If you know your boxing, you'll know the name Joe Louis. In fact, most people would recognize that name anyway, boxing aficionado or not. Louis is widely regarded as one of the greatest ever boxers, and was World Heavyweight Champion from 1937 to 1949. For part of that highly decorated and illustrious career, Joe Louis lived and trained in a certain borough called Pompton Lakes.
Pompton Lakes is, as just mentioned, a borough, and is found in Passaic County, New Jersey
If you know your boxing, you'll know the name Joe Louis. In fact, most people would recognize that name anyway, boxing aficionado or not. Louis is widely regarded as one of the greatest ever boxers, and was World Heavyweight Champion from 1937 to 1949. For part of that highly decorated and illustrious career, Joe Louis lived and trained in a certain borough called Pompton Lakes.
Pompton Lakes is, as just mentioned, a borough, and is found in Passaic County, New Jersey. The population hasn't grown much in the last couple of decades, increasing from just over 10,500 in 1990 up to the 2010 figure of 11,097, which means residents have been able to keep Pompton Lakes a secret -- until now. The borough is an outer ring suburb of New York City, with Midtown Manhattan about 20 miles to the south east. In fact, if you head up to the higher peaks of the borough, you'll be able to see the skyline of the Big Apple a way's away and, with it being so close, a fair number of the local community tend to commute in for work. There are three rivers that run through the borough -- the Wanaque, Pequannock and Ramapo rivers -- which provide the local people with a great deal of things to do throughout the year. With a mild climate with clear seasons, Pompton Lakes is a great place for anyone looking for a quieter and greener place to live within touching distance of New York.
When you move anywhere, what are the sort of things you need to think about? What you can afford and what sort of place you're looking for are top of the list, right? Well, you might have already guessed this yourself, but you can't expect to find cheap rent in a place like this. You're a stone's throw from New York and you're in a nice borough in the heart of the east coast, so yeah, rent is gonna be fairly high. We're talking pricey for the nation as a whole, but not necessarily for the state (but then again, New Jersey has some of the highest real estate prices in the U.S.). The takeaway here is that you're paying for proximity and convenience to the big city.
An Assortment of Housing Options
The good news is that there's plenty of housing options to choose from. About three quarters of the 4,000+ properties in the borough are owner occupied, so we're looking at about 1,000 rental properties out there. It doesn't sound like much, but it's not a big borough, so what can you expect? What you will get, however, is a good choice of single family detached housing, attached homes and rowhouses, and small and large apartments complexes and high rise buildings. So, whether you're looking for a home for rent or an apartment rental, you've got all bases covered.
Watch Those Commuters
It's quite possible that you're going to be commuting to Manhattan or another New York suburb yourself, so this won't be news to you, but it's important that you search early if you want to find a place to live in good time. The vacancy rate in the borough is decent, but there will be a host of other New York workers looking for appropriate housing within distance of the workplace. The housing market tends to hot up during the summer, so if you can hunt down a place to live over winter, then you'll probably find that the field is less competitive. You'll also need to go through a credit check and referencing, but this should be fine as long you're employed/don't have a secret criminal past, etc.
Pompton Lakes may be close to New York and its major suburbs, but New York it is not. You won't have a thousand neighborhoods to choose from, which does make your life a bit easier when it comes time to picking one. In Pompton Lakes there are just two, in fact, and the borough as a whole has a walk score of 91, meaning you can get most things done in and around town without ever needing to use a car.
Borough Center: This is where the action is, and if you live around here, you'll quickly realize why you don't need a car to get your bits and pieces done. You've got Pompton Lake itself right there in the east, with all the amenities you could ask for in the center of the borough. For foodies you'll want to check out Hing Lee Restaurant, Mr. Sushi and Big Daddy's Dogs for a range of culinary treats from around the world.
Lincoln Avenue/Riverview Road: Housing here is more expensive, but this is largely because the neighborhood is exclusively filled with single family detached homes. Not good for one-bedroom apartments, but great for those looking for a larger rental property in the area. It's nice and spacious here and there are plenty of parks around, including Hershfield Park, Carlough Field and Mathes Avenue Woodland.
So, what's life like in Pompton Lakes? Well, much that happens here is based around organized events, so this shows that the borough is fairly closely knit. The Pompton Lakes Recreation Committee help to get the town together, with various events held in the borough's parks. The Teen Center has dances and other fun stuff for the kids, while the Elks Lodge hosts bingo nights and other group activities. Pompton Day is the biggest of the year, an end of summer event that brings everyone together, with markets, sports, fireworks and more for the people to enjoy. In all, expect to enter a friendly and welcoming community when you move to Pompton Lakes.
Transport is also simple through the borough. Interstate 287 runs through the west, while Route 202 offers easy access towards New York. If you're looking to take the bus, there's a good service to the Big Apple run by New Jersey Transit, with the 193, 194 and 197 routes heading straight for the heart of the city. This is great for commuters or anyone who just wants a day out.
