Moving from midwest to CT (Hartford, West Hartford: apartments, low crime, new home)

SWS · 08-12-2007, 10:36 PM

my husband has accepted a new job in Hartford. We currently live in Overland Park, KS (Kansas City suburb) and have been looking online for towns to move to.
any suggestions on where to look? places to avoid? Anything about Glastonbury??

eileen824 · 08-13-2007, 12:07 AM

I don't know very much about Hartford, but I have lived in K.C. for a year or so, and I remember Overland Park to be the nicest of areas. So with that in mind, the best I can advise is to look at Avon, Farmington, and Bristol, with Farmington being the first choice. couldn't tell you what to avoid, as I don't know enough, but I do know Farmington is nice.

skytrekker · 08-13-2007, 04:11 AM

Greater Hartford has numerous fine towns to choose from.

'West of the River' means west of Hartford and the Connecticut River.
'East of the River' means east of Hartford and the Connecticut River-

Despite being a tiny state- CT has different housing costs- with Fairfield county in the southwest corner of the state having the highest. The Hartford area has housing costs that vary from town to town with Median price for a home around $260,000. Thats an average- some towns will be much higher, others slighlty less. West of the CT river will be the highest, followed by south of Hartford, and east of the CT river the lowest. Housing in greater Hartford will be higher then Overland Park- but is only about 16% above the national average.

West Hartford seems to be a very popular town from what I have gathered here for newcomers- it is an older suburb, very genteel, with a great deal of New England charm, very fine schools, a very attractive town center, and a high quality of life with nice parks and low crime. Housing costs will be above the $260 median however.

Towns mentioned above- like Avon, Farmington, Simsbury are very nice towns as well- but housing is expensive- and the commute over Avon Mountain can be difficult at times.

Towns south of Hartford, Wethersfield, Rocky Hill and Cromwell are very nice- with low crime, have very good schools and affordable housing.

East of the river South Windsor, is very popular- and a fine town. Generally speaking, housing east of the river is cheaper- you will get the most bang for your buck. The exception is Glastonbury- an upscale community, with much going for it including an excellent school system- housing prices are high however. Manchester and Vernon are good towns with affordable housing and good schools. Ellington is a fine town to consider with under 15,000 residents, with many nice homes and pleasant rural areas- it is very affordable. Bolton is much more rural- but very scenic and has a fine High school.

New homes (1600-1800 square feet ) on a small lot will start at about 250-280K in some towns east of the Connecticut river (excluding Glastonbury and South Windsor) Further East, in Tolland county; towns like Coventry and Willington a New Colonial, on 1 acre of land-2000 square feet, double garage, basement fireplace will start at 300K- this will be the cheapest part of greater Hartford. (and Connecticut)

It would be a good idea to get the proper orientation of the greater Hartford area geographically- this will speed up your understanding of the region and help you make the best choices on where you want to live,
See this map program Live Local Search

Good luck on your move east- I am sure others will be helpful on the forum- and welcome!

mels · 08-13-2007, 05:38 AM

Glastonbury is a really nice town, though on the pricey side. The schools there are excellent and it is a decent commute to Hartford (not too much traffic).

JayCT · 08-13-2007, 07:21 AM

SWS - Welcome to Connecticut. I am sure you are going to like it here. Where in Hartford will your husband be working. Generally I would recommend locating as close to your husband's job as possible to minimize his commute. If he is working downtown, you could live just about anywhere. If he is working west or north of Hartford, I would recommend West Hartford, Farmington, Simsbury or Avon. If he will be working south or east of Hartford, I would recommend Glastonbury. These towns are considered to be the most desirable in the greater Hartford area and are therefore more expensive. They all have school systems that are excellent and are very family oriented with a lot of actvities for kids. They also have a lot of good restaurants, shopping and entertainment options. If you give us a little more information (job location, likes dislikes, price range, etc.), we can help you a little more. Jay

SWS · 08-13-2007, 11:29 AM

Thanks for all the responses--they are very helpful!
My husband's new job will be in downtown Hartford. We are looking forward to our move to CT. I'm sure I'll have more questions as we progress further in this move.

many thanks
Susan

JayCT · 08-13-2007, 11:59 AM

Susan - Since your husband will be working downtown, you could live in pretty much any of the suburbs around Hartford. You had mentioned Glastonbury which is a great town southeast of Hartford. It has direct access to downtown via Route 2. The schools here are excellent with very good Connecticut Mastery Test scores and generally low class sizes. My kids are in the schools here and we are very happy with them. Glastonbury has a lot of good stores and restaurants. There are a LOT of activities geared toward families here and the housing options are pretty diverse (from apartments to mansions).

The character of town is fairly suburban in nature with single family homes on 1/3 to 1 acre sized lots. Most the homes in town are less than 50 years old and there is no dense walkable downtown area. While Glastonbury does date back to the 1600's, up until 1950's and 60's, it was a primarily rural farming town. There are many small family run farms still around and Main Street is lined with a lot of beautiful old historic homes.

If you are looking for a more old fashoned denser environment, West Hartford would be a good choice. West Hartford Center is a beautiful walkable village with a lot of upscale shops and restaurants. The schools are considered excellent and there are a lot of family activities available. There are many housing choices as well in West Hartford but the housing stock tends to be older and on smaller lots.

If your husband does not mind a bit of a commute, the towns of Farmington Valley to the west of West Hartford are beautiful. Separated from the greater Hartford area by a small mountain (Avon Mountain), the Farmington Valley consists of the towns of Avon, Farmington and Simsbury. Because of the mountain, the area has a sort of "Shangra-La" quality to it. These towns have excellent schools and family activities and there is plenty of great shopping and restaurants. There are no highways into or out of the valley, so access is a bit of a problem with only a few somewhat congested and difficuolt roads to use. This has an advantage of keeping people (and problems) out, but can be an issue.

Let me know if you have any questions as you start to go through the process of looking for a new town to live in. We would be happy to help. Jay

SWS · 08-17-2007, 11:59 AM

You are very helpful! I will forward this to my husband. We have a 7 month old son... sounds like all of those towns you mentioned are family-friendly?

skytrekker · 08-17-2007, 12:07 PM

SWS

All the towns mentioned are family friendly- if at all possible before you move- fly to Hartford and spend 3-4 days- a road atlas of the greater Hartford area will help- then you can get a 'feel of the area' and see the towns many have suggested. Its tough to see what a metro region of 1.3 million has to offer in a short time; Hartford greater spreads both north and south, east and west by 40 miles in all directions.

rebeccagordon14 · 08-17-2007, 10:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SWS

my husband has accepted a new job in Hartford. We currently live in Overland Park, KS (Kansas City suburb) and have been looking online for towns to move to.
any suggestions on where to look? places to avoid? Anything about Glastonbury??

Glastonbury is a nice, rural area. Another nice area to look is in Guilford or Madison. They are great becuase they are shoreline towns, but go north enough to be only about 30 min from Hartford. Great places to raise kids. I hae lived in Madison and my husband in Guilford our whole loves and now that we have 2 kids, we are thrilled to be raising them here. Very safe!!! Good luck!!!