Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with newyork and newjersey

I need health insurance (me and everyone else...)

greta simone — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 12:10:37 -0800

Ohshitfilter: Temporary health insurance options in NJ? I just moved from NC to NJ five weeks ago, after finishing a Masters program. My student health insurance ends on August 14, and since I have not been successful in finding employment (as I had hoped) I need to come up with a plan.

I have heard of COBRA, but I also heard that the State of New York does not accept COBRA. This is a problem for me, because my residence in NJ is temporary and I plan on moving to Manhattan or Brooklyn in the next few months. Secondly, I can not prove residency in NJ as I am not on the lease and have no bills in my name (staying with a friend). Am I screwed? I cannot seem to find the information online that I need.

I need the the cheapest health insurance I can get that will also cover prescriptions in some form (I have allergy and asthma and BC meds I must take).

What are my options? Please point me in the right direction or to a place where I can at least get more information.

Help!
Thanks.

Taxes for NJ dwellers working in NY.

spacefire — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 19:13:14 -0800

Online Tax help specifically for people who live in NJ and work in NY? My wife and I both lived in Jersey and worked in NYC last year. I prepared and filed our taxes as a married couple, but going through all the steps was a bit of a pain.We also got some correction letter from the IRS.
I'd like to find an easier, less error-prone way for this year.
Tax preparers charge over $200 dollars for our combined income bracket. We can't afford to pay that because my wife was laid off at the end of last year. (by the way, are there any tax rebates for people who were laid off last year?)
The main difference between this year's filing is the added income, not too much, from my wife's books.
So, can TurboTax help for this situation? IIRC we need to file federal, NY and NJ, with some 'robbing Peter to pay Paul' deductions involved at state level. Are there any other e-file programs or websites that can actually handle this process for people working in one state and living in another in a more streamlined manner?
I don't mind paying under $50 just to make sure we're doing it right and fast.

Thanks mefites!

Vermont ski resort bus trips from New Jersey?

exhilaration — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 19:09:41 -0800

Anyone know of any Vermont ski resort bus trips that leave from New Jersey? I just finished reading this entry on a Times blog about about day trips to Vermont from New York City. What I want to know is if similar trips are run out of New Jersey, preferably North Jersey.

I've seen the NJ Ski Council trips, but most are longer than a day and require memberships to ski clubs. Aren't there any ski shops that organize no-commitment day trips like the ones mentioned on that Times blog, but from Jersey?

I'm not a Yankee, please help

bach — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 20:36:54 -0800

Traveling to NYC during Thanksgiving... I am a chaperon for my students marching in the Macy's Great American Marching Band that performs for the Macy's Parade on Thanksgiving Day. While the majority of the week will be devoted to rehearsal and group sight-seeing, I do have some personal free time.

My question is what is the easiest and/or an inexpensive way to get to NYC from Hilton Woodcliff Lake-200 Tice Blvd, Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey 07675

Other questions include what is there to do nearby, things not to miss, etc...

Cheap travel from Delaware to NYC?

viewofdelft — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 13:23:54 -0800

What are the cheapest ways to get from Newark, Delaware, to New York City? I'm a research assistant at the University of Delaware and as part of a long and wonkish I-95 corridor project, we've decided to produce a map or informational pamphlet letting students know the cheapest ways to get from here (Newark, Delaware) to New York City.

A few things to keep in mind:
1. Any mode of transportation is fair game (air, rail, highway, seaports, etc.), as is any type of vehicle (plane, train, automobile, bus, shoes, etc.).
2. Be creative, but within reasonable limits of safety (i.e., no airmailing oneself).
3. It's alright if many of the suggested travel methods begin in Philadelphia (and maybe even Baltimore) if these departure points are more familiar to you.
4. Cost is the most important factor, although I don't want to discourage that outlandish teleportation idea you've been waiting to uncork.

After we've completed the map or pamphlet, I'll contact each of the contributors about mailing them a finished product. Thank you.

Best Water Park in NY or NJ??

smartypanties — Mon, 26 May 2008 18:15:13 -0800

What is the very best water park for 30ish folks to enjoy in the NY/NJ area?

help me get from JFK to central NJ

intermod — Thu, 29 Mar 2007 08:56:02 -0800

My German cousin is arriving on a flight into JFK on the evening of Tuesday April 10th. I will be unable to pick him up, and he's happy to take transit to where I am in Central Jersey (where I CAN pick him up). Help me get him from JFK to Central Jersey (and help me know the subtleties of the transit options) ... We've ridden the NJ Transit trains before out of Penn Station so I'm pretty sure that will be the second leg. I guess then that I need help with the first leg.

There seem to be several options to get him from JFK to Penn Station. Train, subway, shuttle bus, taxi ... What would be a good pick for a middle-aged professional foreigner with excellent English? It needs to be on time and needs to go direct from JFK to Penn, meaning no crosstown changes in Manhattan. Penn will be enough hassle for him, after that long flight, I don't want to burden him with a Grand Central to Penn leg.

I'll monitor this for the next few hours if there are any clarifying questions ...

Broker/agent recommendations for Jersey City rentals, please!

cyrusdogstar — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 09:07:35 -0800

Looking for some specifics and some general advice: broker/realtor/agency recommendations for finding a rental in Jersey City, and/or links to general resources for someone new to real estate/apartment hunting. This is a semi-followup to my earlier JC-related question, for what it's worth. In addition, from perusing other such threads, I've already bookmarked Del Forno Realty and Armagno Agency. However, if possible I'd like recommendations for other such groups, or specific individual agents who specialize in Jersey City.

As with the other thread, please do not mention New York City or Hoboken resources unless they also deal with Jersey City, and yes, I have heard of that quaint little "Craig's List" WWW thingy, thanks :) And we've heard the "no brokers, they suck" argument ad infinitum, and have taken that viewpoint into account.

Journal Square is the dumps!

cyrusdogstar — Wed, 20 Sep 2006 09:23:24 -0800

We're thinking of moving to Jersey City from points west, and have some questions about it which aren't answered in this previous JC AskMe. Sincere apologies for the length! (I've bookmarked related threads here. Also: Please do not suggest we move to a NYC borough, or Hoboken--I will ask for that sort of advice if/when I need it :))

My fiancee and I live in the Jersey 'burbs (on the Raritan Valley NJT line, which runs once an hour off-peak and requires a transfer in Newark). While it's nice and quiet, the commute is getting old, especially since we've made lifestyle changes recently.

We're interested in Jersey City because it's centrally located (thanks PATH!) and appears more affordable than NYC proper, especially compared to those areas with similar commute times. Our target is a 2-bedroom place for ~$1000-1400/mo; we currently have a "1 1/2" bedroom for ~$900/mo.

With that back-story out of the way, my questions:

1. Neighborhoods. I'm looking for any advice about the various areas that you can provide, and I'll spit out my own observations here:

Most of the apartments fitting our criteria on Craigslist are near Journal Square, or in neighborhoods south. We visited that area last weekend, and it's as run-down as I expected.

Others are in the Heights, which looked nicer, but seems like it's a hike from PATH, and the closest such stop being in JSQ, which I'm not even sure I want to walk through twice a day. My fiancee was troubled by the power-plant on the slope west of the Heights, too (we saw it walking up JFK).

Then there's downtown, near the Grove Street PATH, Hamilton Park, Paulus Hook (nice, but unfortunately too expensive), Van Vorst Park, and etc. The old thread said the only nice areas were Paulus Hook and Hamilton Park; does that include the areas in between, the ones near the Grove Street stop? We visited the area last year but I don't remember it well, nor did we cover all of it. As far as I can tell it's our best bet w/r/t getting a nice-ish area close to PATH.

2. Groceries. One odd thing we noticed during that downtown trip was the relative lack of delis/markets/grocers. Was that just bad luck/poor perception, or does everyone hoof it up to the supermarket near the mall?

3. Crime. Just how bad is it? From reading JCList.com, you'd think that there are break-ins every few days, with scattered muggings for flavor. I realize that the area has crime, but is it any better or worse than, say, the gentrified neighborhoods in Brooklyn, or Astoria? Pointers to sources at which I can research this myself would be welcome.

4. Locals. If anyone reading this is currently residing in Jersey City and would like to give us a more focused tour of the better areas, or to just gab about the place in general, I'd greatly appreciate it. Email is in the profile.

Where's the New York bound 117?

saladin — Thu, 27 Apr 2006 04:53:58 -0800

Where do I catch the New York bound NJTransit bus at Newark Airport? Last time I flew out of Newark (EWR), I took the 117 NJTransit bus from Port Authority to get there. It was amazing; $4 one way (as opposed to $13 on the private carriers), nearly empty and it took less than 20 minutes. I felt like I'd cracked some kind of code... the airport route isn't really publicised at all, I suspect to prevent it from cutting into their much more expensive AirTrain service.

Anyway, I neglected to figure out where to catch it to get back to New York, and ended up shelling out the big bucks for the Olympia bus upon my return. When I was dropped off last time, it was on a one-way side road right off of the highway, next to the long-term parking lot on the North end of the airport complex, and, though I suspect that the New York-bound bus stops somewhere nearby, it's highly unlikely that it stops in the exact same spot. I've been studying NJT's crappy little route map, but it's offering me no clues.

Has anyone ever done this before? Where do I go to catch the New York bound Local 117 NJTransit bus at Newark Airport?

new jersey tax vs. new york tax

bingo — Wed, 26 Apr 2006 14:00:39 -0800

I live in NYC, I make $60k a year, and I take home about $750 per week, which comes to $39k. This strikes me as ridiculous. Am I not using some deduction that everyone else knows about? Would I pay fewer taxes if I kept my Manhattan job but lived in New Jersey?

Making the mix (NJ-NY-TX style)

MsVader — Wed, 21 Sep 2005 10:44:07 -0800

Help me make a mix CD about New Jersey, New York and Texas... My brother's getting married in two weeks, and we're putting together "welcome boxes" for all of the guests coming in from out of town who'll be staying in hotels. I thought it might be fun to include a mix CD of songs about NJ (where we're from), NY (where he and his fiancee met), and TX (where she's from), and/or definitive songs by artists from those locations. I've got a short list already developing in my head, but I know that the experts of AskMe can come up with a better selection than I could hope to assemble on my own.

Help me, AskMetaFilter, you're my only hope...

Karaoke in North Jersey or NYC

exhilaration — Tue, 20 Sep 2005 20:28:18 -0800

Recommendations for good Karaoke in Bergen County, New Jersey or New York City on Friday night. I'm looking for a bar, restaurant, cafe, or whatever that has karaoke in Bergen County NJ or New York City on Friday nights, specifically this Friday night. I prefer New Jersey but I'd like to hear about places in the City as well. I found this list on Google but I'd rather get recommendations.

Getting from EWR to Wall Street

Kwantsar — Wed, 01 Jun 2005 17:50:43 -0800

I need to get from EWR (Newark, NJ Airport) to Wall Street at noon on a weekday. While there's no rush, I can't afford to waste a lot of time. Will this work? How long will it take? Other suggestions?

Can I get to NJ from NYC later than the last train at 1:37 a.m.?

seinfeld — Sat, 08 Jan 2005 11:00:47 -0800

I live in Northern NJ and like to stay out late in NYC. My problem is the train's latest return trip to NJ is at 137am. How can I get home later? Is there a PATH station that has ample parking at night? I'm new to the area and would appreciate the help. Thanks!

Finding a Property

edlundart — Tue, 04 Jan 2005 11:00:23 -0800

My fiancee and I want to find and buy a small property in NJ or NY, and build a house. I am clueless about how to begin the process of finding a property. I'd need to commute to Manhattan from the place, which means we're talking about areas that are popular -- which means there's probably not a lot of available residential property, and what there is might be way outside our budget. We're looking for a rural type area with some green grass and stuff.

I'm looking for general advice here. How impossible is this? What's a good way to find a property? What kind of prices should I expect?

I've done some searching via Google and real estate sites but I don't find much of anything. I'm not sure if that's because there are literally no residential lots available, or because I'm looking in the wrong places. I've lived in rented apartments all my life.