[westchesterbuyer123]

Hi all, I am current Mamaroneck resident. We already pay $24k in taxes on a $940k house (2100 sq ft). We would like a bigger house but the taxes here are just astronomical. I really like Darien, CT. I did some research and for a 1.3M house you would get a lot more house and pay less in taxes in Darien. Whereas, here I'd get a smaller house than in Darien and pay probably $35k in taxes.

My concern is the people. Mamaroneck is a very neighborhoody, unpretentious small town. Is Darien really all that bad?

[Stylo]

It is a less economically diverse town. More uniformly wealthy.

It has a reputation for being a bit WASPy, and certainly has a preppy Vineyard Vines-ish high end feel, but I would defer judgment to someone that has actually lived there. For what it’s worth, it always felt a bit less outwardly ostentatious to me compared to Westport. A bit more reserved. I have a couple colleagues and clients that have lived there and they are nice enough people, though I’m not sure down to earth would be a phrase I’d use.

I’m sure the schools are very competitive. Which can be great for some offering lots of opportunity and challenging for others. Everyone is different.

Noroton Heights seems a bit more “normal” to me and has some density that might encourage a more neighborly feel.

You may also want to consider some of the “less wealthy“ areas of Greenwich if you want that close knit feel. Cos Cob, Old Greenwich. Greenwich is more economically diverse than Darien. Homes are a bit more expensive but taxes are even lower (lower than any NYC suburb AFAIK).

[kidyankee764]

Darien is very different, socially, than Mamaroneck. Darien has a median household income of just north of 210k, while Mamaroneck is about 116k. It’s just, overall, a significantly wealthier community. Of course, that means the people will be a bit different. Different careers, values, wants and needs. Darien is probably closer to a Scarsdale.

In SW CT, the closest you’ll find to upper middle class, commutable to NYC, with good schools, is probably Fairfield. It’s pretty much at the end of the commuting line so it would be a very long NYC commute, but some do it.

I’d agree with Stylo - maybe look into the Cos Cob or Byram sections of Greenwich.

[BPt111]

Originally Posted by kidyankee764

Darien is very different, socially, than Mamaroneck. Darien has a median household income of just north of 210k, while Mamaroneck is about 116k. It’s just, overall, a significantly wealthier community. Of course, that means the people will be a bit different. Different careers, values, wants and needs. Darien is probably closer to a Scarsdale.

In SW CT, the closest you’ll find to upper middle class, commutable to NYC, with good schools, is probably Fairfield. It’s pretty much at the end of the commuting line so it would be a very long NYC commute, but some do it.

I’d agree with Stylo - maybe look into the Cos Cob or Byram sections of Greenwich.

Darien is kinda judgmental but not everyone

[kidyankee764]

Originally Posted by BPt111

Darien is kinda judgmental but not everyone

People in every town are judgmental, rich and poor.

[JayCT]

I’m wondering why the OP bypassed Greenwich for Darien? Greenwich is very diverse and while pricey, it’s taxes are among the lowest in the region. Certainly lower than Mamaroneck. $1.3 million gets you about 2,500 to 3,200 square feet with taxes under $14,000. Some have taxes around $10,000. That’s where I’d look first and then go to Darien if I could find something in Greenwich. Jay

[CTartist]

Originally Posted by westchesterbuyer123

Hi all, I am current Mamaroneck resident. We already pay $24k in taxes on a $940k house (2100 sq ft). We would like a bigger house but the taxes here are just astronomical. I really like Darien, CT. I did some research and for a 1.3M house you would get a lot more house and pay less in taxes in Darien. Whereas, here I'd get a smaller house than in Darien and pay probably $35k in taxes.

My concern is the people. Mamaroneck is a very neighborhoody, unpretentious small town. Is Darien really all that bad?

I might be able to give you a little perspective on this.

I was born and raised in Stamford. My mom's family is from the Glenbrook section of Stamford and the Noroton section of Darien which border one another. I still have relatives that live there and have had cousins from Stamford move to the Noroton section of Darien.

IMO Noroton is different from most of Darien. Noroton is more like the "middle class" section of Darien if you can look past the fact that many of the homes are around one million dollars but there are also many under the million dollar mark.

We have had many a party in my family with people from Mamaronek, Stamford and Noroton and we all got along fine. Being from Mamaronek I think you would like Noroton and the areas close to it in Darien as they border the water and you can quickly be in Stamford or South Norwalk for the night life and shopping.

Here is a 1.1 million dollar house in Noroton but look how close it is to Glenbrook Stamford. I circled both in red in the picture. The taxes on this house are $10,531 too.
https://www.coldwellbankerhomes.com/...d/pid_34512352

[CTartist]

There is something else I want to point out. I now this kind of stuff because I know many people who live or have lived there. The section that I pointed out in Noroton where the house was has a household income of $119,000. My town of Trumbull has a household income of $117,000 and my town is middle class for Fairfield County.

There is a map on City-Data where you can see this information. I took a print screen so you can see it.

[7 Wishes]

Originally Posted by kidyankee764

Darien is probably closer to a Scarsdale.

A better Westchester comparison to Darien would probably be to Bronxville. Both have more of a WASP-y "old money" vibe whereas while Scarsdale was like that decades ago, Scarsdale is nowadays more "nouveau riche" kind of like Westport or richer parts of Greenwich with heavy Jewish and Asian populations (though I'm not sure how Asian Westport is).

[DairyGodmother]

Originally Posted by westchesterbuyer123

Hi all, I am current Mamaroneck resident. We already pay $24k in taxes on a $940k house (2100 sq ft). We would like a bigger house but the taxes here are just astronomical. I really like Darien, CT. I did some research and for a 1.3M house you would get a lot more house and pay less in taxes in Darien. Whereas, here I'd get a smaller house than in Darien and pay probably $35k in taxes.

My concern is the people. Mamaroneck is a very neighborhoody, unpretentious small town. Is Darien really all that bad?

Yep.