When Bhavesh Gala and Taral Shah lived on Staten Island, they relied on family in India to send packages of their favorite food. But since the couple immigrated to the United States in the early 2000s, moving to Edison, NJ, they no longer find themselves dependent on the family line for homegrown products.
“I said to my mother, ‘Mom, I live near Oak Tree Road. You don’t have to send me anything,” said Dr. Gala, 45, a cardiologist who moved to Edison in 2020 with Dr. Shah, 41, an oncologist, to find the school. good education for their two sons. The couple paid $1.05 million for a brand new five-bedroom home.
Oak Tree Road – a shopping district known as Little India for its concentration of Indian restaurants and shops – is the most visible symbol of how much Edison’s South Asian population grew. In recent years. On the busy streets, Indian immigrants “are very far from home – but they are at home,” said Sanjeev Aneja, brokerage owner of On Track Realty, in Edison.
In fact, the town of Middlesex County has attracted residents from all over Asia – its population of over 100,000 is about 49% Asian, 29% Caucasian, 11% Hispanic and 9% Asian. black, according to census data.
For homebuyers, Edison has two main advantages, Ketan Kenia, an agent for Keller Williams, said in Metuchen: highly regarded school system and its location, about an hour from Manhattan.
“We have a saying: All roads lead to Edison,” said Sam Joshi, 32, the mayor, who grew up in the town. The New Jersey Turnpike and Interstate 287 both run through Edison, and the Garden State Parkway is located nearby. New Jersey Transit’s Northeast Corridor rail line also serves Edison.
Those transportation networks are important to Pranav Gada, 42, an IT salesman, and his wife, Kalpa Gada, 40, a stay-at-home mom. Mr. Gada often travels for work and wants to be close to the freeway and Newark Liberty International Airport. The couple, who have two children, moved into Edison from East Rutherford in 2017, then bought a three-bedroom townhouse in 2020 for $460,000.
But when their location becomes a factor, “the main reason is education,” says Mr. Gada. Their 14-year-old son has thrived in school and also plays cricket – an important link to the family’s roots in India, Mr. Gada said.
Abhinav Jindal, 43, vice president of sales for an information technology company, and his wife, Sonal Nohria, 40, technology project manager, moved to Edison from Jersey City in September 2018, paid $771,000 for a five-bedroom house. Their 11-year-old daughter is active in Indian swimming and dancing, and their 8-year-old son participates in swimming, football and cricket.
“I need my kids to explore things, and I found this in Edison,” said Mr. Jindal. “Both Indian values and culture, and American sport. They are achieving the best of both worlds.”
What you will find
Edison in Middlesex County, about 35 miles southwest of Midtown Manhattan. With approximately 107,000 residents spread over 30 square miles, it is New Jersey’s sixth most populous municipality. But unlike many of the state’s largest municipalities, it has a suburban landscape. Edison is bounded to the north by the Scotch Plains and Clark; to the east by Woodbridge; to the West by South Plainfield, Highland Park and Piscataway; and to the south by the Raritan River.
Buyers will find a variety of home styles, including Cape Cods, split-level, and farmhouses from the 1960s and 1970s, as well as larger homes built in the 1990s and 2000s, and condominiums.
What you will have to pay
A recent Zillow inspection revealed prices ranging from around $60,000 for a two-bedroom mobile home to $2 million for a new five-bedroom house on a half-acre.
According to New Jersey Realtors, 1,077 homes were sold in Edison in the 12 months ending May 31, which is the same as the 12 months prior. But the average selling price rose to $450,000, up from $420,000.
Demand for homes in the town remains strong despite the recent increase in mortgage rates and low inventories, Kenia said.
The Vibe
Edison doesn’t have a traditional shopping district, but residents can find that experience in Metuchen’s walkable downtown district, a secluded area nestled inside Edison, like a hole in a donut. Shopping and restaurants are also available at Menlo Park Shopping Center and on Oak Tree Road.
Edison Towne Square is a restaurant, retail and entertainment center under development on the 100-acre site of a Ford Motor Company plant that was decommissioned in 2004.
The town’s large foreign-born population — 46 percent of residents are immigrants, according to census data — makes up for a host of ethnic restaurants. “You should be able to have any kind of food you want,” Mr. Joshi said.
Edison residents receive a discount for being a member of the Oakcrest Community Pool, which is operated by the YMCA of Metuchen, Edison, Woodbridge and South Amboy.
The 196-acre Roosevelt Park – dating back to 1917 and the oldest county park in Middlesex County – features a lake, tennis courts, jogging track, playground, picnic grove, playground and an amphitheater where outdoor performances. The park’s most notable landmark is a fountain called “Light Dispels Darkness” created in the 1930s with funding from the Works Progress Administration.
Schools
Edison’s public schools serve approximately 16,500 students in two preschools, 11 elementary schools, four middle schools, and two high schools (Edison High and John P. Stevens). The student body is 66 percent Asian, 12 percent Hispanic, 11 percent White, and 7.6 percent Black. For the 2020-21 school year, the average composite SAT score at the two high schools was 628 in reading and writing, compared with the state average of 557 and math of 653, compared to the state average is 560.
Private school options include St. Thomas Aquinas, a purely Catholic school, and the Wardlaw + Hartridge School, serving students in kindergarten through 12th grade. The campus of St. Joseph, a Catholic school for boys, Edison and Metuchen Bridge.
Route to work
On the NJ Transit Northeast Corridor train line, the trip from Edison to New York City takes 50 to 60 minutes. Fares are $13.25 one way, or $380 monthly.
Driving to Manhattan via the New Jersey Turnpike, via the Holland or Lincoln Tunnel, takes about an hour, depending on traffic.
History
Thomas Edison created the phonograph and light bulb at the laboratory he opened in 1876 in Edison’s Menlo Park, which was then known as Raritan Township. In 1887, as his business expanded, Edison moved to a larger laboratory in West Orange, now a national historic park.
Two of the original Menlo Park buildings were moved by Henry Ford to Greenfield Village in Dearborn, Mich; the rest burned or fell into ruin. The current laboratory site is the 36-acre Edison State Park, with a museum and an Art Deco tower dedicated to Edison’s memory and work in 1938. The town’s name was changed from Raritan to Edison. in the 1950s.
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