OT: Town Recommendations
- Thread starter jmc11201
- Start date
Basking Ridge is the best kept secret between Warren and Mendham--come take a look but don't tell anyone about it. NJ Transit commute might be a bit long to NYC Penn St, about 1 1/2 hr.
i live in time square and commute to the shore on weekends. It’s 1 hr 22 minutes to Penn Station from Redbank. It’s 51 minutes from Summit to Penn Station. Train will be pricey. But it’s not that bad a commute. From Penn Station you can just walk it, because it’s close enough.
another option is to live in Bergen County and drive roughly 1/2 an hour to the Vince Lombardi Park and Ride. That puts into play towns like Tenafly, Teaneck, Demarest, and Closter. Bus is much cheaper and its roughly a half hour to Port Authority. On Fridays I would drive in, because there wasn’t much traffic on the GWB.
ive heard boat is great but pricey. Good Luck.
I too live in Montville and would recommend it.
https://www.niche.com/places-to-live/z/07045/
https://www.niche.com/places-to-live/search/best-zip-codes-to-buy-a-house/s/new-jersey/
#17 out of 525 in NJ at least according to Niche
I did that 20 years ago, so things may have changed. But while ride in was great, the ride out was often subject to long waits when the busses headed back into the PA got caught up in inbound traffic at the Lincoln Tunnel.
Yeah I miss it. Had to move for work and the wife too. Small town vibe. Great downtown. Super cool old big architecturally significant houses and down to earth people. It’s also sandwhichee between rich (north Caldwell) and filthy dripping rich (Essex fells). Also Grover Cleveland park is so nice. Miss that too.
If this wfh becomes a more permanent thing I’m heading your way. BR is a nice town. I won’t mind the 90min ride if I’m only going in once a week.
I moved back to NJ 5 years ago with a similar list - I'm a researcher so here is an excel file that may be helpful.
I cared most about train & schools. In end distance to my in-laws was the final decision.
Link
I cared most about train & schools. In end distance to my in-laws was the final decision.
Link
Thanks everyone. A lot to sift through. We've got at least a year so we can be thoughtful and patient but it's helpful to see some of the same places come up again and again.
I'm mostly dreading a commute since I currently walk to work, but at some point we'd move from boston to the burbs anyway so the status quo was always going to change.
I'm mostly dreading a commute since I currently walk to work, but at some point we'd move from boston to the burbs anyway so the status quo was always going to change.
jmc11201 - since you have a lax helmet as an avatar you should give BR a look - high level lax, a great town with top notch schools.
BR resident since '95, but only until next spring/summer when the youngest graduates Ridge HS. Will have a gently used house with plenty of room with all the pool, patio and deck you would ever need for entertaining. Just sayin...
TBH, even though I am from Montville and mentioned it is a great town, the first town I thought of was Madison, the Rose City. Great town in NJ. The only concern I would have is public transportation is more limited than say Montville because Montville is very close to Wayne Park and Ride.
Yeah...poking around this morning and it looks like a nice option. Looks like an hour on the train...a bit less expensive than Summit/Chatham, 20 minutes to the airport/Prudential Center, nice looking downtown. Definitely one to put on the list.
Your baby is so young that 5 years till school is a LONG time to go with what is happening these days.
I would rent in the East 70's in Manhattan, till kid needs to hit Kinder or First Grade. RE taxes are so onerous now in both NY and NJ that it's worth considering changing careers or jobs and living elsewhere in the US.
How far is your final location from Port Authority/Penn Station/Grand Central/ferry boat docks has to be taken into consideration. Is it walkable, MTA, cab, uber ? My first job in NYC was at Saks and took bus from Bloomfield (hour with express bus lane) and would walk (10min) or take the MTA depending on the weather.
I've commuted by Ferry, Car, Bus, Train and Helicopter. Never lived in Manhattan which would have made the most sense in commute time, commute costs and probably quality of life.
I would rent in the East 70's in Manhattan, till kid needs to hit Kinder or First Grade. RE taxes are so onerous now in both NY and NJ that it's worth considering changing careers or jobs and living elsewhere in the US.
How far is your final location from Port Authority/Penn Station/Grand Central/ferry boat docks has to be taken into consideration. Is it walkable, MTA, cab, uber ? My first job in NYC was at Saks and took bus from Bloomfield (hour with express bus lane) and would walk (10min) or take the MTA depending on the weather.
I've commuted by Ferry, Car, Bus, Train and Helicopter. Never lived in Manhattan which would have made the most sense in commute time, commute costs and probably quality of life.
I never liked commuting on a daily basis by helicopter either so decide on NJ Trans instead.
i had a client there several years ago. its only 2 stops on the red line from Penn Station. about a 10 min walk from PA Bus Terminal when it's not rush hour. More like 15 if it is. The wall of people walking down 8th ave is pain to deal with. i would actually take the subway that 1 stop to get to PA just to avoid the sweaty mess of people walking.
NJ Transit will tell you the train takes 57 min. What they don't tell you is that it will only be on time 5% of the time. The majority of the time (70%) it will take you 1:10 min. The good news is that it is it's a direct train so you can get some stuff done. The actual distance is irrelevant in NJ/NY area. Everything I said so far only pertains to the commute into the city. For leaving the city, add 15 mins to everything and subtract the percentages by half. You do not want to know what happens the rest of the time. But the town is great for family, good public schools and property taxes is much better than nearby options.
Also, trains on the Morris-Essex line travel at much slower speeds than on the NEC line. Not sure about the NJCL or the Bergen lines, but even though actual miles from Morristown/Madison/Chatham are fewer than say, Middlesex or Mercer county, the commute from Metropark or Princeton Jct can be about the same.
Yup. NY Trains are a bit better than NJT, most of the time.
PATH trains are much, much better but then you have to be in an urban area, and lots of people don't want that.
Seastreak from Atlantic Highlands or Highlands is the ABSOLUTE BEST way to commute to NYC. Rumson, Fair Haven, Middletown, Little Silver all close by. If you must commute & can afford to pay a little more of a premium you will never go back to any other way of getting in and out of NYC.
Oh, so you could throw a football to Port Authority. You might want to consider Edgewater. It's got stunning views, albeit a little busier than some others, they have free weekday bus service for residents to the Edgewater Ferry stop, drops you off at 39th St. That's an easy walk, and a better ride than the bus (although costlier). They've got an elementary school in town, but send high schoolers - which is years down the line for you guys - to Leonia H.S.
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I work just east of there in Rock Plaza. I walk from Penn which is really not much longer than jumping on a subway. I commute in from Rockville Centre on the LIRR (people in NJ hate LI and they think NJ is a cesspool). Train station in town, 38 minute train ride, and then the walk to the office. About an hour door to door. Good town, good schools, close to the beach, restaurants, etc. but traffic can be brutal. Given the location of your family, I would stay in NJ as driving to visit my relatives requires driving on the notorious Belt Parkway, then thru Staten Island.
Basking Ridge/Bernards is a wonderful town, amazing place!
NE Corridor is just as bad. Add 10 to 15 min to what NJ transit tells you.
Loved the Ferry, nap on the way in, cold beers on the way back. Getting to the parking lot was the pain.
Wife working ?
If not, E 73 to 85, so she can use baby carriage to Central Park.
Sister lived on E 49 at First and walked to work every day off Fifth, but UN raises rents in that area.
Good thing about Manhattan is that you can dump the car/cars and save all those expenses.....need an occasional car for a day outing ? Zipcar works.
Quality of life on the commute ? 1 1/2 hours each way, and I know people that would fight for that number is 15 hours a week. 15 x52 weeks and now your talking some days off your life being annoyed at best, at worst sweating out missing a meeting because 'something' happened that you can't control or even know what happened.
I'm talking myself into moving into the city ?
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If your office is 50th and Broadway the best commutes will probably be into the Port Authority on a bus. So maybe a town like Montclair or Fort Lee that's closer into the city with a shorter ride.
Another alternative which someone mentioned is the ferry from Edgewater to 39th Street...Edgewater is more city like but goes to Leonia HS which I believe is rated pretty well.
Another alternative which someone mentioned is the ferry from Edgewater to 39th Street...Edgewater is more city like but goes to Leonia HS which I believe is rated pretty well.
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