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Passaic
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amother


 

Post Thu, Mar 21 2013, 8:29 am
We are considering a move to Passaic. I have a lot of questions and would appreciate any information anyone can offer about the community. What shuls would you recommend for a yeshivish working couple with young children? Any specific areas we should look into? Are 2-3 bedroom apartments available, and what is the general price range?
All 3 schools sound great and I think I would have a hard time deciding which one to send to. Can anyone offer info on the different schools. Definitely want a very frum school, but warm and strong education. Any recommendations?
Thanks!
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Classicookie




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Mar 21 2013, 8:49 am
For shules I would recomed btu or the aguda depending on were u live for schools I send to ybh and am very happy there my kids are getting an amazing edgacation but the boys and girls are in the same biuliding on diff sides. The cheader is a montsori school so if you like that I hear its a good school and then there ykp were most people send its deff the more yishish school any questions fell free to ask its deff a great place to live
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amother


 

Post Thu, Mar 21 2013, 8:59 am
and for shuls with a young working/yeshivish crowd, I would recommend R' Spira's shul or Zichron Eliezer (R' Cohen's shul, also known as "the ridge minyan").

As for schools, YKP is the largest school, definitely mainstream yeshivish. The Cheder is also yeshivish, MUCH smaller, and Hillel is a bit more to the left.

There are 2-3 bedroom apartments available to rent, I'm not sure how much they go for-I paid $2k a month for a 4 br house so I guess $1k-$1.5k/month?

Can you ask more specific questions?
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amother


 

Post Thu, Mar 21 2013, 12:21 pm
op here, thanks for responses so far. Can anyone recommend specific areas I should be looking at for apartments, as well as any suggestions as to how to find apartments. Any specifics about the shuls would be helpful as well.
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amother


 

Post Fri, Apr 05 2013, 7:49 am
Any more info???
Thanks
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amother


 

Post Fri, Apr 05 2013, 1:30 pm
2-3 bedroom apartments in Passaic start at around 1400 an can go up to 2000 depending on the area and the condition. One bedrooms start at around 1,000. Depending on what type of apartment you are looking for (size,amenities, crowd in the area ) will determine in what area you should look.
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amother


 

Post Fri, Apr 05 2013, 5:10 pm
There is only one area With apartments, the rest is houses. A good and honest realtor to call is rivka bodenheim.
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amother


 

Post Fri, Apr 05 2013, 5:23 pm
Do you know anyone in Passaic who can look around for you? When I was looking for an apartment to rent, the real estate agents were not very helpful (they deal mostly with buying/selling, not renting) and basically we looked at flyers on the wall of the bagel store/pizza store to see what was hanging, checked on luach.com, asked around if anyone knew of anything, etc.

Good luck!
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Teacup9




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Apr 15 2013, 2:30 pm
I am also looking into Passaic. There is Luach.com and passaicjews.com (which links to a heavily used yahoo group) and kehillaconnections.com, ourkehila.com.

I haven't researched shuls but many have their own websites. My husband will daven at the one furthest away from our house, because that is his mazal. It's like he has to warm up and exhaust his whole body in order to appreciate a minyin Rolling Eyes

What I am trying to figure out is if our quality of life will be enhanced by the pretty architecture, larger homes, and potentially larger yards. DH's commute should be a little less depending on how close to the bus, train, or a car pool works out. I don't see the Passaic as quite more affordable for us over Brooklyn, because of the property taxes...which don't seem to be stabilizing...the governor doesn't seem to be giving away money to the county. It is a little scary to have such a high monthly payment without adding that value into a home that can be expected to have a decent resale value like in Brooklyn.

Then I don't quite understand how to estimate in Passaic. I've heard of it being 10k a year and offering help similar to our Brooklyn schools and I have heard of it being closer to 15k and not offering much help. I read in a news article that the property taxes in Passaic kept increasing in part because of all the non-profits in the area. So is paying property taxes sort of like paying more tuition? Can anyone weigh in?

Does the cheder accept girls or just boys? My late birthday son went to kindergarten at a Montessori-esque school and then kindergarten again at a traditional yeshiva. I wouldn't mind having the option to put my also late birthday daughter in Montessori and then having the option to put her in pre1a or kindergarten at YKP.

How hard is it not to have school buses? Can anyone else weigh in on the difference between New Jersey and New York in terms of school services like speech and physical therapy?

We have health plus insurance for the kids that we pay very little for and I'd like to keep them on something similar in NJ because DH's health plan is pricey and I don't want him to worry about our kids when considering a job with a new company. I'm assuming NJ's assisted insurance plans are worse, but maybe I am wrong?
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L25




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Apr 15 2013, 2:55 pm
just something to consider- clifton is right next to Passaic- same Jewish school system but taxes etc.,.. works a little different due to it legally being a different city.
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Teacup9




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Apr 15 2013, 3:16 pm
L25 wrote:
just something to consider- clifton is right next to Passaic- same Jewish school system but taxes etc.,.. works a little different due to it legally being a different city.


How do the taxes differ? The housing I saw ranged from 9k to 12k a year in Passaic, in Brooklyn the houses in our range are about 4k. Is there a general difference between the communities like one being more modern, chassidish, yeshivaish etc?

For parents sending to YKP or Hillel do you feel comfortable sending your kids to some, most, or all of their classmates houses in terms of their level of kashrut, shabbos observance, media?

How do the neighborhoods within the eruv (which obviously include Passaic and Clifton differ?) Our kids are 0-5.5 years but I don't think of us as a young couple since we aren't in our twenties.
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amother


 

Post Mon, Apr 15 2013, 3:23 pm
Teacup9 wrote:
I am also looking into Passaic. There is Luach.com and passaicjews.com (which links to a heavily used yahoo group) and kehillaconnections.com, ourkehila.com.

I haven't researched shuls but many have their own websites. My husband will daven at the one furthest away from our house, because that is his mazal. It's like he has to warm up and exhaust his whole body in order to appreciate a minyin Rolling Eyes

What I am trying to figure out is if our quality of life will be enhanced by the pretty architecture, larger homes, and potentially larger yards. DH's commute should be a little less depending on how close to the bus, train, or a car pool works out. I don't see the Passaic as quite more affordable for us over Brooklyn, because of the property taxes...which don't seem to be stabilizing...the governor doesn't seem to be giving away money to the county. It is a little scary to have such a high monthly payment without adding that value into a home that can be expected to have a decent resale value like in Brooklyn.

Then I don't quite understand how to estimate in Passaic. I've heard of it being 10k a year and offering help similar to our Brooklyn schools and I have heard of it being closer to 15k and not offering much help. I read in a news article that the property taxes in Passaic kept increasing in part because of all the non-profits in the area. So is paying property taxes sort of like paying more tuition? Can anyone weigh in?

Does the cheder accept girls or just boys? My late birthday son went to kindergarten at a Montessori-esque school and then kindergarten again at a traditional yeshiva. I wouldn't mind having the option to put my also late birthday daughter in Montessori and then having the option to put her in pre1a or kindergarten at YKP.

How hard is it not to have school buses? Can anyone else weigh in on the difference between New Jersey and New York in terms of school services like speech and physical therapy?

We have health plus insurance for the kids that we pay very little for and I'd like to keep them on something similar in NJ because DH's health plan is pricey and I don't want him to worry about our kids when considering a job with a new company. I'm assuming NJ's assisted insurance plans are worse, but maybe I am wrong?

The Cheder accepts boys and girls. Boys go up to 8th grade the girls don't go that high.
Something to keep in mind is that if you send to the Cheder first Yeshiva Ketana (the more traditional school) may choose not to accept your child. They don't love being seen as your second choice.
If your income level is reasonably high you will probably not be able to get your kids on Jersey Care. It's not like NY where anyone can get on and you just have to pay a premium based on income. And the Jersey Care plans are not very good. I constatntly see people searching for good doctors who take Jersey Care versus those with regular insurance have a much easier time.
School therapy services are available. I don't know how it compares to NY but I know many kids who get therapy in school. This is for kids who belong in regular schools and just need some extra speech, OT etc. For special needs children there aren't any frum options in Passaic afaik.
Most of the RW shuls do not have websites so you'd need to do research if you're looking for a more black hat crowd.
In term of property taxes, the houses I've seen are between 9K and 12K. Yes this is much higher than NY and it's possible that you'd save money buying a more expensive house with lower taxes in NY. But many people can't afford a down payment in NY so NJ s a good option.
You should also know that tuition is significantly more expensive in Passaic than in Brooklyn or Lakewood. Something to keep in mind when calculating costs.
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Teacup9




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Apr 15 2013, 3:35 pm
Amamother - thank you for your response.

Is PKY hard to get into the way Lakewood schools are or as long as you are frum with a Rav to vouch for you - you are okay? I understand what you mean about wanting to be your first choice. We'd have the same issue in Brooklyn, except the traditional yeshiva was familiar with the other school which is more of a start up at this point and they understood the benefit in my wanting to give my son two years of kindergarten rather than two years of nursery in that way and I think they appreciated my not wanting to send a 3 year old to kindergarten or to have to decide if he was ready a whole year a head of time, because applications are done around succus.

So schools are definitely more expensive in Passaic? I guess that would kind of be the deal breaker for us. Our kids are in Chofetz Chaim and Lev Beis Yaakov and I don't know how we will afford tuition at all when the little ones get old enough.
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amother


 

Post Mon, Apr 15 2013, 3:43 pm
To my knowlege YKP is not hard to get into AT ALL.

Tuition is approximately $10k/year (less for preschool). We pay full tuition but my impression is most parents don't.
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amother


 

Post Mon, Apr 15 2013, 3:51 pm
Teacup9 wrote:
Amamother - thank you for your response.

Is PKY hard to get into the way Lakewood schools are or as long as you are frum with a Rav to vouch for you - you are okay? I understand what you mean about wanting to be your first choice. We'd have the same issue in Brooklyn, except the traditional yeshiva was familiar with the other school which is more of a start up at this point and they understood the benefit in my wanting to give my son two years of kindergarten rather than two years of nursery in that way and I think they appreciated my not wanting to send a 3 year old to kindergarten or to have to decide if he was ready a whole year a head of time, because applications are done around succus.

So schools are definitely more expensive in Passaic? I guess that would kind of be the deal breaker for us. Our kids are in Chofetz Chaim and Lev Beis Yaakov and I don't know how we will afford tuition at all when the little ones get old enough.

YKP (I'm assuming that what you meant Very Happy ) Is not hard to get into assuming you apply on time. We do not have a crisis like Lakewood at all. YKP accepts almost everyone who applies until they run out of space. So if you apply in the summer, depending on the grade they might be full.
There are a lot of parents who hold back late birthday kids but most send to 2 years of playgroup versus 2 years of kidergarten. Applications here are in February or March. For new parents you can start the interview process (meeting with the principal) in December/January but you don't register then. Playgroups fill up after Succos but not schools.
I have never sent to NY schools so I don't know numbers there but YKP is $7,000 for pre-school and more than $9,000 for 1st-8th. Plus other fees.
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amother


 

Post Mon, Apr 15 2013, 8:48 pm
FYI- services in NY are much better than in NJ, particularly with early intervention and preschool. There are no SEITs in NJ, and the amount of services provided is usually much less.
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Teacup9




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Apr 16 2013, 12:35 am
Yes, YKP, excuse me embarrassed .

My girls' school is on the lower side of that tuition and they do not offer breaks. My son's school is on the higher end, but they charge us even less than the girls.


imamother - that is what my impression of Jersey has been, but I didn't know how accurate it was depending on the service. Baruch hashem my kids aren't high needs, but I have a son getting speech and I think it benefits him in terms of organizing his thoughts and especially since we don't speak much Hebrew at home and his phonetic memory isn't as great as his peers, but the latter won't exactly qualify him for services somewhere new the way being a late talker got us in the NY system years ago. I have a baby getting PT so I don't know what Jersey would do with that. But really I just like to learn more about these things, because I think having resources available to help the majority of students be successful in any school is valuable.
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amother
Pink


 

Post Sun, Oct 13 2019, 1:13 am
I know that this thread is from a while ago but I'm having a very hard time with understanding how everyone in Passaic is managing financially with the super high tuitions. The tuition now in the ykp elementary school in Passaic is now about fifteen thousand a child!
We have three kids in the elementary school and have always paid full tuition (one of our children graduated already and is in mesivta)
My husband Bh earns a nice salary and we are still struggling! It seems like most of his paycheck goes to the tuition.
One of my friends mentioned that many people in Passaic are getting tuition breaks- does anyone know if this is true?
Are a lot of people in Passaic not paying the full tuition for ykp?
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amother
Pink


 

Post Sun, Oct 13 2019, 1:19 am
I also wanted to add that many people in Passaic seem to be living a comfortable lifestyle- vacations, cleaning help, redone houses etc...
I'm happy for everyone but I'm just trying to understand how people are
able to afford all this! Especially with the high property taxes.
I was just wondering if we're the only ones paying full tuition here! There's
no way we could afford a vacation now with the tuition we're paying or even think about doing construction on our house.
Unless people are getting tuition breaks I don't understand how others could afford all these extras either
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amother
Babyblue


 

Post Sun, Oct 13 2019, 12:13 pm
Hi!
I've been in Passaic for almost 10 years. My son is in mesivta and my girls are in one of the schools here. All of the schools work with you financially. You give them your income information and they tell you how much to pay. I am not paying full tuition but they do ask for a large percentage of my husbands check. Think like mortgage is half,tution a fourth and a fourth for the rest of my bills.I can't speak for everyone else, but we barely go on vacation. And when we do its not a few thousand dollars, more like a few hundred. I also own a house and yes property taxes are very high but that is all included in my mortgage and I don't think of it really. I don't feel the need to keep up with the joneses either. I think it also depends on what school your kids go to. We switched from YK to YBH and there is way less pressure to keep up. I have paid, and am still paying both schools- they both pretty much work with you the same way.
I was talking to a few people about this years ago and they said they keep the prices very high for the people that can afford it but they are not expecting most people to pay that. My son is in Mesivta now with tuition costing $20,000- I don' pay even a fourth of that- every school works with you- especially if you have a bunch of kids.
hatzlacha
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