Carmel v. Fishers Subs. (Hamilton, Brook: real estate, houses, landscaping)

[kwr]

I will be moving to Carmel or Fishers in a couple of months and have narrowed my search to 4 neighborhoods. The Carmel neighborhoods are Bridle Bourne, Laurel Wood and Villages of West Clay (my least favorite). I am interested in The Hawthorns in Fishers. My price range is $1.2-$1.8M. What are the pros and cons of each neighborhood? Which neighborhood has experienced the highest appreciation or is forecasted to do well. Please none of the Carmel is better than Fishers stuff. Thanks...

[grmasterb]

I strongly suggest that you contact a reputable realtor who can speak to the pricing trends for neighborhoods in that price range.

[sweetana3]

Yes, we dont usually get questions on an internet forum for houses in that price range. They are pretty customized (in Indiana) and require an analysis of similiar homes.

[domergurl]

Laurelwood is the home of our governor, fyi ...

There's an entire thread on West Clay

I know nothing of Bridlebourne ... sorry.

I used to live near the Hamilton Proper neighborhoods, which is what I'm assuming you are referring to as Hawthorns (that's the name of the attached country club). It's a beautiful neighborhood with little neighborhoods within the neighborhood. The golf course and club are luxe. The only red flag for me, and I was guilty of doing it was that 106th street runs clear through the neighborhood to Brookschool road, so that can be a busy street. I'm surprised they planned it like that.

[kwr]

domergurl - thx for your response. I am referring to Hamilton Proper; though, there is an area of the community called The Hawthornes that surrounds the golf course.

As for the other posters, certainly I have a realtor, but she only specializes in Carmel and thinks it is Utopia. Just want to get some other opionions...I really like a couple of homes in Hamilton Proper / The Hawthornes.

[sanjose]

several years ago, we looked at houses in that range, but for various reasons we didn't move back to indiana. we're once again considering it but we're probably a few years away and we're now looking at houses about 1/2 what you are (crummy CA real estate mrkt). there are obviously nice houses in both carmel and fishers at that price. we experienced the same thing as you "carmel is utopia". here's the conclusions we reached:

we would probably only spend that much to live in fishers if we were going to buy on geist and be on the water... otherwise carmel wins the debate. only negatives w/ carmel is the single high school... and depending on your lifestyle, fishers is a little more casual and liberal than carmel (based on our observations)... which was appealing to us. we also looked into the membership prices at hawthornes and it seemed pretty steep for an indiana country club.... but maybe that's the going rate??

we used the following site to get an overview of various neighborhoods in fishers and carmel.

Welcome to Fishers, Indiana

[sanjose]

... also, i agree with you. village of wc was our least favorite as well. having said that, it's much better in person than it is on the internet.

[domergurl]

Also, look at Bridgewater just down the road from Hamilton Proper in Fishers. Forest Knoll is also very nice, and like Bridgewater, are on the water.

I still like HP a lot though. I personally think they should have gated it.

[ndfan4190]

I live in Hamilton Proper in Fishers. It’s a very nice neighborhood, but word of advice; it’s cheaper to be a member to other local pools than the Hawthorns, making it more worth the money. Another huge plus of living in Hamilton Proper are the schools; the schools are fantastic. Carmel schools are traditionally better at sports, but if you want your children to have a better education, I would pick Fishers. Both Carmel and Fishers have roughly the same size school district. The school district in Fishers made the decision to have two high schools, this allows for smaller class sizes and more personal help to your children, if you have any. The main problem with Fishers is the traffic. I have lived in Fishers for 17 years and have seen it more triple in size. Carmel has less traffic issues, but the roads aren’t as nice. The main road in Fishers, 116th, is lit with nice street lights in the middle of brick medians, which have landscaping. This makes the town seem safer at night. Carmel does have the better night life, as it is closer to many more clubs and bars.

Basically: If you do not have children, and are not planning on having any soon, Carmel would be more likely fit.

If you do have, or plan to have, children, Fishers is the better pick. More neighborhood-like feel, better education, and many family oriented businesses; like The Bounce Zone, a building full of Moon Bounces, that never fails to bring joy to children. Also in summer Fishers has free concerts every Tuesday, to promote having "family time."

[domergurl]

Wow, I've never met anyone who has lived in fishers for more than 10 years!!! You're an oldtimer ... and an ND fan!