Across Other River from Manhattan: Paulus Hook
It’s not everyday you see an historic townhouse for sale on Ebay, so we’ll bend the rules around here and take a look even though it’s located in New Jersey. We’ve been aware that there are troves of beautiful old buildings in enclaves like Lincoln Park, but hadn’t heard of an area called Paulus Hook…

It’s not everyday you see an historic townhouse for sale on Ebay, so we’ll bend the rules around here and take a look even though it’s located in New Jersey. We’ve been aware that there are troves of beautiful old buildings in enclaves like Lincoln Park, but hadn’t heard of an area called Paulus Hook where this gorgeous 1841 two-family frame rowhouse is on the block for a cool $1.55 million. Turns out there was also a small battle there during the Revolutionary War. Point is, though, that it’s closer to lower Manhattan than most of Brooklyn and, from the outside at least, has charm to spare. The interior is gonna need some love but has some decent bones. Did many of you Brooklyites consider Jersey City when you were in the market for a house?
Paulus Hook Row House [Ebay]
Historical Introduction [PaulusHook.org]
We lived in North Bergen NJ for four years while saving up for a down payment. Cannot understand why anyone would live in that area for any reason other than necessity.
We just moved to Jersey City to an 1890’s rowhouse. The inside needs work, but the facade is beautiful with ornate brickwork, we have a garden area both front and back, and we can watch the sun rise over Manhattan from our bed every morning. The view is truly phenomenal. Probably comparable to that from Brooklyn Heights but if we had bought anything in Brooklyn it probably would have been the far side of Flatbush to fit into our price range. Jersey City has a lot to recommend it.
I live in the Lincoln Park area, but Van Vorst would be my choice if I lived in downtown JC. There are three Jersey City historic districts, all downtown: Van Vorst, Paulus Hook, and Hamilton Park. Everything’s gotten very expensive of course, but most of the new people I meet in my neighborhood are here because they’ve been priced out of Brooklyn.
I have a house in the Van Vorst Park historic district. The area is beautiful, the brownstones, lovely, the taxes outrageous, the amenities better than many parts of Brooklyn, the prices are lower than FG CH PH – maybe equivalent to the South Slope.
I would encourage a look see.
have friends in JC. near van vorst park. it’s an awesome little neighborhood. amazing apartment. tight knit street, friendly. limited restaurants, stores, it’s true. but if you have a car (and you do if you live in jersey), the shopping is all around you. easy to get to and fro on path. but that waterfront is unforgettable.
I lived in Jersey with an ex- for a while and was considering buying in West New York, North Bergen or Jersey City. Back then (late 1998, early 1999), you could get a two or three family for $150,000 in a lot of places. When I factored in the taxes, the commute, and the lack of any real reason to be there other than to go to sleep at night, I made the decision a lot of people seem to make – I saved up more money and bought in Brooklyn at the first change.
Considered Jersey for about a second. Hey, maybe we can beat up on Jersey instead of Bayridge, or PLG, or other Brooklyn places.
When my wife and I married and started talking about where to buy a house, her first suggestion was Jersey City. She had lived there for a short time, and is familiar as well with other parts of New Jersey. She had never been to Brooklyn, (she was born and raised in Michigan) and at my suggestion, we cruised the neighborhoods we thought appropriate.
After seeing Brooklyn and discussing the advantages of the subway, being closer to my family, we opted for Brooklyn.
Paulus Hook brownstones are lovely, but no longer a bargain (there are even apts. there going for $1.5 million). Plus, the area has few amenities – I have friends who moved out for that reason. It’s not far from the Jersey City waterfront that NJ had big plans for after 9/11 – those plans never really panned out. It’s a ghost town on the weekends. But if you don’t care and like quiet, it’s really pretty.