[cmwct]

My husband and I are moving from Chicago to CT at the end of the year. We have spent little time in Ct but enough to know some areas.

My husband will be working in Greenwich however we are conflicted as to where we should reside. We are a young married couple (late twentys) with children not too far down the road. Our conflict with just choosing Greenwich for the short commute is that we fear that purchasing a home there in the 1-2 years will be out of our reach. Where as Westport although still pricey may be more likely.

Until we get a better sense of the areas we will be renting, so we are trying to choose between renting in an area that is more likely an area we could purchase, or just having a VERY short commute. I realize this is a personal preference I guess my question is where you all think a young couple from downtown Chicago may feel more at home? Are the restaurants etc more plentiful in one area than another? Are there way more young families in one area more than another? How IS the commute from Westport to Greenwich?

Love to hear any thoughts!

Thanks!

[HelloSam]

Depending on the time of day your husband is commuting...I-95 is pretty terrible fron North to South between 7 - 8.30 am, guaranteed. I would consider certain areas of Stamford to live in for the Greenwich commute rather than Westport (Westover, North Stamford). Downtown Stamford is very lively, with plentiful restaurants and high-rise/mid-rise buildings. Also, if you are considering those two towns, you may as well look at Darien and Rowayton. Closer to Greenwich, also on the shore. Rowayton is part of Norwalk.

[cmwct]

hellosam,

thanks for your response...of all the areas we visited Norwalk (near Soho) and stamford were the only places we didn't like. We felt like it was too similar to the city. Is Rowayton nicer that the Soho area? Perhaps there is a train between Westport and Greenwich?

Oh shoot is it Soho or Sono? sorry only been once

[hsw]

Esp if in financial industry, prob smarter from a career perspective to reside in Greenwich....

Most founders/senior execs of CT hedge funds (as well as many senior execs of Manhattan inv banks/pvt eq shops/hedge funds) choose to live in Greenwich; dine in-town at various rather weak restaurants (though no worse than high-end suburban restaurants anywhere); and send their kids to the same 2-3 pvt schools....

Also much closer to Manhattan (esp for business mtgs/dinners, etc) and to airports....

[JayCT]

Yes, there is a train between Westport and Greenwich but there are few that are direct. Your husband may have to switch in Stamford which is normally not too difficult. If your husbands office is near a station (there are a couple in Greenwich) then it should not be very difficult.

That said I agree with the others that you should try Greenwich first for commuting purposes. There is nothing like living near your office and Greenwich is the closest town to New York City so when you want to go in it is easy and convenient.

Rowayton is a small village on the west side of Norwalk. It is nothing like SONO or Stamford. Jay

[Anaid]

Yeah, try Greenwich. It's actually a huge area and there actually are homes in various price ranges in Greenwich, I think slightly more so than Westport.

[sgfludd]

I think you would like Greenwich. There are lots of young families here. Greenwich Ave and surrounding areas have lots of restaurants. Now before the kids arrive - you might find yourself a little bored - because there doesn't seem to be much night life in Greenwich (or Westport for the that matter) for young singles. But the city is just a short train ride away from that sort of thing. Rowayton and Darien are also very nice and a short commute or train ride away from Greenwich. We live in Greenwich and I work in Rowayton. I like them both.

[HelloSam]

I respectfully disagree on there being no nightlife in Greenwich. You've got some very fun neighborhood bars on Greenwich Avenue and the side streets, and if you must stay out after hours, there's always Port Chester! I lived the young and single life there for about six years. Live music at MacDuff's, the place that used to be Bleu, and Thataways keeps things interesting.