Town Personality
Every town has a temperament. Lively and walkable, or quiet and leafy. We match yours to the way your family likes to spend a Saturday.
- Downtown energy
- Dining, arts & culture
- Clubs & recreation
- Architecture & lot size
Moving from the city to the suburbs
Leading youto your suburbantown.
A community-first approach to finding the best New Jersey suburb for your family: top schools, an easy commute to NYC and a town that truly feels like home. Complimentary, with your own Community Matchmaker.
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Who we are
Moving from the city to the suburbs is never just a real estate decision. It is a choice about how your family will live. You will be matched with your personal *Community Matchmaker* to understand your family's unique needs, from the top-rated schools your children grow up in to the train you take into Manhattan on Monday morning.
Life in the NJ suburbs
Saturdays at the park. Walks to school. Room to grow.
The parks, top-rated schools and downtowns where our families build their lives, just a train ride from NYC.
What matters most
Intangible insight into your lifestyle and your investment.
Before a single showing, we study the four things that decide whether a town will feel like home.
Education
Top-rated public school districts, private and independent schools, and the programs that suit your children, understood beyond the published rankings.
- Public district standing
- Private & independent schools
- Special programs
- Activities & athletics
Commute
Midtown Direct trains, PATH, ferries and drives. We know what the commute to NYC really looks like from each town on a Monday morning.
- Express vs. local service
- Station access & parking
- Ferry, PATH & bus options
- Door-to-desk time
Family Resources
The pediatrician everyone recommends, the camp with the waitlist, the parent networks that make a new town feel like yours within a season.
- Healthcare & pediatricians
- Camps & activities
- Parks, pools & clubs
- Parent networks
The best NJ suburbs for families
Top schools, easy commutes, real community. Sorted your way.
Amy BurakovskyHead Strategist
Led by
Eighteen years of knowing these towns from the inside.
Search the Burbs is led by Amy Burakovsky, Head Strategist and founder of the Burakovsky Team. Over 18 years in luxury and new construction real estate, she has relocated hundreds of families to towns with vibrant communities, high-ranking schools and an efficient commute to the city.
A background in engineering and construction gives her a builder's eye for every home, and an honest read on what a property will really ask of you.
18Years of experience
7NJ counties served
45Towns we know
Our partner agents
Curated for the communities they serve.
Local.
They live and work in the towns they represent and know them street by street.
Relevant.
Active in today's market, with a record in the homes and price points you're considering.
Connected.
Relationships within their community that help you achieve your goals, on market and off.
Find your town
Which New Jersey suburb fits your family?
Three quick questions, three towns to start with. Your Community Matchmaker takes it from there.
60
secondsno sign-up
secondsno sign-up
Towns our clients love
NJ trainline suburbs to Jersey Shore towns.
Testimonials
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[Family name] · [City] to [Town]
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[Family name] · [City] to [Town]
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[Family name] · [City] to [Town]
What we do
Your suburb strategist, from the city to your town.
Moving from the city to the New Jersey suburbs is easier with someone who knows every town. You will be matched with your personal Community Matchmaker to understand your family's unique needs, then guided from the first conversation to your first block party.
How it works
One relationship, start to finish.
Your Matchmaker stays with you the whole way, so you never repeat your story.
Free
to youalways
to youalways
The consultation
A private conversation about work, schooling, lifestyle, budget and timing, at an hour that suits you.
Meet your Community Matchmaker
Your personal guide learns your family's priorities across town personality, education, commute and family resources.
Your curated shortlist
The map narrows to the few towns that truly fit, with candid insight into the trade-offs of each.
Guided town tours
Downtowns, schools, parks and platforms, experienced alongside someone who lives the community every day.
Introduction to your agent
We connect you with a curated partner agent who is local, relevant and deeply connected in the town you choose.
Settled and welcomed
Introductions to the people, clubs and resources that turn a new address into home.
Complimentary.
Our services are free to you. To benefit from them, clients commit to working with our curated agents who take a community-first approach. We partner with agents who are local, relevant, and have the relationships within their community to help you achieve your goals.
Towns our clients love
The best New Jersey suburbs near NYC.
Vibrant communities, top-rated schools and an easy commute to Manhattan. Explore NJ trainline suburbs and Jersey Shore towns by region or county, then open any town for its schools, commute and lifestyle guide.
Best NJ towns for…
If your town isn't listed, call us. We're growing.
Talk to a strategistNearby towns our clients love
Testimonials
Hundreds of families, now neighbors.
In their own words: what it felt like to find the right town.
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[Client testimonial, added with the family's permission.]
[Client testimonial, added with the family's permission.]
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FAQ
Moving to the NJ suburbs: your questions.
Still curious?
We're happy to talk it through.
Call us at (908) 376-6110.
No. Our services are complimentary. To benefit from them, clients commit to working with our curated partner agents who take a community-first approach.
Our partner agents are how we keep the service free, and they are chosen with care: local, relevant, and with the relationships within their community to help you achieve your goals.
Your personal guide throughout the process. Your Matchmaker learns your family's unique needs and helps you weigh town personality, education, commute and family resources before you look at homes.
Today we serve Essex, Union, Morris, Bergen and Hudson counties and the Jersey Shore in Monmouth and Ocean counties. Connecticut, Westchester and the Hamptons are coming soon. If your town isn't listed, call us. We're growing.
Yes. Many families begin a year or more ahead. An early conversation helps with school timing, budgeting and whether to rent first.
Families who commute to Manhattan often start with the Midtown Direct towns on the Morris & Essex Line: Millburn and Short Hills, Summit, the Chathams, Madison, Maplewood and South Orange. For the shortest trip, Hoboken, Jersey City, Weehawken and Edgewater sit right across the Hudson with PATH and ferry service. Your Matchmaker maps your real door-to-desk time.
Towns our clients choose for schools include Millburn and Short Hills, Summit, the Chathams, Westfield, New Providence, Madison, Glen Ridge, Ridgewood, Glen Rock, Tenafly and Rumson. Rankings are only the start: we help you find the district and programs that fit your children.
Midtown Direct service on the Morris & Essex Line runs from towns including Summit, Millburn and Short Hills, Maplewood, South Orange, the Chathams and Madison into New York Penn Station. Montclair, Bergen County and Raritan Valley towns have their own lines, some with transfers. Schedules change, so we check current timetables with you.
A suburb strategist helps you choose the right town before you choose a house. We learn how your family lives, narrow the map to the best-fit suburbs, tour them with you and introduce a trusted local agent. With Search the Burbs it's complimentary.
Take our find-your-town quiz, tell us about your family on our contact page, or schedule a consultation directly. You'll be matched with your Community Matchmaker and we'll take it from there.
Contact us
Begin with a conversation.
Tell us where you're headed and what matters most. Your Community Matchmaker will come to the first call already thinking about towns that fit.
Speak with us
Prefer to talk first?
Schedule a consultation with our Head Strategist, or reach us directly.
- Telephone
- (908) 376-6110
- Info@SearchTheBurbs.com
- Head Strategist
- Amy Burakovsky
Thank you
Here's what you shared. Your Community Matchmaker will be in touch.