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Renting an Apartment in New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the
United States. The state is named after the island of Jersey in the English
Channel. It is bordered on the north by New York, on the east by the Atlantic
Ocean, on the southwest by Delaware, and on the west by Pennsylvania. Parts of
New Jersey lie within the metropolitan areas of New York and Philadelphia.
Inhabited by Native Americans for more than 11,000 years, the first European
settlements in the area were the Swedes and Dutch in the early 1600s. The
British later seized control of the region, which was granted to Sir George
Carteret and John Berkeley, 1st Baron Berkeley of Stratton as the colony of New
Jersey. New Jersey was an important site during the American Revolutionary War;
several decisive battles were fought there. The winter quarters of the
revolutionary army were established twice by George Washington in Morristown,
which was called the military capital of the revolution. The New Jersey Journal,
a newspaper published by Shepard Kollock, who established his press in Chatham
during 1779, became a catalyst in the revolution. News of events came directly
to Kollock from Washington's headquarters in nearby Morristown, which he
published to boost the morale of the troops and their families, and he conducted
lively debates about the efforts for independence with those who opposed and
supported the cause he championed. Later, working-class cities such as Paterson
helped to drive the Industrial Revolution in the nineteenth century. New
Jersey's position at the center of the BosWash megalopolis, between Boston, New
York City, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington, D.C., fueled its rapid growth
through the suburban boom of the 1950s and beyond.
Geography
New Jersey is bordered on the north and northeast by New York; on the east by
the Atlantic Ocean; on the south and southwest by Delaware; and on the west by
Pennsylvania. The western border of New Jersey is largely defined by the
Delaware River. Because of its dense population and because most communities of
northern New Jersey do not have the widespread reservoir system of neighboring
Greater New York City, the slightest dry season leads to drought warnings; but
because there are many streams and rivers close to these communities, the
slightest above average rainfall causes frequent flooding as many parts of
Northern New Jersey are part of a flood plain. It is also at the center of the
Boston to Washington megalopolis.
New Jersey is broadly divided into three geographic regions: North Jersey,
Central Jersey, and South Jersey. North Jersey lies within New York City's
general sphere of influence (i.e. largely within the New York metropolitan
area), and some residents commute to the city to work. Central Jersey is a
largely suburban area. South Jersey is within Philadelphia, Pennsylvania's
general sphere of influence, and most of it is included in the Delaware Valley.
Such geographic definitions are loosely defined, however, and there is often
dispute over where one region begins and another ends. Some people do not
consider Central Jersey to exist at all, but most believe it is a separate
geographic and cultural area from the North and South.
Additionally, the New Jersey Commerce, Economic Growth, & Tourism Commission
divides the state into six distinct regions to facilitate the state's tourism
industry. The regions are:
* Gateway Region, encompassing Hudson County, Essex County, Union County,
Middlesex County, Bergen County, and Passaic County.
* Skylands Region, encompassing Sussex County, Morris County, Warren County,
Hunterdon County, and Somerset County.
* Shore Region, encompassing Monmouth County and Ocean County.
* Delaware River Region, encompassing Mercer County, Burlington County, Camden
County, Gloucester County, and Salem County.
* Greater Atlantic City Region, encompassing Atlantic County.
* Southern Shore Region, encompassing Cumberland County and Cape May County.
High Point, in Montague Township, Sussex County, is the highest elevation, at n National Scenic Trail
* Delaware National Scenic River
* Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area
* Edison National Historic Site in West Orange
* Ellis Island National Monument
* Gateway National Recreation Area in Monmouth County
* Great Egg Harbor River
* Morristown National Historical Park in Morristown
* New Jersey Coastal Heritage Trail Route
* New Jersey Pinelands National Reserve
Prominent geographic features include:
* Delaware Water Gap
* Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge
* The Highlands
* New Jersey Meadowlands
* Pine Barrens
* South Mountain
Climate
New Jersey has a temperate climate, with warm/hot humid summers and cool/cold
winters. During the hurricane season, tropical cyclones can hit New Jersey,
though it is uncommon for it to remain at hurricane strength this far to the
north. During the winter months, Nor'easters can dump up to two feet of snow at
once.
The temperatures vary greatly from the northernmost part of New Jersey to the
southernmost part of New Jersey. For example, these are the average high and low
temperatures for Cape May, near the state's southernmost ocean-facing point, and
Sussex, in the mountainous northwest.
Some Things to Consider When Looking for a Place...
When searching for a new apartment make sure to take your time to think
through what are the most important things to you in an apartment and plan your
search based on those priorities. Here are some things to consider when planning
your move:
1. Consider the areas where you would like to live
* What is the crime rate?
* If you have children - what rating does the local school system have?
* Is there area convenient shopping, health and recreation services in the area?
2. Make a list of your housing priorities
* Do you have pets?
* Do you need parking?
* Do you need to be on the ground floor?
* What amenities are important to you - swimming pool, fitness room, in unit
laundry?
3. Evaluate the building
* What is the condition of the unit and building?
* Are the grounds maintained?
* Are windows, steps, and railings in good condition?
* View the property at night. Is it safe and well lit?
4. The security of the property
* Are there security service? When is the guard on duty?
* Does the building have controlled access?
* Does each unit have secure door and window locks?
5. Talk to the neighbors
* Ask other residents whether they are satisfied with the building.
6. Amenities
* Who is allowed to use the amenities?
* When are they open?
* Are the fees charged to use those facilities included in rent?
7. Ask about Utilities
* Does the owner or tenant pay the utility bills?
* Are any utilities included with monthly rent?
* Do units have separate thermostats to control heat and air conditioning?
8. Review the lease
* How much notice must you give before moving out?
* Can the rent be increased? If so, by how much and how often?
* Are pets allowed?
* What is the security deposit and cleaning costs upon move out?
* What is the responsibility of tenants for damage to property?
* Is there a penalty for breaking a lease?
9. Information too bring to a lease signing
* Credit Report
* Pay stubs/tax returns
* Reference
* Application
More Apartment Information
An apartment (or flat in Britain and most other Commonwealth countries) is a
self-contained housing unit that occupies only part of a building. Apartments
may be owned (by an owner-occupier) or rented (by tenants).
Some apartment-dwellers own their apartments, either as co-ops, in which the
residents own shares of a corporation that owns the building or development; or
in condominiums, whose residents own their apartments and share ownership of the
public spaces. Most apartments are in buildings designed for the purpose, but
large older houses are sometimes divided into apartments. The word apartment
connotes a residential unit or section in a building. Apartment building owners,
lessors, or managers often use the more general word units to refer to
apartments. Units can be used to refer to rental business suites as well as
residential apartments. When there is no tenant occupying an apartment, the
lessor is said to have a vacancy. For apartment lessors, each vacancy represents
a loss of income from rent-paying tenants for the time the apartment is vacant
(i.e., unoccupied). Lessors' objectives are often to minimize the vacancy rate
for their units. The owner of the apartment typically transfers possession to
the occupant by giving him/her the key to the apartment entrance door and any
other keys need to live there, such as a common key to the building or any other
common areas, and an individual unit mailbox key. When the occupant move out,
these keys should typically be returned to the owner.
Apartments can be classified into several types. Studio, efficiency, bed-sit, or
bachelor apartments tend to be the smallest apartments with the cheapest rents
in a given area. These kinds of apartment usually consist mainly of a large room
which is the living, dining, and bedroom combined. There are usually kitchen
facilities as part of this central room, but the bathroom is its own smaller
separate room. Moving up from the efficiencies are one-bedroom apartments where
one bedroom is a separate room from the rest of the apartment. Then there are
two-bedroom, three-bedroom, etc. apartments. Small apartments often have only
one entrance/exit. Large apartments often have two entrances/exits, perhaps a
door in the front and another in the back. Depending on the building design, the
entrance/exit doors may be directly to the outside or to a common area inside,
such as a hallway. Depending on location, apartments may be available for rent
furnished with furniture or unfurnished into which a tenant usually moves in
with his/her own furniture. Permanent carpeting is often included in an
apartment.
Laundry facilities are usually kept in a separate area accessible to all the
tenants in the building. Depending on when the building was built and the design
of the building, utilities such as water, heating, and electric may be common
for all the apartments in the building or separate for each apartment and billed
separately to each tenant (however, many areas in the US have ruled it illegal
to split a water bill among all the tenants, especially if a pool is on the
premises). Outlets for connection to telephones are typically included in
apartments. Telephone service is optional and is practically always billed
separately from the rent payments. Cable television and similar amenities are
extra also. Parking space, air conditioner, and extra storage space may or may
not be included with an apartment. Rental leases often limit the maximum number
of people who can reside in each apartment. On or around the ground floor of the
apartment building, a series of mailboxes are typically kept in a location
accessible to the public and, thus, to the letter-carrier too. Every unit
typically gets its own mailbox with individual keys to it. Some very large
apartment buildings with a full-time staff may take mail from the mailman and
provide mail-sorting service. Near the mailboxes or some other location
accessible by outsiders, there may be a buzzer (equivalent to a doorbell) for
each individual unit. In smaller apartment buildings such as two- or
three-flats, or even four-flats, garbage is often disposed of in trash
containers similar to those used at houses. In larger buildings, garbage is
often collected in a common trash bin or dumpster. For cleanliness or minimizing
noise, many lessors will place restrictions on tenants regarding keeping pets in
an apartment.
In some parts of the world, the word apartment is used generally to refer to a
new purpose-built self-contained residential unit in a building, whereas the
word flat means a converted self-contained unit in an older building. An
industrial, warehouse, or commercial space converted to an apartment is commonly
called a loft.
When part of a house is converted for the ostensible use of a landlord's family
member, the unit may be known as an in-law apartment or granny flat, though
these (sometimes illegally) created units are often occupied by ordinary renters
rather than family members. In Canada these suites are commonly located in the
basements of houses and are therefore normally called basement suites.
Staying in privately owned apartments rather than in a hotel is quickly becoming
popular with travelers.