Moving to DE/Philly Metro from NYC ( rent , house)

[elizamary]

Originally Posted by Postal68

Delly,

We are currently in Pennsauken, NJ and are looking to make a move due to ever rising NJ real estate taxes, and to find a better public school system for our children. We currently send them to catholic grade school but between tuition and taxes we are paying almost $11,000.

We both work in Philly, my wife in Center City and myself in West Philly.

a few questions

What is the median home type and price in Kent and Sussex ?

How are the public school systems ?

How far would the drive be to the closest SEPTA train to the city, which I guess would be Newark)

Oh boy, I know what you mean about tuition. I did that for 14 years. Toward the end it was costing me $500 a month for my two girls and that was 12 years ago.
Then came college. unfortunately, the well went dry. I spent thousands in Catholic school tuition.
Of course, People say that was your choice and it was but public schools in Philly scared the H out of me.
I lived in Northeast Philly before moving to DE. We live central DE in Kent county.
If you and your wife both work in Philly, I would think northen De maybe in the Wilminton suburbs, new castle or Newark.

I also know that NJ taxes are ridiculous and you would be wise in getting out.
Not sure about the schools in northen DE but I'm sure one of the other posters can help you out there.
good luck to you!!!

[Postal68]

Thanks Elizamary,

We are also from North East Philly originally, moved to Pennsauken when we got married 13 years ago. It was a perfect place at the time, now with our current situation it's not so perfect, although the neghborhood is still very nice with great neighbors.

[rdlr]

Originally Posted by Postal68

Delly,

What is the median home type and price in Kent and Sussex ?

How are the public school systems ?

How far would the drive be to the closest SEPTA train to the city, which I guess would be Newark)

Good Morning,
As per market statistics, for the the last quarter of 2007, the median price home in Kent County is $236,337. That's based on all closed sales in Kent County for that time frame.

I'm not qualified to speak on school systems. Our kids graduated from 2 different school districts, many years ago. Everybody has an opinion on that subject.

Also, I'm not sure if there's a septa train in Newark. Someone from that area, I'm sure will jump in and answer that.

As far as the Riverfront in Wilmington, yes those townhouses are the best. But, they are selling for the upper $400,000 to $520,000 range. There are many other newly constructed townhomes up there offered for less than $200,000, in well maintained neighborhoods.

Sorry I can't be more helpful.

Delly

[Postal68]

Originally Posted by Delly

As far as the Riverfront in Wilmington, yes those townhouses are the best. But, they are selling for the upper $400,000 to $520,000 range. There are many other newly constructed townhomes up there offered for less than $200,000, in well maintained neighborhoods.

Sorry I can't be more helpful.

Delly

What are the areas I should search for those other new construction Townhomes ? Would you happen to know development names or anything that would help /

Thanks

[elizamary]

Originally Posted by Postal68

What are the areas I should search for those other new construction Townhomes ? Would you happen to know development names or anything that would help /

Thanks

You may want to try Middletown and bear De. I understand there are many new developements going up in these towns.

[Postal68]

Originally Posted by elizamary

You may want to try Middletown and bear De. I understand there are many new developements going up in these towns.

Hmmm,

Bear was one of the areas I was looking into a few months ago.

[rdlr]

Originally Posted by Postal68

What are the areas I should search for those other new construction Townhomes ? Would you happen to know development names or anything that would help /
Thanks

Certainly. There are new townhouses ranging from $192,900 to about $245,000 in the following subdivisions in the city of Wilmington. Speakman Place, Browntown, McMullen Square, and Justison Landing. Also, some Wilmington subdivisions are identified as election districts, and known as Wilmington 02, Wilmington 26, and Wilmington 08. The Wilmington train station is very close to all of those.

You'll have to contact a local Realtor, or Google those subdivisions for more information.

Delly

[Tone509]

SEPTA has a Regional Rail train (R2) that travels north on weekdays from Newark into Churchman's Crossing, Wilmington, and Claymont before heading into suburban PA's Delaware County and the City of Philadelphia itself. On Saturdays, the train only goes as far south as Wilmington. The train does not come to Delaware on Sundays. From Newark to downtown Philly is a 90 minute ride. From Wilmington, maybe 70 minutes. The link provided in the post on the 1st page will be helpful.

In my experience and observation, Delaware as a whole has never had a particular strong crime problem. Perhaps in some parts of Wilmington and, according to a previous poster, apparently parts of Claymont as well. However, New Castle County is largely one big suburban lot. Kent and Sussex can lean rural (but would be a heckuva commute to PA).

Good luck!

[By~Tor]

JUST AN UPDATE:


I want to thank you guys for all your help... we found a realtor we're comfortable with, and we'll be coming down this weekend to look in the NE Philly area. There seem to be several great options there and we're eager to get the ball rolling and start figuring out where in the 19135 / 19125 areas we're going to wind up!

[maryCh]

By-Tor,

Glad to hear you have a realtor you're comfortable talking to! If you are lucky, the realtor is knowledgeable of both PA and DE; I do know from my own research the public school system can be VERY different county to county, let alone state to state. Not sure if you are set on public school, or if you are in a position to consider private or parochial. We never were in that position financially; public was and is our only option.

Keep us posted on your progress!

Mary