[LI_Shells]

Hello all, I have been reading a number of posts and saw how helpful you have all been so I thought I would post my own cry for help...I currently live in Southern Long Island and we want out. Long Island has some good things to offer, but it really is just not for us. We have been considering a move to CT - Fairfield Co. I heard some good things about Fairfield, Westport, Milford, Ridgefield, Redding and a few other areas. I currently work in the city, but I am pregnant with my 2nd child and have decided to stay at home after the birth. My husband works in midtown Manhattan. We would like the commute to be reasonable 1 hour – hour and a half tops. We are both in our early 30s.

We are looking for an area with nice houses (with decent land), great neighborhoods/schools, restaurants, shopping, etc. All in all we are looking for a GREAT place to raise our family. We go back and forth with when we will be relocating. If we left LI now we probably would only be able to afford a similarly priced home (approx $425k-$450k), but if we waited a few years we would be able to spend a good deal more (husband on track to make partner at his firm). Or we can get a smaller house in CT now then in a few years upgrade. My son is going to be 2 so I would like to start to test the waters in the areas in which we hope to raise him. We go back and forth as to if we should rent first, knowing if we rented in our current area, we would have never bought (this was another relocation form Philadelphia). Any insight/thoughts you all can provide would be greatly appreciated.

[JayCT]

LI Shells - In that price range, it will be difficult to get a nice house in a Connecticut town with a good school system within an hour of Manhatten. That said, there are trade offs you can make.

Norwalk is within an hour of Manhatten and it has homes in your price range, but the schools (mainly the upper grades) have issues. It wouldn't be a bad choice since your son is so young, but once he gets to middle school I would either consider private schools or moving to a nicer town. Similarly Stamford would be an option. This however would possibly having to move to another town later on which will not allow you to put down roots in the community.

Milford is very nice too and would have some nice homes in your price range but the commute would be a longer. Ridgefield and Redding are nice too but I doubt you would find homes in the price range you are looking at.

Fairfield is a very nice town with excellent schools but homes in that price range would be modest and the train ride to Manhatten is a little over an hour. The east side of Fairfield is a little more affordable than the west but that may be changing now that the new train station is being planned there. I know people in Fairfield that moved there because it was more affordable than lower Fairfield County and as their fortunes improved would not leave town (or their original neighborhood) because they liked it so much. Given what you want you can't go wrong with Fairfield. JMHO Jay

[NY2CT]

For that price range, I don't think you'll find something that meets all of your criteria. You're priced out of Westport and basically priced out of Redding and Ridgefield. You can probably find something small (under 1800 sq. ft. and less than .25 acre) in Stamford, Norwalk and Fairfield. I don't know about Fairfield, but Stamford and Norwalk have some unsafe areas so be careful where you look. Fairfield schools are much better than Stamford and Norwalk schools. Fairfield is a bit further from Manhattan though. It's about 75 minutes to Grand Central whereas Stamford is 45 minutes and Norwalk is about an hour.

You can probably get a lot more for your money in Milford. However, the commute to Grand Central is about 90 minutes. I'm not sure if your husband works around there or has to take a subway.

Since Fairfield County is so desirable b/c of its proximity to Manhattan, perhaps you can buy something small now and upgrade in a few years. Hpuses appreciate fairly quickly in that area compared to other parts of CT.

[davidlindland]

Try Fairfield as it is a buyers market as of now and is a great town with a good commute to midtown(my wife does it every day). I have a couple great Realtors that can be of some help if need be, so don't hesitate to get in touch. Good luck with everything!

Best,

David

David Lindland

[jumper]

You can find a 3br 2ba condo in Ridgefield for 385-410K...great schools, great community, and good resale potential....and you'd be getting your feet wet at the same time... consider the condos in the center of town...walk the stroller along Main Street to the library and park...sound idyllic?

[Diamonds1]

I actually live on the CT border with New Canaan on one side and Ridgefield on the other, in a great town called Vista (South Salem). We are selling a nice condo FSBO, and just put it on the market. If you are interested feel free to send an email We have excellent schools. Many people start in this area in condos/townhouses, and move up into homes. We are asking $399k, it is completely updated, beautiful.... i will send more info if your interested. Nic393@gmail.com

[CoolStrom]

Dear Friend,
You also want to consider Milford which is in New Haven county but borders Fairfield County and its in very much flair of Fairfield...Nice schools, Nice parks, beaches, family friendly people, easy to commute from Milford to Grand Centeral and Stamford. Also your $$ will go long way buying the house in Milford then any other town in Fairfield. It has all the best big box shopping on Route1, Connecticut Post Mall and new Urban life style center (just like you find in CA and CO etc..)....

If you need more info, let me know..my wife and i with our newborn son just moved in Milford and LOVE it!

Good luck,CoolStrom

[ronson]

I think for what you have described, Fairfield may be as far East as you would want to go. Milford is nice but out of Ffld CO and even Stratford would be stretching the upper end of the commute time that you want to stay under. Milford may tack on another 20 mins or more on a bad day but usually only 10. Fairfield has great schools, resturaunts etc. If you want a more rural feel look into Easton or lower Redding, but the commute options change to utilizing only the Merritt/Rte 15 if you settle on one of them. You won't go wrong in Fairfield.

[jdhall1]

Have you considered the northern part of Fairfield County (Greater Danbury)? You get a lot more 'bang for your buck'. It takes about 75 minutes by train to get to Grand Central from the train station in Brewster,NY. Around $440,000 gets you a 4 bedroom, 3 bath cape with 2500 square feet on about an acre of property.

[LI_Shells]

Thank you all for your help. I GREATLY appreciate it. We are tossing around a few different ideas, 1.) Buy something small in an area we like and then upgrade in a few years 2.) Sticking it out in Long Island until we can make the move to an area and a house we want 3.) Consider renting in the area in which we hope to buy to ensure it is the right fit for us. I hate to go back to renting after being a homeowner. But, what is the renting market like up there, a lot of nicer places to choose from or limited? Also I am open to buying a townhouse or condo as long as there is a resell market. It would be a change for us, but if it was short term I think we can swing it. We also have a dog (blk lab) so I would just need to ensure she was getting her proper exercise walking and such without a yard to play, you know.

Right now both me and my husband make 6 figs, but with me leaving work it is going to cut down our income a bit so I don't want to get in over my head, especially with a little one on the way. He is considering leaving the firm and going to the private market, if the does that his salary will increase considerably and will have more spending power, but if he stays with the firm the next two years will be an adjustment for us income wise.