[hcbell]

we are native Texans and I have no idea where to look or live.

we may consider trying to rent a house until we get a feel for it there. Hubby is planning on commute by train, so it needs to be convienient to rail. Great Schools and safety are a must.

Where on earth do I start looking? I would say that he is willing to commute 45 minutes to an hour.

we have 2 kids 7 and 4 and a dog, if that helps any.

Thank you all for your help.

[gomet]

IT all depends on the MONEY????

[Lintu]

Yeah, your price range definitely matters.

Another thing to consider is where in Manhattan the job is. Is it near Grand Central or 125th street? If so, that's an easy rail commute. Otherwise, you'll need to factor in walking, subway, or taxi from one of the major hubs.

[hcbell]

I would say we could spend around 3000 a month on rent

[JayCT]

A lot would depend on what you are looking for. The type, size and price of a home you can afford and how long of a commute your husband expects. Things like that.

You should note that you are moving to one of the most expensive areas in the country while most of Texas is considered to be pretty inexpensive. Towns like Greenwich, Darien, New Canaan, Westport, Wilton and Weston have homes that easily go for over $1 million. And you do not get a lot of home for that money either. Generally the closer to New York (Greenwich), the more expensive homes are. You would get more for your money in Fairfield which is further from Manhatten than the others.

The towns along the Metro North Rail line from New York border to New Haven are Greenwich, Stamford, Darien, Norwalk, Westport, Fairfield, Bridgeport, Stratford and Milford. There are multple trains from each of these towns and they stop at various stations along the route. It generally takes just under an hour from Greenwich to Manhatten and that is because most trains from Greenwich stop in towns in Westchester. It takes about 80 minutes from Fairfield to Manhatten but the train usually doesn't stop anywhere past Stamford. Check Metro North's schedule for more information on travel times.

I hope htis helps and let us know if you have any questions. Jay

[glxyman21]

I don't know about houses..but I know of the "Avalon" communities that are in fairfiled county..they're upscale apartments. The best communities within an hour of NYC will be Darien, New Caanan, and Wilton...do a search for Avalon Darien or something on google and it'll bring up the site with a list of towns where they have complexes.

[JayCT]

Avalon Heights is the apartment complex that glxyman is trying to think of. It is in the Noroton Heights section of Darien. It is within walking distance of the Noroton Heights train station and would be about an hour commute to Manhatten. It would be a good place to start to look for a rental. Darien has great schools but I am not sure about the commplexes policy on dogs. You will have to check with them. I will note to you that the commplex is located between the Metro-North train tracks and the I-95 Southbound Service area, so noise may be an issue. Several months age I believe there were posts on these boards about this complex and some siad noise was a problem and others said no. Anyway, good luck. Jay

[hcbell]

Thank you for all of your help!

[Rich Lee]

Please...it's Manhattan.

[hcbell]

Pardon the spelling error. My mistake