New Jersey suburb named America’s best

Real estate website Realtor.com has named Denville, New Jersey as the best family friendly suburb in the country.

To compile the rankings, Realtor.com looked at the eleven largest cities in the country and all the surrounding suburbs that had at least 10,000 residents. They took into account the percentage of children living in each city, school rankings, and family-friendly businesses (including day care centers). To make sure these were places parents would want to live, too, there had to be plenty of restaurants, bars, and things to do, as well as a reasonable commute (most are under 40 minutes) for when they do have to go to the office.

The Morris County town was praised for its “charming downtown”; “The downtown has a diverse array of merchants so it’s not only restaurants. There are tons of shopping opportunities,” says Toni Kaufmann, a Realtor at Realty Executives Platinum Agents.

“Within a quarter-mile of that, we have a huge recreation field with a brand-new playground, tennis courts, and basketball courts. You can pick up a game anytime,” adds Kaufmann, who grew up in Denville.

The fact that there are 11 bodies of water in the town weighed in Denville’s favor, as well, as did the quality of their schools. The short train ride to Manhattan was a plus.

According to Realtor.com, the median home price in Denville in July was $549,050. Since many of the town’s homes were vacation or secondary houses, they tend to run on the small side especially lakefront properties. A small log cabin tucked away along Cedar Lake is currently on the market for $429,000. For those looking for more space, a four-bedroom with a pool on 1.25 acres is listed for $899,900.

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Bill Doyle. Any opinions expressed are Bill Doyle's own.