[EHGuy05]

What about East Hartford? Housing prices are very affordable, especially if you're just looking for a small ranch. The commute to Hartford is very easy, and you will find the right neighborhood to be very pleasant. I'd do some research on the neighborhoods, as there are some rough spots.

[Uconn97]

Oh my! Don't get people on these forums started on EH! I'm sure the bashing will ensue in no time.

To answer the OP's questions - as Amy said, if you plan to stay only 1 year try to rent if you can since you may have a hard time selling in such a short time frame. As others have said condos may also be hard due to pet restrictions.

To back up EHGuys comments. I would also recommend at least looking at a few homes in EH to find a small ranch or cape that would fit into your price range. Contrary to popular stupidity...EH is quite safe if you know where to look and as a single woman you will be fine. I would recommend looking in the southeast corner of town in the neighborhoods that border manchester and Glastonbury. Neighborhoods in the extreme north of town that border southwindsor/manchester are also fine. Schools in EH perform poorly, but since you are not interested in school performance I don't think that should be a consideration on your part. Taxes tend to be on the higher side (mill rate is currently 31), but based on housing costs its still an inexpensive town to live in. EH is convenient to most major highways in central CT, convenient to shopping and restaurants in Manchester and Glastonbury and an easy commute to Hartford. Let me know if you have any questions.

[betims]

you might want to check out newington for a small house