Where to live for a young couple commuting to Philly and NYC?

Submitted by TheCruelOne t3_yk7qx5 in newjersey

My husband and I recently got married and are looking to move into an apartment of our own. Currently I work in Philadelphia (only for the next 1.5 years) and he generally works from home, but goes to his office in NYC 2-3 times per week. We were hoping to move to Jersey so that I can drive to Philly when I need to go to work in person and so that we can hopefully be close enough to an NJ transit stop that will allow him to get to NY more easily. We are a couple in our early 30s and are looking for an apartment just to live in for the next couple years before I find a more permanent job and we move elsewhere. We're interested in a town that still has a fair amount of young people/restaurants/shopping and is somewhat vibrant without being overrun with college kids. Any advice would be appreciated. :)

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Ms284 t1_iurp21t wrote

Princeton or Lawrenceville. Hamilton by Quakerbridge Mall.

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PhilosophicWarrior t1_iurp5h4 wrote

Princeton developed as a stage coach stop between Philly and NYC

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Please_Nerf_Your_Mom t1_iurr5hd wrote

Somewhere near Princeton might be your best bet. You're going to get college kids there, but I wouldn't say it's overrun. Any direction ten minutes outside of downtown should be affordable, and close to Princeton Junction train station. It's a 45-50 commute from there to the Bustleton part of Philly.

If you need to get closer than that, some of the areas on the outskirts of Trenton may be better.

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ferocious_coug t1_iusd9e7 wrote

Bustleton always makes me think of the Busy World of Richard Scarry

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blumpkin_donuts t1_iurs5yd wrote

There's no town in Central NJ with a fair amount of young people/restaurants/shopping and is somewhat vibrant without being overrun with college kids. Princeton is your best bet and that's an Ivy League town. Best of luck.

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Psirocking t1_iutroj6 wrote

I’d say Red Bank. But that’s not good for a Philadelphia commute.

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blumpkin_donuts t1_iuts87p wrote

It's almost as if the rail system in the state has needed a massive overhaul for 20 years or something.

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Psirocking t1_iutwwka wrote

I’d love if trains turned south at Rahway too :/

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mikeyd1276 t1_ius1rtk wrote

Bordentown City could work. River line to NE corridor for NYC. Very drivable to Philly. Awesome downtown.

New Brunswick for more of a city feel could work too.

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[deleted] t1_ius25b7 wrote

Neptune/Asbury Park- You can take the train or Bus

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surfnowokgo t1_ius2rdl wrote

Good luck! I know you didn't ask, but I think one of you should relocate jobs and collectively you'll save thousands in commuting costs and other related costs to sacrificing 2 to 4 hours a day each.
My wife and I did something similar, it was stupid expensive, exhausting, and bad for the mind and body. We both work in the same town and life is easy.

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TheCruelOne OP t1_ius49xe wrote

That’s definitely our plan moving forward. I’m in a residency program in Philadelphia so I’m tied here for 4 years, but nearing the end of my program. My husband also moved from abroad in 2020 and was fortunately able to just be transferred to an office in NYC. Definitely a conversation we need to have as neither of us want to be commuting this much in the future! Thank you for the input!

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cherrych0lera t1_iusb45o wrote

Yardley PA may be worth looking at. For the Philly commute you can get the West Trenton into Center City right from town. It’s also right off 295 which connects to 95 or you can pick up 195 and take that to the GSP. Yardley is also a short-ish drive to NJT for trains into NYC. For example, see Hamilton station which has a sizeable hub.

Yardley also has a brewery (Vault) and a few decent restaurants but it’s small and you might get bored pretty quickly. The one plus for housing may be that there usually are some short term rental housing available since I think a fair amount of people move there with the intentions you have.

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gundabad t1_iuss922 wrote

If you are up for both driving a bit to Park & Rides, Hightstown is way more affordable than Princeton, and is right off the Turnpike midway between both cities.

Unfortunately not well served by bus or train.

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BacktotheFutureTmw t1_iustssg wrote

Collingswood is nice, but it will be a longer commute to NYC although great proximity to Philly. If interested, I could show you some of the rentals in the area. Feel free to send me a PM, and good luck with your endeavors.

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RivChk t1_iut4y8z wrote

Lambertville is a great town. It has a bus to NYC and 22 minutes to a train to PHilly. I actually have neighbors in your exact situation. One drives to Philly and one takes public transit to NYC.

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nadja_intheshadows t1_iutm6fp wrote

New Brunswick has a lot of college kids but I lived there when I was commuting to NYC (1hr 15 min) by train and my partner was driving to Princeton (about 30-40min by car depending on traffic, so probably a bit longer to Philly). I feel it’s more realistic/fair than both of you living in Princeton with one of you having a much shorter/better commute. Plus if your partner doesn’t want to drive they can take the train to Philly too.

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zsal830 t1_iuttrra wrote

what are you doing in philadelphia?

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Sn_Orpheus t1_iuua4td wrote

Princeton Junction in West Windsor. There are Townhomes that we lived in that were 3/4 mile door to door (train door). N.E. Corridor train line has trains direct into NYC as well as Amtraks to Philly. And it's a fairly easy drive to philly. Wife worked in NY but was going to school on weekends in Philly and it worked wonderfully. Added bonus, schools in West Windsor are tops. Windsor Haven was the complex and it is off Bear Brook Rd. in Princeton Junction. Lots of great things about living there from a farmer's market near the train station in summer to a quick ride or drive into Princeton for all it offers. If you like to run or bike, there's also a canal bike/run path in princeton. One of the best places we've lived.

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ExploringMom57 t1_iuw51b3 wrote

My suggestion would be somewhere near a train station. Driving to Philly during the morning rush hour can be horrendous, I imagine NY would be the same. Construction has been ongoing on 95 for years near Philly.

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l1vefrom215 t1_iuto8x6 wrote

I don’t have any specific advice for you in where to live but I STRONGLY recommend you are within a half hour of home for your commute. You may be working long hours (don’t know your specialty) and you are at risk of falling asleep at the wheel and DYING. It happened to me during residency and another resident I know who became paralyzed.

Let your husband commute a little extra please.

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TheCruelOne OP t1_iutxcec wrote

Appreciate the concern, genuinely. I’m in Psychiatry and thankfully I’m doing outpatient currently. . I can work from home a lot of the days, but have short call from 3:45pm-9:45pm about once a week, so that is the latest I’ll be at the hospital. I don’t think that’s too horrible a commute for once a week, but definitely something to consider. Thank you for your input.

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l1vefrom215 t1_iuu0493 wrote

Ahhh ok then let me make a suggestion: Red Bank NJ. It’s a short ferry ride to nyc (40 min) and just over an hour to Philly.

It’s set on a picturesque river, is right near the beach, has a famous performing arts center, and enough of a town that there is some nightlife and restaurants to try. The schools are excellent and it’s kinda beach without being a beach town.

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