[Barthur329]

My wife and I have considered moving from the Hudson Valley. Four cities we considered were Buffalo, Cincinnati, Hartford, and Pittsburgh. I have my masters in computer science from SUNY New Paltz and my wife has her masters in teaching from Marist College. We can spend around $400,000 for a house and plan on moving sometime in 2016. Just tell me what Hartford is like and some nice areas to consider. Thanks!

[ctwhitechin]

Are you going to work or live in Hartford? I would live in Glastonbury again if I had to move back to Ct. Anywhere north of I-84 in Hartford is pretty shady..

[FarmGrrrl]

Farmington is a nice town - lowest taxes west of Hartford by far, housing prices are great right now, and if you have children, the schools are excellent. It's about 13 miles to downtown Hartford. Hartford itself is one of those cities that has been trying to get some kind of New Urbanism thing going since I was a teenager at least during the 1970s with some success, although there are some great restaurants and maybe not as much cultural life as Pittsburgh or Cincinnati, but on the other hand it's less than three hours from either Boston or New York.

[NewJeffCT]

What sort of house do you like? Do you want a lot of land, or would you be okay with a smaller lot and an older home, but with a lot of restaurants, shopping and a nice walkable downtown nearby?

Do you have a requirement for square footage, # of bedrooms and bathrooms, garage, etc?

Farmington is an excellent town, as stated above. Nearby, Avon also has excellent schools. West Hartford would be the town with older homes on smaller lots, but you'd also have great restaurants and the nice walkable downtown with shopping, movies, etc. West Hartford has very good schools, too, and more diversity than Avon or Farmington.

Newington is a more middle class town - a lot of smaller homes and small lots, but usually well maintained. Schools are more average to above average for CT, though.

South of Hartford, Wethersfield and Rocky Hill are similar to Newington, but Rocky Hill does have a decent amount of larger/newer homes.

[HumpDay]

Hartford is a 9-5 city. It has tons of jobs and is nicknamed the "Insurance Capital of the World". The suburbs are very attractive for families. Look into South Windsor, Suffield, and Newington.

[NewJeffCT]

Also, for a small city, Hartford has a very good arts & culture scene - the Wadsworth Atheneum is a nice museum, Hartford Stage is a well respected theater, The Bushnell has big Broadway shows every year (last year, they had Wicked, this coming year, Pippin just finished and they'l have Kinky Boots later), etc. The Science Center in Hartford is a great place for kids to visit and is well respected throughout the Northeast.

to continue - east of Hartford, you have Glastonbury, a town with a lot of good restaurants and very good schools. South Windsor has a ton of shopping and also has good schools - a bit more affordable alternative to Glastonbury. Manchester schools are not as good as South Windsor, but it's cheaper and has some nice residential neighborhoods. I'd avoid East Hartford, though it does have some nice residential areas as well, you won't get as much resale value in town as the schools are pretty weak.

[JayCT]

Hartford is a great small city. It is a very livable metropolitan area with wonderful suburbs to raise a family. Despite what others say there is a lot to do here. In addition to what has already been mentioned there is the wonderful Infinity Music Theater which offers all kinds a great shows. You also have a number of great restaurants and bars around downtown. The nice thing about Hartford is that there is so much so near. You want mountains, go north to the Berkshires, Vermont or New Hampshire. You want beach, head south to the Connecticut shore or southeast to Rhide Island or even Cape Cod. You want countryside, drive a short distance and you can be in the beautiful Connectivut countryside. You want big city you can drive a couple hours southwest to New York or northeast to Boston. About the only thing we don't have here is desert. There is history, charm, beauty. It is a great area to live.

The OP did not mention the type of community they would like to live in or what they expect for their budget. Generally the most desirable and thus the most expensive towns are West Hartford, Farmington, Avon, Simsbury and Glastonbury. These are generally more upscale towns with excellent schools and a lot for families. Each town though is somewhat different. West Hartford is a more mature and semi dense town with a wonderful downtown. It is one of the most walkable towns in the region. Farmington, Avon and Simsbury are stunning towns located to a beautiful quiet valley just over a line of small mountains west of Hartford that give the area a sort of Shang ra la feel to it. Glastonbury is located southeast of Hartford and is a nice mix of neighborhoods, businesses and a few farms.

South of Hartford are three great more middle class suburbs. Wethersfield, Rocky Hill and Newington are all nice and slightly more affordable. The OP should be able to get a nice home for their budget here. Old Wethersfield is a wonderful section of town filled with charming old homes many dating back to colonial times. I could keep going on since there are many more towns convenient to Hartford. I do think we need to know more of what the OP likes so we can help them more. Jay

[Barthur329]

Originally Posted by NewJeffCT

What sort of house do you like? Do you want a lot of land, or would you be okay with a smaller lot and an older home, but with a lot of restaurants, shopping and a nice walkable downtown nearby?

Do you have a requirement for square footage, # of bedrooms and bathrooms, garage, etc?

Farmington is an excellent town, as stated above. Nearby, Avon also has excellent schools. West Hartford would be the town with older homes on smaller lots, but you'd also have great restaurants and the nice walkable downtown with shopping, movies, etc. West Hartford has very good schools, too, and more diversity than Avon or Farmington.

Newington is a more middle class town - a lot of smaller homes and small lots, but usually well maintained. Schools are more average to above average for CT, though.

South of Hartford, Wethersfield and Rocky Hill are similar to Newington, but Rocky Hill does have a decent amount of larger/newer homes.

What do you mean by what kind of house? I don't want too much land, and walkability doesn't really matter to me. Requirements are only 1 bedroom, but a guest bedroom would be nice. For square footage, less than 2500 would be ideal. A garage is not necessary, although a nice patio would be prefered.

[Barthur329]

Originally Posted by JayCT

Hartford is a great small city. It is a very livable metropolitan area with wonderful suburbs to raise a family. Despite what others say there is a lot to do here. In addition to what has already been mentioned there is the wonderful Infinity Music Theater which offers all kinds a great shows. You also have a number of great restaurants and bars around downtown. The nice thing about Hartford is that there is so much so near. You want mountains, go north to the Berkshires, Vermont or New Hampshire. You want beach, head south to the Connecticut shore or southeast to Rhide Island or even Cape Cod. You want countryside, drive a short distance and you can be in the beautiful Connectivut countryside. You want big city you can drive a couple hours southwest to New York or northeast to Boston. About the only thing we don't have here is desert. There is history, charm, beauty. It is a great area to live.

The OP did not mention the type of community they would like to live in or what they expect for their budget. Generally the most desirable and thus the most expensive towns are West Hartford, Farmington, Avon, Simsbury and Glastonbury. These are generally more upscale towns with excellent schools and a lot for families. Each town though is somewhat different. West Hartford is a more mature and semi dense town with a wonderful downtown. It is one of the most walkable towns in the region. Farmington, Avon and Simsbury are stunning towns located to a beautiful quiet valley just over a line of small mountains west of Hartford that give the area a sort of Shang ra la feel to it. Glastonbury is located southeast of Hartford and is a nice mix of neighborhoods, businesses and a few farms.

South of Hartford are three great more middle class suburbs. Wethersfield, Rocky Hill and Newington are all nice and slightly more affordable. The OP should be able to get a nice home for their budget here. Old Wethersfield is a wonderful section of town filled with charming old homes many dating back to colonial times. I could keep going on since there are many more towns convenient to Hartford. I do think we need to know more of what the OP likes so we can help them more. Jay

Thanks. Are there any good websites or career fairs that I am able to look for openings in? Red Hook to Hartford is definitely the shortest drive. But how does Hartford compare to the other cities mentioned, Pittsburgh, Buffalo, and Cincinnati? Hartford is close to Poughkeepsie/Red Hook, so is the quality of life the same?

[NewJeffCT]

Originally Posted by Barthur329

Thanks. Are there any good websites or career fairs that I am able to look for openings in? Red Hook to Hartford is definitely the shortest drive. But how does Hartford compare to the other cities mentioned, Pittsburgh, Buffalo, and Cincinnati? Hartford is close to Poughkeepsie/Red Hook, so is the quality of life the same?

THe Hartford area is probably cheaper to live than Poughkeepsie, but so would Pittsburgh, Cincy and Buffalo.


Buffalo gets double the snow of the Hartford area.


Pittsburgh and Cincy are bigger metropolitan areas than Hartford, but Hartford also has easy access to NYC and Boston.