Majj

Hi there,

Anyone know how long it takes for the commute from New Jersey or surrounding areas into New York? ALso how much does it cost?

Lastly what is a resonable salary for New York? Is $100k reasonable?

Thanks

Jerseygirl

Where abouts in NJ? You could live just over the Hudson in Weehawken or Hoboken or you could live further out and it take several hours.

I live in Morris county...by train to NYC it takes 1 hr....by road 45 mins on a good day...on a bad day who knows!!

NJ_Dave

Reasonable salary for what -a lawyer, or working in Taco Bell?

Jerseygirl

Also depends if he's single, got a wife and/or family to support, what sort of house he expects to buy and where etc.

Majj

In construction cost consultant. If that means anything.

Majj

An average 3 bed house would do. I have no idea of areas although I have been to princeton.

Thing is I have been offered a job in New York and just wanted to do a bit if fact finding.

NJ_Dave

Fact is that NJ ain't a cheap place to buy a (decent) house, unless you go and live out in the sticks (hence a longer commute to NYC). I live in Bergen County NJ where a 3 bed house costs anywhere from $350,000 to $800,000 depending on the area

Bob

do a search on the forums for info on places to live by englishmum, she's posted a lot of good info in the past, that might help.

Jerseygirl

You would also have to pay income tax to NYC if you are working there, in addition to Federal and NJ State.

Travelling costs in and out of the city would also depend on how far out you want to live.

As well as house prices, council tax, utilities, health care and car insurance in NJ are the highest in the US.

Englishmum

Do you have children?

The school districts will be a huge consideration when choosing where to live, whether renting or buying. Even if you don't have kids and choose to buy, the appreciation of the property is heavily dependent on how good the local public schools are.

We live in NJ and spouse walks to the station to get the MidTown Direct trains into New York Penn Station (underneath Madision Sq Garden) and near the Empire State building. He walks to Times Sq. from Penn.

The train takes 35-40 mins if he gets the express train, but it takes 45 to 50 mins if not express.

He gets a discount on train travel through some 'quickcheck' scheme which is an incentive to get people to use public transport into NYC rather than drive. It's v. cheap.

Check out http://www.njtransit.com

We are on the Morris & Essex branch of the train line.

What's your lifestyle and interests? If a fun-loving party type then Hoboken would be great (and some expats here live in Hoboken) but a nightmare for parking. Or would you prefer to have a house and garden in the suburbs?

Englishmum

Which is why I keep telling my husband that we might as well live in England again LOL!

Jerseygirl

I think the cost of living is much higher than the UK.

Majj

Hi there.

Thanks for the reply. Basically we are a family of 4. Eldest son is 8 years old and daughter is 2.5.

I've been offered a job in NYC and am looking to live in NJ. One hours commute is fine. If i work in london then it takes an hour on the underground and thats when the tubes are running well, in horrible conditions however.

Initially we would be looking to rent first and then buy a property.

In addition I would need to sort out schooling for my son so we would look to live near a decent school, so perhaps you could advise there. However, my wife would be looking to come over around Easter time as it maybe better for our son.

Lifestyle wise we would revolve things around the kids rather than parties.

So any kind of advise of schooling, where to live, cost of living, etc etc would be gratefully received.

many thanks

Ben

So it may make more sense to live in NYstate? Your taxes aren't as much and I understand from our neighbours who commute to NYC it is only an hour. Great schools, car insurance is cheaper. We are on Long Island but there is also Westchester which is another great place to live with good schools. We lived in NJ then moved over to LI and we much prefer it over this side for our children

britchicknyc

I agree.

I lived on Long Island (where my husband is from) when I first moved over here for three years. Have spent just over two in NJ, and have just signed the contract on selling our home in NJ to move back to Long Island. Its just a much nicer place in my opinion. So much more to do.

Of course it depends on where you live in each area. I work in NYC (although have been on maternity leave for six months) and my commute will be longer now we're moving back to LI, but for us its worth it for the lifestyle. I personally just never warmed to NJ.