Hi all,

I just viewed a gorgeous, immaculately restored 19th century brick townhome in the Bergen Hill area of Jersey City. It’s the kind of house I drool over on Bstoner all the time, but will never be affordable to me and my kind in Brooklyn. Try as I might, I can’t find too much online about this area of JC, which is definitely still on the down side of “up and coming”. Not sure how much I want to be a pioneer — it’d be tough to give up all the amenities of brownstone Brooklyn, even for this gem of a place.

I know there are one or two Jersey folks on this board — anyone have any thoughts on Bergen Hill, and what it’s like to live there now, as well as predictions for the future? We already know the zoned schools are bad.

Just a note that one half of the buying equation lived for a long time in JC, so we’re not totally clueless when it comes to the area.

Thanks!


What's Your Take? Leave a Comment

  1. There are plans for the Journal Square expansion as well as St. Peter’s College expansion online and I can see the area getting better maybe in ten years but everything has come to a halt due to the economy. I’ve seen a couple real good deals downtown recently.

  2. I live in downtown Jersey City in the Van Vorst Park neighborhood and I love it but I have to admit Bergen Hill is a little sketchy. You have quite a hoof to the PATH if you work in the city. You have the Beacon condo development in the area which is beautiful but very much a self-contained area that buses residents to and from the PATH. There are a few smaller condo developments around the Beacon that are nice but the neighborhood is little removed from the PATH so you will either be walking about 15 mins to the train or taking a cab or bus. There are some really nice older frame homes as well as brick townhouses in Bergen Hill but it’s a rough area with a lot drug violence mostly from rival teenagers taking each other out over turf.
    There are a ton of things to do amenities wise in downtown Jersey City but not much on that side of the highway. Try downtown JC first and see if the area agrees with you before venturing up over the hill. It’s very safe downtown with lot’s of families.
    They just opened a new location of Barcade, there’s the Zeppelin beer garden and a ton of great restaurants downtown.