Should I move from Lkwd to Passaic? Anyone here did it?

amother

Ginger

Wed, Nov 10 2021, 8:01 pm

amother [ Sunflower ] wrote:

Since you mentioned lack of bussing bothers you, I should mention that Passaic has no bussing. Ever. It’s all carpools all the time. I find it to be one of the biggest negatives of living here.

Honestly as annoying as the carpooling here is it’s a working system . and the schools are built for the carpools with the long driveways. My friends who live in places with buses and have all these days They don’t have bussing because of legal holidays and whatever it’s annoying. here it works.

amother

Ginger

Wed, Nov 10 2021, 8:03 pm

I live in Passaic there pluses and minuses to everything I love it here . But I don’t know if I would run to move just for a job I think you’re dh should start try it out see how it works and take it from there . You can always come check out the community stay here for shabbos meet people check out the schools and such .

amother

Lily

Wed, Nov 10 2021, 8:42 pm

I live in Passaic, and personally I find it very gashmiusdik here. Housing is truly expensive, we did a lot of research into buying in the towns surrounding Lakewood and you literally get double the size for half of the money (compared to Passaic).
People are very nice here, but it sounds like you have family and nice people where you live. I agree that you should see how the job goes before uprooting.

amother

Dahlia

Wed, Nov 10 2021, 9:35 pm

We actually did the opposite and moved from Passaic to Lakewood a few years back. Lakewood definitely has tons of pros and there are a lot of conveniences and “in town” things that you will be giving up on. And be prepared to travel to many simchos in Lakewood.

That said there is definitely far less pressure in Passaic and life just seems to be simpler and slower pace there- if you appreciate that. We definitely miss it sometimes.

I know this is not so helpful but it’s really a mixed bag on both ends and is so dependent on your background and personal preferences. We can weigh in but it’s really impossible for anyone here to give decisive anonymous advice without knowing you well irl.

amother

Wed, Nov 10 2021, 9:46 pm

amother [ Dahlia ] wrote:

Ty this is very helpful! I’m trying to run away from what feels like a rat race. I think I’d very much appreciate slower pace

Cmon be nice

Wed, Nov 10 2021, 9:57 pm

amother [ Eggplant ] wrote:

It takes about 5-10 minutes to take my kids to school:)
I actually like carpool here!

If everybody carpools why is there no traffic?

amother

Wed, Nov 10 2021, 10:03 pm

amother [ Lily ] wrote:

I’m pretty sure that coming from Lkwd I won’t feel this way. The standards are very high here ...

amother

Cantaloupe

Wed, Nov 10 2021, 10:18 pm

Cmon be nice wrote:

If everybody carpools why is there no traffic?

It's more city like, very populated area. The roads are built to handle the traffic. Lakewood started off very suburban, the roads were not built in a way to handle so much traffic. You have one lane roads that need to be 2 or 3 lanes to handle the number of cars going through.

amother

Vanilla

Wed, Nov 10 2021, 10:32 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

I knowwww!!! Hardest thing is my entire family is here. I’m not sure if I’m gonna know what hit me if/when I leave

Can I suggest that if you decide to make the plunge you rent out your house and rent in Passaic?

The day to day pros might out way the cons but it’s a huge lifestyle change in a big picture way and I would try it out for a year or two before deciding.

The way real estate is going I wouldn’t sell anything now especially anything you got for cheap and is in a desirable rental area.

(I lived in a small community for two years and moved back. Ultimately it was so so nice, like living in israel if you did that. But it didn’t feel like a long term reality. The family piece was huge. Smaller community / less Shul option over yt especially. We had lots of friends but there was something missing)

amother

Thu, Jan 06 2022, 4:16 pm

amother [ Pansy ] wrote:

Op, did you make any decisions? I was following along! Not specifically Passaic in mind, just anywhere out of Lakewood Wink

We will have a final decision iyh mid/end of March

amother

Sage

Thu, Jan 06 2022, 4:47 pm

I live in a large OOT community far from my extended family and want to tell you from the perspective of someone who has older teens, you should stay in Lakewood. As your kids get older, having family nearby is so nice for their development. They’ll be popping in and out of their cousins’ houses or bubbies’ house, and doing chasadim, and feeling connected and close. You really gain a lot. It helps kids feel part of something, connected, confident, and happy.

You can make carpool time into shmoozing and bonding time, it can be a positive thing. (Easy for me to say!)

amother

Aubergine

Thu, Jan 06 2022, 6:18 pm

I live in Passaic and love it. The slower pace, simpler lifestyle, very very little peer pressure compared to Lkwd, you do what you want, not what "everyone" is doing.

However, it sounds like you have a lot of pros in Lakewood. Family is a huge huge thing. I wouldn't be so quick to toss that away.

mommy2x wrote:

Personally I would say he should commute for about a year.
1. You/he can see how draining it is for him or if it's doable. (both with commute and his availability at home)
2. Once you sell your house and move, moving back to Lakewood won't be as affordable so it's probably worthwhile to keep it for now as see how it goes.

I think this is a good idea. I know some people who commute every day and I don't think it's so bad. Try it and see if it's workable. You can always move later on if you decide.

amother

Aubergine

Thu, Jan 06 2022, 6:21 pm

amother [ Cantaloupe ] wrote:

We don't have any 2 or 3 lane roads in Passaic. All roads are one lane each direction.
I think the reason is because the numbers are just nowhere near the numbers in Lakewood.
Also, the schools really have the carpool systems worked out very well. It takes a tremendous amount of planning and coordination, and they really worked on it and perfected it.
But the main difference is the numbers in population.

amother

Buttercup

Thu, Jan 06 2022, 7:16 pm

I just moved to to lakewood. I only feel the trafic in my area eruv yon tov. My kids are still young so maybe that's why. My family and friends from out of Lakewood are annoyed at how often they travel to lakewood. For all occasions they end up coming. It ends up being more annoying. For bussing find out from your school, many schools are doing private bussing next year because bussing was such a disaster for us all.

amother

Black

Thu, Jan 06 2022, 7:53 pm

amother [ Aubergine ] wrote:

I think you’re making it sound a lot easier than it is. The girls school and preschool carpools run smoothly but the boys pre1a through 3rd is difficult and time consuming. With Brookhaven opening and the school constantly expanding I’m expecting it to just get worse. There’s also a lot of different dismissal times so working everything out to not be in the car for hours is a puzzle. It’s doable and I wouldn’t live anywhere else but I don’t think it’s fair to OP to give unrealistic expectations.

amother

Aubergine

Thu, Jan 06 2022, 9:23 pm

amother [ Black ] wrote:

Oh, I wasn't the one who said it takes 5-10 minutes! Carpool is a big part of my life!!