home has helped me realize 1) how much it really sucks, and 2) i'm not doing this until i'm 65. I just have to figure out what i can do next and still pay my mortgage and those dang NJ property taxes.

 

[T2Kplus10]

I started a whole other thread a few weeks ago about changing careers. I've been commuting and from Cranford it's about as good as it's going to get living in the NJ burbs (runs frequently, 1 hr 10 door to door on a good day, can take bus or train), but it still sucks. Working from home has helped me realize 1) how much is really sucks, and 2) i'm not doing this until i'm 65. I just have to figure out what i can do next and still pay my mortgage and those dang NJ property taxes.

All the money in the world can't buy back missed time (especially regarding young children). Hopefully WFH becomes more of the norm and folks with NYC jobs will only need to go in once or twice a week. That would be nice for them.

 

[mdk01]

Do you mean test scores?

What criteria being used?

Thanks

Yes. Test scores

 

[JMORC2003]

All the money in the world can't buy back missed time (especially regarding young children). Hopefully WFH becomes more of the norm and folks with NYC jobs will only need to go in once or twice a week. That would be nice for them.

I'd be down to commute 2x a week and wfh 3 days. If that were the case i may not be tied to a train/bus line and shortest possible commute.

 

[Purple-Ed]

Warren, Berkeley Heights, New Providence all with very nice communities, very good schools and low taxes for NJ

Berkeley Heights is very nice, but, three snow flurries and you lose your
power for days.

 

[RU205]

Avoid Metuchen. It's a donut town of Edison, which is an epic disaster. The state will force the merger of donut towns within the next 5-10 years.

No chance this happens. I have been hearing about this for 15-20 years. No governor is going to allow this to happen. Everyone always says it will happen in 5-10 years but a governors term is 4 years. Can't win reelection with a merger plan.

 

[RU to the Core]

I’d just avoid the bus. I lived in Caldwell. Great town. Ticks all your boxes and is right near Montclair and Verona etc but there is no train line. The bus gets old quick.

if I had big money like single income over 300k a year I’d live in a lot of the train towns mentioned already but it’s a million minimum for anything decent or will be once you fix it up and then taxes over 20/25k on top of that.

no thanks.

 

[SkilletHead2]

I started a whole other thread a few weeks ago about changing careers. I've been commuting from Cranford it's about as good as it's going to get living in the NJ burbs (runs frequently, 1 hr 10 door to door on a good day, can take bus or train), but it still sucks. Working from home has helped me realize 1) how much it really sucks, and 2) i'm not doing this until i'm 65. I just have to figure out what i can do next and still pay my mortgage and those dang NJ property taxes.

Lived on Thomas Street in Cranford for eight years before moving to New Zealand. Nice town. Really loved the pizza at Emma's. Is it still there?

 

[RU205]

Lived on Thomas Street in Cranford for eight years before moving to New Zealand. Nice town. Really loved the pizza at Emma's. Is it still there?

I haven't been to Emma's since pre Covid. Good place. i should try it soon.

 

[yesrutgers01]

If you are open to norther NJ and have a young child and schools are a priority. As well as the commute. Mahwah is really a great place. Mahwah HS, Public, put 3% grads into IVY.
About an hour commute to NYC by train. Lowest taxes in Bergen County and if you place yourself well....you could still be within walking distance to any of Allendale/Ramsey/Wyckoff/ and short drive into ridgewood and many other great areas. Tons of nature and mountains, skiiing, golf as well

 

[Saint Puppy]

I can't stand Metuchen or Highland Park. Except for the Park Pub

Not sure where the Metuchen hate is coming from - it's actually a pretty amazing town. Very involved community with a lot going on, and donwtown has great restaurants and really being built up over the last 5 years (which is both good and bad). Great school districts.....I don't see Metuchen and Edison merging - two VERY different places - one is a political cesspool (Edison) and the other has a small town feel (Metuchen). Good luck OP!

 

[Shell21]

I’d just avoid the bus. I lived in Caldwell. Great town. Ticks all your boxes and is right near Montclair and Verona etc but there is no train line. The bus gets old quick.

if I had big money like single income over 300k a year I’d live in a lot of the train towns mentioned already but it’s a million minimum for anything decent or will be once you fix it up and then taxes over 20/25k on top of that.

no thanks.

I live in Caldwell right now too . Also lived in Madison and my wife took the train when she worked in the city . Like others have said , if she missed a train , that would add at least another 45 minutes on to the commute . It got old quick and once we have kids , she switched jobs . Both Madison and Caldwell are great with nice downtowns and close to the city but the commutes suck despite being not to fat from the city . My brother in law lives a few blocks from me in north Caldwell and drives into the city for work ( not since march) and has been doing it forever . He gets home consistently at 730/8 or later . Not fun despite making a ton of money .

 

[czxqa]

I live in Montville and used to commute to Park Ave. Depending where you work you can either take bus, train or drive. I chose to drive to the Park & Ride in North Bergen, and take bus into Port Authority from there. Its been a while but buses back then would leave every 10-15 minutes or so. I chose to do this so I didn't need to worry about catching a specific bus or train back home. Again, a while ago but traffic didn't back up until right around North Bergen area so I wasn't sitting in traffic either. Don't know what it is like today.

Ha! My buddy lives in Montville, I was just going to recommend it too...

 

[JMORC2003]

Lived on Thomas Street in Cranford for eight years before moving to New Zealand. Nice town. Really loved the pizza at Emma's. Is it still there?

It is, although original owner and chef sold it and opened a place in Kenilworth. Haven’t been there since, but now the place is papered up for “renovations”. Used to be the best pizza around though. Other stuff was really good and byob.

 

[bitnez]

Sweeney says hello.

Murphy regularly hangs out in Metuchen. His former COS was the mayor. While his time as governor will come to an end at some point Metuchen will stay.

 

[Proud NJ Sports Fan]

Ha! My buddy lives in Montville, I was just going to recommend it too...

Harrigans and Poor Henry's

Two good taverns