[Seasoned]

Hello all. First time poster here. I have an opportunity to move back to CT from Florida. The job available to me is in Somers though. I have never lived further north than Waterbury. In fact most of my life has been in Westchester and Fairfield counties.

I don't know much about Somers except that it where the prison is. Is Somers or surrounding towns a good place to raise a family? It just doesn't look like there is much up there. On the map it seems Springfield and Hartford are the closest "big", cities.

Does Somers have more of a harsh winter than southern and central CT? Are the schools good? Good medical care is important to us as well, so I am assuming Hartford would be the choice for Doctors, etc...?

Some other towns I was looking at that would be close are Enfield, Granby, Stafford Springs, and Suffield. Then going further away but being closer to family in Waterbury I was looking at Farmington and West Hartford.

As far as salary, I would the sole provider and would be around $40,000 annually. So the plan would be to rent a 2 bedroom in the $800-$900 range. Can anyone shed some insight on this area of CT and if you think it's even possible to survive on $40,000 with a family of 4?

In comparison, I live in Lake Mary Florida. Nice town with good schools and low crime (one of those rarities here in Florida - LOL). I make $58,000 annually here. I guess my biggest complaint here is the weather. From May-November it's too hot and humid. December, March, and April can be dicey, with January and February being awesome.

Thanks for reading and appreciate any input.

[metaljaybird]

Having grown up in Enfield, with family and friends in Somers (I now live in NJ), I can say that Somers is a very nice, country town. While there isn't much to do in the way of shopping in Somers, Enfield has all of the big box conveniences, and boutique towns like Northampton, MA and West Hartford aren't too far should the need come up for some walkable towns.

All the towns you listed have relatively low crime, however parts of downtown Enfield (Thompsonville) have crime and drug issues.

I'm settled out in Northern NJ, but I do miss New England from time to time.

I doubt the winters are much different between northern CT and south western CT.

[Stratford, Ct. Resident]

Originally Posted by Seasoned

As far as salary, I would the sole provider and would be around $40,000 annually. So the plan would be to rent a 2 bedroom in the $800-$900 range. Can anyone shed some insight on this area of CT and if you think it's even possible to survive on $40,000 with a family of 4?

In comparison, I live in Lake Mary Florida. Nice town with good schools and low crime (one of those rarities here in Florida - LOL). I make $58,000 annually here.

Household income is $58K now in FL, and would go down to $40K if you relocated to CT.

I dislike FL intensely, but i would stay put. $58K is decent for there, $40K may as well be poverty here for a family of 4. Good luck with your decision.

[renovating]

Originally Posted by Seasoned

Hello all. First time poster here. I have an opportunity to move back to CT from Florida. The job available to me is in Somers though. I have never lived further north than Waterbury. In fact most of my life has been in Westchester and Fairfield counties.

I don't know much about Somers except that it where the prison is. Is Somers or surrounding towns a good place to raise a family? It just doesn't look like there is much up there. On the map it seems Springfield and Hartford are the closest "big", cities.

Does Somers have more of a harsh winter than southern and central CT? Are the schools good? Good medical care is important to us as well, so I am assuming Hartford would be the choice for Doctors, etc...?

Some other towns I was looking at that would be close are Enfield, Granby, Stafford Springs, and Suffield. Then going further away but being closer to family in Waterbury I was looking at Farmington and West Hartford.

As far as salary, I would the sole provider and would be around $40,000 annually. So the plan would be to rent a 2 bedroom in the $800-$900 range. Can anyone shed some insight on this area of CT and if you think it's even possible to survive on $40,000 with a family of 4?

In comparison, I live in Lake Mary Florida. Nice town with good schools and low crime (one of those rarities here in Florida - LOL). I make $58,000 annually here. I guess my biggest complaint here is the weather. From May-November it's too hot and humid. December, March, and April can be dicey, with January and February being awesome.

Thanks for reading and appreciate any input.

Why would you want to put a family of 4 in a 2 bedroom apartment?
Why would you take an $18,000 paycut (what is that over 25%?) to move to a more expensive area?
Can you survive on 40k with a family of 4? Possibly, but not very well.

If it has to be CT, I would advise to stay put until you get a job that pays what you are making in FL (or more) and can afford a larger place to live. Good luck!

[JViello]

I would look into Ellington. It's an easy ride up 83 to Somers (Nice town BTW), and an easy ride (15 minutes maybe) down 83 to I84 and all points Manchester/Hartford.

ECHN (Eastern CT Health Network ECHN) is expaning medical facilities all over Eastern CT. They have many new buildings in Ellington, South Windsor, Manchester etc so you'll have access to healthcare with Rockville Memorial being the closest hospital - about 10 minutes away.

Ellington itself is a very nice town. All the necessities (Grocery, hardware etc), some nice rental places and nice newer homes being built that are priced about the best you'll find in a CT metro.

Oh and I am a Waterbury native who USED to live in FL (O-Town) and like it East of the river much better than either place.

Good luck!

[KH02]

I would stay put. Somers, Suffield and Ellington have good schools and are nice towns, but they don't offer many rentals.
Any towns in CT with good schools wont have 2 bedroom rentals for 800 a month.

You would have a much better quality of life down in Florida for only making 40K a year.
I really would stay put.
Why would you take a big paycut to move to one of the MOST expensive places?? It makes no sense.

[GrotonMan]

Regarding the $40,000 a year topic, it is definitely do-able, however it will be tight. I grew up in a family of 7 on $45,000 in a three bedroom 976sf home. Granted that was then, and everything is of course a little more expensive now, but we got by fine, actually we had a great time. Most of the time we ended up just having to deal with not having the newest and best whatever, but that is one of the beauties of Connecticut, people aren't obsessed with having everything flashy, so there wasn't a lot of pressure to have everything. I think that for a lot of families, having a significantly reduced means of income would actually end up being one of the best things for them.
However, it does tend to put more stress on the parents trying to figure out where things are coming from next week...
I think that if your family wants to move up here, a 25% paycut, while significant and lifestyle altering, wont be devestating.

[KH02]

IF you are DEFINITELY moving up here, I would suggest that your wife try to get a job and help with the income as you WILL need it.

[JayCT]

The cost of living in the Hartford region is about 22% higher than central Florida. I got this from CNN-Money.com's Cost-of-Living calculator so I am not sure how accurate it really is. In general though you should be looking for a job that pays either the same or more than your current job just to maintain the same standard of living. JMHO

Enfield would be the best place to start looking for rentals. It is a nice suburban community next to Somers and there should be something there for that amount. Jay

[Stratford, Ct. Resident]

Originally Posted by GrotonMan

Regarding the $40,000 a year topic, it is definitely do-able, however it will be tight.

Anything is possible, however, the #1 reason that people divorce is.....MONEY. Top Reasons People Divorce - Associated Content

If the OP's spouse is 110% ready, willing, and able to make the move without reservation, then maybe it can work out. It really will be a rough road going from 58 in FL, to 40 in CT. JMHO.