Harrison might work, it doesn't have a lot going on itself, but the PATH is a quick ride to Newark, JC and NYC, and it's less expensive.

JSQ is fine (I have friends with young kids who walk around and take the train from there all the time), but you're pushing your budget a lot.

Also, I might talk to a realtor who isn't scared of cities.

I recently moved from outside of US and have been living in JSQ for four months. I read about some crimes in local news but I think that is the thing in most places now. Personally, I have found it safe so far . Someone on this post said Indian Street to McGinley SQ as a safe strip, and I will concur with that. The rent is decent too and you could go for one of the older buildings too if the luxury ones are expensive ( they are !) . I know there are a lot of Facebook groups where people look for room mates , so that could be helpful to you. There are a lot of scammers there so don’t pay a dime before you see the place .

You are simply not good at math. You realize it is possible that the/any vaccine has a 1 in a 100,000,000 chance of causing _insertyourrarediseasehere_. Until you have a couple of billion doses distributed, you don't know if it is statistically relevant or not. At the point in time the statement was made it was entirely correct with the statistics at that time. The fact that it took a lot longer for these rare side effects to be shown underscores exactly how rare they are and makes my point stronger.

The political impact of covid mortality has been presented by a number of researchers, and the effect is undeniably dramatic, there are others as well, but I guess it is all just a big conspiracy:

https://www.nber.org/system/files/working_papers/w30512/w30512.pdf

https://www.axios.com/2022/03/25/coronavirus-pandemics-politics-masks-vaccines-deaths

Buig fan of Clove Garden. Quiet, BYOB, Indian food. It's relatively cheap, bollywood music playing in the background. What more could you want in a date?

Nobody, including yourself, knew 1) what the speed of mutation would be 2) the impact of the mutations. There were no major mutations for quite a while, and the eventual mutations were able to evade infection but not protection against severe disease and death. No one could have guaranteed that the protection against death would remain, but it has and as a consequence we have saved millions of American lives. Sorry if this angers you.

Ahhhh yes Kitchen Step. Awesome place

This is awful advice.

Secaucus is best for older, retired people or young families, it’s extremely suburban and residential. Nothing going on for anyone single and/or under 60. Night and day compared to Jersey City, not to mention it’s not cheap and you’re 100% car reliant living there

Couldn’t agree more. Best restaurant in JC or Hoboken

Your realtor is nuts, JSQ is absolutely fine unless you’re moving from a cornfield and have never been in any city for more than ten minutes. And honestly she’s suggesting Downtown JC and Rutherford for the same client? Fire the realtor, that’d be my first step.

Nah. Razza’s pizza really isn’t all that the media hypes it up to be. Although they classify themselves as “artisanal” pizza, they walk a very thin line on Neapolitan style. If you want a really special place, I would highly suggest S. Egidio in Ridgewood, NJ. Very difficult to get into. The pizza there is 1000x better and their menu is also a much higher caliber. You cannot make reservations.

Razza is okay but unfortunately a lot of people around here don’t know what good food is. I say this because of the hype JC-area folks give to Razza. The Jersey City food scene is pretty disappointing; disappointing because I would just expect more from this area, not that there aren’t a number of good spots. There are a few great locations such as Corto, ONDO, DOMODOMO, and I’m sure there are at least 3-4 more I can name… Kitchen Step, Battello, Light Horse Tavern.

I’ve been to Liberty Prime Steakhouse. It was okay. Nothing spectacular. I have not been to Edward’s yet.

If you want really great food every single time you go, take a trip to Houston’s at the Riverside Square Mall in Hackensack, NJ. You’ll need to make a reservation days in advance. Also, go check out Fiorentini in Rutherford, NJ. Tell Chef Kevin that Dave sent you.

Don’t listen to this guy. Journal square is fine and not that dangerous of an area. Just keep common sense and it’s no worse than any other heavily populated area.

I’d recommend Journal Square — feels generally safe but would recommend with any neighborhood in any city (even downtown JC) to be aware of your surroundings. I think it’s a very convenient neighborhood with great cafes, an arts scene, cultural events, and more and more coming each day with the development that’s happening.

Realtors around here often go by the 3X rule. That’s because what people want to do with their savings is up to them. 40X is more for NYC. But as a renter myself I had always been more conservative so I can actually build up savings and have some money left over to enjoy the amazing restaurants and bars we have around here.

Ah, I see, thats probably a better way to calculate it in a city. Everything I've been seeing has been saying monthly income 3x which would put me at almost $1600 for recommended rent but saving more definitely sounds better. Thank you!

Agreed! Both the filled bombolini and the plain sugared are the best donut style pastries in Jersey City texture and flavor wise. Probably for the best they’re usually only available for a few hours each week. 😂

One rule of thumb is your income should be 40X the rent. I like to save more conservatively and have some extra cash to spend so I would suggest that $1425 should include utilities. Most/many apartments don’t include utilities so budget $100 per month for that.

But remember that $1300 for a bedroom in a 2 or 3 bedroom apartment share will range from somewhat nice to very nice. $1300 for an entire 1BR or even a studio is not likely to be nice at all.

Oo downtown is so nice!

I had a good experience on SpareRoom. The people I met/talked to were really nice and responsible (as some already had places of their own.) Ultimately a working roommate relationship all depends on communication and respect. As long as you’re being upfront on what you want in a roommate/who you are as a roommate, you should be good.

Thanks. Funny, but not worth signing up for that particular circle of hell.

$1400 including utilities or no? I've been seeing some for $1300 not including and some for $1500-$1600 that include and not sure which is the way to go.

I agree with some other people here that mentioned finding a roommate situation. It’s usually more temporary than signing a 12 month lease and you won’t have to furnish a whole apartment. One way to judge an area is the more expensive it is the more people want to live there. Hoboken and Jersey City near the Grove, Exchange, and Newport path stations are the most expensive areas and you can probably find a room for less than $1400 which is really the max you should be spending at $57k income. Once you are more familiar with the area, you can then choose to move to a cheaper area further from a path station or whatever you’re comfortable with.

I am looking on that app as well! There are a few downtown that sound nice with nice sounding roommates but still pretty nervous. I'll have to look at the Heights too!

Was your experience with the roommates you met on there good?

I don't know if 30 is considered young anymore haha, but yes. I have been looking at a few and am hoping it goes well and hoping to have a fun time and meet new people.

I am not able to visit, no. I have to be there by the end of the month and I'm in the Pacific Northwest (so the other side of the country). So kind of relying on other peoples help to get a feel for Jersey City. I'm also from a small town of about 1400 people so that's probably why the realtor was advising me to live outside of the city, she was assuming that I would prefer other areas I suppose. Really talked up Secaucus where she lives.

Downtown with a Roomate. You’ll make tons of friends and with super easy access to NYC. When you’re young roommates teach you a lot and can be life long friends.