We moved to this house about 10 months ago from Queens. I grew up in New Jersey but my husband was born and raised in Queens so this move was a big leap of faith for him. We had been renting, started looking to buy, and quickly discovered that the $450,000 we were considering spending on a 1-bedroom in Queens could get us a house in New Jersey.

We started looking in Maplewood and South Orange because they were on a train line, but Lina showed us some homes in West Orange in the same price range that were bigger and had more updates. Our house is 2 minutes from the New York bus – it’s super easy and in some ways more reliable than the train!

I love being in West Orange. Getting around is simple. The schools are great. There are plenty of parks and activities – including the zoo! – and we are constantly taking our two young children with us on hikes in South Mountain or Eagle Rock Reservations, or out to visit farms in New Jersey.

I love the proximity to Livingston and Montclair – two places we often go out to dinner or to shop. I love our neighborhood, which happens to be full of people like us – young families who moved from the city for more space. But mostly, I love walking into a house with a new kitchen and a finished basement. I’m excited to come home every day.

My friends come to visit from the city and they are shocked at the amount of space we have. I tell them, “You can have this too!”

 - Mary Kate, West Orange