Reviews & Comments
Jersey City, NJ
Definitely Not a Contender for a Best Places List -
4/29/2007I lived in Jersey City while in college and graduate school. There are small pockets of Jersey City, down by the waterfront, that are building up into yuppie communities, but for the most part the city is dangerous and an eye soar. If you want to feel safe walking down your street at night, this is not the city for you. It's extemely congested, overpriced, and did I mention dangerous? There is a school in Jersey City that is ranked highly - but sources who teach in the district say it's only because they send the city's best and brightest there and throw all their money into it. There are also two private schools, St. Dominics and St. Peters which are rather good, but most of these students are bussed in from neighboring towns. This is not a city I would want to raise children in unless I had no other alternative.
The perks are it's proximity to New York City and Hoboken , with path trains traveling to and from. However, if you're looking for a great town with plenty of nightlife and direct path trains to New York City, travel one town over to Hoboken. It's the ultimate haven for young professionals.
Hamburg, NJ
The Children's Town -
4/29/2007If you're looking for a quiet life with plenty of recreation, Hamburg, New Jersey is a great pick. Known as "The Children's Town" as it is home to the Gingerbread Castle, a popular children's fairytale castle since the 1930s which had closed and is now under renovation and expected to reopen; Most of the streets are named after Fairytales. The area is difficult to classify as it is mixed with small older homes, townhomes, and some newer construction. A retirement village and a development of McMansions (courtesy of Toll Brothers)have recently opened on two different golf communities in town. There is relatively no crime here and people seem to mind their own business, despite it being a small town.
Sussex County offers so many ammenities: Mountain Creek Ski Resort is five minutes away and in the summer the waterpark opens, horseback riding, ice skating, skydiving, great parks for hiking, many antique shops, and Crystal Springs Resort has an amazing state of the art gym and health spa. Not to mention that we are surrounded by about five golf courses.
Nightlife is limited however and the closest mall is 35-40 minutes away -though there is a small outlet mall nearby. The downside is the commute to work. Residents can expect to commute 45 minutes to 2 hours each morning if you work outside the county - which is almost inevitable.
It's not easy to find property for sale in Hamburg -so small we get lumped in with Hardyston on Realtor.com. Other nearby areas, which in some ways are even nicer, include Hardyston (Crystal Springs Resort), Vernon, Wantage, and Sparta (pricey but a great alternative for the upper middle class looking for a bigger bang for their buck). Sussex County is one of the most afforddable areas of New Jersey, where you can get land and mountain views at out-of-state prices.