would you buy a junior 4 1 bedroom

No.

It depends on your financial situation. Can you comfortably afford something bigger than a jr-4 or will you be stretching a bit? Would you rather have 2 kids and be stressed about losing your job/paying your bills or be stuck in a less than desirable size apartment for a couple of extra years? I personally consider the latter as the lesser of two evils.

It depends on your own standards. Folks from europe,Asia would consider Jr 4 pretty livable with 2 kids. But most Americans would not.

In any case, if you're committed to the City, make sure the school district is good. Forcing your kids to goto a bad school (bad peers or bad education) because u cant't afford to move/private school is not a great idea.

No.

Forget about the two kids, think about if you'll be happy in a junior four when you have one small living room (since your dining room is now a tiny bedroom) for TV, office, couch, toddler toys, and dining. School district is less relevant since that won't be a concern for ~6-7 years.

It's better than a 1. The junior 4 can be sold to people similar to yourselves or childless couples who want the extra room. But I doubt you'll find the junor 4 will work for you very long. Maybe just until the kid goes to pre-school. And if you have a 2nd kid, won't wor at all. You may be better off renting.

H no

No.

I hear it's a buyer's market in New Jersey.

I'll be contrarian and say do it. Even if you have the second kid, there's a 50-50 chance that they'll be the same gender, in which case you won't need another bedroom for the second one, and if they're different, that smallest fourth room will still be big enough for a little kid. It's only when they get bigger that you'll feel cramped.

(My neighbors raise two *teenage* daughters in a two-room, 400-sf apartment! Parents sleep in the main room, daughters in the other.)

"I hear it's a buyer's market in New Jersey."

Central/South/West, yes Bergen/Hudson counties no :(

I'm with Triple_Zero. They are a great value considering that some are larger than some 2 br apartments. Key is finding one with a large enough dining alcove that you can close off and also one with a lot of closet space.

not enough room. you will end up divorced.

gcondo: "not enough room. you will end up divorced."

I have never heard of a couple divorcing because of a small apartment. On the other hand, money trouble can cause recurring arguments that lead to divorce.

you dont think cramped quarters with 2 infants has caused a divorce before?

At the stage that the kids are in infancy, divorce isn't common.

I would go for looking for a small 2 br instead - one that has a better layout than a jr 4 but is more or less than same price range.

Depends on exact size and layout. Just sold our junior 4 (850 sq feet) after living there for 9 years when we found out baby number 2 was coming (not exactly planned). Baby 1 is 18 months old now.

It was the right purchase at the time since we weren't interested in having kids right away. The converted dining room/bedroom was about 10x10 so not tiny and we still had a normal size living room, entrance foyer, dining area plenty of light, etc. It is very liveable with one kid, 2 kids i'd say no way, mostly due to the lack of a 2nd bathroom more than anything else. Some layouts convert better than others (size of dining room, layout of kitchen, number of closets available etc).

If you really may have a 4 yr horizon I'd say don't bother buying. Just remember, you would need almost a 10% price appreciation just to break even after all the expenses that come with selling an apt (broker fee, lawyer fees, NY state transfer taxes, if building has a flip tax, etc)

Save more money until you can afford a 2-BR.

who said it was common?

if you plan to upgrade and can afford to, why not buy the bigger place now?

unless you plan to move to the burbs when you have the second. but if the plan is to stay in the city and you can afford it, buy a real 2br now.

you could actually argue that a small apartment prevents divorce since most divorces happen because people "grow apart". there isn't much room to grow apart in a jr4 with 4 people in it. you'll do everything together!

e24 makes two very good points.
1. A large junior 4 in many cases is 900 sq ft which is actually the size of some new smaller 2 bed apts in new condos once you take out the sq foot overstatement to include full exterior walls and perhaps some common space.
2. It is stupid to buy for 4 year period due to transaction costs (coop 6-7% if you get a broker rebate going in) unless you are planning to rent it after you upgrade.