Suburban Jitters?

“You’re moving to New Jersey!?

Sound familiar? You may as well toss that all-too-easy swipe in the dust bin of history because when the rubber meets the road the average price of a two bedroom apartment in Manhattan is cresting $1 million. And for that price you get about 1500 square feet plus the co-op board from hell.

If you’re considering a family and want to get an idea of how roomy your living conditions will feel like with the addition of a new arrival, try locking yourself in the closet for a few days. When you have kids, you need space – for the kids and for you!

Putting aside the other obvious advantages of moving slightly West (did we mention the great public aka. FREE schools?), you’ll find Essex, Morris and Union counties a surprisingly cool place to live. Sure, the Vanity Fair gliteratti aren’t lining up at the local hotspots like they do in NYC, but you couldn’t get into those places anyway.

And shall we recall the geographical prejudices of yesteryear such as “You’re moving to Brooklyn!? Well that was then and now Brooklyn real estate prices are so well into orbit that you probably can’t afford what you deserve there either.

So get over yourself and start enjoying your life west of the Hudson!

Things to Consider

• Easy Access to NYC

  People living and working in New York City have the longest big city commute in the country: 38.4 minutes (read the U.S. Census Commuter Survey). The Midtown Direct train gets you from Essex County to Penn Station in 28 minutes. Any questions?

  New Jersey Transit     PATH Train

• Diverse Community

  Due to the influx of people moving from the city in the last decade, plus the benefit of nearby universities, Essex County has a thoroughly heterogeneous mix of people from all walks of life. And unlike some other reportedly diverse areas, we have a good deal of interaction between groups because of the neighborhood-oriented feel of the area towns.

  Without question, New York has extraordinary neighborhoods. But when was the last time you actually spoke to your neighbor other than to complain about the noise from their car alarm?

• I Can Assist You With Your Move

  I have helped people move here from all over the country and even internationally. If you’re considering a move to the area, feel free to contact me with questions. And then we can talk about getting you the right home!

Testimonials

Advice from actual New Yorkers who made the move!

Don’t just take the word of a woman who has lived in the area (and loved it!) her entire life. Believe it or not, these are actual New Yorkers who were willing to go on record to talk about how they love their new homes west of the Hudson.

Sean McCourt & Beth Spencer Our commute from South Orange to midtown is three minutes longer than our commute was from Washington Heights to midtown. And when we step off the train coming home, it feels like we’re walking into a Frank Capra movie. Our neighbors are all very nice and not one of them lives directly above us. We don’t smell their smoke; we don’t hear their televisions. Best of all, we actually know their names. And then there’s the outdoors. The day we bought the house, our two year-old daughter ran around our new backyard picking flowers and yelling, “Look, Daddy! Purple!”