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Re: Property Tax Appeal Workshop
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Seems like this year's tax appeal court dates will be a bit later than normal. They said they'll be mailing out the dates in May/June timeframe. I remember last year, I was done with court appearance by the end of April. (I think....).
Posted on: 2013/3/11 21:21
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Re: Three-Course Murder Mystery Dinner in Journal Square.
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Quote:
+1 So safe around there and people are friendly too. I've never had any issues nor even worried about getting home late from JSQ.
Posted on: 2013/3/6 16:56
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Re: Jersey City man runs free bookstore six days a week.
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This guy is super nice. When I used to live up there, we used to donate all the time from books to printers, etc etc. He'd then just give it away to the elderly, etc. It's like a goodwill.
Posted on: 2013/3/5 14:55
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Re: Three-Course Murder Mystery Dinner in Journal Square.
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Quote:
Thought this was a fun date idea and did this last year. It was fun for a one-time deal. It's worth about $29 bucks (and definitely not $60)). Prepare to be a good sport if you go to one of these.
Posted on: 2013/3/5 14:52
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Re: Property Tax Appeal Workshop
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Quote:
Thank goodness for this video! I thought I knew after doing a few of these, but looks like I messed up on the Sales Code. I have to go replace 2 out of 5 my comps. Yikes. Thank goodness I've been too busy to turn it in.
Posted on: 2013/2/22 16:03
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Re: Carpet Cleaners
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Quote:
May I ask what the quote was like just to have an idea?
Posted on: 2013/2/22 15:06
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Re: Carpet Cleaners
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Pinging this again. Trying to clean carpets too - seems like various vendors around but no solid recommendation. Anyone have any input?
Posted on: 2013/2/21 18:51
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Re: Tell me where to get Sushi please...
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Quote:
Thank you!
Posted on: 2013/2/20 14:12
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Re: Property values in the Heights (post Sandy)
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Quote:
@Sam112, I don't see the meeting on the calender of the website. It is a sure-thing. 3rd Thursday of every month at 7pm? Where can I go to get on a list or something? @VA2015 I don't know... those stores & venues you pointed out would be nice and I'm sure would raise the housing prices here. But for now, I like the Heights as is. But I enjoy that transition phase of a neighborhood and the slight to severe dinginess. I find all the stores that kitten listed to be just fine, it fits my material needs and my humor needs. And the moment a place becomes "hip" or gentrified, I find myself leaving, not due to price but because of the atmosphere. I went from UES in NYC, to 110th St "Harlem", to Williamsburg, to Grove, to Heights, to Greenville. Just love me some hoood! (That and working in Manhattan day and night, by 7pm, I'd had it up to here with the fancy 5th Ave stuff)
Posted on: 2013/2/20 1:16
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Re: Tell me where to get Sushi please...
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Haven't found a cheap one. I think Honshu is pretty authentic for JC. Illuzion is Americanized roll deliciousness - delivers and is delicious (a lot of fish and little rice).
Going to try that shady place in 440 out! How hard is it to get to without a car from JSQ? Bikable?
Posted on: 2013/2/19 18:36
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Re: Property values in the Heights (post Sandy)
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Quote:
+1 I even got a email from a tenant after Sandy saying how much they love having power and a non-flooded basement. I'm an investor and I'm loving every minute of it! More income producing properties for me! Seems like a lot of bashers have never even lived in the neighborhood that they bash (with a few exceptions).
Posted on: 2013/2/19 17:34
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Re: Property values in the Heights (post Sandy)
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Quote:
+1
Posted on: 2013/2/19 16:59
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Re: New Heights Eatery
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Totally agreed. I think the price is perfect for starting out. After it gets a base following or it's stability - then they can raise it by a buck or two.
REALLY nice people, and the guy said his family invested everything in this and it's his family's dream. I hope it goes well for them. No pics from me, but it's not a "romantic" place. it's just a eatery, nice, simple, clean. Unless your date is a good sport - don't go on a first date. Mine is a great sport and loves good food, so we made it a date night to support local business.
Posted on: 2013/2/19 16:39
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Re: New Heights Eatery
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We made it a point to drive by our old neighborhood yesterday and drop in. The owner is super nice and we ended up getting a huge amount of food. The son is in the front taking orders and his mom is in the back cooking up a storm. It was SO DELICIOUS and I'm glad that now we don't have to goto Brighton Beach for our Russian food fix.
The pricing is pretty reasonable for around here and you get a lot for the money. Authentic Russian/Ukrainian food. It's got a thumbs up from me! I really hope they do well.
Posted on: 2013/2/18 2:13
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Re: Plumber?
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Quote:
+1 agree from experience but you sound like you can do a lot more than I can!
Posted on: 2013/2/15 21:14
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Re: Plumber?
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Quote:
Hi, I took it at Hudson Technical: http://www.hcstonline.org/portal/Info ... the-Plumbing-Academy.aspx The course is $600 bucks but I don't know if I would take it again. I didn't learn as much as I had hoped and they concentrate a lot on manual labor that I would probably never mess with (like cutting cast iron pipes for 2-3 classes). It was an entire semester (3hr classes twice a week) - so you still learn here and there, but it BARELY made the $600 worth it. I've learned a lot more by youtubing to be honest (after the class so I knew what to really google for...). A lot of the classmates already knew the material and just wanted the hours for their certification and licensing purposes. There is Plumbing I and II, the teacher in Plumbing I is the same as II, so he holds back a lot of information in hopes of people signing up for II (which is another 600 bucks or something). But after all that, I definitely know a lot more now than before and have the capability of rolling my eyes at some quotes that comes in. Then again, while this class is barely recommended, if I had taken this class 2 years ago for 600 bucks - it would have definitely saved me at least 3000 of ripped off dollars. Just depends on how much you know already.
Posted on: 2013/2/15 21:09
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Re: Plumber?
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Quote:
I'm still not saying that people should do it themselves. All I'm saying is that studying up on it will get you not as ripped off. At least if they have an idea of what's broken and what's not, they won't be oversold anything. In fact, in my plumbing class - there were at least 1 or 2 classes on "how to overcharge customers" - while not named that, all that the instructor did was to talk about how to make a job look more difficult than it is and how to take longer to fix. I'm not saying all plumbers are like that, and I'm sure it takes skill to fix things. ie. Replacing a P-trap really shouldn't cost more than 50 bucks, and most plumbers will charge a LOT more for it.
Posted on: 2013/2/15 18:13
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Re: Recessed Lighting
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Quote:
I did, but I don't know if I'd do it again. Recessed lighting has quite a "butt" so it ends up lowering the ceiling slightly. and I rarely used it. When I sold the house, it didn't seem to add much value. That and it was hard to find dimmable CFL lights so the energy use was higher than other lights. It's one reno that I wish I could take back. My contractor was luke warm - so if you want his info - PM me. Depends on the work, but you shouldn't pay more than 1000 for it.
Posted on: 2013/2/15 14:59
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Re: Plumber?
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I've used both Hutch and Kook&Son.
So here is my review for both. Kook & Sons - big job, replace lead main, whole house filter, etc, fix leak in bathroom. They did a great job replacing the lead main - big project jobs. But I found them to be extremely overpriced in hindsight. But it was truly headache free, they dealt with the city, permits, showed up on the right date, and I didn't have to lift a finger. (But even considering that, they were way overpriced). But good workmanship I have to stress. HOWEVER, the bathroom leak (a small leak due to the drain caulking being bad) took FOREVER and several tries and denials and overselling for them to get it right. They initially said it was the drain pipe, and charged me for it, it still leaked, came back to "fix" about 5 times - until I had to climb up to the ceiling myself to photograph the exact leak. (The leak was so bad that it would intermittently "rain" on my 1st floor ceiling). They said they checked the drain caulking and filled it up to the top when they didn't. and after all the headache, someone from his team finally saw that it was in fact the caulking that was causing the issues. The pipe would need replacing anyway - but my god, I was stunned that no one seemed to be able to fix a leak after 5 visits but could do a large project so well and seamlessly at that. To their credit, they came back each time, until the it was fixed for sure. (But they still charged for the wrong diagnosis and replacing the entire waste pipe system). But if you use them, be aware of the price & overselling. You should study up and know a rough idea of the problem before you call. It would save you thousands. Hutch - nice guy, quick response, trustworthy, shows up on time, professional. A little bit of oversell/salesman. He came for a drain replacement in the kitchen (apparently all my drains are crapping out), and somehow talked me into much much more. He does the job and even is reasonable in the price (a little bit high still). But boy, is he smoooooth. Anyway, I know it's easy to hire folks, but from these experiences, I started watching YouTube videos and took a plumbing class on the side. (So that even if I couldn't do the job myself, I'd know what needed to be done and how - and at least be able to have an idea if they try to rip me off). Now looking back on how much I paid previously, I kick myself - but a lesson well learned.
Posted on: 2013/2/15 14:52
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Quote:
i guess the sad thing is most people are alright with the status quo and won't touch greenville with a 20-foot pole while others will try to change it from within. my business partner and i are starting a free personal finance workshop soon for the area as well which should be fun/interesting. again, unless i'm imaginary i live here and spend very little on housing and like to spend my money on other things.
Posted on: 2013/2/14 23:37
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Quote:
Fair point. I'm no expert in this landlording thing yet so I can't comment on that or requirements. I only have a few units under my belt. But to be fair, I live in this exact area/Greenville/Edge of Bayonne and I do make more than that for sure. As a girl, I do find it relatively nice, friendly and safe, and find it that the negative view is mostly coming from outside perception based on old experiences or stories. I do think, looking around everyday, that this particular area is going through a gentrification process for sure. I think it's people that want to take chances that will transform a neighborhood slowly but surely. Some people do decide to only spend 1/5 of the income on the rent, while others like when I lived in NYC - it was more of a 1/2.5.
Posted on: 2013/2/14 17:10
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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@o73o2,pacoYtaco,user1111 - Thanks so much for your help. I'll definitely rethink on this, and redo.
@o73o2 - In terms of the 40, 50x - do you mean before or after tax?
Posted on: 2013/2/14 13:45
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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@MonmouthMan - I am not a liar and I hate the fact that you would even say that. I timed the 13minutes myself from the house to Exchange Place. Plus I work at Wall Street and it takes me 30minutes to get to work - it's fantastic. So please with the judgements and assumptions. And my god with the hostility.
I will be painting the whole place if tenant requires before they move in. As the paint job upstairs (despite the color) is nice and some viewers (with girls or boys) liked it, I decided to keep it for a bit. When I show, I tell them that it's going to be painted to white if required (or off white), easy fix. @Everyone else - Thank you so much for your helpful comments. At this time, I'm a bit reluctant to put anymore money into the house. Already with the new paint downstairs, new appliances. The ceiling fans came with the house (I wouldn't spend money buying that, of course). I agree that 1 bathroom is a problem, but the main issue isn't attracting interest or applicants - which I have had a lot of. It's that the applicants seem really bad. (So I'm a little reluctant to put more money and buy a W/D when interest level doesn't seem to be the issue? But I can be convinced) One was making 1800 and trying to rent a house for 1500. One with 550 credit score. One with a lot of evictions. Another from as one renter asked is: I do think 1.5month vs 1month security matter. I've had several situations where tenant thinks it's okay not to pay the last months rent if the security & leave the place trashed. so 1.5 month security I think really to motivate the renter a bit more to keep his act together and a lot of house repairs and damage easily cost more than 1.5x to fix. I promoted the private entrance because it seems like a lot of families with teenagers like to have a little independence (like the family that lived here before). Maybe I should take that out? Many Thanks again.Quote:
Posted on: 2013/2/13 15:39
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Hi!
Many Thanks for this. The house is a 4 bedroom with a private entrance for the bedroom in the basement. Stainless steel appliances, newly renovated, it's beautiful inside. Sunny yard, hardwood floors and like random $500 dollar ceiling fans in every room. It's nice and people do say it's a steal "good deal", so I'm not so much into lowering the price. It's just that the applicants have horrendous credit - so many applicants and interest level - zero approvals. Credit score of 500. When I call up the old landlord for reference, they say things like "this person have never paid a single bill on time". I'm conflicted because 1) If there is an interest to see, I feel like I have to show 2) If they say they want to apply, I send them an application only to be disappointed later I think the fact that the property is classified as "Greenville" may be hurting it? It's on the water edge so it's really nice and clean. I'm getting more of people from JC than NYC. I think the NYC folks seem to be a bit intimidated by the LightRail system?
Posted on: 2013/2/7 14:04
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Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Hello landlords out there or real estate gurus,
I'm finally coming here for advice. I've been trying to rent out a really nice Single Family Home w Sunny yard, view of NYC, and all that for a good month and half. Inside is super nice and the street is alright. It's 4 blocks from the Danforth LightRail. It seems like all the people that come see the house say $1500 is a great deal, and they are interested in it. All that has applied has just TERRIBLE credit. Like 485-550 credit score with not 1 or 2 collections but about a billion things in collections. Others say they want to apply, and the moment I mention that 1.5 month security deposit and 1st month's rent is due within 48hrs (to hold the house) after the application is accepted - they just won't apply. What am I doing wrong here? I thought that security deposit and credit requirements are pretty reasonable (it's what I had to be when I used to rent) - but is it not? Honestly, should I be lowering the standards a bit here because of the house location? I really don't want the hassle of chasing the rent every month or going through an eviction process.... I've thought about lowering the security deposit to 1mon, but seems like a red flag if that extra .5 month is the deal breaker for them? I do have a really nice real estate agent too (who I will pay the broker fee for) and I'm also posting on Craigslist myself and showing myself. Help! What to do? Should I just be more patient? or lower the standards - what's normal around here? Many Thanks in advance. Struggling.
Posted on: 2013/2/7 13:12
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Re: A place where things get done in JC -- bookmark this link
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I've had some successes with this and other times not so much.
I requested a pile of junk to be removed that the neighbor had left on the sidewalk for several weeks. That same day - they removed it. Bravo. But I also requested the tree to be trimmed in front of my house as its branches are laying directly on top of several power cables/poles - creating a safety hazard for the whole street. Also requested a "no littering" sign on the street. The latter two seems to have had no luck yet (after several months), but I'd like to at least record/request safety or environment related things for the record.
Posted on: 2011/10/26 13:48
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Re: Advice for selling condo, escaping the Heights
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I just moved to the Heights from Manhattan, and am totally sticking around. My friends and I always joke that my are is "up and up and up and up and coming" - it just takes a while.
There are corporate lawyers and a meth head living on the same street. How fun is that?
Posted on: 2011/10/21 14:10
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Re: 99S Bus Service to be Eliminated Nov. 6?
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Voted:
Everyone please take one second to vote "YES" http://www.nj.com/hudson/voices/index ... _should_nj_transit_t.html It's so important for our community.
Posted on: 2011/10/7 14:02
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Any good Bichon or Poodle groomers
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Just can't stay away
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Hi,
Are there any good Bichon or Poodle groomers in Jersey City, Hoboken, or the Heights area? I've read a few reviews, but it seemed most like nail trim, etc. I am looking for a more hair stylist type (traditional poodle/bichon cut) of grooming to be done. If you have a recommendation or had a good experience, please let me know! Thank you, Griffin
Posted on: 2011/9/14 14:50
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Re: Soup Dumplings?
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Have to cross the river into Chinatown I'm afraid. Finding authentic Chinese food is hard enough in Jersey City, so specialties like soup dumplings is near impossible.
But if any other readers know of a place in JC, I'd love to try it out.
Posted on: 2011/8/31 17:13
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