Antique Hunting In NY & NJ? Here’s What You Need To Know

March 23, 2022 Reading Time: 5 minutes
Home » Everything Storage
Maria Gatea
Written by
Maria Gatea

Antique shopping is fun, environmentally friendly and easy on your wallet – a veritable treasure hunt where you can find cool, quirky, one-of-a-kind items for your home. As far as antique shopping goes, it doesn’t get much better than New York and New Jersey. There are dozens of great antique shops in the area.

If you’re new to antique hunting and you don’t know where to start, we selected some of the best, most attractive antique stores in New York and New Jersey, based on the experience they provide:

1. Olde Good Things Antique Store NYC

With three locations in NYC, this antique store has so much more than your basic selection of furniture, vintage clothing and collectibles. You can find everything from salvaged architectural elements (doors, gates, fencing, mantels and so on) to lighting, furniture, antique mirrors, reclaimed glass and garden decorations. In other words, if you’re planning to add some old-school refinement to your home, this is the place to start looking.

2. Manhattan Arts & Antiques Center

From bonafide antiquities to antique furniture and decorations, you can find a wide variety of items at the Manhattan Arts & Antiques Center. Founded in 1974, it’s a veritable fine art and antique mall, with over 100 galleries. Whether your jam is the art deco period or you have a passion for Egyptian antiquities, here’s the place where you can find both and everything in between.

3. Antiques Center at The People’s Store

Located in the self-proclaimed antique capital of New Jersey, Lambertville, this space hosts 45 antique dealers but also working artist studios. Browse the extensive collection of American and European antiques, vintage industrial, mid-century modern pieces and much more. If you’re interested in commissioning art, visit the artists working right here at the People’s Store and choose unique pieces for your home.

4. The Antique Warehouse Hudson

This 40,000-square-foot antique and vintage shop, opened by Paul Dorman and John Frederick over 20 years ago, is an exciting place where you can find architectural elements like windows and doors as well as armoires, chests, bars, beds and so on. Also, if you’re unable to go there in person, you can shop online.

5. Historic Burlington Antiques

Established in 2001, Historic Burlington Antiques is in a historical building from the 1920s, one of the world’s first auto dealerships. The 15,000-square-foot space hosts about 65 antiquities and art dealers, selling everything from delicate decorations to furniture, books and jewelry.

6. The Yellow Garage Antiques

Fittingly located in the historic Mullica Hill village, this antique shop is in a bus terminal from the 1900s – hence the name. The 6,500-square-foot space is now home to 35 antique dealers, and most items sold here are from the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries.

7. Royal Port Antiques

This Salem, New Jersey, antiquities center is in a 1910s warehouse that provided storage space for crops. Some of the old equipment used to dry off and process crops is still there. Suzanne and Michael Cooke restored the space and opened the Royal Port Antiques in 2004. Since then, it attracts collectors and antique aficionados with many treasures, various shows and events.

8. John Koch Antiques

Located in the very heart of Manhattan, John Koch Antiques has been in business for over 30 years and is providing a wide selection of best quality furnishings and decorations. This is where famous TV shows and movies, including Mad Men and The Wolf of Wall Street, got the items they needed to furnish their sets. So, if you’re looking for glamorous and stylish items, this is the place to check out.

9. Days of Olde Antiques & Collectibles

You can literally spend days digging through the treasures hosted by the Days of Olde Antiques & Collectibles. The 21,000-square-foot space near the historic Smithville Village houses over 60 dealers. You can buy items ranging from artwork, books, coins, furniture, stained glass and fine china.

10. Haddon Heights Antiques Center

First opened in 1993, Haddon Heights Antiques Center is an 80-dealer co-op filled with amazing finds, including glassware, china, artwork, furniture and more. The antique center also organizes special, fun events – such as a scavenger hunt on the second Friday of each month.

Now that you know where to shop for antiques and collectibles in the New York City-New Jersey area, it’s also important to learn how to properly care for and store the items you buy.

Here’s how to take care of your antiques

Antiques are fragile – and, whether you are displaying them in your home or you’re a collector and are storing them long-term, there are some rules to follow:

1. Prevent damages during transportation.

Inspect antique furniture carefully before transportation, ensuring that it is stable enough to move. Remove drawers, loose shelves and other detachable parts. Use protective padding, such as bubble wrap or blankets, during transportation. Make sure you lift the furniture all the way off the ground when transporting it – dragging it will cause serious damages. Use dollies and straps when moving larger items. Antique wooden furniture is a lot heavier than modern furniture made from composite materials.

2. Clean and repair the antiques as needed.

Before displaying the antiques in your home or placing them in storage, it’s important to make sure they are in the best shape possible. Dust and polish your wooden furniture and clean upholstered and leather items with dedicated products. Wash glass or china pieces gently, using warm, soapy water. Other items such as paintings or old books are more difficult to clean, and you might consider using a professional restorer. Generally speaking, professionals should repair antiques and collectibles unless it’s something very basic or you have experience and know what you’re doing. A badly done repair job can drastically decrease the value of these items.

3. Pick the right spot to display your antiques and collectibles.

Whether furniture, rugs, artwork or books, antiques are better off kept away from direct sunlight and protected from excessive heat, cold and humidity. Make sure you find places in your home for the antiques that fulfill these conditions as much as possible.

4. Avoid touching your antiques.

Avoid touching antiques and collectibles as much as possible – oils on the skin and dirt can damage artwork, old books, painted china and more. If you own old and valuable pieces, wear cotton gloves when touching them. This also prevents slippage. You should also take some precautions with sturdier items, such as wooden furniture. It’s a good rule to not leave objects long-term on the varnished surfaces of old furniture. For example, if you have an antique dining table, it’s fine to set the table with plates and everything while dining – but don’t keep a vase permanently on it, as it will probably stain the surface.

5. Rent self storage for long-term storage of antiques and collectibles.

A climate-controlled self storage unit ensures the ideal environment for the long-term storage of delicate antiques: the temperature and humidity are constant throughout the year, and it will protect your items from sunlight. A 10’x10’ climate-controlled storage unit in New York City rents for around $230 per month. Or, if you’re a New Jersey resident, you pay a little less: the same type of storage unit in New Jersey rents for around $180 per month.

Have fun with your antique hunting!

Maria Gatea
Written by
Maria Gatea

Related posts

Scary Good DIY Halloween Decorations That Won’t Haunt Your Wallet

By Mirela Mohan | October 23, 2026

A few floating candles in the hallway, a family of ghosts by the front door and a suspicious number of bats climbing up the bedroom wall can make October feel a whole lot spookier. While Halloween stores are full of tempting finds, some of the best DIY Halloween decorations can come from things you already have tucked away in drawers, closets or the recycling bin.

Suburban Giants and Urban Risers: Where America’s 100 Largest Metros Fall on the Self Storage Map

By Maria Gatea | October 21, 2026

Self storage has long been a suburban story. Across America largest 100 metros, 59% of the inventory built over the past decade sits outside city cores, largely preserving the ratio of the total existing inventory.

Sweatshirt Storage Ideas Worth Keeping Up Your Sleeve

By Anca Lenta | October 20, 2026

Sweatshirts are great until you realize how much room they take up. A few thick hoodies can fill a drawer fast, with lighter crewnecks getting squashed underneath or pushed somewhere you forget about. Good sweatshirt storage can make that pile much easier to manage without requiring a bigger closet.

Living Room Storage Ideas: 28 Ways to Reclaim Your Hosting Space

By Andrei Popa | October 15, 2026

If a living room is where most of a household’s living happens, good storage should be the top priority for setting up or revamping the place. After all, think of how easier it would be to have people over when tidying up the place is just a matter of putting things in their right place (in a time when fewer and fewer people are entertaining friends at home(opens in new tab)). The trick is making room for all those wayward clothes, blankets, chargers and other small things that end up on (or, inexplicably, in) the sofa. Here are 28 living room storage ideas to get you started and make tidying up a quick affair.

25 Mudroom Storage Ideas (And Mistakes to Avoid)

By Andrei Popa | October 9, 2026

When you come home with muddy boots, an armful of bags and a coat you can’t wait to take off, it’s nice to have somewhere to put it all. With a mudroom, you can leave the outdoor mess at the door instead of carrying it through the house. Traditionally, you’d set aside a separate room, but you can just as easily use a hallway, an entryway closet, a laundry-room corner or a stretch of wall near the entrance.

Is Your Home Office Worth the Rent? What Coworking and Self Storage Could Save You

By Andrei Popa | October 7, 2026

Every square foot of your apartment comes with a price tag, and a home office claims more of them than most renters expect. It starts with a desk. Then come the second monitor, the printer, the filing cabinet and the overflow boxes. Before long, the corner you set aside for work has turned into a small room you are paying for every month.

Best U.S. Cities to Live Uncluttered: Plano, TX, Offers the Most Room to Breathe

By Andrei Popa | October 5, 2026

Clutter is in our homes as much as in our heads. Both are shaped by where we live. 

America’s Top Snowbird Destinations for 2026–2027: Florida Leads in Numbers, Texas Wins on Value

By Maria Gatea | October 1, 2026

For Americans living in colder states, the approach of winter is reason enough to start looking south. Cold weather carries costs that go beyond the heating bill and shoveling snow. Seasonal affective disorder(opens in new tab) is far more prevalent in northern states, so a temporary move south isn’t simply an escape from the cold, but a chance to spend the hardest stretch of winter outdoors and in the sun.

How Much Does Halloween Really Cost in 2026? Plan Wisely to Avoid the Scare of Hidden Costs

By Maria Gatea | September 29, 2026

Americans’ love for Halloween is almost frightening — this year alone, we are on our way to spending $13.5 billion, according to data from the National Retail Federation(opens in new tab). That breaks down to about $115 Halloween costs per person, a whopping 49% more than 10 years ago.