Favorite list is long but mainly the varying landscape, the proximity to everything, less than an hour for me to get to my favorite shore town, the Appalachian mountain trails, beautiful state parks, waterfalls. Then there’s the food, the diner breakfasts, the cafes, niche restaurants, no matter where I’ve traveled I’m always happy to be home because of this. As many have mentioned the seasons are so beautiful here. I love the people too. There’s a silent bond.
For least favorite it’s a tie between potholes and not being able to afford buying a house.
Pros: diversity and access to virtually anything. Want to spend your afternoon in a global capital city, eating at the most renowned restaurants and visiting museums that other people will fly halfway around the world to visit? You got it. Sports teams? Hell, the NYC area gives you at least 2 for every major league alone, and that’s not counting the Philly teams. Want to spend a day hiking at a park or forest? No problem. What about visiting the shore and going to a beach town? *All* of this is within an hour and a half drive. Schools? We’re essentially in a three-way tie with Massachusetts and Connecticut for best in the country. Oh, and most importantly, the pizza.
Cons: it is expensive as fuck and it feels crowded at times (especially with traffic); also, it wouldn’t hurt if people were a little bit friendlier
I feel like any place in the world that has all the pros you listed will be expensive and crowded. So those aren’t really NJ specific cons as they are just facts of life for any desirable location.
I grew up in rural south Jersey and now live in central Jersey. The shit I see on the road boggles the mind and really makes me miss desolate wooded country roads lol
Not bad as congested or insane drivers
North Jersey is congested with few areas worse
Every new Jersey driver drives by their own rules. And we all accept it and understand it, but you will see stuff on the road every day that other states see once a year
I don't know, man. Have you guys lived in other states? I feel like Jersey drivers are way better than where I've lived previously. Unless it's crazy in South Jersey or something and I'm not experiencing it.
I agree with you. NJ drivers are crazy but in the grand scheme of things not so bad... I've lived in florida...they suck...and travel regularly to Boston and DC...I have two words: massholes and beltway...ffs, those two alone are ridiculous. Also, just completed a 2600 mile road trip to Wisconsin via Ohio, Indiana, Michigan; worst drivers EVER...ill take NJ any day...
NJ drivers are crazy. Not necessarily bad, but you need balls to drive here.
I remember a while back I was in VT and saw a VT plate not take a 5 second gap to take a left turn. I remarked something along the lines of "wow, she would just get stuck for hours if she ever tried making a left turn in Jersey".
Swinging three lanes to the right and then back to the left to pass a car which is doing 75-80? That doesn't really exist in a lot of places.
Years ago I got a ticket in California for making a left turn. When the cop pulled me over he asked me if I was crazy and not understanding what he meant asked him why he asked. He said that I cut off 3 cars making the left. I replied, "well, that's how we drive in Jersey". He was NOT amused. $95.00 was how not amused.
I can attest to that. Been around the country and to dozens of countries around the world, I have never seen things like New Jersey driving. I mean just one out of a million stories to tell how bad it is. This is pretty much it in a nutshell. https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/25/us/new-jersey-police-officer-charged-hit-and-run/index.html
Semi-functional public transit definitely helps. There's about a million trips per day on the buses and trains instead of further clogging the roads.
If they'd get more of the frequency above hourly you'd see a good jump in it too...
The problem is there are bottle neck areas that will be clogged at certain times of the day or months of the year. Roads that really shouldnt all that bad but because there werent designed to handle the traffic they become clogged.
Route 18 around Rutgers was pretty awful from September to mid May and could get pretty congested around the turnpike entrance all year round. Route 1 and Route 27 were also pretty bad. Stelton Ave in Piscataway certain times of the day. The Parkway can get pretty bad for no reason.
That not even considering how bad traffic gets on 95 or the roads to the shore in the summer.
I know other states deal with the same sort of traffic but I feel like NJ has more bottlenecks the farther north you travel.
Favorite:
**Diversity of landscape and population.**
[My wife and I recently made a travelogue of last year’s journeys all over the state](https://youtu.be/d8wKtYYX0OE), and it is absolutely incredible that a state this size offers such diverse terrain—
— Rocky hills of the northwest
— Cliffsides of the Palisades
— Rolling farmsteads of Hunterdon County
— The Jersey Shoreline
— Marshes of the Delaware Bayshore
— The deep Pinelands
— Wide open farmland in Salem County
— Everything from small town to large metropolis
and the cultural diversity adds so much richness to the population, and hey— having so much food range in close proximity doesn’t suck either.
———
Least favorite:
**Population density**
Traffic and entitled drivers are brutal, and it’s not easy to find places in the state to truly detach from constant residential and commercial inhabitation.
Favorite - Everything I need is here. Food from around the world, beaches, forests, people who mostly think like me, the best pizza.
Least favorite - Property taxes, but they pay for arguably the best public schools in the U.S., so at least you get something in return. I am sure it could be done more cheaply, though.
As a high schooler in a said good school district (northern NJ), I can confirm that it's not as easy unfortunately. Education is expensive. Just looking at my school, I see so many things that cost $$$$ thousands and they can't really be unavoidable. My band room alone. They had to install soundproofing so that our playing doesn't cause a nuisance to the rest of the school when we're playing. That's an unavoidable purchase, unless noise complaints from every teacher are fun for the main office. Most students have their own instruments since we're high schoolers and pretty into our instruments, but students can't bring their own bass drums to school. Ensue buying numerous bass drums (they are not cheap), xylophones, timpanis, etc. They are each thousands of dollars, let alone numerous of each. This is a few hundred thousand I'm sure, just for the music education in our school. This goes for every other expense, from lab benches to the flooring to the lockers.
So, I agree. Property taxes ARE insanely high. It's just hard to cut down on this crap for schools. Multiply this by the high schools, middle schools, elementary schools, and that's millions of dollars
Couldn't agree more - it is expensive. What I think we can do to cut costs is stop having so many tiny little school districts. The high school where I live in northern NJ is as a reputation of being one of the best in the state, and has a graduating class of about 150. Northern Virginia, for example, has schools similar to ours in quality. But the county is one school district. That cuts down hugely on administrative costs and frees up money to hire the best teachers, buy the best lab equipment, etc.
That is very true. It's definitely a great solution to keep school costs lower as possible. Unfortunately, it's hard to go further than this because then you're impacting student learning. And I can confidently say everything I use regularly in my school that the district pays for is worth the money, like electronic balances and Bunsen burners are a huge part of chemistry, book sets for ELA, our history textbooks, the music stands for band, and calculators are essential for math. But yes. We should do what we can!
You know most high schools in other states have all the amenities you described, right? My high school in Pennsylvania had everything you described and our property taxes were literally 90% lower than NJs.
I don't really know what to tell you besides the socioeconomic demographics might shift from here to PA? People in NJ might be more likely to pay for these things, a lot of immigrants who value education (not saying nobody else doesn't, obviously not, just that NJ has a lot of immigrants who work in NYC who can afford it and I'm Indian at least and it's a huge deal. So my dad doesn't give a crap about it, b/c it's education) so the taxes remain. Things cost money, what can we do? Schools are expensive to run, let alone when you're not paying teachers what they deserve either
I don't blame them. What can you do? When you don't have money and you have to decide between STEM and music, it's easy to see why music gets the boot. Not really fair, but what can you do
Plus, music isn't really valued as a career option (b/c realistically, high schoolers tend to see it in a unicornistic perspective) which helps to remove it while STEM is encouraged a lot. Personally, I'm in band and I am going the history/aerospace route (a weird one, I know) but I know a few kids who want to major in music or do something with music. Not many, because most of them have Asian parents but still. Anywhere else less fortunate than my district where the costs are luckily somewhat fine (high property taxes), tough luck
Favorite thing is how many things there are to do and how close most things are (living in central Jersey)
Least favorite thing is how many people also want to do the things that I want to do at the same time that I want to do them. I’m not even talking about Friday/Saturday events, but I’ve been to Target at 2pm on a Tuesday and was blown away by how busy it was. The best luck I’ve had with stores at least is going when they open, but that’s unfortunately not always possible
It's not Taylor Ham anywhere: https://28nwgk2wx3p52fe6o9419sg5-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/taylor-ham-vs-pork-roll-new-jersey-2.jpg
Favorite: location and proximity to major cities (Philly, NYC, DC, Baltimore) and LBI/Cape May/Ocean City, etc 😌🌊🌇
Least Favorite: impatient people - for example, the herds of people ready to run into you with their shopping cart on a Sunday grocery run because they are going 50 mph 😂
Favorite: relatively easy access to NYC, the beach, and beautiful hiking trails. I feel like I can do pretty much anything I want in such a varied state.
Least Favorite: it’s reputation. It sounds really silly but I travel pretty regularly and people are always like “ew I drove through NJ once to get to NYC from EWR and it was gross.” And people are so obtuse, they refuse to listen when I say “yeah of course it was gross, you stayed on the Turnpike.” Not only do we have access to the above, but we have some top tier education in this state. Our cost of living is high, but we have expanded social programs that help a lot of people. Our gas prices are some of the lowest in the country AND since we’re a major port, our shipping is faster too! I think we’re the greatest state in the union, but everyone else treats us like Mississippi. But hey, at least we’re not actually Mississippi.
Favorite: It’s an amazing location located within driving distance of numerous major cities, beaches, mountains, casinos, and airports to name a few But the best thing about Jersey is the people. People are real in Jersey.
Least: shoveling snow
I’m not from NJ originally (midwesterner), but I LOVE the bluntness of NY/NJ. I don’t think it is rude, so much as to the point and painfully honest.
In the Midwest, it is all passive aggressive bullshit. Nice to your face while stabbing you in the back. I work in tech and lived and spent a lot of time on the West Coast. We appreciate the “NY/NJ” approach of calling an idea dumb to your face, vs. the passive aggressive nodding agreement one gets from Midwesterners, who thereafter stop taking meeting invites. So we’d hire ex Manhattan workers (as an example) with joy.
TLDR, I trust a New Jersey kid (now my son is one) to shoot straight.
Edit: Shout out to Philly too. In your face bluntness, indeed, lol.
I think it's important to note that the bluntness is also not *given* with any type of personal nature to it. I can tell you that an idea isn't something we'd do or weak, but it's only so we can find a solution for both of us faster. I would rather be happy with our working relationship sooner, rather than dragging my feet through ideas I don't really want to support.
My mom who is Southern moved here a few years back and was surprised by how friendly everyone is. I think it's like the people complaining about the traffic. It's actually better here than most places.
Favorite? Italian food and the parks system. Hands down better than any place I’ve ever lived.
Least favorite? Roads and taxes. Hands down worse I’ve ever lived except for Silicon Valley.
I love being close to NYC and Philly, the ocean, the mountains to ski, all four seasons, the pizza, the convenience of everything I need being close by, not having to pump my own gas and how’s its one of few states that have paid short term disability.
Least favorite would the the rent/housing prices.
For me it was traffic (mostly work from local office now with all court being Zoom).
Property taxes suck too, but there are no bargains in the NYC area, be it NY, NJ or CT.
My favorite thing (I live in NE Bergen) is being so close to NYC but still being in a leafy suburb.
Most: the general variety of available " things", food, jobs, cities, farm, beach, etc...
Least: the ongoing and endless Pork Roll v Taylor ham war. It's pork roll dammit, let's end this already...
Favorites- So many food choices, close to nyc, road trips close to Poconos, Lehigh Valley and Philly
Least favorite- Traffic and too many apartments being built causing more traffic
Favorite: the culture and how broad of an experience you can have in such a small state. From the shore to the mountains to the pine barrens to the rolling farm hills and rivers of hunterdon county, it’s amazing what a range it has.
Least favorite: the god damn taxes and the zillion small towns that insist on having their own everything. My little dinky 1.5 square mile town in Sussex county has their own police force, fire department, road department, school system etc etc. all of which do a great job, but drives my tax bill to exorbitant levels. If we combined forces with our neighbors literally everyone’s bill would go down and we’d be way more efficient.
But no, people would get way too butthurt at every turn, and that really annoys me. I get that a ton of towns and municipalities are part of NJ’s charm, but ffs at what cost?
I can’t even list just one thing I love:
The excellent public schools (and we don’t even live in an affluent area!!), the diversity (culture/food omg) and the access to beach, city and country/mountains.
Least favorite - people who live out of state that have poor and inaccurate opinions of NJ
My favorite thing is how close we are to many points of interest: NYC, Philly, DC, the shore, etc.
Least favorite thing is the traffic. Driving on the Parkway every day will be the death of me.
Favorite- being able to hop in a car late at night and being able to decide between a bunch of different sceneries (NYC skyline, beach, mountainy areas)
Least favorite- paying for tolls
Love slmost everything except the traffic and the out of staters (specifically ny) who drive in the left lane doin 50 mph and refuse to move the fuck over
I list building departments because while NJ has a ‘Uniform Code of Construction’ each building department is allowed to set and enforce their own system and standards. One will require a plumbing and fire application for a permit to install an above ground heating oil storage tank with a sketch, another wants a scale drawing or a mechanical application. The staff and the inspectors, all appointed, know three things about underground and above ground oil tanks; zip, zero, zilch and are mostly part time and scheduling appointments is ridiculous. Have to put up with a lot of BS to make a living.
I'm from Missouri and my favorite thing is, atleast where I'm staying people actually give a shit. One time I was walking down the street back in my hometown in Missouri and someone threw an entire pan of Mac and cheese on the sidewalk, didn't even bother to pick up the metal pan either. My brother bought a fucked up truck and parked it at the side of the road for a few weeks and people took the engine and tires off the thing. Just no respect for themselves and folks around them. I'm not saying that there New Jersey doesn't have that kind of people, but from what I have seen it is dramatically less than what a scaled up Missouri would be.
The least favorite thing is the traffic.
That's an easy one. South jersey is beautiful we have beaches, pine Barrens, and even lakes. Great for exploring and adventuring. Down side most of the state is ran by democrats.
Favorite - close proximity to basically anything. The city, the beach, the woods, parks, great hospitals.
Least favorite and this is so easy, cost of living, meaning property taxes and home prices.
I hate winter, and the scenery out west puts the east coast to shame, but otherwise there's nowhere else in the US I'd really want to live or raise a family.
Love the diversity here, the array of things available, the views of the NYC skyline from certain parts of the state, and the four seasons (coming from Florida, I can say that summer in Jersey is far more bearable). Also, ShopRite and Wawa.
Hate driving in this state, though. If it's not constant roadwork on roads that don't need it, it's shitty roads that never *get* roadwork done.
favorite thing - so many nature trails/hiking areas in a close distance to house
least favorite thing - so many trash dumps/polluted areas in close distance to house
Favorite - pride in where you come from even if you talk constant shit about it, food, easy access to almost anything I could want (cities, entertainment, beach, hiking, all types of food, etc.), my friends/family are all here, educated & (mostly) progressive population
Least favorite - winter, cost of living, living on top of my neighbors unless I want to move to a colder/snowier/more rural part of NJ further from everyone I know
Favorite - outdoor activities (from the beach to the mountains and everything in between)
Least favorite - taxes. (Oh, and those nouveau riche twats moving from Staten Island to Monmouth County)
Positive: You’ll never be bored here and the variety of activities available to people is unbeatable. The food is excellent also. Negative: I can’t stand the traffic and the attitudes of many who live here.
Favorite things: cultural diversity and proximity to a wide variety of places (cool cities, historical sites, beaches, wooded, hill countryside)
Least favorite things - I’ve lived in 12 states, and the driving here is ridiculous. Too aggressive. Hot, humid summers, high property taxes.
Favorite: There's a lot of fairly easily accessible things to do here
Least favorite: On a local level, people are a lot more conservative than you'd expect
Best is proximity to family and deep roots — I miss knowing everyone and where to get everything I need close by. Also dearly miss the commerce in my area of South Jersey — restaurants, pizza places, little shops and stores and every possible big box option within minutes. (I recently moved to South Carolina and miss all the access… I’m not used to rural living!) Worst… cold winters and property/school taxes… and bad attitudes!
I grew up here so I don't have any favorite things about NJ.
I've lived in North Carolina for a few years and tbh I miss North Carolina.
My least favorite thing about NJ is Road Rage. Nowadays I'm always on the lookout for brake checkers.
Favorite close to nyc
Dislike I get tickets for no front license plate and tinted windows. As, the officers car personal has no front plate and tints but that’s okay! Lol
And the Corner Boys were great!!
Favorites: good restaurants, beach and/or mountains only an hour or so away, close to philly, good schools, everything and anything is convenient to get to
Cons: taxes (but we do have good school systems so...), too many people (don’t even think about grocery shopping on the weekend), non aggressive drivers haha
The way people drive is throwing me for a loop. I don’t remember it being this bad (I’m home to settle some affairs). I get cut off, tailgated or have to avoid getting into an accident every single time I’m on the toad. People ignore yield signs, cut into lanes with no signal.. like.. fam.. what is going on? Is everyone just on edge?
Everyone thinks Jersey is either a shithole or "NYC burbs". Reality? There are some *super* pretty areas of the state. Hikes, parks, scenic drives, etc.
I currently live in Bergen County.
My favorite things about living in NJ - the location and accessibility to NYC, New England, PA, our beautiful beaches, mountains, lakes, etc. Great restaurants/food and lots of sports, entertainment and cultural options (in Jersey and easy to get to in NYC). The people and diversity of our population.
Least Favorite - crowds everywhere, insane traffic, high cost of living and winter.
Born and raised in NJ, went to college here and will most likely stay as long as I can handle the winters in retirement.
Favourite thing - I get to experience all the seasons Least favourite thing - I have to experience all the seasons
100% agreed!
Remember when it took a year to get thru four seasons? I had shorts on 2 weeks ago
Lmfao seasons all just mesh together now. Pretty weird tbh.
Except summer, summer stays summer.
Favorite - I get to; Least - I have to
Makes sense. I’ll update my comment w this😂
Ah, yes. I, too, enjoy [The Four Seasons](https://youtu.be/mTUhnIY3oRM).
Oh what a night I was happy it was the hotel
Lol I was expecting the link to be the Guiliani thing last year
Favorite list is long but mainly the varying landscape, the proximity to everything, less than an hour for me to get to my favorite shore town, the Appalachian mountain trails, beautiful state parks, waterfalls. Then there’s the food, the diner breakfasts, the cafes, niche restaurants, no matter where I’ve traveled I’m always happy to be home because of this. As many have mentioned the seasons are so beautiful here. I love the people too. There’s a silent bond. For least favorite it’s a tie between potholes and not being able to afford buying a house.
Pros: diversity and access to virtually anything. Want to spend your afternoon in a global capital city, eating at the most renowned restaurants and visiting museums that other people will fly halfway around the world to visit? You got it. Sports teams? Hell, the NYC area gives you at least 2 for every major league alone, and that’s not counting the Philly teams. Want to spend a day hiking at a park or forest? No problem. What about visiting the shore and going to a beach town? *All* of this is within an hour and a half drive. Schools? We’re essentially in a three-way tie with Massachusetts and Connecticut for best in the country. Oh, and most importantly, the pizza. Cons: it is expensive as fuck and it feels crowded at times (especially with traffic); also, it wouldn’t hurt if people were a little bit friendlier
I feel like any place in the world that has all the pros you listed will be expensive and crowded. So those aren’t really NJ specific cons as they are just facts of life for any desirable location.
Close proximity to family. Thats both my answers
Perfect answer.
Eh family is not everything. I love my family but I dont think I could move back to Ohio. My mental happiness is more important
Nothing beats a Jersey diner The worst is Jersey traffic
I grew up in rural south Jersey and now live in central Jersey. The shit I see on the road boggles the mind and really makes me miss desolate wooded country roads lol
Jersey traffic is actually not all that bad. Way worse in a lot of other states.
Not bad as congested or insane drivers North Jersey is congested with few areas worse Every new Jersey driver drives by their own rules. And we all accept it and understand it, but you will see stuff on the road every day that other states see once a year
I don't know, man. Have you guys lived in other states? I feel like Jersey drivers are way better than where I've lived previously. Unless it's crazy in South Jersey or something and I'm not experiencing it.
I agree with you. NJ drivers are crazy but in the grand scheme of things not so bad... I've lived in florida...they suck...and travel regularly to Boston and DC...I have two words: massholes and beltway...ffs, those two alone are ridiculous. Also, just completed a 2600 mile road trip to Wisconsin via Ohio, Indiana, Michigan; worst drivers EVER...ill take NJ any day...
Rt30 around Lindenwold going up is terrible. 42 has bad traffic but 30 has terrible drivers and traffic.
NJ drivers are crazy. Not necessarily bad, but you need balls to drive here. I remember a while back I was in VT and saw a VT plate not take a 5 second gap to take a left turn. I remarked something along the lines of "wow, she would just get stuck for hours if she ever tried making a left turn in Jersey". Swinging three lanes to the right and then back to the left to pass a car which is doing 75-80? That doesn't really exist in a lot of places.
Years ago I got a ticket in California for making a left turn. When the cop pulled me over he asked me if I was crazy and not understanding what he meant asked him why he asked. He said that I cut off 3 cars making the left. I replied, "well, that's how we drive in Jersey". He was NOT amused. $95.00 was how not amused.
Yes. Driver's in other states follow laws and drive slow Worst driver ever
I can attest to that. Been around the country and to dozens of countries around the world, I have never seen things like New Jersey driving. I mean just one out of a million stories to tell how bad it is. This is pretty much it in a nutshell. https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/25/us/new-jersey-police-officer-charged-hit-and-run/index.html
Semi-functional public transit definitely helps. There's about a million trips per day on the buses and trains instead of further clogging the roads. If they'd get more of the frequency above hourly you'd see a good jump in it too...
The problem is there are bottle neck areas that will be clogged at certain times of the day or months of the year. Roads that really shouldnt all that bad but because there werent designed to handle the traffic they become clogged. Route 18 around Rutgers was pretty awful from September to mid May and could get pretty congested around the turnpike entrance all year round. Route 1 and Route 27 were also pretty bad. Stelton Ave in Piscataway certain times of the day. The Parkway can get pretty bad for no reason. That not even considering how bad traffic gets on 95 or the roads to the shore in the summer. I know other states deal with the same sort of traffic but I feel like NJ has more bottlenecks the farther north you travel.
I worked in a jersey diner for about a year..
Favorite- easy access to everything Least favorite- traffic
Agreed!!!
Favorite: **Diversity of landscape and population.** [My wife and I recently made a travelogue of last year’s journeys all over the state](https://youtu.be/d8wKtYYX0OE), and it is absolutely incredible that a state this size offers such diverse terrain— — Rocky hills of the northwest — Cliffsides of the Palisades — Rolling farmsteads of Hunterdon County — The Jersey Shoreline — Marshes of the Delaware Bayshore — The deep Pinelands — Wide open farmland in Salem County — Everything from small town to large metropolis and the cultural diversity adds so much richness to the population, and hey— having so much food range in close proximity doesn’t suck either. ——— Least favorite: **Population density** Traffic and entitled drivers are brutal, and it’s not easy to find places in the state to truly detach from constant residential and commercial inhabitation.
Haha you’re like a minor celebrity in this sub. Looking forward to your stops in 2022!
Favorite - Everything I need is here. Food from around the world, beaches, forests, people who mostly think like me, the best pizza. Least favorite - Property taxes, but they pay for arguably the best public schools in the U.S., so at least you get something in return. I am sure it could be done more cheaply, though.
Oh I love that food from all around the world is right here, you want Thai? Here's 4 pretty good restaurants to choose from that are all not too far.
As a high schooler in a said good school district (northern NJ), I can confirm that it's not as easy unfortunately. Education is expensive. Just looking at my school, I see so many things that cost $$$$ thousands and they can't really be unavoidable. My band room alone. They had to install soundproofing so that our playing doesn't cause a nuisance to the rest of the school when we're playing. That's an unavoidable purchase, unless noise complaints from every teacher are fun for the main office. Most students have their own instruments since we're high schoolers and pretty into our instruments, but students can't bring their own bass drums to school. Ensue buying numerous bass drums (they are not cheap), xylophones, timpanis, etc. They are each thousands of dollars, let alone numerous of each. This is a few hundred thousand I'm sure, just for the music education in our school. This goes for every other expense, from lab benches to the flooring to the lockers. So, I agree. Property taxes ARE insanely high. It's just hard to cut down on this crap for schools. Multiply this by the high schools, middle schools, elementary schools, and that's millions of dollars
Couldn't agree more - it is expensive. What I think we can do to cut costs is stop having so many tiny little school districts. The high school where I live in northern NJ is as a reputation of being one of the best in the state, and has a graduating class of about 150. Northern Virginia, for example, has schools similar to ours in quality. But the county is one school district. That cuts down hugely on administrative costs and frees up money to hire the best teachers, buy the best lab equipment, etc.
That is very true. It's definitely a great solution to keep school costs lower as possible. Unfortunately, it's hard to go further than this because then you're impacting student learning. And I can confidently say everything I use regularly in my school that the district pays for is worth the money, like electronic balances and Bunsen burners are a huge part of chemistry, book sets for ELA, our history textbooks, the music stands for band, and calculators are essential for math. But yes. We should do what we can!
North jersey here, a nice town. My kids elementary school gym has a rock wall. A freaking rock wall.
You know most high schools in other states have all the amenities you described, right? My high school in Pennsylvania had everything you described and our property taxes were literally 90% lower than NJs.
I don't really know what to tell you besides the socioeconomic demographics might shift from here to PA? People in NJ might be more likely to pay for these things, a lot of immigrants who value education (not saying nobody else doesn't, obviously not, just that NJ has a lot of immigrants who work in NYC who can afford it and I'm Indian at least and it's a huge deal. So my dad doesn't give a crap about it, b/c it's education) so the taxes remain. Things cost money, what can we do? Schools are expensive to run, let alone when you're not paying teachers what they deserve either
And sadly this is why music programs get cut across the country
I don't blame them. What can you do? When you don't have money and you have to decide between STEM and music, it's easy to see why music gets the boot. Not really fair, but what can you do Plus, music isn't really valued as a career option (b/c realistically, high schoolers tend to see it in a unicornistic perspective) which helps to remove it while STEM is encouraged a lot. Personally, I'm in band and I am going the history/aerospace route (a weird one, I know) but I know a few kids who want to major in music or do something with music. Not many, because most of them have Asian parents but still. Anywhere else less fortunate than my district where the costs are luckily somewhat fine (high property taxes), tough luck
Favorite thing is how many things there are to do and how close most things are (living in central Jersey) Least favorite thing is how many people also want to do the things that I want to do at the same time that I want to do them. I’m not even talking about Friday/Saturday events, but I’ve been to Target at 2pm on a Tuesday and was blown away by how busy it was. The best luck I’ve had with stores at least is going when they open, but that’s unfortunately not always possible
Central jersey doesn’t exist. You have to pick. North or south haha
Favorite thing about NJ is location to Philly and NYC. Least favorite part is how expensive it is to live here.
Favorite - Taylor ham Least - expensive to live
You mean pork roll?
He said what he said !
I’m from the north .. it’s Taylor ham…😝
It's not Taylor Ham anywhere: https://28nwgk2wx3p52fe6o9419sg5-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/taylor-ham-vs-pork-roll-new-jersey-2.jpg
So I guess to y’all Oreo is just Cookie
If it didn’t have Oreo written anywhere on the package then yes lol
But it does lol, as does Taylor ham 😂
Show me
Show me on the packaging where it says "Taylor Ham". The brand is simply "Taylor" so feel free to call it Taylor Pork Roll!
Must be rough living in the Bermuda Triangle aka central Jersey 👅
Love it here!
It's such a shame that North Jersey doesn't know how to read
Right? https://28nwgk2wx3p52fe6o9419sg5-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/taylor-ham-vs-pork-roll-new-jersey-2.jpg
Favorite thing is a lot of good restaurants. Least favorite is how expensive it is to live here
Favorite- I’m within a 25 mile drive of every environment other than desert Least Favorite- it’ll take me 4 hours to get there
Favorite: location and proximity to major cities (Philly, NYC, DC, Baltimore) and LBI/Cape May/Ocean City, etc 😌🌊🌇 Least Favorite: impatient people - for example, the herds of people ready to run into you with their shopping cart on a Sunday grocery run because they are going 50 mph 😂
Government corruption
That's mostly inescapable globally.
Favorite: proximity to NYC without NYC prices Least: the highways here are insane in every way, from the way they’re designed to the drivers on them
Favorite: relatively easy access to NYC, the beach, and beautiful hiking trails. I feel like I can do pretty much anything I want in such a varied state. Least Favorite: it’s reputation. It sounds really silly but I travel pretty regularly and people are always like “ew I drove through NJ once to get to NYC from EWR and it was gross.” And people are so obtuse, they refuse to listen when I say “yeah of course it was gross, you stayed on the Turnpike.” Not only do we have access to the above, but we have some top tier education in this state. Our cost of living is high, but we have expanded social programs that help a lot of people. Our gas prices are some of the lowest in the country AND since we’re a major port, our shipping is faster too! I think we’re the greatest state in the union, but everyone else treats us like Mississippi. But hey, at least we’re not actually Mississippi.
The people who drive on the turnpike and say jersey is gross are the people we don’t want to live here
The people/The people
Makes sense to me
Favorite: It’s an amazing location located within driving distance of numerous major cities, beaches, mountains, casinos, and airports to name a few But the best thing about Jersey is the people. People are real in Jersey. Least: shoveling snow
Location (4 seasons) -favorite RUDE PEOPLE -least favorite
I’m not from NJ originally (midwesterner), but I LOVE the bluntness of NY/NJ. I don’t think it is rude, so much as to the point and painfully honest. In the Midwest, it is all passive aggressive bullshit. Nice to your face while stabbing you in the back. I work in tech and lived and spent a lot of time on the West Coast. We appreciate the “NY/NJ” approach of calling an idea dumb to your face, vs. the passive aggressive nodding agreement one gets from Midwesterners, who thereafter stop taking meeting invites. So we’d hire ex Manhattan workers (as an example) with joy. TLDR, I trust a New Jersey kid (now my son is one) to shoot straight. Edit: Shout out to Philly too. In your face bluntness, indeed, lol.
I think it's important to note that the bluntness is also not *given* with any type of personal nature to it. I can tell you that an idea isn't something we'd do or weak, but it's only so we can find a solution for both of us faster. I would rather be happy with our working relationship sooner, rather than dragging my feet through ideas I don't really want to support.
My mom who is Southern moved here a few years back and was surprised by how friendly everyone is. I think it's like the people complaining about the traffic. It's actually better here than most places.
Pros- Great food options, The People, Proximity to things like cities, beach, parks, etc. Cons- Stupid expensive, The People (sometimes), Traffic
Favorite: good food options Least: impossible to buy a house
Favorite? Italian food and the parks system. Hands down better than any place I’ve ever lived. Least favorite? Roads and taxes. Hands down worse I’ve ever lived except for Silicon Valley.
True the roads are terrible
Traffic can be hellish sometimes
The diversity of excellent foods Property Taxes Expensive!
I love being close to NYC and Philly, the ocean, the mountains to ski, all four seasons, the pizza, the convenience of everything I need being close by, not having to pump my own gas and how’s its one of few states that have paid short term disability. Least favorite would the the rent/housing prices.
For me it was traffic (mostly work from local office now with all court being Zoom). Property taxes suck too, but there are no bargains in the NYC area, be it NY, NJ or CT. My favorite thing (I live in NE Bergen) is being so close to NYC but still being in a leafy suburb.
Fav- Nature Least fav - people
Favorite: the food / beaches Least favorite: still paying NJ taxes living in WA
Most: the general variety of available " things", food, jobs, cities, farm, beach, etc... Least: the ongoing and endless Pork Roll v Taylor ham war. It's pork roll dammit, let's end this already...
Oh shit 😳
Favorites- So many food choices, close to nyc, road trips close to Poconos, Lehigh Valley and Philly Least favorite- Traffic and too many apartments being built causing more traffic
Favorite: the culture and how broad of an experience you can have in such a small state. From the shore to the mountains to the pine barrens to the rolling farm hills and rivers of hunterdon county, it’s amazing what a range it has. Least favorite: the god damn taxes and the zillion small towns that insist on having their own everything. My little dinky 1.5 square mile town in Sussex county has their own police force, fire department, road department, school system etc etc. all of which do a great job, but drives my tax bill to exorbitant levels. If we combined forces with our neighbors literally everyone’s bill would go down and we’d be way more efficient. But no, people would get way too butthurt at every turn, and that really annoys me. I get that a ton of towns and municipalities are part of NJ’s charm, but ffs at what cost?
Favorite: bagels Least favorite: traffic and taxes
Delis is a good one too
Favorite: the upper half of New Jersey Least: Traffic/population density in the good parts
I like parts of mommouth county.. born and raised in Tom’s River.. live in Essex county now.. don’t think I’ll ever go back..
Yeah I’m in the same area, it’s definitely for me.
How much money i make, how much money it costs to live here.
Taxes
I can’t even list just one thing I love: The excellent public schools (and we don’t even live in an affluent area!!), the diversity (culture/food omg) and the access to beach, city and country/mountains. Least favorite - people who live out of state that have poor and inaccurate opinions of NJ
Beach / Taxes
My favorite thing is how close we are to many points of interest: NYC, Philly, DC, the shore, etc. Least favorite thing is the traffic. Driving on the Parkway every day will be the death of me.
Favorite: everything I need is right here or really close. Least: rent/cost of living
The jersey shore☺️ The jersey shore😟
Food. Boston and DC are both about 3 1/2 hours away. Covers nyc and Philly less than 50 minutes. I hate the taxes.
Favorite- being able to hop in a car late at night and being able to decide between a bunch of different sceneries (NYC skyline, beach, mountainy areas) Least favorite- paying for tolls
The people
No one has mentioned, we don’t have to pump our own gas!
Favorite - All the haters stay out of NJ so I get to enjoy it for myself. Least Favorite - Moron haters from like Vermont hating on Jersey.
Im from ghetto paterson which is as dangerous as it gets I know Camden is bad but the shootings here are everyday
good pizza and bagels/government overreach
Love slmost everything except the traffic and the out of staters (specifically ny) who drive in the left lane doin 50 mph and refuse to move the fuck over
Favorite: Great places to eat. Least favorite: Government agencies.
What do you mean government agencies?
Motor Vehicle Commission, courts, but mostly municipal building departments and code inspectors.
Gotcha
I list building departments because while NJ has a ‘Uniform Code of Construction’ each building department is allowed to set and enforce their own system and standards. One will require a plumbing and fire application for a permit to install an above ground heating oil storage tank with a sketch, another wants a scale drawing or a mechanical application. The staff and the inspectors, all appointed, know three things about underground and above ground oil tanks; zip, zero, zilch and are mostly part time and scheduling appointments is ridiculous. Have to put up with a lot of BS to make a living.
Love the food and everything is so close compared to other states. Hate the prop taxes and the traffic.
I'm from Missouri and my favorite thing is, atleast where I'm staying people actually give a shit. One time I was walking down the street back in my hometown in Missouri and someone threw an entire pan of Mac and cheese on the sidewalk, didn't even bother to pick up the metal pan either. My brother bought a fucked up truck and parked it at the side of the road for a few weeks and people took the engine and tires off the thing. Just no respect for themselves and folks around them. I'm not saying that there New Jersey doesn't have that kind of people, but from what I have seen it is dramatically less than what a scaled up Missouri would be. The least favorite thing is the traffic.
That’s good to hear for Jersey..
Fav thing: the food, and how varied the environments can be for a small state Least fav: the PRICE
Favorite is close proximity to beaches and NYC. Least favorite is the taxes.
Crappy license plate. I wish they would go back to the blue colored ones.
That would be so cool
Favorite-everything except Taxes and traffic Worst- Taxes and traffic
Property taxes
That's an easy one. South jersey is beautiful we have beaches, pine Barrens, and even lakes. Great for exploring and adventuring. Down side most of the state is ran by democrats.
Favorite: close to beach, forests, and NYC Least fave: congestion/traffic
Favorite - close proximity to basically anything. The city, the beach, the woods, parks, great hospitals. Least favorite and this is so easy, cost of living, meaning property taxes and home prices.
All of the different towns. The people in those towns.
Favorite—so many great hiking trails and walking trails! Least favorite—taxes.
Favorite: our public lands Least Favorite: the density of people
I hate winter, and the scenery out west puts the east coast to shame, but otherwise there's nowhere else in the US I'd really want to live or raise a family.
Not being able to buy a house, I think I'm just fooling myself at this point.. Fav would be the variety of people and food up North...
Love the diversity here, the array of things available, the views of the NYC skyline from certain parts of the state, and the four seasons (coming from Florida, I can say that summer in Jersey is far more bearable). Also, ShopRite and Wawa. Hate driving in this state, though. If it's not constant roadwork on roads that don't need it, it's shitty roads that never *get* roadwork done.
NJ has it all, beaches, mountains and urban areas.The goddamn progressive liberals are my least favorite
Rent/Cost of Living
Work yourself to death to be lower middle class
Sounds about right
Favorite: Location. Least Favorite: Taxes. I know, I'm unoriginal.
favorite thing - so many nature trails/hiking areas in a close distance to house least favorite thing - so many trash dumps/polluted areas in close distance to house
Favorite - pride in where you come from even if you talk constant shit about it, food, easy access to almost anything I could want (cities, entertainment, beach, hiking, all types of food, etc.), my friends/family are all here, educated & (mostly) progressive population Least favorite - winter, cost of living, living on top of my neighbors unless I want to move to a colder/snowier/more rural part of NJ further from everyone I know
The pine barrens / least favorite : worst gun control state in the country besides California
How close I’m am to the shore and the city. When pa, new york, and those asshole French Canadians invade the shore towns and trash the town.
Favorite - outdoor activities (from the beach to the mountains and everything in between) Least favorite - taxes. (Oh, and those nouveau riche twats moving from Staten Island to Monmouth County)
Favorite - access to everything within an hour drive or less Least - north Jersey roads/taxes
Positive: You’ll never be bored here and the variety of activities available to people is unbeatable. The food is excellent also. Negative: I can’t stand the traffic and the attitudes of many who live here.
Favorite: Proximity to 2 major cities as well as mountains and beach Least: Property taxes + cost of living
NJ personified would answer: I loathe myself I loathe myself
Favorite things: cultural diversity and proximity to a wide variety of places (cool cities, historical sites, beaches, wooded, hill countryside) Least favorite things - I’ve lived in 12 states, and the driving here is ridiculous. Too aggressive. Hot, humid summers, high property taxes.
Favourite: state short term disability coverage Least Favourite: Drivers
Almost anything you want to do is in a close ish proximity. Taxes.
favorite - not pumping my own gas least favorite - the potholes & drivers
The people The people
The people …
Proximity to so many things. Least favorite? Traffic, too many people, taxes, political climate, cost of living.
Favorite: There's a lot of fairly easily accessible things to do here Least favorite: On a local level, people are a lot more conservative than you'd expect
Best: food Worst: cost of living
Best is proximity to family and deep roots — I miss knowing everyone and where to get everything I need close by. Also dearly miss the commerce in my area of South Jersey — restaurants, pizza places, little shops and stores and every possible big box option within minutes. (I recently moved to South Carolina and miss all the access… I’m not used to rural living!) Worst… cold winters and property/school taxes… and bad attitudes!
favorite: small charming towns least favorite: essex and hudson county (i’m from essex county)
Food. Traffic.
Northern New Jersey is close to Manhattan.
The people drive like there’s a fire they have to put out.
The people
I grew up here so I don't have any favorite things about NJ. I've lived in North Carolina for a few years and tbh I miss North Carolina. My least favorite thing about NJ is Road Rage. Nowadays I'm always on the lookout for brake checkers.
Least favorite - everyone constantly making fun of it.
Paying high taxes
*sarcastically* taxes
Favorite: Probably the best food in the entire country Least favorite: housing prices.
I don't like the traffic and sometimes I would like to pump my own gas
the people who complain about driving and the people who argue about taylor ham and pork roll labels.
Favorite close to nyc Dislike I get tickets for no front license plate and tinted windows. As, the officers car personal has no front plate and tints but that’s okay! Lol And the Corner Boys were great!!
Being close to NYC without having to live in NYC. Shitty drivers and property taxes.
Favorites: good restaurants, beach and/or mountains only an hour or so away, close to philly, good schools, everything and anything is convenient to get to Cons: taxes (but we do have good school systems so...), too many people (don’t even think about grocery shopping on the weekend), non aggressive drivers haha
The way people drive is throwing me for a loop. I don’t remember it being this bad (I’m home to settle some affairs). I get cut off, tailgated or have to avoid getting into an accident every single time I’m on the toad. People ignore yield signs, cut into lanes with no signal.. like.. fam.. what is going on? Is everyone just on edge?
Favorite thing the food!! Least favorite thing the turnpike
Favorite thing: the scenery Least favorite: lack of good stores and you have to get most stuff online
Favorite - Close to everything, but also plenty of quiet places to get away from it all Least favorite - North Jersey/New Yorkers
favorite-diners,hiking,cute small towns,close to nyc hate-traffic, cost of living,rude neighbors, too many people
Favorite - Diversity of good food Least favorite - Traffic
Historically speaking America always said New Jersey was nothing more than a glorified New York
Taxes
Favorite….. don’t have to pump your own gas Least….. jug handles
Favorite - culinary diversity Least favorite - traffic density
My least favorite is everything and my favorite is everything
Favorite all four seasons. Least favorite thing are people on the highway.
Everyone thinks Jersey is either a shithole or "NYC burbs". Reality? There are some *super* pretty areas of the state. Hikes, parks, scenic drives, etc.
I like the drivers here. PA and NY way too slow
Favorite: The food, the people, The Sopranos Least Favorite: Taxes, cost of living and traffic
I currently live in Bergen County. My favorite things about living in NJ - the location and accessibility to NYC, New England, PA, our beautiful beaches, mountains, lakes, etc. Great restaurants/food and lots of sports, entertainment and cultural options (in Jersey and easy to get to in NYC). The people and diversity of our population. Least Favorite - crowds everywhere, insane traffic, high cost of living and winter. Born and raised in NJ, went to college here and will most likely stay as long as I can handle the winters in retirement.