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So it sounds like you are ideally looking to rent a 3 bedroom house around 2000 sqft for no more than $2500/mo with no more than a 30 minute commute to Wall Street in a kid friendly community...is that right? If that's the case...unfortunately I can't think of anything that will meet all your needs. What are you wiling to sacrifice if need be? Do you want an urban setting or a suburban setting?
Weehawken is very nice but I would be surprised if you could find anything there that fits your criteria...it's expensive. If you did...jump on it! In Weehwaken there is a ferry, lightrail to Hoboken Path train, and buses to NYC...but I don't know commuting times on any of these...sorry. Harrison doesn't get very good reviews. I don't know much about Fairfield...but I would think the commute would be too far for your husband? Commuting costs vary on whether you are using ferry, bus, train, or a combination...ferry being the most expensive.
i agree with mishi. what you are seeking is not possible. of course, you can, as you mentioned, live in Jersey City for 1/2 the monthly rent or so, but the QUALITY. the AREA.
you are asking for a suburban setting for 2500 a month, 3 bedroom, with parks, etc. there are no places. you husband must readjust his expectations. a 30 minute commute?! does he want to live next door to his office? This is the big city with 8 million commuters per day, on top of an existing 8 million population.
look, something has got to give. Perhaps Fort Lee? they have an active Korean community; its very clean, safe there. you can rent a 3 bedroom townhome for probably around 2800, give or take a couple of hundred, and rent is always negotiable.
the commute, though, still will take longer, i think, than 30 minutes.
you asked how much it will cost to commute in. for me, from secaucus, its 60.00 per month for the train. then i buy a Path ticket for about 20 trips or so, and i cant remember how much that is. the total, monthly, is about 80.00 i believe.
if your husband readjusts his commuting time to something more realistic, your money can stretch.
ok, please tell me im wrong people. i work in the financial district at 80 pine street. i have 2 toddlers. my wife is an eye doctor. our rent is 3000 a month, in NJ, in a 2 bedroom apt complex in secaucus. THERE IS NO WAY IN THE WORLD, AND I MEAN IN THE WORLD, THAT THE OP CAN DO HOBOKEN ON A 2500 PER MONTH BUDGET. or in jersey city at newport. no way.
what am i missing? call newport and ask how much a 2 bedroom is. call today--they are open. they are starting around 2800 and they are a dump. go and have a look at the room. the square footage is unbelievably small--around 1100 i believe. its nasty inside (appliances and even the floor layout).
dont toddlers, at all, need an area to crawl? additionally, i would not subject them to the city. not only is it ridiculously expensive, but its ridiculously difficult to get anywhere or anything done. try going to the doctors office for an appt. its an all-day excursion. your $$ will evaporate like water.
the only place i would say that is possibly, possibly feasible is Stuyvesant around 14th Ave. But its too much money now. Around 4k / month.
Battery Park apts are imaginably tiny! 1000 square feet, at best, for 3000 per month, plus who knows what radiants and particles are still in the air.
the bottom line: you need space, and NJ offers some of that. def. more than manhattan.
one of the problems is that the ne coast of nj is designed for commuters. that implies , negatively, they are not built for suburban familes. and this is evident when you look at the # of bedrooms offered and square footage or architecture of the building. Take Clifton Commons for instance. Its stacked at 3 floors, but each floor is tiny. They dissuade adding more kids to their already overpacked school district.
As i said b4, i commute into manhattan to the financial district, and its a 1 hr commute door to door. To secaucus junction...to hoboken...the the wtc area...and finally hoof it to Pine. about an 13 minute excursion per incident.
2500 will clearly get you a 2 bedroom apt in NJ, but i cannot see how it will get you space for your toddlers to run and play unless you move more south and west. we live in secaucus, and are out of room.
i would go--and am going--more south and west to edison around march. not for me, though, but for the children.
i just cant understand how people can possibly and realistically recommend hoboken as a place that falls within a 2500 budget for a family with 2 babies. i would like to know where. the prerequisite for toddlers is space.
edgewater, where there are a string of new apts, is also out of the question, not b/c of the 2500 monthly (which does eliminate it, btw, since tehy are now going for over 3000), but b/c they are too tiny.
in my opinion, you will need at a minimum 1700 square feet. and since they are toddlers, not babies, you may need more. this is the minimum. plus how about an area outside for them to play? like a park, etc.? take 1 step outside of JC and you may not find it to be the best place (outside of Newport that is).
are you planning on putting them in daycare? nj is a better option...just get a place to rent along the transit line, probably no more south than edison, and you will be ok.
Cosign 100%-- I have three kids-- and no way we can afford NYC-- and NOWHERE offers enough space!!
i agree with mishi. what you are seeking is not possible. of course, you can, as you mentioned, live in Jersey City for 1/2 the monthly rent or so, but the QUALITY. the AREA.
you are asking for a suburban setting for 2500 a month, 3 bedroom, with parks, etc. there are no places. you husband must readjust his expectations. a 30 minute commute?! does he want to live next door to his office? This is the big city with 8 million commuters per day, on top of an existing 8 million population.
look, something has got to give. Perhaps Fort Lee? they have an active Korean community; its very clean, safe there. you can rent a 3 bedroom townhome for probably around 2800, give or take a couple of hundred, and rent is always negotiable.
the commute, though, still will take longer, i think, than 30 minutes.
you asked how much it will cost to commute in. for me, from secaucus, its 60.00 per month for the train. then i buy a Path ticket for about 20 trips or so, and i cant remember how much that is. the total, monthly, is about 80.00 i believe.
if your husband readjusts his commuting time to something more realistic, your money can stretch.
I have heard that even from towns like Hoboken to still count on an hour. We have never lived in NJ or NY and I have not been in the area in 7 years. At this point I was trying to create an ideal situation for my entire family to see if it was even possible. Maybe the people who live there and actually do this everyday could offer some advice on where to start or not to start. I have found a great little town home in the town of Secaucus. It fits all of my needs; well I believe it does from the description and picture on the internet. My understanding from you is that you travel into the same area as my husband would on a daily basis and it takes you roughly an hour. Well since I have been told to count on an hour no matter where I choose to live, we have to regroup our idea of the 30 minute or less commute, unless I am willing to live in a shoebox apartment. I am curious to know about Secaucus if you don't mind giving me some pointers. Also anyone have an opinion on Brooklyn?
I have heard that even from towns like Hoboken to still count on an hour. We have never lived in NJ or NY and I have not been in the area in 7 years. At this point I was trying to create an ideal situation for my entire family to see if it was even possible. Maybe the people who live there and actually do this everyday could offer some advice on where to start or not to start. I have found a great little town home in the town of Secaucus. It fits all of my needs; well I believe it does from the description and picture on the internet. My understanding from you is that you travel into the same area as my husband would on a daily basis and it takes you roughly an hour. Well since I have been told to count on an hour no matter where I choose to live, we have to regroup our idea of the 30 minute or less commute, unless I am willing to live in a shoebox apartment. I am curious to know about Secaucus if you don't mind giving me some pointers. Also anyone have an opinion on Brooklyn?
Brooklyn is obviously more urban than Secaucus. Secaucus is affordable if you stay away from luxury buildings. Commute from Hoboken is def under a HALF hour. You can't look at pictures on the internet and think that anything is perfect in the NY area. You have to see it and the area it is located in in person. Ideal situations are not realistic when you have small children in an urban area like this.
Some of the posters here live in luxury type of buildings. You can avoid that and save money but to save time and go to Jersey City with kids? It is most def a tradeoff and far from ideal. Secaucus is o.k. but not urban and def not a idyllic suburb. The outer areas of Brooklyn and Queens are very different from Secaucus but it seems like you are looking at too many extremes and should narrow your focus. Make your decision. Urban or suburban? With kids you should kind of know what you want already.
I have heard that even from towns like Hoboken to still count on an hour. We have never lived in NJ or NY and I have not been in the area in 7 years. At this point I was trying to create an ideal situation for my entire family to see if it was even possible. Maybe the people who live there and actually do this everyday could offer some advice on where to start or not to start. I have found a great little town home in the town of Secaucus. It fits all of my needs; well I believe it does from the description and picture on the internet. My understanding from you is that you travel into the same area as my husband would on a daily basis and it takes you roughly an hour. Well since I have been told to count on an hour no matter where I choose to live, we have to regroup our idea of the 30 minute or less commute, unless I am willing to live in a shoebox apartment. I am curious to know about Secaucus if you don't mind giving me some pointers. Also anyone have an opinion on Brooklyn?
I am fairly certain that the commute from Hoboken would be less than an hour...I would think more like 30 minutes on average...however it can be unpredictable which is why people are probaby telling you an hour. However, based on your ideal situation, it sounds like Hoboken is out of the question anyway.
I think there are some really nice parts of Brooklyn...Brooklyn Heights and Park Slope stand out from my recollection...but that's dating back a few years...otherwise I don't know enough about Brooklyn to really help.
But I still think it's important for your family to decide if you want urban or suburban...unless of course you do not have a preference? And try to figure out what you absolutely do not want to sacrifice with regards to your wish list and go from there.
I am fairly certain that the commute from Hoboken would be less than an hour...I would think more like 30 minutes on average...however it can be unpredictable which is why people are probaby telling you an hour. However, based on your ideal situation, it sounds like Hoboken is out of the question anyway.
I think there are some really nice parts of Brooklyn...Brooklyn Heights and Park Slope stand out from my recollection...but that's dating back a few years...otherwise I don't know enough about Brooklyn to really help.
But I still think it's important for your family to decide if you want urban or suburban...unless of course you do not have a preference? And try to figure out what you absolutely do not want to sacrifice with regards to your wish list and go from there.
don't forget to include walking time.
unless you live next to the train station or ferry terminal it can take almost an hour to get to midtown manhattan when you add the walking time.
don't forget to include walking time.
unless you live next to the train station or ferry terminal it can take almost an hour to get to midtown manhattan when you add the walking time.
Very true! If you are talking about a door to door commute and you're walking from uptown Hoboken to the Path Station downtown...the time adds up. Unfortunately, commuting times differ for everyone because you have to consider your exact situation...taxi, shuttle, bus, walk, ferry, train, uptown, downtown, etc...therefore it's so hard to predict without all the details. However you also need to take all of these factors into consideration no matter what town you choose to live. Regardless...the reality of living in Hoboken...or Downtown JC for that matter...is that it's pretty much the closest you are going to get to NYC if you're living in NJ...and the cost of housing reflects that!
Thank you everyone for all this information. I know I will be able to apply this to my search when the time comes for us to move up there. At least now, thanks to all of you, I can sit down and come up with some sort of game plan. I am sad to leave the beach life here in Florida but am excited for all of what NJ and NYC has to offer. It will be an exciting experience for my family.
Thank you everyone for all this information. I know I will be able to apply this to my search when the time comes for us to move up there. At least now, thanks to all of you, I can sit down and come up with some sort of game plan. I am sad to leave the beach life here in Florida but am excited for all of what NJ and NYC has to offer. It will be an exciting experience for my family.
you'll be sorry, I just left NJ for FLA, and I am not looking back.
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, I just left NJ for FLA, and I am not looking back.
