[wrrr]

Yep, we have it "narrowed down" to these three Cities/Towns:
Southbury
Oxford
Southington

We presently live out of state (Florida) and obviously want to move to Connecticut. We have friends in both Southbury and Oxford. We don't know anyone living in Southington, but it appears to be a great place to live for my Wife and I, who desire a half acre to one acre lot, buffered or distant backyard neighbors (or woods), and a good "side distance" between houses, all with great "bang-for-the-buck" purchase price !!
Southbury and Oxford seem to meet (actually exceed) our requirements too but we see much less selection of homes for sale and prices $50K higher than an equal home in Southington.
As of yet we have NO Connecticut Jobs so either the Hartford or Danbury area would work well if we moved to Southington, and the Danbury or Trumbull area if we settled in Southbury or Oxford.
Any and ALL comments and suggestions would be very much welcome.
THANKS !!

[JayCT]

wrrr - All three of these towns are very nice. Southbury is probably considered the most desirable of the three and that is why it is the more expensive. Southbury schools are consider very good with Connecticut Mastery Test scores well above the state average. Oxford an Southington schools only perform slightly above the average so they are considered to be a little less desirable. While I know schools do not appear to be a priority to you, the desirablity and thus the resale value of a town does relate to a towns school system reputation.

You are correct that Southington is a good location with easy access to Hartford, Danbury and even New Haven. That is why it is as popular as it is. I-84 and I-691 give it great access to most of the state. To me though, the character of Southington tends to be more suburban than the other two towns. Southbury is somewhat more rural and has a bit of historical feel. Oxford is more rural. Depends what you are looking for but you can't go wrong with any of these towns. Jay

[glxyman21]

The towns you listed are all somewhat different in what they offer. Oxford is the most rural with homes mostly on 1.5-2 acres, little commercial development will force you to travel out of town to do any sort of shopping. and there is no direct highway access.

Southbury is a little bit more upscale, with easy access to I-84. There is ample shopping in town to be convientent. Homes will be a bit more pricier, but there is a range of housing options. If working in Danbury this would be ideal as traveling on the "mix master" through Waterbury and sections of I-84 going to Southington (which hasn't been finished) can cause traffic delays.

Southington is quite suburban but also has very good highway access on I-84 as well as a connection to I-91/meritt parkway. Southington is more in line with Southbury as neighborhoods and commercial development, but there is a lot more population in Southington and probably more housing options.

All the communities are good and safe and offer both pros and cons. Southington/Oxford are more on the semi-upscale side while Southbury is definatly upscale. Something to think of is that Oxford doesn't have public water/sewer so you will have a well and septic tank. Also not many sidewalks or anything and it is a truely rural feel.

[jreich210]

All 3 are nice towns.

Southbury is better if you like being removed from the big cities. It is easily accessable to Danbury and Waterbury but far from New Haven and lower Fairfield County. To get to NYC is tricky as there is no direct route.

Oxford is great if you like red barns, large colonial homes and family oriented people. The town has its own high school and an industrial park home to many well-known names such as GE and Omega Engineering. This keeps taxes in Oxford reasonable but home prices are kept high by town officials because of 1.5-2 acre zoning ordinances. The town has very little diversity (98% white) and to shop, you must do so in Seymour or Southbury. Given its ruralness, its pretty centrally located between 4/5 of Southwest CTs major cities.

The above towns don't have strips of chain stores - more mom & pop than your average suburb.

Southington is more suburban, a little cheaper than the other 2 but offers good schools and easy access to chains restaurants and plenty of shopping.

IMO Oxford and Southbury are more desirable. Quaker Farms along Route 188 in Oxford is especially beautiful, if, you can afford it.

[wrrr]

Originally Posted by jreich210

All 3 are nice towns.

Southbury is better if you like being removed from the big cities. It is easily accessable to Danbury and Waterbury but far from New Haven and lower Fairfield County. To get to NYC is tricky as there is no direct route.

Oxford is great if you like red barns, large colonial homes and family oriented people. The town has its own high school and an industrial park home to many well-known names such as GE and Omega Engineering. This keeps taxes in Oxford reasonable but home prices are kept high by town officials because of 1.5-2 acre zoning ordinances. The town has very little diversity (98% white) and to shop, you must do so in Seymour or Southbury. Given its ruralness, its pretty centrally located between 4/5 of Southwest CTs major cities.

The above towns don't have strips of chain stores - more mom & pop than your average suburb.

Southington is more suburban, a little cheaper than the other 2 but offers good schools and easy access to chains restaurants and plenty of shopping.

IMO Oxford and Southbury are more desirable. Quaker Farms along Route 188 in Oxford is especially beautiful, if, you can afford it.

THANKS for the reply............. very helpful !!
I just wanted to comment about Oxford.... many hats off to the Town Council or whoever (?) is responsible for making sure building lots are 1.5 acre minimum !! After living here in Florida for several years we see so much "greed", so much "piggishness" (in my opinion) where "Communities" go up so quickly with cookie cutter homes and these sloppily built houses are located on 1/10th acre or smaller lots and houses are 7 1/2 feet apart side-by-side !! Many Communities are built on old, farm fields, ending up having no large trees (except a few small palms newly planted by builder) and suffering severe flooding and septic problems because of this. Most are deed restricted (another topic of discussion by many) and "privacy" and "individualism" are non-existant. If it wasn't for house numbers you couldn't tell one house from another.