Submitted by seeyam14 t3_yieprk in jerseycity
I’m currently being priced out of my Manhattan apartment and weighing my options in the outer boroughs. I work in Chelsea, near the L line. Would love to hear your experiences living in each area. Pros and cons you faced.
if (JC || Hoboken) && (Queens || Brooklyn):
comment(response);
I lived in bk when I was younger. It was great. Very fun, so much more to do.
I live in jc now. I have kids. It’s better here for that. Minus the school situation I’m not sure how bk compares
Depends on your age and what kind of excitement you want.
Young, want to see live music, shows, stay out until 4 am etc.. and just have more culture available to you? Then bk.
Jc is more of a quieter city either immigrant residential or yuppie / corporate /luxury vibe.
We have nothing like BAM, very few music venues for known acts. No university to drive bring new creative energetic young people to the city. The art scene is improving in a few years it will likely be better. But it’s not a high energy city
Which I like now as I’m in my 40s.
white eagle hall has had some pretty huge acts perform there and pet shop is good for live music but besides that there’s nothing i can think of that’s good
We have plenty of good public elementary/middle schools, it just depends on your neighorhood (or whether you win a charter school lottery). And we have four of the top 15 high schools in the state (McNair, High Tech*, County Prep, Liberty) — yes, it's difficult to get into those, but it's far easier than the insane competition for Stuy/Bkn Tech/Bx Science.
Also, venue-wise, we have White Eagle Hall, and the Lowe's had music pre-pandemic and will likely have more post-renovation. And venues have been getting priced out of Brooklyn lately.
* Yes, I know High Tech is in Secaucus, but every Jersey City kid can apply there, before the pedants come out of the woodwork.
White eagle is great but they don’t have many shows. The variety and size of the music scene in nyc is just so much larger due to the population of nyc being so much higher.
I’m just saying if I was in my 20s again I would redo the same thing, still be in nyc. And I say this as a jersey born and bred guy who returned to jersey and loves jersey city lol
Jc is 1/10th the size of Brooklyn so it’s really not fair to compare them.
could you say more about schools? as a recently new resident (2 years) here i was under the impression that jc public schools are all abysmal but would be happy to be proven wrong since schools are the one thing that’s going to force us out when we have a kid.
A lot of that abysmal reputation comes from two things: A) people haven't revised their opinion since 20 years ago, when JC was the poorest city in America. B) people like to complain.
This isn't exactly scientific, but Niche gives the JC school district a B-. Like anywhere, the richer neighborhoods have better schools, so it's generally As downtown, Bs in the Heights, Cs in Greenville, with a few exceptions. And besides the elite high schools, we have a few elite middle schools — Infinity and Academy One. Conti, McAuliffe, and Zampella are all pretty highly rated.
And, of course, there's a lot of school choice. We have some very good community-run charters — LCCS, TECCS, Golden Door, and Explore Middle are all good (and those are just the ones I know well); small class sizes, specialized curriculum that doesn't just teach to the test. And there are a few good private options if you want to go that route. Primary Prep is well-regarded and relatively affordable. (Don't get suckered in by an overpriced school like Stevens!)
Great info !
i appreciate this, thank you! i live by LCCS and it seems awesome but the fact that it’s lottery based admission makes it a hopeful option rather than a guarantee. thanks again.
As far as universities go, there’s Saint Peter’s and NJCU. Hoboken’s got Stevens too… I think creative young people are coming on their own though in addition to those who go to college over here.
I lived in Park Slope, Bed Stuy, and Williamsburg and currently live near Hamilton Park. My answer is it depends entirely on your stage in life. If you’re young and single, BK is probably better. If you’re looking to settle down more then JC is 1,000x better. I’m married and 36 and love living in JC, but 10 years ago I would have found it difficult to meet people.
>If you’re looking to settle down more then JC is 1,000x better
Why?
dating scene is trash here, it's by-and-large mostly couples here who met in and moved from the city.
This is true for Downtown JC… But the rest of JC (which is huge) is a lot of JC and NJ natives.
Well my point still stands. I live in McGinley Sq, there aren't many young single people which makes dating very hard.
Yes, there are more downtown, which is also still mostly couples.
Ah yes, I was commenting mostly on the last part (about JC being full of people moving to here from the city).
Agree that the dating scene is rough. If using any dating apps, you basically have to set a 1-2 mile radius so that you don’t get NYC. People from NYC will not take a 8 min train to JC but are fine with 30 commute to Brooklyn lmao.
yep lol it's so dumb... there really is a terrible stigma about living here, which is pretty annoying.
But people from other parts of Hudson County and surrounding counties (ex. Bergen County, Essex County, Union County, and Middlesex County) will visit you!
Moved from BK to JC 14 years ago and have no reason or desire to move back.
Without knowing more details (age, lifestyle, etc.) I say move to Brooklyn - somewhere off the L like Williamsburg, Bushwick, or Greenpoint. Especially if you like living in NYC and the only reason for moving is being priced out. I like JC and its proximity to the city, but it’s not the same. And the PATH can be a pain, especially on the weekends.
28, occasional nightlife, physically active, foodie. I travel a bit so proximity to LGA/JFK is better than EWR. I have family in northern VA though so I would like to be on the other side of the city for easier Amtrak access
Ewr is a much better airport in my opinion.
Agree. I also travel a lot and love how easy it is to get to from JC. It’s one of the biggest perks of living in jc that no one talks about. Also super easy to catch Amtrak trains from newrk (2 stops away on PATH).
If those commutes are something OP cares about JC is hands down winner.
JFK is a disaster every time I go. Like a third world country
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It doesn't decrease it by much if you are capable of entertaining yourself using a phone without wifi for 20 minutes. People waste time on their phones in bed all the time anyway, having to do it on a $2.60 train is a first world problem.
Advice: Newpipe to download youtube videos on android. Nintendo DS/ 3DS emulators Spotify premium you can download music and podcasts.
it’s really easy to get to EWR from jersey city - i say this as someone who lived in queens, it’s much easier than getting to JFK and LGA. i don’t love the flight options out of EWR but that’s just me. i wish we had the scale of JFK without the hassle.
JC could definitely work for you. For occasional nightlife - there is nightlife in JC, plus Hoboken, and the city is close if you want to change it up, just keep in mind the PATH trains late night are infrequent but they do run on a schedule, so keep that handy on their app on your phone so you don't get stuck waiting on the platform.
For physical activities, JC is great as you can ride bikes and zip in the city to ride more miles easily, but you can easily zip up north to hike at Bear Mountain or Harriman or zip west to hike or camp at other parks in NJ if you own or rent a car. And the beach is also a zip south. So you do have more access to a variety of outdoor activities.
If you like live music and a variety of venues, we do have some but it's a pittance compared to areas of BK, so then BK would be for you.
Obviously NYC has way more options for foodies but JC and Hoboken have some good grub. There are so many fitness centers in Hoboken. I don't know what type of nightlife you like (ex. loud club type bars, pubs, raves, indie concerts, etc.), but Hoboken is limited to different types of bars and JC has some bars and a couple of clubs. I think based on what you said, living in an area of JC walking distance to the PATH would be a good fit for you so that you have access to EWR, Hoboken, and NYC.
If you can afford it, move to BK. There's nothing to do here, I go to BK more often than I'm here.
If you think PATH is a pain, you haven't met the L train lol.
PATH is a pain on weekends because it is a super long journey via Hoboken. The second issue is that the frequency is very low after work hours
Yes, Hoboken adds time on the weekends which is annoying, but it's still only about 20 minutes end to end (less if you're getting off in between). And if taking WTC line, it's less than 10 minutes. Personally, I'd rather rely on PATH than the L.
I have lived in Manhattan (UWS) and Queens (LIC) prior to moving here. I love it here. First of all, I like saving $ by not having to pay the NYC income tax. It’s a pretty large chunk of money actually (~3.8%). Also, transportation wise, PATH is convenient (enough). I also travel quite a bit for work and United is my primary airline so proximity to EWR is great. Lastly and most importantly, it’s just so more much peaceful here IMO: more space, more trees, fewer people (relatively).
I lived in Bushwick in 2019 and just moved from upper Manhattan (Hamilton heights/west Harlem) to jersey city. I love Jersey City so much. It feels so much more walkable, I’m easily in the city in 10-15 mins, there’s so many fun restaurants and bars, and it’s young but established. I feel like I have so much more space for the same amount I was lying in Manhattan, and I’m looking forward to being able to have a car again.
I’m a 25 year old single woman, and most folks in downtown JC seem to be families and young couples, but it just feels so much better to me.
Wait nvm according to a PM from u/HappyArtichoke7729, I need to say I hate Jersey City because one single person saying she likes it means that everyone’s rent is going to go up, and it’s ALLLLL my fault. Didn’t know I was that important! So cool to know though.
When you add car payments and parking does your monthly costs stay under the Manhattan situation?
You don't need a car in JC, especially if you are downtown. But if you do get one, a parking spot is way cheaper than Manhattan.
Parking at my apartment is $225 a month, which is about $300-400 less than monthly parking in Manhattan in a decent covered garage. Car payments and insurance vary greatly, but parking itself is so much cheaper.
You don’t need a car in downtown JC but I will say that I’ve rented a car multiple times to go run errands that were too big/inconvenient for a bus/train multiple times.
u don wanna car in JC
lived in queens for 10 years and only moved to jc in search of an affordable apartment to buy. i’m in my early/mid 30s, have been in my relationship for 14 years (married for 6), and think those factors affect my point of view.
i loved queens for its walkability, diversity, food options, and public transit. aside from diversity, i don’t think jc compares in any way on these factors.
generally, jc is a smaller city so you’re naturally going to lose some things transitioning from nyc. there isn’t really a great music or performing arts scene here, and the public transit truly sucks compared to the subway system. you’ll probably want a car if you don’t want to be entirely dependent on the bus system, but this also may depend on where you live in jc. i live on the west side and can’t imagine not having a car here. i pay $150/mo to park behind my neighbors house.
grocery stores here suck. west side is an actual food desert. the shop rite downtown is a war zone but at least it is fully stocked and has good turnover of product bc it’s so busy. cant speak to the stop and shop in the heights.
nightlife is fine, there are bars downtown that are good. you’ll probably want to go into manhattan for legit nightlife but path service sucks at night and on weekends so be prepared to wait or to factor in $50+ ubers to your weekend plans.
no one will visit you here. your nyc friends will think you’ve moved to guam. just know that.
as a 30 something in a long term relationship with an established friend group who just wanted to own a home and wasn’t ready for the suburbs, jc is fine. i miss queens a lot though. i won’t go into detail on schools since i don’t think that’s a concern for you.
if i was you i’d stay in nyc. you’re younger (single?) and likely have more of a social life than me and some other folks who are older and more settled.
one other thing - jersey city is very different neighborhood to neighborhood. i wouldn’t dream of living downtown but i do really like my neighborhood on the west side. if you decide to move to jc do yourself a huge favor and explore a few areas before picking where to live.
Gotta be honest, most of the stuff you said sounds like you dislike your neighborhood.
Really all over the place
Not having to pay NYC income tax is a huge advantage for JC/Hoboken over Brooklyn and Queens.
i actually have had a much worse go of it re: taxes since moving, bc my job is in nyc. the two state tax situation has cause complications for reasons i can’t quite understand. i didn’t think losing the nyc income tax when we moved to new jersey was that big of a win IMO.
Yeah it may seem a little complicated but you are filing both NY and NJ so you don’t get double taxed and get credit for your NJ dues (based on what you paid NY throughout the year via each paycheck). You just need to file nonresident NY and resident NJ forms and you are set.
yeah i think i have some weird tax stuff that makes it annoying for me, also new jersey is insisting i owe taxes this year despite me submitting to them my accountant prepared tax return showing i don’t. i’ve just yet to have an easy time of it haha maybe 2023 is our year.
Yeah I hear you. Tax paper work is the worst! Hope it’s easier for you early next year
if (job === softwareEngineer):
print("Stay in NYC, don't lose your social capital. You can afford to stay.")
else:
print("the heights is getting really nice, we promise")
Disagree, one of the best things about being a software engineer is that you DON'T have to pal around with rich people to do well financially.
BK to JC. Moved into a house instead of the largest apartment my friends had ever seen, which was a 1.5 bedroom garden apartment. Basically the basement of a brownstone with the rich dummy owners living on the top 3 floors. Every time and any time I walked out of my door, I had people moving with me in the same direction. I slow down, there’s more people. I speed up, same thing. It got the best of me. I don’t miss it. I enjoyed waking everywhere and the subway but I learned I am very content in my own home, with my own family and with multiple closets. That to me, is luxurious
JC in my opinion is a cleaner, safer, closer to Manhattan, and substantially cheaper version of Brooklyn.
Grew up in queens, lived in Brooklyn for 5 years and jersey city for 6ish. I never thought I'd move to jersey. Now, I feel like I'll never really need a reason to move back to NYC. I love NY so much but Jersey city has a great community, small city vibes with access to NY any time you wanna go.
Also, Chelsea is super convenient on the path train
Lived in all but queens. Jersey City is probably my favorite but Hoboken is arguably a little more convenient and livable most of the time. Foods not as good over here in Hoboken though. Speaking of food Brooklyn, you have to travel to get certain foods while JC has pretty much everything in pickup or delivery range.
I effectively lived with my ex in BK in bushwick & then Bensonhurst, it was fun for a bit but i really do love the space and freedom you get in JC
Any location I've gone to from JC to Manhattan vs Bensonhurst was significantly closer and easier than Bensonhurst
People talk about concert venues in this thread but I would argue that several of the concert venues in Bk are in random ass locations (Brooklyn Mirage for example) and a public trans trip from JC to Manhattan for a concert is much closer than some of those living in Bk and going to a venue in Bk
Also the L train is one of the worst trains with reliability and weekend service. I would take the Path over that any day
disclaimer: i also own my place in JC so I'm likely biased!
Jersey City. Much easier commute to Manhattan also Brooklyn just generally sucks and is full of annoying people.
And is dirty af.
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finally: print(“there’s Razza pizza in JC”)
I liked the automatic gunfire I would see and hear in Brooklyn but that was so 2007. I like downtown Jersey city’s open air dog bathroom feel it has going on. The heights was great but a bit removed. JSQ was alright but I got robbed once and my girlfriend was always nervous at night. Bergen Lafayette is good so far, not much dog poop though.
I’ve been in jersey city for about 10 years and I’m tired of it. Lived here throughout my 20s in 4 different apartments and wish I had lived in the nyc or bk first before moving to JC. Im just doing shit backwards like I do with my entire life.
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i prefer brooklyn but it probably depends a lot on what you like to do. when i lived in BK, my whole life was there. lived there, worked there and mostly socialized there and downtown manhattan. i lived in north brooklyn so getting to the village or the LES was easy, and there were several ways to get there. i also lived in brooklyn for like 15 years, so i was pretty settled.
i’ve lived in JC for 4 years. i work out in the suburbs and my friends are mostly still in BK so it’s a trek to get there. but if i was working in manhattan i might not mind so much living here. i’m also old now (44) so i don’t know.
it’s not hard to get to manhattan from here but i find the inability to go a different way frustrating. like in bed stuy, if one train got delayed i could take a different train to a similar place, or take the bus. i took the bus a lot in brooklyn, sometimes short distances just cause of the weather or whatever, but the buses in JC just aren’t going where i’m going often enough for me to use them. you can even walk from manhattan to brooklyn which is not an option for JC.
anyway, i find that if the path is delayed or just not coming for a while, the only other option i have to get home is taking a cab.
so far as stuff to do, i don’t go out much these days, and it might be more a function of time than place, but brooklyn always had all these weird little things going on, like tiny film screenings in a loft or punk shows in someone’s kitchen. there are at least 2 spots in not too deep BK where you can just rent a space to some screenprinting which is the sort of thing i haven’t seen at all here.
that’s been my experience. i think if i worked in jersey city or manhattan even i’d like it more/feel more grounded here but brooklyn was a great place for me when i was there.
edited because every time i try to write lived ducking autocorrect wrote loved.
I have lived in Manhattan, JC, and hoboken. Hoboken takes the cake for me. It is the cleanest of all the places you listed, beautiful, and has everything you would want. It’s a 10 min path to nyc. Or 15 min bus. I love it here so much. Don’t picture leaving for years on end.
Grove Street is a great replacement for like Brooklyn. But for me not other parts of JC are worth it
You’ll absolutely love Astoria. You should move to Astoria.
Don’t come to jersey leave us alone
Lived in Long Island City (on the border with Astoria), then moved to JC/Newport.
LIC:
​
Jersey City:
You don't need a car.
"or you will spend all your time in Manhattan/etc."........ Hoboken is nice but whatever. You get tired of it about as fast as your get tired of downtown or Newport. Light Rail/etc is nice but does not take you to the most happening places, and it's weekend schedule and maintenance delays suck almost as bad as PATH. My life in JC improved 10x once I got a car as NJ has so much to offer that is outside the range of mass transit.
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I lived in Brooklyn for 6 years, moved to JC, and just moved back to Brooklyn. JC is a perfectly fine place to live. But if you value the ability to explore new spots and be part of the culture of nyc don’t move to JC. Like others said, it’s a place to settle down. It has a couple good restaurants, but you’d want to be comfortable either going to the same 2 or 3 you like, or commuting to the west village on the path.
As someone who lives in Brooklyn - my opinion is it’s now objectively cooler than Manhattan. I live in Clinton hill, but Williamsburg is probably the best urban streetscape in nyc right now
I lived in Hoboken, Jersey City, Manhattan (FiDi), and Brooklyn (Greenpoint).
Hoboken - I enjoyed north Hoboken; it was a little quieter and still had so many bars/restaurants/parks/stores. The closer you get to the Path train, the closer you are to the happy hour crowd, which can get annoying. Parking sucks anywhere and everywhere. I’m happy I tried it out but wouldn’t live here again.
Jersey City - JC is my favorite place in NJ. Still have restaurants/bars/things to do nearby, and the city is an easy hop—except if you’re coming back over the weekend or late at night. The neighborhoods within JC vary so choose wisely. My favorite areas are Hamilton Park and downtown, but prices have gone up a few hundred dollars a month since I left last year (I used to pay $1,700 for a big one-bedroom in Hamilton Park which is unheard of now). Still cheaper than NYC, though. If it matters, parking was fine here but you need a permit. The sunset is gorgeous on this side of the river because you see the light illuminating the buildings of the city.
Greenpoint - My favorite part of Brooklyn. I think it’s like $3,000 a month to live here though. If you’ve never had the opportunity to live in the city, I would recommend trying it but choosing a cheaper neighborhood. It’s an experience you need to have. I always had a feeling of endless of opportunities here. Amazing bars, restaurants, everything.
Manhattan - nah
If I was choosing based on finances, I would choose JC and still be very happy. If I was choosing based on experiences, I would choose Brooklyn.
I prefer living in Jersey City from Queens. Jersey City is cleaner and cheaper than Queens.
move to BK, only reason to move here is because it's cheaper and you have to be in a worse part of town in order for that to be the case anymore.
Move to Jersey City if you want to be The Toxic Avenger
garth_meringue t1_iui8mdm wrote