Answers by Kathy Zucker, Hoboken mom condo blogger
The public schools are decent up through sixth grade. Free Abbott pre-k starts at age 3. After that, there are some excellent private schools in the area, such as the Hudson School. High Tech High School, a county magnet school, is also nearby (a bus picks up Hoboken students on Washington Street). None of the private schools in the area cost more than $14k/year, which is really cheap compared to NYC.
I have been living in southwest Hoboken for five years and have never had a problem with crime. Generally, when something happens (like a mugging), the police find that the perpetrators come from Jersey City. Muggings have taken place all over Hoboken – the problem is not the projects.
The power station is a passive distribution substation for the west side of Hoboken. The developer carried out exhaustive studies and the tests revealed that the sub-station across the street does not pose a health risk to Neapolitan residents. The average EMF level in this apartment was .65 mG, and the national average is 0.6 (above 3.0 is considered the danger level).
No, you do not. All the Hoboken grocery stores and one pharmacy deliver for free, plus you have Freshdirect. Driving is strictly optional in Hoboken, a lot of people rent Zipcars when they want to drive. The NYTimes recently reported that the trend of the future is toward car-optional living near cities, so Hoboken is ahead of the curve. And with the aging of the baby boomers plus the strong youth demographic, I figure this 4BR is a safe long-term bet since there will always be demand for this type of unit in Hoboken.
Hoboken is an incredibly convenient place to live for singles or families. You have the 24-hour CVS pharmacy for late night emergencies, PromptMD with inexpensive walk-in visits 7 days a week for everything from flu shots to splinting broken bones, the PATH, Light Rail and NJ Transit buses covering every part of town. The whole city is only a mile square, so the worst you are looking at is a 10 minute walk.
There are two parks within three blocks of the building (one toddler one around the corner and another, larger one with the best water sprinkler in Hoboken on 3rd & Madison). There are also plans for a very large park a few blocks away, that should happen in the next few years. And there is a lot of development in this part of town. There is some retail a block away by the Light Rail station, and there are small grocery stores and restaurants 2-3 blocks away.
All the units on the east side of the Neapolitan are large units (very large 3BRs & 4BRs, signficantly larger than typical Hoboken units) and almost all of them are occupied by young families. Because the units are so affordable on a PSF basis, a lot of the families have one parent at home -great for playdates! This area has much more of a family feel than other parts of Hoboken. Some of the second floor units have large backyards with grass and playsets, and there is a large grassy landscaped gated communal courtyard that is very pleasant. You have a real built-in community.
I often walk to Washington Street with my double stroller, and it takes me about 10 minutes. My husband and I lived near the PATH train for two years, and we much prefer living in SW Hoboken because you are away from the bar craziness and the really terrible traffic (cars double-parked everywhere). When I go into the city I either drive or take the train, depending on whether I bring the kids with me. Chinatown is 15 minutes away via the Holland Tunnel, so we often pop into the city for dim sum and to check out Soho art galleries (very stroller friendly!)
It takes my husband 35 minutes to get to lower Manhattan via Light Rail and ferry. In cold weather, he takes the PATH. Southwest Hoboken is incredibly convenient for driving because you avoid all the traffic on Observer Highway getting out of Hoboken. One of the many things we like about living in Hoboken is that my husband can see our two toddlers every day because his commute is so short.
The square footage. features and # of bedrooms is very similar to new construction houses we considered in Montclair. The price difference was less than $100k, and the property taxes are double ($24k/year), plus we would have to pay for 2+ cars. The tax difference is equal to one private school tuition. The way we look at it, once our kids graduate high school, our costs go down, whereas if we lived in the suburbs, we'd be paying for the schools regardless if our kids were using them.
There are lots of activities for kids in Hoboken. We take walks down to Pier A and the community soccer field, and my kids get to run around and socialize. I am a native New Yorker (I got my driver's license when I was 28!) and I really like the car-optional living here. Several families in the building tried living in the suburbs before moving to the Neapolitan -they all say this building is the best compromise between suburban and urban living.
This kind of square footage, over 1700SF, is unusual in Hoboken, and it is extremely rare to find it all on one level (new construction is often configured as 2BR units). Most 3BRs sell for close to $500 PSF, and these units are priced at $400 PSF. The apartment configuration is also unusual, with really big bedrooms (average size 240 SF) and one very spacious main room separating them. Most large Hoboken condos are in 20-30 year old townhouses, so they are narrow with a lot of stairs. The extra bedroom has many possible uses, from home office to guest room to private movie theater. |
