Moving to 78 corridor from Florida (Montclair, Lakewood: to buy, private school, property taxes)
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Hello,
I am moving to New Jersey and have narrowed my search to Chatham, Summit, Short Hills and Madison. The two most important factors are the public school system, and a true friendly community with "real" people who value kids and neighbors.
Am I looking in the right towns or am I making a mistake with these towns?
Thanks for any suggestions and opinions.
IMO those are some very snobby towns with Short Hills and Madison leading the pack. The schools are very good, and the absurd property taxes reflect that.
Thanks. I always wondered where they filmed the Real Housewives of Jersey. I thought that show was filmed in Tenafly, Wyckoff, North Caldwell, Livingston, Montclair or Lakewood.
After reviewing much of the North Jersey area and wanting to be within 30 miles of city and wanting to put my kids in a great public school system I have read about and researched these towns. I actually like Chatham the best. Why I am not sure, but I like the way it looks and sounds.
Do you have any other suggestions?
Isn't Millburn the same as Short Hills? I did hear Short Hills is quite Japy or shall I say, affected.
I really want to stay away from Bergen County. Not interested in the Montclair area. And would prefer not to venture much further south. Considered Westfield, but I think Chatham has a upper hand school system wise. Any further west would be too far from the city...I think. I like the fact that Summit, Chatham, Madison have a Midtown direct train line. But in the end I am not completely certain...
You know, comparing the schools systems of these towns is splitting hairs. I don't think you can say that Chatham has a better school system than Westfield. It's impossible to prove it.
While Short Hills and Millburn share a gov't and school system and people in Millburn believe they are the same town, I know that lots of people who live in Short Hills think otherwise. Millburn less wealthy than Short Hills. And in general the people who move to Millburn do so for the school system, while many people in Short Hills send their kids to private school.
I tend to think of Chatham and Madison as very similar to each other, while Summit is a little more on it's own. It's very funny--Summit and Short Hills have a snobbery rivalry that Chatham and Madison are completely left out of.
I grew up in the area and had friends and acquaintances throughout the area in high school, so I'm painfully aware of alot of the social strata in the area.
The top of the heap is New Vernon and Green Village, and parts of Mendham, Bernardsville. That trumps even Short Hills. And by New Vernon I don't mean Harding.
Not that I believe in or approve in any of this stuff.... As a matter of fact, when it came time for us to buy a house, we settled in Maplewood which blissfully spins in it's own private orbit.
Thank you very much for your opinion.
Do you think some of those towns you mentioned may be too far "out".(Mendham, Bedminster etc)
I have to commute to the city often and also my wife really wants to take advantage of the trains and go into the city often. we have several friends in the city that we want to spend time with and just think the train in some of the towns we're looking has better access.
Not completely sure why. I did live in Englewood Cliffs one year and looked into Franklin Lakes and Ridgewood. I see Bergen as too crowed. rt. 4 and rt. 17 gets old. And because you are sooo close to the city there really isn't a real town feeling. Other than Ridgewood.
Not completely sure why. I did live in Englewood Cliffs one year and looked into Franklin Lakes and Ridgewood. I see Bergen as too crowed. rt. 4 and rt. 17 gets old. And because you are sooo close to the city there really isn't a real town feeling. Other than Ridgewood.
You're looking at some great towns and I would recommend Madison.
But if you don't get any "real town feeling" in Bergen county, you might not have seen enough of that area, such as Glen Rock or Westwood.
Good Luck!!
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