From the
Bergen Record
Immigrants help market stay afloat
Chetali Zaveri and Chitanshu Bora wanted to live the American Dream.
The couple, now in their 30s, met in India while attending school. Both wanting to pursue higher education that was limited in their native country, they moved to the United States seven years ago.
Here, Zaveri became a physical therapist, and her husband, Bora, a pharmacist. Once they started a family with a baby boy, their one-bedroom apartment in Queens began to feel cramped.
They searched in Bergen County, because Zaveri wants to make sure her son gets the educational opportunities not available in India. The family recently bought a three-bedroom, 2 1/2-bath split level in Ho-Ho-Kus.
"It was a beautiful location, and most importantly, it has the best school district for my son," she said.
Since Zaveri comes home late from work, safety is also important to her, something that Ho-Ho-Kus' suburbia does not lack.
While the family will start living their American Dream after their closing at the end of April, Cristian and Eleonora Da Silva, both in their mid-30s, have been doing it for the past two years, in Waldwick.
The couple met in Argentina while Cristian was visiting relatives. They got married after three years of dating, and Cristian brought his wife to the U.S. five years ago.
The Argentinian-American couple moved from a two-family home in Garfield into their one-family Victorian in Waldwick two years ago to raise their family; they have two young children.
"We wanted something comfortable and that we liked," said Cristian Da Silva. "Being happy with my family is what matters; this was an opportunity and we went for it."
Like Zaveri and Bora, an important factor for Eleonora Da Silva was what most suburbanites take for granted: safety.
"Now it's dangerous in Argentina, you walk down the street and you can get robbed," she said. "You don't hear as much of that happening here."
Bora and Zaveri, the Da Silvas and many other immigrant families pursuing their dream are helping to keep real estate market afloat.
According to the National Association of Realtors,
two out of three households in New Jersey are being formed by foreign-born/ethnic minorities; they are projected to account for more than 50 percent of first-time home buyers by 2010. About 9 percent of the Garden State's population is represented by nationalized citizens.
More...
