Hi all, My budget to buy a house is about 1M$ (Fairly new construction and in a decent neighborhood with good rent incase I don’t end up living there) I am fine with a condo or a house. It just needs to be at least 2 bed 2 bath. Also, an hour commute to Manhattan. (it’s all wfh for now but who knows how it’s going to be in the future) 1) Is it true that NY city should be out of the question because of the heavy income taxes/property taxes? 2) Also should condos be eliminated because of the HOA fees? TC: 250k (before the drop) YOE: 7 (My bf makes 285k) #housing #mortgage #newyork #newjersey
Prop taxes lower in NYC. But $1M won’t get you a 2/2 unless you are further out.
not true
You can def get a 2/2 in NYC if you're ok w a "not so great" neighborhood
Are you the only person who will be living there?
Nope, intend to live with my bf
I would suggest Jersey City or Hoboken
You’re not gonna get new construction for $1M in New Jersey if you want to live somewhere desirable. New construction homes aren’t very common in the parts of NJ that are close to the city. I only really see new construction in Short Hills and Chatham, which are out of your budget. This is speaking single family homes, though. Also, NJ property taxes are high as hell. $1M house with taxes and everything, will run you around 6-8k depending on the township. For single family homes, check out: West Orange Montclair Morristown Livingston Summit Milburn You can find some modern condos in Jersey City, but the HOA fees are gonna cost you. You’re looking at 7k+ all in (mortgage, taxes, HOA, etc)
Sorry, I didn’t read the whole post before writing this. Lol. The townships I listed were with ppl wanting children in mind. For younger, no children people, I think Montclair and Morristown are supposed to have fun downtowns
Morristown has a great downtown and some decent nightlife if you’re in your 20s. From a family perspective it’s good too but the schools aren’t great, probably would want to move or send your kid to private school once they’re out of kindergarten
Well u can find tons of new construction around 1m in bergen county
Lots of blue laws there
Lots? I only know of one. That you can't buy household stuff on Sundays... Which is annoying and stupid and took some getting used to but I doubt it's going to be a deal breaker for anyone. Are there more than that I haven't seen yet?
Idk how often your need to commute to the city or how flexibility with the distance you are but most towns along the Bergen county line are great in regards to both family life and schools. Some include ridgewood, Mahwah, Ramsey, allendale, etc. ridgewood is a 20min train ride to Hoboken, for example.
Ramsey too far imo lol
Not where I’d pick as a gay couple
Chicago
You will not be able to afford a proper 2 bed 2 bath family home in NYC for a million. You will have to make a ton of compromises with the property. You will be looking in very shitty neighborhoods or looking at very cramped condos.
Not true at all… I know someone whose bid was accepted last week for 750K for 2B 2B, 1500 sq ft. apartment in midtown east. The apartment is unlivable rn but they intend to spend ~300K to renovate the place. My recommendation is don’t listen to folks on here, they don’t know what they’re talking about. Go out there and get a feel for the market yourself.
Oh for Gods sake. So they buy a gut reno for 3/4 million, put another 300 into it because it's unlivable otherwise.... What does that add up to? More or less than a million? Just look online at the listings and see what's actually available. Oh and be able to count also.
Park Slope is close to downtown, has excellent schools, and plenty of 2bed/2bath under 1 million. However, it's going to be a brownstone, not a new construction.
A floor through apartment in a brownstone... Tiny rooms and limited closet space. No parking. Schools are horribly oversubscribed. Ps321 is a meme at this point. The ride into the city is fine if you work in downtown but if you work in midtown you've probably a longer commute than someone in NJ.
WOW, amazing, I was trying to find a part of your answer that's correct and just can't. Space depends on layout, plenty of relatively large places. I have floor to (high) ceiling closets in every single room. 25mn ride to financial district, less than 40mn to midtown. Might work from some places in NJ if you are super lucky with schedule, but unlikely most of the time or evenings. Plenty of street parking, I almost never do more than one lap around the block. And LOL regarding ps321, the fact that you mention this as if it was the only/best school around here entirely give away the fact that either you don't know what you're talking about or that you're just writing in bad faith.
Jersey City If you make enough, saving on the NYC income tax outweighs the higher property tax. Prices are more affordable/better value for the accessibility to Manhattan vs in NYC.
Please don't invite more people to Jersey City. Keep how good it is living here a secret.
Property taxes are very high in NJ as well.
very true. especially high in the north jersey (bergen county area)
Agree i live in Hudson and the property tax here are wild 2.2%