[Castielah]

Currently in Albany and job relocation possible in Stamford, Ct, Providence, or Derry, NH.

Considering CT as I have a daughter who will be in college in New London. Looking for safe, lower tax towns on a budget. The coming train line from New Haven to Springfield looks interesting. I used to live in NYC and am a fan of public transportation. Would rather somewhere not too isolated. Close to coast and/or bicycling and rail trails would be nice. Thanks for any suggestions of towns to consider.

[htfdcolt]

I'll let the FFC experts weigh in, but I don't think you'll find anything under $250K near Stamford. Of the 3 options, you're best off looking near Providence. Shortest drive to New London by far, and Providence is a great city.

[JayCT]

Originally Posted by Castielah

Currently in Albany and job relocation possible in Stamford, Ct, Providence, or Derry, NH.

Considering CT as I have a daughter who will be in college in New London. Looking for safe, lower tax towns on a budget. The coming train line from New Haven to Springfield looks interesting. I used to live in NYC and am a fan of public transportation. Would rather somewhere not too isolated. Close to coast and/or bicycling and rail trails would be nice. Thanks for any suggestions of towns to consider.

Stamford is one of the most expensive parts of the country. $250,000 will not go far anywhere near there. A lot will depend what you expect for your money and what you consider to be low taxes. Fairfield is the first town that is somewhat affordable. Though in your price range you wiould likely only get a very modest home in need of work or a modest condo. You might want to look in a town like Stratford or Milford where you can get more for your money. But then you are further from Stamford.

I am not sure why you are interested in the towns along the New Haven Hartford Springfield line. They are pretty far from Stamford so I would not consider them. Overall you would be better off with the jobs in Providence or NH. Homes there are more affordable. Unless of course the job in Stamford pays more or offers a better career move. Jay

[Castielah]

Thank you for the replies. The job pays the same in either location and no difference career-wise. I work in healthcare, so more healthcare facilities in the vicinity is always good. There's also a Boston position.

The other consideration is that my daughter will drive to visit her father and rest of her family near Woodstock, NY. I don't want be a long trip in the opposite direction for her, which makes NH a question. Otherwise, I would definitely look there. The Providence metro seems to make some sense. Will also post this on the RI forum. Planning a road trip through New England in the next couple months, so any suggestions on towns and commutes are welcome!

[Stylo]

If the job is near the train station in Stamford, you could easily find a home in your budget in either Stratford or Milford and have a relatively short train commute. Both are great communities with a lot of amenities, with Milford getting the edge on parks, things to do, shopping, and schools. Stratford is a bit more affordable, but taxes are higher.

As others said, Albany and Providence are markedly cheaper areas, but there's lots more to consider in a place to live than affordability. That's the truth, despite the fact that so many here will quickly push to the cheapest area without any consideration of other factors.

[CTartist]

Originally Posted by Stylo

If the job is near the train station in Stamford, you could easily find a home in your budget in either Stratford or Milford and have a relatively short train commute. Both are great communities with a lot of amenities, with Milford getting the edge on parks, things to do, shopping, and schools. Stratford is a bit more affordable, but taxes are higher.

[Raider111]

Why the hell would a single empty nester want to put up with a miserable commute to Stamford everyday from the far east.

There are a decent amount of 2 br condos available in that price range in Stamford, and some even in Norwalk and Fairfield, though I think even Fairfield gets to be too far out. All three have lower mill rates (25ish) than most of the rest of the state except far a couple of nearby niche market wealthy towns. Fairfield will however approach 30 mills in the coming years.

[Castielah]

Good posts, Stylo, and Raider111. I'm not at all ready to rule out CT, so getting some different ideas on how to make it work are really helpful.

Looking at real estate online, most homes in the $250K range look the same (older, need some TLC), in all these states, in which case I want to go with the location, location rule. Up-and-coming areas would be okay, too. Which, if not working in Stamford, was the thinking about the New Haven to Springfield rail development.

There's also a lot of other shoppers looking for bargains. The town will probably be where I can find something! Looking forward to spring inventory.

[ayoskillz]

Originally Posted by Castielah

Good posts, Stylo, and Raider111. I'm not at all ready to rule out CT, so getting some different ideas on how to make it work are really helpful.

Looking at real estate online, most homes in the $250K range look the same (older, need some TLC), in all these states, in which case I want to go with the location, location rule. Up-and-coming areas would be okay, too. Which, if not working in Stamford, was the thinking about the New Haven to Springfield rail development.

There's also a lot of other shoppers looking for bargains. The town will probably be where I can find something! Looking forward to spring inventory.

The houses in new haven for that price is a no go. They look nice but in areas you dont want to be in especially been new to the city if you do luck up and find one in a good area its gonna need alot kf tlc. Tlc that you might not want to put iin. You can get a nice condo for around 250k in new haven but resales on those are low if you needed to move in couple of years but other than that if you dont mind a loss then thats an option

[Hollytree]

I wouldn't look in the city of Providence for $250k- maybe one or two houses in Elmhurst neighborhood might work but the decent and desirable part of Providence is the East Side and you'll need $500K + to buy a house on a good street there.

Look in Westerly RI on the CT border. Closer to New London.