West New York, Union City, or Fairview (apartment, mortgage)

[yankees13]

which town is the most convenient? as in commute time to 42nd st in NYC, 24 hour stores, restaurants, etc. we need to be in between NYC - 42nd st. and the george washington bridge - fort lee. which town would you feel most comfortable walking in at night? we aren't latino and we found nice, brand new homes in all the locations. which place do you think will grow the most (gentrify, new construction, etc.)

so far west new york is #1 because of boulevard e, best commute, restaurants and stores on bergenline, the view, the parks, and seems to be a safe place to live?

let me know how your experience has been with these places

[millsan1]

I chose union city as the place with the most potential and band for the buck. I work on 40th and 5th, I am looking at less than 30, door to door

[goonsquad]

Originally Posted by yankees13

which town is the most convenient? as in commute time to 42nd st in NYC, 24 hour stores, restaurants, etc. we need to be in between NYC - 42nd st. and the george washington bridge - fort lee. which town would you feel most comfortable walking in at night? we aren't latino and we found nice, brand new homes in all the locations. which place do you think will grow the most (gentrify, new construction, etc.)

so far west new york is #1 because of boulevard e, best commute, restaurants and stores on bergenline, the view, the parks, and seems to be a safe place to live?

let me know how your experience has been with these places

I live just off Blvd E. in weehawken just a couple blocks from West New york and the commute simply cannot be beat. If you are on Blvd E., you will be at the port authority in 25 minutes. As far as being off Blvd E., I'm much less familiar w/ the bus schedules or whether the Jitney buses run down Bergenline for instance. West New York's area is decent for food but not great. The stores on Bergenline are nothing to write home about. Most of them suck actually. There are a few standouts...places that have been there for decades such as Sal's Pizzeria but also many dollar stores, check cashing places and no name stores where you can find cheap chinese closes and plastic flowers and wicker furniture. Good ethnic food can be found in the area for cheap. There have been a lot of comments on this board posted about whether the UC area will or won't gentrify. I'm not as willing to bet my mortgage on it the way some here are. Generally, I think that the closer to Blvd E, the better. I know that the Thread and the Altessa have drawn a lot of attention and several buyers on this board. It should be noted that the giant apartment building across the park on Blvd East and 60th is a HUD housing project. Personally, I can't imagine why West New York would want to put one there. I'd never feel unsafe about walking in the vicinity though--but never been inside.

Take a look at the thread/altessa/UC/weehawken posts. There are many here.

[cabbiegrrl]

I'd go Union City... but if u are looking to commute into the city the buses that go down Park Ave. or Blvd.east are better than the Bline in my opinion, in high traffic times. bergenline traffic is BAD! But if I could really pick, I'd go with Weehawken they have some really nice quiet neighborhoods and huge houses:0)
One thing about UC tho, if you live uptown (past 30th) buses run all hours of the night from Port Authority... if you live downtown, you will not catch a bus hardly past, er maybe midnite even!
Believe me, I lived there for almost ten years, in several different locations, and when coming home late nite, it was always a relief to be living up past 30th st!

[cabbiegrrl]

Also west new york is pretty comparable to union city. Count Fairview out for the "quick commute" tho... Plus FV is in Bergen county... eh just NOT the same:P
i'm biased hehe

[truecogni]

I would go with Union City. It is an amazing city that is changing for the better everyday. The commute can not be beat. The are close to everything. Even things west of route 3 so for me it is really the center of it all. I would go with Park Ave since that is the better area of Union City.

[NNJ_GolfNut]

A plug for WNY....

I lived in West New York for 10 years, and my mom is still there after now 27 years. It's in between Union City and Fairview, obviously, and the commute to NYC isn't long from any of those three. The buses to NYC are not fantastic, in the sense that they are mostly local buses and stop a lot. That's unavoidable. Boulevard East is a nice perk if you can buy something within walking distance. Bergenline gets crowded with bargain hunters. REALLY crowded on weekends.

I've never felt unsafe walking around in those neighborhoods!

[NewbiefromLA]

I really prefer WNY. The commute cannot be beat from Blvd East. I will take the beautiful view while waiting for the bus any day over staring at nasty rats while waiting for a subway to arrive. My commute to work on 50 th and 6th avenue is about 30 mins. There also seems to be lots of cute little affordable fixer uppers that are dying for a makeover in this cute little town. I currently live in a decent 2 bedroom on 50th Street near Hudson about 2 shorts blocks from blvd east. I am planning on purchasing one of the cute 2 story townhomes and giving it a little bit of tlc. The best thing about them is they all seem to have yards out back which is something you would never get in manhattan for the price.

[NJ2?]

I have lived in WNY all my life and can't wait to finally get out. I'm Latina and have a difficult time here. I really don't see what you all see. yes, if you stay on Blvd East it is nice. There is a big gang problem here and all the illegal immigrants, parking problems, corrupt gov. and board of Ed. I would not buy anything in WNY. Talk to an officer when you see one and he will tell you the real scoop. the only things I like about WNY are the view, Sal's Pizza, and the Brazeiro restaurant on 60th

[NJ2?]

also, sure if you buy one of those town homes they may be affordable, but You need to carefully look at who your neighbors will be.