"A good place to buy a home is where the demand will be greatest in the future . . . And where the demand will be greatest in the future are urban markets and inner-ring suburbs, townships on rail lines that connect to where the jobs are."

Jeffrey Otteau, real estate appraiser, quoted in Inside New Jersey, September 16, 2008

The desire for "walkability" and walkable communities has been a growing national and New Jersey real estate trend in recent years. In my opinion, walkable suburbs are some of the best NJ towns.

After decades of sprawl and ever-distant housing developments along miles of streets with no sidewalks, the pendulum is shifting. More people want to live in human-scale towns with "walk to" neighborhoods and town centers. They want local shops, restaurants, and public transportation close at hand for a good commute to NYC.

Walkability is a growing choice for the environmentally conscious who don't want to have more than one car per household-and the health conscious who want an active lifestyle. But walkable communities are also becoming smart real estate investments, particularly in the best NJ towns. During the recent real estate recession, homes in pedestrian-friendly communities along the train lines have held the highest values. If you're looking for a home where you can have a backyard, a vibrant local community, and a good commute to New York City, you've come to the right place. Our NJ towns – just 12 to 15 miles outside of New York City – have train stations and pedestrian-friendly communities designed in the early part of the last century. In other words, they were built for humans on foot, rather than cars. These are towns where you can walk the kids to school, bike to a coffee shop, and maybe even walk to dinner on a Saturday night. In most of our walkable communities, one-car families are common.

"The dominant pattern of development in America – large houses and sprawling, auto-dependent suburbs – requires a heavy input of fossil fuels and an output of carbon emissions. The adoption of cleaner technologies will take us part of the way, but what we really need to do is change our habitat, not just for the environmental benefits, but for our health, lifestyle and happiness."

"How Green Is Your Neighborhood?", Time magazine, December 19, 2007

Contact me if you have questions and to learn about New Jersey's walkable suburbs. Learn more about walkable suburbs:

Benefits of a Walkable Community | Learn More About Walkable Suburbs