[andthentherewere3]

I'd recommend Fairfield or Milford if you want good school districts. Stamford's is not great, and it's expensive there, your only advantage to Stamford would be proximity to NYC. Since you don't plan on commuting to NYC on a daily basis I think you'd be better off further north. Fairfield has excellent schools, and Milford has good schools. Home prices are lower in Milford.

[anon860]

"I can drive, but don't want to live someplace where daily driving is required."

If this is true, then New Haven (and maybe Stamford) is really your only option in this state. Unfortunately, Connecticut is as car-centric as any other state.

Commuting and auto-dependency is a huge factor in quality of life, so may outweigh your other considerations, especially if you are young. Areas that have mixed transportation and mixed land uses also have far higher quality of food, unique places to shop, farmer's markets, cultural life, etc., which is why many families prefer them.

Regarding safety, keep in mind that by far the largest threat to your health and safety (unless you are an unemployed minority male) is driving. It is a fact that every three minutes of driving is one less minute of life expectancy. If you are trapped in your car at all times, your health starts to severely suffer.

I wouldn't rule out living in the cities, as these areas have by far the best private and parochial schools. Also, some of the neighborhood schools (e.g., Hooker School in New Haven) are ranked among the best in the state, better than some of the schools in fancy towns: 2010 School Rankings | ConnCAN (http://www.conncan.org/learn/reportcards/school?school=Elementary&districts=&category=field _reportcard_goal_value - broken link) Obviously this is a controversial topic here, but educational success has a lot more to do with the parents than the district, and at the very least, conventional wisdom is sometimes best expressed in shades of gray. Although the schools in Bridgeport, Hartford and Waterbury are seriously in trouble, more students go to Yale University from the New Haven Public Schools than from any other public school district in the state and there are a lot of high performers in that district. Even living in parts of Bridgeport or Stamford aren't bad as there are other school options there too. If you are going with Hartford, well... West Hartford is nice.

[Stylo]

Totally agree that NH is the most walkable city in CT. FWIW I have a friend that lives a few blocks away from the green/downtown in Milford and rarely has to use his car. He's got the Metro North train, several restaurants, a farmer's market in the summer, convenience stores, restaurants, bars, a music venue, a theater/arts center, a bakery, banks, gourmet food shop, a beach, etc. within walking distance. Even Shop Rite isn't too far of a walk from downtown. The neighborhoods around that area are very nice and safe.