Jerseygirl

There is a TD and Chase on South Street...right down the road from the hospital.

You can't buy or lease a new car without insurance...and you can't get that until you have a NJ driving license. NJ DMV are very strict when it comes to what documents/info are required for a DL.

http://www.dmv.org/nj-new-jersey/renew-license.php

doconthemove

think the rules may have changed jersey as geico were willing to provide me insurance on a UK license as long as you got a NJ one within 3 months approx. Also that company you mentioned before were willing to insure on a UK license initially.

Also that IAutosource company some have used here will sell you a vehicle while in the UK with insurance in NJ also all with a UK license initially.

Jerseygirl

OK...that's good. If you can get insurance through NJ Manufacturers I highly recommend them. I have no idea if they are the cheapest...but they have a reputation for being the best. We have had no auto claims but a couple of claims on our home owners insurance.

I know a new car dealer cannot allow the vehicle to leave the dealership without verifying the insurance. They actually have to contact the insurance company themselves. I have no idea about Autosource...never used them.

Olly_

Insurance here is done 6 monthly, and it is very expensive when you're new here because of a combination of no credit history and no driving history - I'm looking at buying an Audi A6 3.0T and it's going to be ~$1600 for 6 months. Progressive are the cheapest for me, Geico and State Farm want over $3k!

TD Bank and Chase give you account details and debit cards on the spot so it's super easy.

I've never really bought ready meals so always cook things from scratch. I generally shop at Shoprite, A&P and get a few bits from Morton Williams.

retzie

I opened an account with TD specifically because I needed to go into a physical branch - try doing a cash deposit online! It has also proved useful for a variety of other incidentals. They print your debit card on-premises when you open your account, so there are no delays there (very handy also if you need a replacement for a lost/stolen card).

Be warned that the banking system here is still light years behind everyone else (lots of things still revolve around cheques ), so 'doing everything online' hardly represents a seamless wonder of modern technology.

Olly_

You can deposit cash at Chase ATM's 24/7

Jerseygirl

IMO TD US are useless. We only opened the account because we have a TD account in Canada...but our main banking is with Chase.

Bob

That's not to bad.....ball park is around $1K per 6 months for a half decent new car.

Bob

That's what ATM's are for....

retzie

Except if your bank doesn't have any ATMs and simply reimburses you for using anybody else's

The big banks are set up to rely on their saturation, so if you end up somewhere they are not (eg. the college town where I started out; overseas), you get shafted. I chose to bank with someone who was set up to operate without a physical presence (Schwab Bank). Over the years, I have had very few issues, but this was one of them.

doconthemove

slightly dumb question but in NJ when you take your documents for the driving license and do the knowledge test is there a locker to keep your documents in while doing the test?

just wondered from anyone that done it recently!

Jerseygirl

Why would you want to? Why not keep your belongings with you?

doconthemove

i just thought jersey it being an exam u wouldnt be allowed to keep yr belongings with u.

for the medical exams they run a metal detector over you before allowing you to go to the computer! i thought this may be similar

Jerseygirl

Good gawd man...have you never driven in NJ?

To give you some idea of the practical driving test for a 17 year old: Take an empty car park. Place 2 traffic cones 50 yards apart. Ask learner driver to drive forward for approx 10 yards...then reverse between cones. PASS!!!

Granted the NJ test does seem more difficult than Michigan. The daughter of one of our members ran a red light during her test and still passed. She also totaled her car a week later!

ammurphy

I moved on April 1st - I'm on an L1-A mgmt transfer - although I started some tasks in Feb/March like social security number - when in the US you have to login to the i94 website and print your i94 to go with your passport and visa.

I used the SSN (1pt) with my passport visa/i94 (4pts) and a bank card (1pt) as my NJ six points of id for the DMV - make sure you do this - also my lease agreement as proof of address, or you also have to wait for a bill to come through, but they don't mind if you have printed an electronic gas or electricity bill yourself.

I was at the DMV a further south in Eatontown, the computer terminals are in the open but very near the desks where they observe you so you are allowed to take your stuff.

US colleagues told me the DMV was a nightmare - but I was prepared and polite and found the staff to be very helpful and pleasant.

You go in get the forms, line up get your forms and id checked, then you get a number, when called your id is checked again, then join another line, where they take your money for the permit, then go to another line to register and take the test, then back to the line where you paid your money, they take your photo and issue your license.

I revised a couple of times using an online test I purchased, I also went through the NJ driving manual and marked up things that looked relevant.

The questions are random each time so I cannot tell you everything to revise- most I remembered from revision or they were common sense - however, they asked a lot of questions about alcohol the same ones 3 times i.e is this measure of wine more alcohol than this measure of whiskey, can coffee sober you up etc.

I nearly fell foul of all the questions about regulations for young drivers which I read but didn't take in - read about 16, 17 year olds, when they can drive, can they have passengers - my advise is learn that section - I made it through but only 2 questions to spare and a couple of guesses.

It was only when passing this that they confirmed I didn't need a road test.

I got a car from IA - Ford explorer 4wd and talking to US colleagues about the same they would pay, IA put me onto AIG insurance but they were very expensive, I found another broker sunriseworldwide who specialize in expats and they were 40% less and the insurance came from AIG anyway.

I set up my account with HSBC in New York then when back in the UK briefly I set up a UK account with them having never banked with them before - it takes a while to set up the two lots of internet banking but once you have the global accounts set up I transferred USD to the UK HSBC account and from there into my Barclays account and the money was there within 2 minutes for $5 charge. They also gave me a credit card instantly which is pretty unusual in the US when you have no credit limit, even if you have a cash in the bank and a decent salary.

Oh and your employment healthcare may cost a lot - not sure if its the same for Docs!