Hoboken is crime-ridden?? I spent 6 years there from 1996-2002 and have friends that still live there and can say that crime is not an issue in almost all of Hoboken. Sure, if you go to the projects on the back end of Hoboken things get rougher, but I never, ever felt unsafe there.
Even JC has cleaned up a lot, especially the areas by the PATH trains like Exchange place and Newport.
"Hoboken, Jersey City, Newark, and Newport are pretty crime-ridden."
I live in Hoboken, in a part called "The Presidents" which 15 years ago used to be really unsafe. This is one of the worst parts of Hoboken, easily.
But it is not anymore, and I'd ask where your facts of "crime ridden" come from. I pay a good amount for a two bedroom condo in a sea of condos. I live a block from the "worst" project in Hoboken, and routinely walk around there at night. Hoboken is not crime ridden.
Paulus Hook, Exchange Place-area, Journal Square and Newport (all Jersey City) are all quite safe. As you go further from the River, it can get dodgier.
Hoboken, Jersey City, Newark, and Newport are pretty crime-ridden.
What neighborhoods would you recommend that are within a 5 to 10 minute walk from a PATH train stop, that are cheaper than Manhattan, and also safe?