Out of NY, US cities with a modern/yeshivish mix (not Miami)

Kiwi13

Wed, May 09 2018, 7:47 am

Not sure how you feel about smaller communities (smaller then Baltimore, Cleveland,Chicago, etc.) but Rochester is amazing in the areas you mentioned. I’ve beeb here for 5+ years and absolutely love it. We do have cold winters, but in my mind it’s completely worth it to live in an accepting Torah-focused community that has its priorities straight. Very reasonable cost of living.

amother

Orange

Wed, May 09 2018, 9:25 am

Kiwi13 wrote:

I love small communities!!! Can you tell me more please?

Kiwi13

Wed, May 09 2018, 9:43 am

amother wrote:

I love small communities!!! Can you tell me more please?

We are a friendly, welcoming community where there’s a range in what people hold by, how they dress, etc. There are a few shuls (modern orthodox, yeshivish, sefardi, chachad) and a yeshiva and there’s a lot of overlap - people go to all the different shuls for simchas and events. There’s greater acceptance of religious differences here than I’ve seen other places. I like that in a smaller community everybody counts. Housing is more affordable (about $200k for a nice 3 bedroom house with a yard) but right now the housing market is kind of competitive (not many houses available) so it’s good to plan in advance if you can. The schools are wonderful, there are playgrounds and parks in the neighborhood which is in a very nice part of town (low crime). What else? Ask anything you think of, I’ll try to answer!

amother

Tangerine

Wed, May 09 2018, 2:38 pm

I live OOT and even though we've only been here a few years I see how the community has grown. It's still smaller then many communities but it's not the same as it used to. Not necessarily a bad thing. I think that often times there will be a small community and then it'll grown and it won't have the same small town feel. Just something to keep in mind.

dassdass

Wed, May 09 2018, 11:00 pm

Baltimore is a fantastic community where no one judges anybody ,yet it isnt just another little town.With one of the fastest growing jewish communities in the countries people and stores are moving in fast.The time to buy is now before demand continues to spike.There is a central jewish city structure and the weather could be good at times.There are excellent schools for all religious sects and there is sure to be something to meet your taste.It is essentially the tristate area but cheaper,prettier ,less judging,but with all the ammentities an intowner is used to.

amother

Brunette

Thu, May 10 2018, 4:13 pm

Another great option in NJ is Elizabeth. It is probably the cheapest Jewish community in NJ. The community runs the spectrum from modern to yeshivish, but everyone is orthodox. There are women who don't cover their hair and wear pants and women who wear sheitals and stockings and long sleeves and everything in between. Men range from tee shirts and small kipahs to black hat. The community is extremely cohesive, for better or for worse - everyone and everyhting (schools/shuls) are under one rabbi - Rabbi Teitz (each shul has a deputy rabbi though) - this is really really nice, but not for everyone.

There is one elementary school called either JEC or Yeshiva of Elizabeth depending on who you ask, it's a nice school - almost everyone in the community sends their kids there (it's very rare not too). There is a boys middle school / highschool RTMA (though some boys go out of the neighborhood for highschool) and a good girls middle school / high school Bruriah.

It's not a particularly large community though by NY/NJ standards (several hundred families), and everyone is familiar with each other, so there is a sense that people know your business sometimes (again, this has good and bad points). The community is significantly less materialistic and judge-y than many other communities I've encountered in the NY/NJ area (not like out of town though), and people are generally accepting because of the mix of people that live there.

If you think you are interested in begin in a place where you could really follow the one rabbi at the head of the community and include yourselves in the school, shuls, and community, it is an amazing place to live.