Help I am Relocating to Indianapolis (Columbus, Lawrence: how much, new home, neighborhoods)

[tropical21_26]

Hi everyone
I hope this forum can shed some lite to questions I have concerning
Indianapolis.
My husband is going into Residency in Indianapolis Next June, and we will be moving from Chicago
But, I know the future ahead for us in a new place will be better
we have 5 kids ages from 10-2yrs of age.
So here are some of my questions

Where is a good location to look for a house that is near his Hospital "which is in Indianapolis"

where is a safe,and family oriented place to live? such as the neighborhoods,etc.

ok, now the question about schooling
We are not rich, especially with 5 kids but, i need to find a really good school that is safe,friendly,and will work with my kids.
2 of my kids have a learning disability. they just go at a slower pace then the grade level that they are in so i need to find a school that will help them. but, i don't want them to be separated from the rest of the class and put in a special ed classroom.
I also would love for the school to be grades prek/k-8th grade.
Since I rather have all my kids go into the same school instead of then having different school they need to be dropped of at.

Oh I really hope someone out here can help.
Mom of 5 going crazy over here, even though I still have some time. It does go by quick.

[domergurl]

Does it have to be in Indianapolis??? You could get to the hospital from most of the burbs in good school districts, particularly, carmel, Zionsville, Avon, etc ... even the Center Grove school district of greenwood (white river twp). If you need to stay in Indianapolis, and want good public schools, look in Washington Twp. or Lawrence Twp. But if you go to that side of Indy, you may as well throw Fishers into the mix too. My former neighbor in Fishers worked at IU Medical School and didn't seem to mind the commute.

Hope that helps a little! From Chicago myself ... going back next weekend!

[tropical21_26]

Hi
Thanks for the response
my husband is going to work at IU Medical School
and of course we are looking into things now so we don't wait till the last minute.
well it doesn't have to be in Indianapolis, I just figured somewhere where it is safe and yet were there are also kids around so my kids can have friends on there block. plus, i really want the school to be good for the kids, I do know that my husband would like to have an easy commute to work, so i heard Southport was good because it is close and easier to get there without all the traffic.weird question to ask but, would you know how much a private school would cost around. of course in the city in chicago
it is ALOT! so my kids go to a public school here, but it is very good. anymore info would be great
as well as info about your friend who lived in fishers how long did they say it took them to get to work? and if the area is nice.
what part of chicago are you from?
we live on the South Side chicago.

[MikiJayne]

I grew up in Highland, IN, and I have a lot of family on Chicago's South Side. I live in Avon now and I love it. The schools are wonderful, and the commute downtown is easy. The schools don't go from k-8th grade here, but they do stagger the starting times so that drop off and pick up times are manageable. You can check out the Avon school syste here: Avon Community Schools - Index

[domergurl]

Private schools are probably less expensive than in Chicago, but to most who live here, private school is a luxury. Here, people tend to send their kids to private school by choice, not necessity, as it can be in Chicago, proper. When we lived in Fishers, it took my husband no more than 40 minutes to get to monument circle. My neighbor took a little bit longer. She's a dean at the med school. We lived on the east side of Fishers.

I grew up near south bend and high tailed in to Chicago as soon as a job presented itself. I lived all over the place, Evanston, Boystown, downtown, Brookfield, Grayslake, Valpo ... then Fishers, then Columbus. I'm tired of moving.

The Fishers schools are terrific, as are Avon's! Go to my sticky link about places to start doing your research on living in Indiana ... I have a link to the dept. of ed's website.

Best of luck! Hope you're a Bears fan.

[tropical21_26]

Thanks Mickijayne and domergurl

for both of your help. I really hope I can find something that will be safe,affordable,and friendly.
my husband said he doesn't care if he has to travel to get to the hospital. of course just as long as its not like a 2 hr drive. I think my major concern is for the kids. especially that the school system is good and near by.
I wanted to find a school that was with all the yrs combined "k-8" like how it is here in chicago. but, Yeah I did some research and they are not like that. well i did see some that were but, I dont even know locations and some of schools looked "ghetto" yes only looking for the outside
I think I am going to have to seriously think if I am going to continue to work and do a tranfer myself out to indiana.
Now that the school system seems different and they are separated but grades. I dont think I would have the time to travel and send 2 kids to 1 place and then 1 kid to another, and then the pick up.
but MickijayneL: did you say they have time differences? are the schools there public or catholic,privite? and how long is the drve from avon to indianapolis?
and Domergurl: you mentioned you are going to chicago this weekend are you moving back? and yes i like the bears, but I am ot really a sports fan. and yes i am a white sox fan, can you tell i am a Southsider
Question to both of you
what neighboorhoods would you say are good to stay in that are safe,affordable,things to do,family friendly and not secluded,as well as looks like the type of neighboorhood that will continue to grow and be a favorable place were people would want to live and the homes gain value. "well especially when the market goes back up" because i am from the city, i dont mind a change but, i also dont want another house a block away. i want like a neighborhood setting for the kids to play with the other kids on the block, but i also want a huge yard. I know i guess i am asking to much and i have to get the picture of Corn taken out of my head. because thats all i think when i think of indiana. "which i know is not true"
another question would be: Do you know anything about the Ryland homes"new built homes" are they any good? if not ryland any other ones that build new homes that are worth taking a look at? Thank you both for your help and putting upo with my crazy questions

[MikiJayne]

The schools in Avon are mostly close to each other, and have staggered start times. The Kindergarten and Elementary schools have the same start time because they are in the same building. My kid's elem. school starts at 9:05. The Intermediate school (grades 5 & 6) starts at 8:50 or 7:55 (there are two of them) the Middle School (7 & 8 grades) starts at 7:30, and high school starts at 7:30 too.

Avon is a great community on the west side of Indy. Home prices are LOW compared to Chicago. I live in a 3 bedroom, 2.5 bath 2 level home, over 2000 square feet, NOT built by the cheapest builder in town, with a third of an acre, and I paid under $140,000.

Ryland homes are pretty good, I did have one client who had a bad experience with them, but I'm sure all builders have at least a few missteps. Please do remember that when you have a new home built, you should still use a Realtor. It depends what price range you are interested in, but there is a lot of new construction in Avon. Some people think too much!

[domergurl]

The neighborhood where I lived in Fishers was adjacent to each and every school our children would have attended.

[sweetana3]

I was going to say what Domergurl did, if you do your research, you may be able to find a neighborhood with all the schools within a very short distance. We saw one in Fishers and there are others. Check out the location of the middle schools first since there are fewer of them or call the school districts and ask. In one or more locations they are next door. But be careful of the district lines so you are not assigned to a different school.

I would pay a little more for a school "around the corner".

[MikiJayne]

Domer and Sweetana... I have never lived in a place where all the schools are as close as you describe. Here in Avon, there are a couple elementary schools right next door to each other and the Intermediate schools are next to each other. I am curious about traffic flow. Did they stagger the start times like we do here to be sure it doesn't cause traffic headaches?