Need to choose between living in NYC vs NJ for work

[onyxgreen]

I've lived in London for 4 years, my husband for 8 years, and I've accepted a permanent job in NYC this week.

I'll get an H1 visa so DH won't be able to work as my dependent for a while (we are exploring how he can work to increase our income), and salary is $100K. I have a 15 month old DS. Health insurance is covered for the family. I've never lived in the USA and have only visited ATL and St. Louis to see friends, so this is a whole new cultural experience. We are trying to make sure we stay within budget because we know NY is expensive, so I'd like people's thoughts on living in NYC (i've read about Queen's so maybe jackson heights?) or NJ and I commute to work in Manhattan (I'm considering Rutherford, Weehawken, based on the things I've read). The people on the moving to NYC threads seem to have a lot more money than we have so it would be helpful to get more information for our financial situation.

Since DS is little, I'm guessing we don't have to worry about school for the next 2 years? We need somewhere with not more than an hours commute to work, we can find a 2/3 bedroom, 1/1.5 bath for $1500-2000 max, we can walk to the stores, and library with parks, with good kindergarten in case we are lazy about moving before he needs it.

Thank you all so much in advance for your advice!

[IceMaiden73]

How does your DH feel about not working?

We are relocating to the US, but have held out for a L1 visa, so that I can get an L2 work visa, as otherwise there is no option for me to work

I haven't lived in NYC, but have spent a lot of time there and I don't believe you will get the sort of property you want for < $2,000 a month. It is very expensive there

We are not moving to NYC, but my DH will earn considerably more than you and I will also be earning similar to you, to give us a reasonable lifestyle out there

We have friends who have lived in NYC for the last 8 years, and have just moved with their 10 month old DS as they wanted to be somewhere with more outside space

I hope that you can find a way to make it work for you