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We have to make a decision soon. I can either rent a nice house in woodbridge for 1850(no utilities plus lawn care/snow removal ) Vs a 3BR apt in florence RD ,Branford for 1657(all utilities included). We have 2 boys ages 7 and 1.5. I will be working in Yale new haven hospital.Which one will you recommend and why?
My priorities are as follows
1)Easy commute to Yale
2)Safe neighbourhood, doesn't necessarily need a lot of things to do (as I would be very busy with my fellowship).
3)Good school. I guess both Mary T Murphy and beecher elementary are good schools although beecher might be a little better.
4)If I have a house, how much would be the cost of snow removal/lawn care?
Woodbridge is a more affluent town overall. Yes the schools perform better, but generally you'll find the Branford schools are totally acceptable.
Woodbridge is a bit better of a commute. Branford isn't bad but you do have to deal with highway traffic.
The towns are completely different more importantly. Woodbridge is an affluent, highly educated very small, mostly rural town. Branford is a middle class coastal mid sized town. In the Branford area, towns like Guilford and Madison are more demographically similar to Woodbridge. In the Woodbridge area, a town like Milford is more comparable to Branford.
So, you're comparing apples and oranges a bit. You really can't go wrong, so it's more up to personal preference.
Woodbridge is the easier commute; however Branford isn't bad. Woodbridge is lightly developed with most homes on large lots. It's truly a bedroom community as there isn't much going on in the town.
Branford is much busier and has a good, walkable downtown and many stores in town. There is a much wider mix of housing types. As Style note, they are very different types of towns.
Cost for driveway plowing and lawn care will vary greatly depending on the size of your lot. Keep in mind that plowing a driveway still means you'll have to get out there and salt/sand, possibly do a little shoveling after plowing. Otherwise what the plow leaves behind will turn into a sheet of ice.
Also, a single family home with no utilities included is going to be the much more expensive rental. Electrical is going to run you $ 100-150 a month. Cost for oil in the winter ( if you have oil heat) may be hundreds of dollars every month.
The rental in Branford is probably more cost effective. Renting a home if you're responsible for grounds maintenance can get time consuming. Not only does the lawn have to done, but also trimming and pruning.
If you don't have a lot of free time, you may not want to get involved with that. The rental, with utilties included will certainly be the cheaper place.
All preference. I, myself, would choose Branford because there are cooler things to do, more amenities, and beaches!
Woodbridge is a quick skip to Milford though, and living in north Branford would feel similar. Also, Milford beaches > Branford beaches. But Branford does have a stunning rocky coast in its own right. Woodbridge also has Westville in its backyard, which always has interesting things going on.
Not saying Woodbridge is a better option, but it's a tiny island of a town surrounded by some cool things within short reach.
Thank you guys. I forgot to mention that the Woodbridge house comes with all the furniture which makes it appealing as I am not moving with any furniture since its only for a year and afterwards I am planning to move back to where I came from unless I get some good job offers here.
Thank you guys. I forgot to mention that the Woodbridge house comes with all the furniture which makes it appealing as I am not moving with any furniture since its only for a year and afterwards I am planning to move back to where I came from unless I get some good job offers here.
Just curious, is the apartment on Florence Rd in the Branford Hills complex? We rented there for a year and while there were a lot of positives and it worked out well for us, you should be aware that there was a major sound/privacy issue. MAJOR. The guy blowing his nose in the apartment below us would sound like it was two feet away and would wake us up. You hear absolutely everything. Not sure if it's even the place you're looking at, but if so, be aware. Turned out to be a real quality of life issue. If I had known it was that bad we would've looked elsewhere.
(Should add, I've lived in a lot of different apartments all over the country and I would say I have reasonable expectations. Of course in an apartment you'll hear your neighbors at times, but that place was flat-out awful in that regard. Never experienced anything like it.)
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