A rare offering in the heart of Metuchen: the entire garden level of the Mary Wilkins Freeman House, the c. 1868 Italianate landmark on the National Register of Historic Places, where the celebrated author wrote dozens of her stories. Freeman once joked that the house had "twenty-eight doors and five pairs of stairs, otherwise it is quite pretty." Happily, your flat needs only one door a private entrance off the brick garden path, with no shared hallways and no stairs to climb. Worth knowing before you tour: this is an owner-occupied two-family home, and the owner's family including two school-age kids lives upstairs. House-wide quiet hours run 10 pm to 7 am, and the household keeps them everyone is down by then... Outside those hours, fair warning: the chief "danger" of this flat is the sound of children playing overhead. Daytime family noise is part of the house, not a problem to report. Ideal for commuters, anyone on a working schedule, and families; if you work nights or treasure sleeping in, this may not be your spot, and we'd rather say so up front. We have priced rent, we believe, competitively as a reflection of this unique setup. The property was remodeled recently, with appliances nearly all replaced in the last 2 years, street-level living space (this is not a basement). The sunny living room features bay windows and mini-split air conditioning. The eat-in kitchen and dining area comes fully equipped: range, dishwasher, refrigerator/freezer, microwave, a true walk-in pantry, and a professionally installed reverse-osmosis drinking-water system. The quiet bedroom has windows on two walls, its own mini-split AC, and a walk-in closet with built-in shelving and lighting. The full bath is a classic: subway-tiled tub/shower and black-and-white basketweave tile floor. You also get your own full-size washer and dryer, on-demand hot water, and baseboard heat on your own thermostat. Outside, the front-side yard is exclusively yours grill, garden, play, lounge (as shown in the photo with your entrance). The landlord handles all lawn care and grounds maintenance. Parking is easy: on-street parking along the home's entire frontage. The location is the kicker. You're under a 10-minute walk from Metuchen Station , with direct NJ Transit trains reaching New York Penn Station in about 45 minutes and Memorial Park is just around the corner. Metuchen's award-winning downtown (a national "Great American Main Street" winner) puts restaurants, coffee, the farmers market, Whole Foods, and shops a short stroll away. The Greenway is just across Essex Ave which is the intersection with Lake Ave on which the house is next to. 1. BASIC TERMS - No Realtor Fee (For Rent by Owner) - Term: 12 months, $2,000/month. Available immediately. Renewable at 90 days, goes month-to-month after that. Showings can commence with communication in that 90 day window. - Pet Fee: $100 per month (plus deposit below) - small cat or dog; strict damage policy enforced. - Contract Fee: $250 (goes to attorney drafting lease), paid after move in. - No Smoking; strict policy enforced. - Quiet Hours: 10:00 pm 7:00 am - Tenant pays: Heat (Gas), Electricity, TV, Internet, and anything not listed below. - Landlord pays: Water, Sewer, Trash/Recycling; Lawn and Grounds care. 2. SECURITY DEPOSIT - Credit 700+: 1.0 month ($2,000). - Credit 650 699: 1.5 months ($3,000). - Credit 650: Not Approved - Pet deposit: half a month ($1,000), up to NJ's 1.5 month cap.
This property is off market, which means it's not currently listed for sale or rent on Zillow. This may be different from what's available on other websites or public sources.
