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Old 06-05-2008, 11:53 AM
 
392 posts, read 1,535,864 times
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I have asked for help before and the responses have been excellent. I am in the process of relocating to CT and I am narrowing my search.

I need the best and worst thing (or things) about Bethel, Newtown, Southbury, and New Milford.

I am married with two young children. We are lookign at commuting distances. I will be likely working the Danbury area and I have family in Ridgefield so we are trying to stay closer to these areas.

We are likely in the $400-$450 price range for a single house. Taxes and Schools are important to us. We like the town to have a defined "downtown" or "main street" if possible (like Ridgefield, Bethel, etc). Any other suggestions besides the towns I've listed would be helpful.

Thanks!
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Old 06-05-2008, 01:26 PM
 
Location: Connecticut
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Bethel would be closest to Danbury, New Milford and Southbury the furthest. you would probably get more for your money in New Milford than the other towns which can get pricey. I am not sure what you want for your price range. Bethel and New Milford have a defined downtown, Southbury and Newtown do not, but both do have some very good shopping options. The schools are good in all of these towns. Below is a link to review each. I usually look at the Connecticut Mastery and Academic Performance test results to see how far above the State average the school system performs. I also look for class sizes to be as low as possible. Generally I like them to be 20 students or less per class. Taxes will vary by community and are sort of tied to the price of homes. I would see what you can afford in each town and then compare taxes on the properties. Keep in mind that in Connecticut you pay property taxes on cars. I hope this helps. Jay


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Old 06-05-2008, 02:44 PM
 
392 posts, read 1,535,864 times
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Thanks Jay. Is traffic a major issue computing to Danbury from these towns? Also, as a side note... any idea how car tax (something new for me) is calculated? For example, if I own a car free and clear, is it taxes of off Kelly BB value at a certain rate?
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Old 06-05-2008, 04:31 PM
 
21,540 posts, read 30,956,091 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NJ987654 View Post
Thanks Jay. Is traffic a major issue computing to Danbury from these towns?
There is traffic traveling 84 WB from Southbury and Newtown. It's not as bad as 95, the Merritt and 84/91 in the Hartford area, but it does get congested. Allow yourself an extra 20-25 minutes to get to Danbury from Southbury during the AM rush.

Bethel would be the most convenient town, but also consider New Fairfield. New Fairfield is one town north of Danbury and also has excellent schools. The high school was recently ranked among the top in the nation and for your price range you should get a decent but modest home in town. The only downside is the lack of downtown, but there is a "center of town" plaza with a few shops, mostly deli's and other eateries. I'd suggest Ridgefield but you won't get much in your price range. The further south you go in CT the more expensive it gets.

The commute to Danbury from both Bethel and New Fairfield is very convenient.

Good luck!
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Old 06-05-2008, 07:51 PM
 
Location: Cheshire, Conn.
2,102 posts, read 7,730,634 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NJ987654 View Post
Thanks Jay. Is traffic a major issue computing to Danbury from these towns? Also, as a side note... any idea how car tax (something new for me) is calculated? For example, if I own a car free and clear, is it taxes of off Kelly BB value at a certain rate?
COMMUTE
It can be along Route 7 from the center of New Milford to the Super 7 exchange. Please note that construction is on-going in this area as well.

If you are north of the center of New Milford (along Route 7 north of Veteran's Bridge where Route 202 splits off), this can be a l-o-n-g drive. I'm talking about Gaylordsville.

New Milford is the largest town in Connecticut. Getting from the northern part to the southern part certainly makes it feel that way.

The Northville section (along Route 202) isn't bad since you can take the Grove Street connector to Route 7 bypassing the retail portion of Route 7.

CAR TAXES
Regardless of whether you own, lease, or are making payments on vehicles, property taxes are each July. They are taxed by the jurisdiction where the vehicle resided on 10/01 of the prior year. Virtually every town pro-rates the amount due if the vehicle resided in that town after 10/01. This bill is called an interim property tax bill.

Towns use some source, perhaps KBB, to determine the assessed value of vehicles. These vehicles, other personal property, and real property on the books as of 10/01 (Grand List day) become the assets upon which the budget is divided. This calculation determines the mill rate.

It is essential that all personal property be reported. Years ago, towns along the state line offered "incentives" to folks who alerted the tax assessor to neighbor's cars sporting out-of-state license plates. I don't know if this is still in effect since I no longer live in those towns.

Towns forward the names of delinquent property tax taxpayers to DMV. Upon registration renewal, a comment will appear if taxes are due for ANY vehicle owned by the taxpayer.

Last edited by Rich Lee; 06-05-2008 at 08:03 PM..
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Old 06-06-2008, 03:40 PM
 
392 posts, read 1,535,864 times
Reputation: 134
Thanks. I can find the taxes on the houses through the mls listings. Give me a guess on what car tax would be like. For example, let's say a car with a kbb value of 20K. Are we talking 100, 500, 1000, etc?
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Old 06-06-2008, 09:53 PM
 
Location: Cheshire, Conn.
2,102 posts, read 7,730,634 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NJ987654 View Post
Thanks. I can find the taxes on the houses through the MLS listings. Give me a guess on what car tax would be like. For example, let's say a car with a KBB value of 20K. Are we talking 100, 500, 1000, etc?
Here's what property taxes would be on an assessment of $20,000 by town:

$563.00 - Bethel (28.15 mils)
$426.80 - New Milford (21.34 mils)
$562.00 - Newtown (28.10 mils)
$508.00 - Southbury (25.4 mils)
$163.00 - Greenwich (8.15 mils)
1109.80 - Waterbury (55.49 mils)

Last edited by Rich Lee; 06-06-2008 at 10:13 PM..
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