# Where to Live - Jersey or Long Island?



## billli77 (Oct 12, 2015)

Hi All 
I am a Dual Aussie/American citizen currently (and have always been) living/working in Australia. I have a job opportunity with my company to take a role living in the USA. I have the choice of living in either New Jersey or Long Island where our offices are located. From what I can tell researching on the internet, the cheaper of the options would by far be New Jersey both rent-wise and Tax-wise despite my preference work-wise was to locate in our Long Island office. Does anyone have any advice on this? 
I am taking across a wife and toddler so family friendly is my preference and I am not overly fussed whether to have house or appartment accommodation so long as the neghbourhood is relatively safe and friendly. Recommendations on neighbourhoods within up to half an hour drive of Carteret (Jersey option) or Jamaica (Long Island option) would be great. Not to be too fussy but a good restaurant/cafe/arts scene would also be ideal 
I also need some tips on quickly establishing Credit if anyone can advise on this. I am advised this is a particular difficulty in moving to the US.
Thanks for any info.


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## BBCWatcher (Dec 28, 2012)

billli77 said:


> I also need some tips on quickly establishing Credit if anyone can advise on this.


Why? Do you plan on going into debt quickly? (Serious question.)

There aren't any particular shortcuts. Apply for one or a couple no annual fee credit cards -- secured cards (e.g. Capital One's) if necessary -- use them only lightly and only for spending you would do anyway, and pay off the full balance on-time without fail, highly preferably via automatic full monthly balance payments. Then wait. It's called a "credit history" for a reason: it has some history.


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## Bellthorpe (Jun 23, 2013)

Do you have an Amex card? They will likely transfer your account, once you're settled and can provide proof of address. I did it over the phone.


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## billli77 (Oct 12, 2015)

Thanks for your reply and the tip. No not planning on going into debt quickly necessarily. Just been advised that its hard to get simple things like a mobile phone (on plan), or a car loan etc without a credit history in the US. Nothing I guess I cantt work my way through but just looking for tips.


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## BBCWatcher (Dec 28, 2012)

billli77 said:


> Just been advised that its hard to get simple things like a mobile phone (on plan)....


About 99+% of the time it doesn't make financial sense for _anybody_ to get a mobile phone contract. Shop around.

Within the past few years T-Mobile really shook the industry (and consumers) out of their slumbers. AT&T is the only major direct carrier in the U.S. still offering conventional mobile phone contracts, and even AT&T expects that consumer-hostile business to die over time.



> ....or a car loan etc without a credit history in the US.


So you do want to go into debt quickly and drive a car you don't actually own. OK, then. 

That particular problem has been solved. Nowadays you can get a car on credit without a credit history, even a new one. If you don't have an adequate credit history (or sometimes even if you do) the lender's car (it's not really yours) will have a location tracking device attached and enabled. Miss a payment (or perhaps even not!), and the car's rightful owner can remotely disable the car and/or repossess it. No problem for the car's owner, at least.


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## austinstables7191 (Feb 17, 2015)

Long Island is immensely expensive to live in. If you're making good money then you shouldn't be too bad, but the property taxes and general day to day living is high.


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## StellaJefferson (Sep 8, 2015)

Hello, 

In order to make a decision, you need to have a thorough idea of cost of living in both the cities. According to my research (and like everyone else including yourself have mentioned), Long Island is more expensive, however, it doesn't mean New Jersey is a cheap place to live in. 

The cost of living index of LI is 287 and that of NJ is 127.6.

According to a survey, cost of living on Long Island is about 50% higher than the national average. 
Homes here cost 70% more than they do across the nation (of course, accommodation is one of the basic needs.) Similarly, Long Islanders have a lot more debt than the national average and they have a hard time paying it. 

As for New Jersey, the high taxes and high cost of living make it an expensive state to live in.


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## BBCWatcher (Dec 28, 2012)

StellaJefferson said:


> The cost of living index of LI is 287 and that of NJ is 127.6.


Even if these numbers are accurate (I have my doubts), nobody lives in all of New Jersey or in all of Long Island. I presume the original poster isn't planning to live in Camden, Trenton, or Atlantic City (as examples) if the company office is in Carteret. (Though Staten Island could be an interesting choice. I'd put that on the list of candidates, actually.) Yet Camden, Trenton, and Atlantic City factor into the cost of living for a place called "New Jersey." For that matter Fishers Island factors into the cost of living for a place called "Long Island," and it would be hard to believe the original poster would even think of living on Fishers Island if working in an office in Jamaica.

The original poster really needs much more micro level data than that.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Jamaica is actually a part of Queens - i.e. NYC - which gives you quite a range of choice as far as where to live. Queens and Brooklyn offer a number of interesting neighborhoods you might consider. And even the Bronx is starting to have some nice family neighborhoods (despite its long-time reputation). True, farther out on Long Island things get incredibly pricey. But Staten Island potentially puts you squarely between your employer's two offices.

You may want to take a look at areas that would allow you to use the NY Public Transit system. Start here MTA | Subway, Bus, Long Island Rail Road, Metro-North for an idea of what is possible. 
Cheers,
Bev


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## Newyorkaise (Nov 30, 2010)

With all due respect to Bev and BBCWatcher, Staten Island puts you squarely in the middle of nowhere. 

Don't even consider it. Really. It's at the ends of the Earth (and much of it got submerged by the last superstorm). Oh, sure, take the ferry there and admire the Statue of Liberty as you pass, and look back from the terminal to the glorious view of Manhattan and Brooklyn... but don't consider living there. Please, promise me...

Of the two options, I'd work in Jamaica. As suggested, get copies of the mass transit maps and figure out where you could live that uses public transportation to your office - traffic can be insane and unless you have designated parking at your office, that'll be a major problem as well. Plus, if you go out for happy hour with colleagues (and you should), you shouldn't drive. And as an additional benefit, you could avoid buying a car (hence, no need for credit at first) - you can probably sign up for Zipcar for those occasions when you need a vehicle for the short term.

Brooklyn and Queens in particular both have a wide variety of family-friendly areas (I wouldn't look in the Bronx - the commute will be a hassle). There are options to rent either homes or apartments. And although even the more challenged areas in both boroughs are gentrifying, there are still places that are - by NYC standards - affordable. And the food!!!

I don't mean to dump on NJ, but the whole point of living in the "TriState Area" is to benefit from NYC's diversity and culture. If you're stuck over in NJ, you're going to find that it becomes far too inconvenient to travel to the City with a toddler to visit the museums, parks, theater, etc. There are a gazillion things to do with toddlers in the City, and you even have a few years to learn how to maneuver through the public school system to find the right school (there are some excellent public schools in NYC, despite the nay-sayers).

So good luck, and forget New Jersey (you've already forgotten Staten Island, right? You promised...). New Jersey's fine, in its way, but suburbia isn't always paradise. In my aggressively pro-NYC opinion, you shouldn't move all this way and miss the opportunity to live in the City.

Good luck with your plans.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Thanks, Newyorkaise, for jumping in here. A number of years ago I did a bunch of research on the NYC area, but that was long before the storms. I guess at the time Staten Island was kind of coming up in the world or something. But like any big city, a little study of the transport system may reveal a neighborhood that will meet all your requirements (and spare you the need for a car).
Cheers,
Bev


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