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We are trying to decide which is the best Dayton suburb for us to settle in. I've been stealthily reading every thread I can find on this exact same question, but I want to put ourselves out there in order to let the experts weigh in on our situation.
We are a family of 3, including a stay at home mom and a 1 year old. I'm working at Wright Patt on Area B. We are looking to spend around $125k - $175k but may be willing to go a little higher. We'd prefer a one-story but we're not ruling out two stories. Something around 1500-1800 sq ft would be ideal, nothing too much bigger. I'm looking for a 20 min commute or less. As far as type of community, we enjoy going for walks and running so sidewalks or bike paths are a plus, not looking for acreage, but having a garden is nice. I think some form of suburbia would work but it would be nice to have a sense of community, especially since my wife is staying home for now. We're looking for good public schools.
As far as personalities go we are both engineers, so slightly introverted, and we highly value education and frugality. Politically we are socially liberal and fiscally conservative.
One area that has seemed to fit the bill is along Rahn road between Wilmington Pike and 48, but part of that area is Kettering and we've heard mixed reviews of the Kettering school system.
In particular we're interested in learning more about the older parts of Beavercreek, Kettering, Oakwood and Centerville. Bellbrook as well.
You're describing large parts of the city of Beavercreek and parts of Bellbrook as well. In both cases the schools are second to none and there's a pretty good market for your price range and house size.
I would eschew Kettering for a few reasons: I was a youth leader at a local church for a few years, and I consequently have an extremely low opinion of Kettering schools. The kids don't call Fairmont "****mont" without good cause. My opinion differs from almost everyone else on this board, however.
Since you value frugality (as do I), taxes are way too high in Kettering in my opinion. Working on base, you'll still have to pay 2.5% of your income in city tax to Kettering. Also the property tax rates are significantly higher on all properties in Montgomery County (the second highest out of 88 Ohio counties).
If you live in a city that has no local income tax (Beavercreek is the largest locally and thus attracts lots of WPAFB employees), you can save yourself thousands of dollars per year.
Shoot me a PM, I can try to fill you in more (perhaps while I'm at work in, ahem, Area A.)
No surprise, you are putting Kettering and it's schools down again. That is all you ever do.
Kettering is a fine city and school system. Is it perfect? Of course not, but what school system is?
NWOH, that area of Kettering would be a good place and has good schools. I'd personally reccomend Kettering or Beavercreek, close to I-675. Most cities and schools around here are good though. Just comes down to what you want. I like Kettering for it's public services, parks, rec center, and because it is close to a ton of shopping. I grew up in Kettering and went to school there. One of my neighbors, they are both engineers at WPAFB and their oldes kid goes to Fairmont. So, I guess this horrible city and school district was good enough for them.
You're describing large parts of the city of Beavercreek and parts of Bellbrook as well. In both cases the schools are second to none and there's a pretty good market for your price range and house size.
I would eschew Kettering for a few reasons: I was a youth leader at a local church for a few years, and I consequently have an extremely low opinion of Kettering schools. The kids don't call Fairmont "****mont" without good cause. My opinion differs from almost everyone else on this board, however.
Since you value frugality (as do I), taxes are way too high in Kettering in my opinion. Working on base, you'll still have to pay 2.5% of your income in city tax to Kettering. Also the property tax rates are significantly higher on all properties in Montgomery County (the second highest out of 88 Ohio counties).
If you live in a city that has no local income tax (Beavercreek is the largest locally and thus attracts lots of WPAFB employees), you can save yourself thousands of dollars per year.
Shoot me a PM, I can try to fill you in more (perhaps while I'm at work in, ahem, Area A.)
Good to know he got his job at the base. Puts some explanation behind a lot of postings.
Postscript: Somewhere in here there's a message suggesting zip code 45415 (Shiloh and Upper Riverdale) is the wealthiest area around. That's not quite accurate. North is reportedly the most solvent area of town (and might be described as a hefty part of the "real Dayton").
Last edited by CarpathianPeasant; 08-28-2015 at 05:32 AM..
When I have time, OP, I'll get you a good list of neighborhoods and streets in Beavercreek that you could focus on. Your budget aligns well with much of Beavercreek's older neighborhoods, many of which date from the 1950's onwards.
As a quick start, check out Woodhaven in Beavercreek (bounded on north by East Patterson, west by Grange Hall, south by farm fields off Shakertown and the Autumn Leaf and Apple Valley neighborhoods and east by Seajay Drive).
Lot's of nicely cared for homes with mix of younger professionals and older retired folks. I believe trending towards younger families as the retired one-owner homeowners pass on. There's also a growing number of complete renovations of homes there too. A local private swim club that gets great word-of-mouth by members is at Lipton and Seajay on the edge of the neighborhood, though it is membership only (so no HOA fees for Woodhaven). I grew up on a street here and loved it. Valley Elementary was and still is a great school. Plus Beavercreek City Schools just opened a brand new preschool building on Kemp, attached to the district admin offices.
There are a number of other places I'll list later. For now, that can be a start.
We are trying to decide which is the best Dayton suburb for us to settle in. I've been stealthily reading every thread I can find on this exact same question, but I want to put ourselves out there in order to let the experts weigh in on our situation.
We are a family of 3, including a stay at home mom and a 1 year old. I'm working at Wright Patt on Area B. We are looking to spend around $125k - $175k but may be willing to go a little higher. We'd prefer a one-story but we're not ruling out two stories. Something around 1500-1800 sq ft would be ideal, nothing too much bigger. I'm looking for a 20 min commute or less. As far as type of community, we enjoy going for walks and running so sidewalks or bike paths are a plus, not looking for acreage, but having a garden is nice. I think some form of suburbia would work but it would be nice to have a sense of community, especially since my wife is staying home for now. We're looking for good public schools.
As far as personalities go we are both engineers, so slightly introverted, and we highly value education and frugality. Politically we are socially liberal and fiscally conservative.
One area that has seemed to fit the bill is along Rahn road between Wilmington Pike and 48, but part of that area is Kettering and we've heard mixed reviews of the Kettering school system.
In particular we're interested in learning more about the older parts of Beavercreek, Kettering, Oakwood and Centerville. Bellbrook as well.
Thanks for the help, and my vote is for pie!
Hey, sorry about the late reply I've had a lot on my plate to deal with recently.
I like the username!
Anyways, for Area B and your price range I'd put in a hearty recommendation for Kettering, in particular the central portion of Kettering between Stroop and Wilmington. The reason why is because Ackerman is decently bikeable, it is walkable to Trader Joe's/bookstore/Fraze Pavillion Concerts/Dorothy Lane Market/nice restaurants, etc., and it hits right in your price range. Given what you are looking for, this is really your best recommendation (aside from maybe far eastern Kettering close to Indian Riffle Park and The Greene - that has its own set of advantages/disadvantages).
Kettering Schools are great, the state normally scores them a statistically insignificant difference lower than Beavercreek so I'd consider the two districts comparable. With Beavercreek the taxes would be lower but you are sacrificing walkability. The neighborhoods wrightflyer mentioned are within your budget, but because they were older build from when Beavercreek was a township only there are no sidewalks. Also you'd be getting more land because they were platted for having wells.
A good compromise in Beavercreek if you are interested in saving the tax % would be some of the apartments and condos right by the Mall at Fairfield Commons. This area has some limited walkability now but is actively being built into a more walkable, bikeable area. Also if either of you are looking to go back to school it would be hard to beat a 10-15 min bike ride to WSU all on off-road bike trails!
As for other recommendations, here's two.
1. Oakwood east of Far Hills, South of Patterson - great walkability, very nice parks, and you're buying into the area's best school system. Right next to Kettering, and excellent walkability to Oakwood's boutique stores, Restaurants, and Dorothy Lane Market. Downside would be taxes, but you get what you pay for. Very nice community to consider.
2. Carriage Trails/Parktowne in Bethel Twp./Tipp City/Huber Heights - if you want a new house, low taxes, good schools, and suburban walkability, it would be hard to beat this choice. For the mid to top of your budget you could build new with Ryan Homes or buy a <5yr old house done by Ryan or Inverness. Walkable to a metropark, aquatic center, music center, and elementary school, with a lot of bike trails and ponds too. Downsides include an extra 5-10 minutes on the commute and the houses - they have less character since they are new build.
Hope this helps, if there is anything you'd like me to clarify please let me know.
Good luck!
I'd choose Kettering over Beavercreek personally...it has more of a neighborhood feel and less sprawl/strip-mall hell. There are better supermarkets and less chain restaurants. Beavercreek is also more conservative, since that's also something you mentioned.
Thanks for the quick replies and varying perspectives on Kettering and Beavercreek! We don't necessarily mind paying taxes in order to get good city services, which seems to be a positive in Kettering with their parks, city services and sidewalks (we are moving from a city with a 2.5% income tax). However, not having to pay income tax by living in Beavercreek would be a big saving, plus we'd be closer to the base and bike trails. And the overall impression I get is that Beavercreek schools out rank Kettering.
Wrightflyer, thanks for the info on older Beavercreek neighborhoods. I'd also be interested in learning more about the area bounded by grange (west), kemp (north), north fairfield (east), and dayton-xenia (south). Seems like there are many houses within our price range (or below which is a plus!) as well as on the east side of north fairfiled by the high school.
A few specific questions on my mind:
- I've gotten the impression some of the older parts of Beavercreek are not well taken care of by the residents (i.e. poorly maintained houses and multiple cars parked in yards). Does this impression ring true?
- Oakwood seems really appealing with kids walking to school, a community focus on education and great sense of community. The east side of 48 has houses within our price range and we don't mind the small size. However, is the community welcoming to newcomers? Is everyone there trying to keep up with Joneses? Overall it seems like Oakwood has great city services and schools for the high taxes they pay, we don't mind spending money on a community but we aren't interested in trying to fit in by obtaining possessions (or having our kids group up with that mentality). Also are the areas around Oakwood, especially North and East particularly, unsavory (i.e., I wouldn't want to go for a walk there or feel safe having kids walk there)?
Thanks for the quick replies and varying perspectives on Kettering and Beavercreek! We don't necessarily mind paying taxes in order to get good city services, which seems to be a positive in Kettering with their parks, city services and sidewalks (we are moving from a city with a 2.5% income tax). However, not having to pay income tax by living in Beavercreek would be a big saving, plus we'd be closer to the base and bike trails. And the overall impression I get is that Beavercreek schools out rank Kettering.
Wrightflyer, thanks for the info on older Beavercreek neighborhoods. I'd also be interested in learning more about the area bounded by grange (west), kemp (north), north fairfield (east), and dayton-xenia (south). Seems like there are many houses within our price range (or below which is a plus!) as well as on the east side of north fairfiled by the high school.
A few specific questions on my mind:
- I've gotten the impression some of the older parts of Beavercreek are not well taken care of by the residents (i.e. poorly maintained houses and multiple cars parked in yards). Does this impression ring true?
- Oakwood seems really appealing with kids walking to school, a community focus on education and great sense of community. The east side of 48 has houses within our price range and we don't mind the small size. However, is the community welcoming to newcomers? Is everyone there trying to keep up with Joneses? Overall it seems like Oakwood has great city services and schools for the high taxes they pay, we don't mind spending money on a community but we aren't interested in trying to fit in by obtaining possessions (or having our kids group up with that mentality). Also are the areas around Oakwood, especially North and East particularly, unsavory (i.e., I wouldn't want to go for a walk there or feel safe having kids walk there)?
Oakwood IS "the Joneses." Just because there's more cash in hand in Shiloh doesn't mean a thing.
Oakwood has a pretty fluid population now due to a number of reasons, to include new professionals moving into the area to work at WPAFB, a few at the Univ. of Dayton, as well as other locations in the Miami Valley, older residents are dying off or scaling down in retirement, and, as professionals move into the area, professionals also move out of the city with a change of jobs or transfer out of state. The view of Oakwood as old money, stodgy, insular, and unwelcoming is simply a myth that continues to be perpetuated.
Immediately to the north is the Univ of Dayton, which has a very low violent crime rate (especially in the day time). To the East is Kettering, and the Patterson Park area of Dayton, which is one of Dayton's best neighborhoods.
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Oakwood IS "the Joneses." Just because there's more cash in hand in Shiloh doesn't mean a thing.
