Can anyone give me some info on Matamoras and Milford?? (Stroudsburg: real estate, to rent)

[TheDarkHorse]

Hello,

I currently live and work in Northern NJ. My wife and I have been trying to plan a move to PA for some time now. Originally was looking into Stroudsburg area, but the rt 80. commute into NJ seems like it would be horrific. I don't mind a long commute, but not willing to sit in traffic for hours everyday.

Another option I have is to move to the Matamoras/Milford area. Its about a 60 mile commute to my job in Bergen County, NJ via interstate 84 in NY state and down into NJ. However, by luck there is a train station on the port jervis line about a quarter mile from my job. I could take the train from Port Jervis, NY to my job in 109 minutes according to NJ Transit. I would much rather take a train ride then be sitting in the car.

I had considered moving to Port Jervis itself, but upon doing further research Ive been told that its NOT a very nice place??

So that leaves either Matamoras or Milford. I drove through both towns a handful of times over the past few years. My observations were that Milford seemed much nicer, but a bit boring. Matamoras seemed more modest and blue collar, but had more of a "hometowney" sorta feel in my opinion. I am sorta leaning towards Matamoras because of the more affordable real estate and the closer proximity to the Port Jervis train station.

One thing that concerns me about Matamoras is the risk of flooding...does the entire town flood, or just the part by the river? What is the safest area(s) of town as far as trying to avoid flood damage? Are floods in Matamoras a once in a generation type thing, or does it happen more frequently than that?

Any information or opinions on these 2 towns would be very much appriciated!!! I tried to do some searching on here but could only come up with limited info. Thanks alot!

[Wells5]

Matamoras real estate prices are cheaper than Milford's and you can walk or bike to the train station in Port Jervis. Milford is more upscale if that is your thing. Matamoras is close to the Westfall Towne Center and the big box stores and restaurants along US 209 and close to I-84. Both Matamoras and Milford have natural gas available.

The Delaware River is well controlled by the dams at the Cannonsville Reservoir, the Pepacton Resevoir, the 4 dams at Mongaup Falls, the dam at Lake Wallenpaupack and the General Edgar Jadwin Dam on Dyberry Creek which feeds into the Lackawaxen. The last really big flood in PJ was in 1981 caused by an ice jam and PJ floods before Matamoras.

If you're worried about flooding in Matamoras, then consider buying on Avenues A to L and above 8th St.

You should also consider some of the private communities around Milford where flooding is not a problem and where real estate bargains can be had.

[TheDarkHorse]

Thanks for the help!

[johnqpublic]

Mataaoris has a great seafood buffet.. not that deep fried crap.. :-)

[slope95]

Originally Posted by Wells5

Matamoras real estate prices are cheaper than Milford's and you can walk or bike to the train station in Port Jervis. Milford is more upscale if that is your thing. Matamoras is close to the Westfall Towne Center and the big box stores and restaurants along US 209 and close to I-84. Both Matamoras and Milford have natural gas available.

The Delaware River is well controlled by the dams at the Cannonsville Reservoir, the Pepacton Resevoir, the 4 dams at Mongaup Falls, the dam at Lake Wallenpaupack and the General Edgar Jadwin Dam on Dyberry Creek which feeds into the Lackawaxen. The last really big flood in PJ was in 1981 caused by an ice jam and PJ floods before Matamoras.

If you're worried about flooding in Matamoras, then consider buying on Avenues A to L and above 8th St.

You should also consider some of the private communities around Milford where flooding is not a problem and where real estate bargains can be had.

good response. matamoras (westfall township area) also has some nice homes up on the hill and there is a private community near pond drive. milford is more 'upscale' and 'touristy', whereas matamoras has a small town center with few businesses. it has airport park, which is nice, and the mid delaware river bridge. you can walk to port jervis train station from matamoras, though there is not much service from pj station. you can also walk from homes on pond drive. not much recent flooding in matamoras, but I would look more inland uphill, away from delaware drive. port jervis is kind of a depressing area, with a major drug problem. not many businesses or attractions, though hawks nest in deerpark is nice.

worth noting: if you live in milford and have cable tv, you will get NEPA scranton wilkes barre tv stations, but in matamoras, you get nyc tv stations.

downsides to milford/matamoras: they are kind of in the 'middle of nowhere'. the closest mall to milford, crystal run galleria in walkill town, ny is almost 30 miles away, and the rockaway townsquare mall in nj is over 35 miles away. the only supermarkets in the area are the key food/grand union in milford, the shoprite in montague, nj, the price chopper in matamoras, and the save a lot in port jervis. depending on what kind of weather you prefer, it snows more in the nj/ny/pa tri state area than in the immediate nyc area. it could be snowing in matamoras and not be snowing in wayne, nj. also, there is little public transportation. besides the coach usa bus and the train and orangetransit bus from port jervis, pike county is lacking in transportation services. the closest city is scranton, which is over 50 miles away by car. nyc is close to 80 miles away.

i used to have family with a home in narrowsburg, and would pass through the area while en route

[TheDarkHorse]

Thanks for the replies.

My wife does not drive, but the lack of public transport does not bother her because she would not have to worry about getting to work (we could afford for live on my salary alone with all the money we would be saving on cost of living). She is ok with it as long as she can live within walkable distance (within a mile) of a handful of retail stores (rite aid/CVS or whatever, K-mart, etc.).

Luckily the Port Jervis train goes directly to my job in Waldwick, NJ. And it continues down into Passaic county near where our families live. I would still have my car for getting around the area, or for driving to work down I-84 if I ever needed to.

Honestly we are looking for a much quieter "middle of nowhere" kinda place. We have both lived in the NJ/NY metro area practically our whole lives and we are really burnt out from the fast pace of live here, the rude people, and the overcrowding.

I view the Milford/Matamoras area as being a good middle road between being out in the country...yet still being relatively close to amenities, and only a little more than an hour from friends and family back home. Its starting to seem like a great choice. Thanks so much for the help everyone.

[slope95]

Originally Posted by TheDarkHorse

Thanks for the replies.

My wife does not drive, but the lack of public transport does not bother her because she would not have to worry about getting to work (we could afford for live on my salary alone with all the money we would be saving on cost of living). She is ok with it as long as she can live within walkable distance (within a mile) of a handful of retail stores (rite aid/CVS or whatever, K-mart, etc.).

Luckily the Port Jervis train goes directly to my job in Waldwick, NJ. And it continues down into Passaic county near where our families live. I would still have my car for getting around the area, or for driving to work down I-84 if I ever needed to.

Honestly we are looking for a much quieter "middle of nowhere" kinda place. We have both lived in the NJ/NY metro area practically our whole lives and we are really burnt out from the fast pace of live here, the rude people, and the overcrowding.

I view the Milford/Matamoras area as being a good middle road between being out in the country...yet still being relatively close to amenities, and only a little more than an hour from friends and family back home. Its starting to seem like a great choice. Thanks so much for the help everyone.

fyi, i believe port jervis line trains skip waldwick station and passaic county stations. you will have to get off at route 17 station and transfer to a local train.

westfall township/matamoras has a price chopper, a few banks, a few restaurants, several fireworks stores, kmart, walmart, home depot, payless, lowes, etc. rite aid locations in pj and milford. no cvs in the nj-ny-pa tri state area, closest ones are sparta township and in wayne county.

are you looking to rent or buy?

Mod removed links - You can't post links to single listings

[Wells5]

There are 25 trains per day weekdays either beginning or terminating in PJ. An advantage to getting on in PJ is that you can get a window seat, allowing you to sleep. The 5 across seating is not conducive to sleeping except at the window seat where you can rest your head on the side of the car.

[TheDarkHorse]

Thanks guys. According to nj transit website, there is a 5:05 am train leaving Port Jervis, which requires a transfer in Suffern, and then arrives in Waldwick around 7am.

We would be renting at first, and hopefully buying within a couple years of moving.

[Abundantly_Above]

That would be 4 hours a day commuting. Are you sure that's worth it? I think it's very smart of you to rent first and make sure it's doable.