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Hi all. I will be working in Cromwell and would like your opinions on the best towns in the area. School quality will the most important factor in our decision. We have researched Berlin, Rocky Hill, and Portland. Any thoughts on these towns or any others that we should check out? Thanks.
I'm going to move first and rent. I'll be able to check out neighborhoods until my family joins me a couple of months later. At that point we plan to buy. I'm a doctor and my wife is a teacher. We'll be looking to spend +\- $400k.
A lot depends on what you expect to get for $400,000. It also depends on the type of community you want (urban, suburban, rural) and how far from your job you are willing to be. If schools are really important, then I would suggest considering Glastonbury, Farmington or West Hartford. All are nice affluent towns with schools that perform well above the state averages on the Connecticut Mastery and Connecticut Academic Performance Tests. Glastonbury and Farmington are similar in character. They are nice affluent historic towns that were mostly developed since the 1970's. West Hartford is a more mature densely developed community with a great walkable downtown area (West Hartford Center). All three of these towns have a wide range of housing types from modest apartments in older homes to very large expensive houses. I suggest you check them out to see which suits you best.
Of the towns you mention, Rocky Hill probably has the best performing schools. Still Portland and Berlin are good school systems as well with more middle class families. You can check out school systems in the state at the website below. Look for schools that perform at or above the state averages on the CMT and CAPT tests and have class sizes under 24 students.
Since you are coming here first without you family, are you looking for temporary or short-term housing. You can likely find that in nearbyu Middletown which has a lot of apartments. Good luck, Jay
Hi all. I will be working in Cromwell and would like your opinions on the best towns in the area. School quality will the most important factor in our decision. We have researched Berlin, Rocky Hill, and Portland. Any thoughts on these towns or any others that we should check out? Thanks.
If your job is in Cromwell and it will stay there I would suggest you live in Cromwell. Nothing like living close to work. Cromwell has a lot of condos and they come up for rent frequently. You should consider renting one until you find a house. I would avoid these 2 condo complexes in Cromwell however, Cromwell Gardens & Woodland Heights. I would highly recommend a complex called "Fox Meadows"
The 3 towns you listed all have good schools and 400k would buy you a decent house. I would avoid Portland though since you would have to drive across the Arrogoni bridge every day and use RT 9. Both of these create bottlenecks during rush hour. They also won't be fun during bad weather.
Rocky Hill would be an easy commute to Cromwell, especially if you were on or off of Main St. which changes to the Silas Deane Hwy as you drive north.
Some areas of Berlin would be an easy commute to Cromwell.
There isn't much difference between the three towns so I think it would come down to how close do you want to live to your job? And perhaps are your kids in high school?
Berlin high school leans towards sports where Cromwell and Rocky Hill don't.
If I wasn't clear before I would remove Portland from your list and add Cromwell.
in terms of high school test scores, Portland has performed the best in recent years of Berlin, Rocky Hill & Cromwell. That said, Portland is 25 square miles in size and some of the nice residential areas are a bit off the beaten track, so you could be looking at a short commute as the crow flies, but it could take a while as you wind through back roads in Portland and then go over the bridge. (Oddly, though, the average SAT for all four towns plummeted this past year.)
I'd recommend Rocky Hill because it's just a super-convenient town - several ways to get into Cromwell, plus an easy drive into Hartford or to New Haven for additional job opportunities, or if you're associated with a hospital in one of those cities.
Agree with Jay that with a $400,000 budget, you might want to look at Glastonbury or Farmington. Farmington has low taxes (for the Hartford area) so can be reasonably affordable compared to Rocky Hill, with a higher tax rate. Both towns have terrific school systems - definitely a notch up from Rocky Hill, Berlin or Portland. Farmington's mill rate is around 24, with Cromwell, Rocky Hill & Berlin around 30. (Glastonbury is a great town, but does have high property taxes - 35.65 mill rate)
A lot depends on what you expect to get for $400,000. It also depends on the type of community you want (urban, suburban, rural) and how far from your job you are willing to be. If schools are really important, then I would suggest considering Glastonbury, Farmington or West Hartford. All are nice affluent towns with schools that perform well above the state averages on the Connecticut Mastery and Connecticut Academic Performance Tests. Glastonbury and Farmington are similar in character. They are nice affluent historic towns that were mostly developed since the 1970's. West Hartford is a more mature densely developed community with a great walkable downtown area (West Hartford Center). All three of these towns have a wide range of housing types from modest apartments in older homes to very large expensive houses. I suggest you check them out to see which suits you best.
Of the towns you mention, Rocky Hill probably has the best performing schools. Still Portland and Berlin are good school systems as well with more middle class families. You can check out school systems in the state at the website below. Look for schools that perform at or above the state averages on the CMT and CAPT tests and have class sizes under 24 students.
Since you are coming here first without you family, are you looking for temporary or short-term housing. You can likely find that in nearbyu Middletown which has a lot of apartments. Good luck, Jay
A lot depends on what you expect to get for $400,000. It also depends on the type of community you want (urban, suburban, rural) and how far from your job you are willing to be. If schools are really important, then I would suggest considering Glastonbury, Farmington or West Hartford. All are nice affluent towns with schools that perform well above the state averages on the Connecticut Mastery and Connecticut Academic Performance Tests. Glastonbury and Farmington are similar in character. They are nice affluent historic towns that were mostly developed since the 1970's. West Hartford is a more mature densely developed community with a great walkable downtown area (West Hartford Center). All three of these towns have a wide range of housing types from modest apartments in older homes to very large expensive houses. I suggest you check them out to see which suits you best.
Of the towns you mention, Rocky Hill probably has the best performing schools. Still Portland and Berlin are good school systems as well with more middle class families. You can check out school systems in the state at the website below. Look for schools that perform at or above the state averages on the CMT and CAPT tests and have class sizes under 24 students.
Since you are coming here first without you family, are you looking for temporary or short-term housing. You can likely find that in nearbyu Middletown which has a lot of apartments. Good luck, Jay
Middletown & Cromwell both have a lot of rentals, and many of the Middletown rentals are right on the border of Cromwell.
Berlin is a nice place to live. Close to Cromwell, The turnpike has every store imaginable you would need. Very quiet neighborhood and a good place to raise a family.
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