Moving from India – Town/School options in Fairfield County (Westport: sale, lease)

b2f10 · 05-08-2010, 08:24 AM

Hi, the many posts on moving to FFC are very detailed and useful. But I did not find any answering my query, so here goes -

We are from India and my husband is planning to take up a job in Fairfield for the next couple of years. I would be a stay-at-home mom to our 2 kids aged 7.5 and 2.5.

We are looking at renting close to their school/s in a friendly neighbourhood. We presently live in a place that sounds pretty close to what I have seen the posts here describe the County as -conservative, family-focussed, wealthy, reserved etc

. We now need to find not necessarily a very ethnically diverse neighbourhood, but a peaceful and friendly one, that is close to shopping areas as well.

Fairfield, New Canaan, Westport, Redding, Darien seem to be the top few places for good elementary schools. Keeping in mind our situation, it would be great to receive any intel/suggestions. As would any info on the fair rent range for a 2 or 3 bedroom accomodation.

Thanks in advance.

kidyankee764 · 05-08-2010, 08:29 AM

In Fairfield you get most for your money and still very good schools. You're best off living where you work. It's a great town.

JayCT · 05-08-2010, 11:25 AM

I agree Fairfield would be your best choice. It is a lot more affordable than the other towns you mention and being close to your husband's job would be an added bonus. Jay

b2f10 · 05-08-2010, 11:06 PM

Thanks for your inputs, kidyankee and Jay.

The issue at hand now is what to focus on first - finding a school or a home. Just thinking aloud - Is it possible that we take up a home, apply to the nearest school and expect to get enrolled? Or would a better way be to first get admission to a school and then hope to find a home close to that?

I should probably research more, but have not found information on applying for places in schools. Is the admission based on the proximity to school? What are the other criteria? I know these are a lot of questions - perhaps someone can direct me to a parents forum.

JayCT · 05-09-2010, 07:38 AM

Here in the US, the public school that a child goes to depends on where you live. Each school has an area it serves. All of the schools in the Town of Fairfield are excellent so I would not worry as much about which one your children would be in. It would be better for you to find a home first. Jay

KH02 · 05-09-2010, 09:35 AM

You don't need to apply for Public School.
Everyone whom lives in that town goes to a specific school automatically.
So just buy a house and your child will automatically have a spot in that towns school system.

Unless of course you would rather go to a private school...

b2f10 · 05-09-2010, 02:24 PM

Thanx for the heads up - has made it much easier for us.

b2f10 · 03-06-2011, 11:00 PM

I got very useful info on this forum about our move to Ffld county. We relocated to CT sometime ago and have more or less settled now.

I am writing now to recount some unpleasant things while househunting in Fairfield. We were looking at renting through an agent then and liked a couple of houses in the Black Rock Turnpike area.

But when we wanted to sign the lease, within one week of each other, once the houseowners came to know about us, backed off. One of them asked my husband to produce a certificate from his company. The HR in my husband's company, one of the oldest in CT, very helpfully provided the document. Even after she got what she asked for, the landlady wasn't willing to sign.

We of course gave up pursuing the matter further and found another place immediately. But these incidents have a left very bitter tastes for us. I know that these people are not representative of the larger population, but it certainly has made us wary of things. Just wanted to says these out aloud.

JayCT · 03-07-2011, 06:54 AM

I am sorry you had a bad experience. Was it more than this one thing? You make it sound like there was something else. Either way, housing discrimination is illegal and if you feel this is the case you could find a claim. Your agent should have advised you of this. I know it has been a while since you moved but you should know your rights. Jay

b2f10 · 03-07-2011, 10:37 AM

Thanks Jay. With regard to the houses, we just had these couple of things to contend with and no more. What was shocking was, they didn't even want to meet us before they decided they way they did. We also consciously decided to not take it up further with them as we wanted to prioritize. School time was coming closer and we were busy hunting for a preschool for our younger son.

We also encountered some things not nice when we went furniture shopping. The store had a sale on and we could see a distinct difference in treatment from the other locals present there when we asked them questions. We of course had the option of taking our business elsewhere.

While I know perfectly well that it usually takes time to accept foreigners, I thought it would be a bit better when it came to educated and obviously well to do people, like the houseowners seemed to be.

Since the school year started, I am an active volunteer for the PTA; my husband takes a very active part, through his company in their community outreach projects, mainly education and housing; I volunteer at an NGO that is doing very good work for the past several decades; and in general take active interest in the community we happen to live at the time. My neighbours gave me excellent references for my volunteering.

But my only concern is what my children will have to encounter, as they grow up here in the next few years. Though my older son invited all his classmates to his birthday party, he doesn't get too many invites from the class. Ditto with playdates. He only has them when I pursue the matter and manage to make them for him and not otherwise.

Sometimes I wonder whether the value of an 'international exposure' is worth it for the price that is paid for it. Are things headed in the direction of more and more 'difficult'?