do you have a car? they are valet only and there was previously an armed robbery of the valet. hard to tell which of the two is more problematic for you if either one is (not being sarcastic, there's crime in any city and all parts of JC and some people don't mind / like doing valet anyway).

the windows are a bit smaller and the units kind of non-standard shapes/layouts, but it sounds like that is specifically what you're looking for so you might be a good fit for it

Check out Laidlaw Lofts in the JC Heights. It was formerly an industrial laundry facility with other light manufacturing uses as well. It's in a residential neighborhood walking distance to public transportation, and a few minutes by car or public transportion to the trendy nightlife spots in JC and Hoboken

I do have a car! Not crazy about the valet situation since I’ll be working in East Orange and plan on driving to work. Is this area safe?

If you live in the building you can't get a street parking permit from the city. So it's valet or bust.

Yes, the area is very safe.

You happen to know if parking is included in rent?

No it was a fee but don’t remember the price. Most buildings are in the $275-$400 range

Did you enjoy living there?

As much as we loved the layouts and natural materials(concrete floors, exposed brick and wood beams) the valet and small windows were enough to push us away on top of the pushy sales people. After a day of looking they said we had till EOD to sign before they would increase the price on a weekly basis. Working from home, the lack of light was super depressing

Is there a reason you’re looking in JC if you’re working in East Orange? That commute could suck with the traffic.

South Orange has a bunch of rentals and a brand new one that looks really nice, but they are charging JC prices for it. My wife and I are in the process of moving from JC to SO (we bought)

My wife works in the lower east side.

Lousy construction.

Ah yeah, that’s a bitch to get to from anywhere. SO would just make that more complicated even with the midtown direct.

Parking is definitely not included. And, honestly, you do NOT want to live at Modera Lofts. Do your research online, or here. TONS of complains about paper thin walls. It is literally the number one complaint for that place. Lots of fake/thin floating walls that do not insulate from noises. We had friends who lived there and after two months, they were desperate to move out. They ended up staying one year because they didn't want to pay the early termination fee. But, if you work from home, or if you value your peace and quiet at home, you need to rethink your options.

>South Orange

Also known as Maplehood! ;)

South Orange is aweseme. I *really* like that town, and it is weirdly convenient for commuters into NYC with two NJT stations and express trains during the morning commute rush hours. Also, lots of amenities and great restaurants in Maplewood, or a few minutes away in Millburn, Montclair, etc. You chose a great place to move.

Lol we were looking in both and my realtor kept calling it Maplehood (I joke and say I’m on the good side of the tracks). The hood won’t kill us but the taxes will…

We’re actually smack on the border of SO and Maplewood, so a mile from each downtown which is great.

It’s funny how there’s so many people in both towns who decamped from Brooklyn, Hoboken and JC.

Confirmed on paper thin walls.

Edit: debatable on the lighting. I live in a corner unit and my apartment has 6 windows so plenty of light.

Edit: in

Like any management company run building, they nickel and dime you for everything. Expect to pay an extra $80-$100 a month in a variety of “fees”.

Is it better to rent a brownstone?

Certainly will be cheaper. If you don’t care for the amenities etc. you’d probably be better off.

Modera super cool, but no cell service behind those huge thick walls? I guess if you are on wifi that's fine.

Don’t care for amenities. My work pays for my gym membership.

Lived in Modera for about two years and absolutely loved it. The maintenance crew fixed items quickly, management was responsive, and we loved the amenities and industrial style. I would recommend trying to get a south facing apartment (on the front of the building) and you’ll get plenty of light. Amenities like the bike room, storage lockers, dog wash/dog run, and industrial laundry equipment were all added benefits.

As for the garage, it’s separately managed by another company, but any time I had an issue I would inform management and they were usually quick to take care of it. We really enjoyed having a valet and they were typically pretty quick in the morning.

No building will be perfect. There will be issues with elevators from time to to time, an amenity might be closed for one reason or another, or some gym equipment might be broken. Of the five rental buildings I’ve lived in the last 10 years this one was the best.

Check out the residences at Liberty Harbor. I know a few people who live in various buildings there and they're pretty happy. https://www.libertyharbor.com/

How was the noise level? That seems to be a big complaint with people when I read reviews.

How is the Zenith?

I lived there for a year and I had to leave due to poor noise insulation (at least in my unit). It was so bad that I could hear my neighbor snoring as if they were sleeping next to me. Some others in the building that I spoke to experienced this and other folks had no issues at all.

Also looking at Zenith (9 Regent). If anyone has experience living here as well I’d love to know.

My friend lives there, it's above the biergarten... says there's a lot of noise on weekend nights, especially on the side of the building that faces the back (overlooking the biergarden backyard) so it depends on what you value more... quiet or having a close by bar/restaurant. If you like quiet maybe try looking at one of the other properties over there. I know there's some street parking in that neighborhood and garage parking for a fee too in one of the buildings. Safe area, better lit-up than Modera lofts neighborhood (Powerhouse district) which is under heavy development.

You should also try looking into the Journal Square neighborhood, there's a few high rise buildings there with amenities and the such and more on the way. Also decently priced apartments in older buildings. The neighborhood is up-and-coming, still a little rough at night but not dangerous, definitely less nightlife than downtown JC but that's quickly changing.

Never an issue for us. We were on the 7th floor and someone told us once that there’s more noise on the 8th floor when people hang out on the roof, but we didn’t notice it.

Also considering apartments in Weehawkn. Estuary in particular. Any suggestions about that area? Is it quieter/safer than JC?

I don't know Weehawken too well. It is quieter I believe, not sure about safer. It's not as walkable as Jersey City or Hoboken. And also not as convenient for commute to lower manhattan. I think you have to either take the lightrail to hoboken to catch the PATH or you can take the ferry to midtown and the subway/bus.

I used to work in the LES before my office moved to Brooklyn. If you want to make your wife's commute less hellish, try to stay near the PATH. Maybe consider Harrison. There's loads of new buildings there due to building up the area near the PATH and the soccer stadium, a lot of new restaurants...

FYI- at some point in the near future, there’s a pretty good chance that a new high rise will be built on the site of the parking lot right across the street from the main entrance of Modera.

I almost rented there a couple years ago, but I backed out after getting weird vibes from the landlord.

They took forever to approve my application and respond to basic questions. I figured if that’s how they treat prospective tenants, it must be even worse once you’re locked into a lease.

I later learned that the the same landlord is behind Lafayette Lofts, which is another nice-looking building that has tons of terrible reviews online.

I lived there for a year. I liked it for the most part. But not enough for me to stay. I was on the 8th floor & unlucky enough to be in a unit where you can hear people in the rooftop as if they’re in the room. It was quite a annoying. Please note, not all unit experience this.

Another thing is the lack of lights going into my unit. The bedroom didn’t even have a window. The living room only had two windows which barely get any light because the unit was facing another unit. It was not a unit that was facing the street.

Had I lived in a different unit without the issues mentioned above, I would have stayed. But I was not was not willing to pay extra $500/month to put up with those.

I live at 18park and love it. Maintenance and staff are great. I had a slight issue with new tenants making a lot of impact noise and the building handled it so well. It was resolved. There is a parking garage. The light rail is so so so convenient. The only thing I don’t love is I wish the patio had seating or grills but people sit in the grass when not by the pool

This building is a nightmare. Depending on the unit you may get zero sunlight. We lived in 245 for several years and literally couldn’t tell if it was sunny or raining. The bedroom also had no windows which is probably illegal.

Our neighbor smoked cigarettes inside his apartment for literal YEARS so ours always smelled like cigarettes. We complained probably hundreds of times before they ever did anything.

The valet can sometimes take over an hour to get your car so start calling long before you need it.

And there are tons of extra fees including mandatory valet trash service that we never used.

Can confirm this. If you aren’t in Wi-Fi good luck using the phone.

Is the parking included in your rent?

I’ve never heard of parking being included in JC buildings, just FYI.

Thank you! I’m also looking into Weehawken. Any thoughts on that area? How is the commute into the city from there?

There is one place in Paulus Hook that does

Weehawken, you’re looking at bus to PABT or ferry.

Are the buses fairly reliable and well maintained?

I used to commute via NJT bus from Freehold, NJ to PABT for 2 years. I swore that I would never set foot on a NJT bus or in PABT after I moved to JC. This is why I chose to move to a town with direct NJT train service.

Short answer, I hate the bus but YMMV

Isn’t that close to Newark and kind of a rough area? I’ll be getting home from Manhattan late.

I don’t park, but I think it’s $250 or something

? Freehold is central Jersey. Newark isn’t bad. Went to school there 15 years ago and it’s only improved. Irvington can be a little rough and some of the outer wards, but you’re also further from public transportation when you get to those areas.

If your budget is $3K, have you considered Manhattan, NYC? I’m not sure about finding a 1 bedroom in Manhattan for under $3K but there’s probably studios out there at that price point.