Commute to Baltimore, MD (Harrisburg, York: apartment, home, safe neighborhoods)

[diamondgirl45]

Hello, we are relocating soon from Michigan. Although Baltimore and area is pretty, it is very congested and expensive. I would like to raise my children in a place with a more relaxed pace of life. My husband could drive to work, as long as it is under an hour.
Any suggestions on safe, family friendly areas? Thank you.

[danwxman]

Originally Posted by diamondgirl45

Hello, we are relocating soon from Michigan. Although Baltimore and area is pretty, it is very congested and expensive. I would like to raise my children in a place with a more relaxed pace of life. My husband could drive to work, as long as it is under an hour.
Any suggestions on safe, family friendly areas? Thank you.

Southern York county or York's southern suburbs are nice, family friendly areas. Be wary of the commute, it might be harder than you think. If your husband works in Baltimore county, it may not be that bad of an option. There is even a bus that runs down I-83 to Hunt Valley.

[diamondgirl45]

Originally Posted by danwxman

Southern York county or York's southern suburbs are nice, family friendly areas. Be wary of the commute, it might be harder than you think. If your husband works in Baltimore county, it may not be that bad of an option. There is even a bus that runs down I-83 to Hunt Valley.

Thanks for the info. He works in Baltimore city, near John Hopkins University. Not sure if the bus goes there. I just thought it would be nicer to live in Pennsylvania, in a less congested area.

[Kit624]

The commute is probably going to take awhile. What about west of Bmore in MD?

[teachbeach]

Check the outer loop areas of 695. There may be some nice communities with amenities needed for your family. The other option is Southern York county. Many people commute to Baltimore and depending on the time of day, it can be anywhere from 55 minutes to double that..but the southern part of PA is beautiful, good school systems, about 20 minutes to York or Hunt Valley, MD for decent shopping.

[DoubleHelix]

Gettysburg has a number of Baltimore commuters. The commute takes a while but I'm sure you are prepared for that. The light rail can be picked up in Hunt Valley and takes you near Hopkins iirc.

[Kit624]

Good point. Gettysburg is a good location. A bit on the expensive side, and touristy, as the park is there, but lots of open land left while very close to Frederick, MD (good stuff going on there), not too far from DC, outlets, and etc.

[HbgGuru]

Originally Posted by diamondgirl45

Hello, we are relocating soon from Michigan. Although Baltimore and area is pretty, it is very congested and expensive. I would like to raise my children in a place with a more relaxed pace of life. My husband could drive to work, as long as it is under an hour.
Any suggestions on safe, family friendly areas? Thank you.

I know quite a few people who live in the suburbs of York and commute to the Baltimore area. I don't know much about raising a family in that area, but it's fairly common.

As far as commuting from Harrisburg...This is a subject I have a lot of experience on. In 2006, I started out by commuting from Hbg to Baltimore everyday. It was actually not too bad and between NPR and some Books on CD, I made the drive fairly productive. The trouble is the timing of the drive. If I could leave by 6am, it would only take me about an hour to get inside the loop (695). The later I would leave, the longer it would take. Same thing was true in the evenings. If you left before 4pm, it was usually about an hour. The later, the longer. Eventually I ended up getting an apartment down there and only coming back on the weekends. But if you're hours are flexible or it's temporary, it can work.

There are definitely some undesireable areas of Baltimore, but there are some nice suburbs also. The Hunt Valley area is supposed to be nice and I know some families in White Marsh (near the IKEA).

Lots of options. Good luck!

[Gil3]

Originally Posted by HbgGuru

I know quite a few people who live in the suburbs of York and commute to the Baltimore area. I don't know much about raising a family in that area, but it's fairly common.

As far as commuting from Harrisburg...This is a subject I have a lot of experience on. In 2006, I started out by commuting from Hbg to Baltimore everyday. It was actually not too bad and between NPR and some Books on CD, I made the drive fairly productive. The trouble is the timing of the drive. If I could leave by 6am, it would only take me about an hour to get inside the loop (695). The later I would leave, the longer it would take. Same thing was true in the evenings. If you left before 4pm, it was usually about an hour. The later, the longer. Eventually I ended up getting an apartment down there and only coming back on the weekends. But if you're hours are flexible or it's temporary, it can work.

There are definitely some undesireable areas of Baltimore, but there are some nice suburbs also. The Hunt Valley area is supposed to be nice and I know some families in White Marsh (near the IKEA).

Lots of options. Good luck!

Very true..I have left home a few minutes late, and this makes a huge difference in the volume of traffic I encounter. Some mornings I can breeze right in, and others, it's stop and go. On the way home, I sometimes take York Rd all the way up for a change of scenery and pace. This commute takes some getting used to, but thank goodness for Ipod. In all honesty, it's not bad.

[davidheal]

[FONT=Verdana]Hi[/FONT]
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[FONT=Verdana]same here. I'm relocating for a year from VA / Hampton area to Baltimore and will be working near Hopkins. I looked for places to live and it all seems very expensive in safe neighborhoods. I’m looking for a studio or one bedroom and can't find anything decent for less than 1 K. Not to mention Garage parking and utilities...[/FONT]
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[FONT=Verdana]I was wondering about living in Baltimore Suburbs...Is there somewhere I could live within 25 mins commute. I’m expecting to be driving to Work around 6:45 and returning around 6. [/FONT]
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[FONT=Verdana]Any advice is appreciated. [/FONT]